Smoke signals., April 01, 2006, Page 3, Image 3

Smoke Signals 3
Oasis Gaming System Requires New Gaming Cards And Provides New Services
"Ticket In, Ticket Out" works on all 1 ,500 machines.
APRIL 1,2006
By Ron Karten
In February the Spirit Mountain
Casino launched the Oasis gaming
system for slot machine play. Play
ers will trade in their old cards for
new ones at the Coyote Club desk,
and in turn will receive personal
ized service for every player.
The new cards provide updated
point totals, prize and award-level
notification along with ongoing
promotional news.
With the upgrade to machines
comes another part of the new look:
colorful interactive touchpad screens
that enable Coyote Club members to
access their personal information.
Club Members have long sought
the convenient "Ticket In, Ticket Out"
capabilities that allow club members
to avoid having to cash out every
time they change machines. The new
"Ticket In, Ticket Out" feature allows
club members to go from machine to
machine with the card keeping track
of spending and payouts.
At the end of March, the casino was
expecting to have kiosks, like ATM
machines, up all over the casino floor
to allow customers to cash out using
the new cards at any time.
Soon, the casino expects club
members to be able to use the cards
like debit cards at casino gift shops
and restaurants.
The new cards feature an image
of a howling coyote on a smoky
purple and orange background.
Like ATM cards, customers will
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New Technology In Place The new "Ticket In Ticket Out" program for the
casino's 1,500 machines, photo above, allows players to cash out whenever they want
instead of whenever they change machines. The program also provides updated point
totals, prize and award-level notifications and ongoing promotional news.
need to provide a secret pin number
to access the cards' capabilities.
At the same time, because these
features are available, customers
will ensure that they are earning
points for play.
All these changes come at a time
when the Cowlitz Tribe is in the pro
cess of seeking approval for a casino
and destination resort in La Center,
Washington, 25 miles north of Port
land, and the Warm Springs Tribe is
seeking approval for a casino at Cas
cade Locks in the Gorge, 40 miles east
of Portland. Each will compete for
Spirit Mountain's Portland metro cus
tomers. The Spirit Mountain Casino
is 60 miles southwest of Portland.
"With formidable competition on
the immediate horizon," said Tribal
member and casino General Man
ager Randy Dugger in the March
issue of Coyote Tracks, our current
position as the No. 1 gaming desti
nation in Oregon will become tenu
ous unless we anticipate and meet
the need to change and improve.
Additionally, we must adapt to a
radically shifting industry land
scape by providing a fresh, edgy
and attractive environment."
New Construction At Casino Leads To More "Colorful" Payouts
The "Rapid Riches" slots area set aside for 100 jackpots every day on 77 penny and two-cent machines.
By Ron Karten
Along with the changes at the
slot machines, the casino is busy
on a number of other fronts to
stay ahead of the competition.
One of those is slated to open
on April 1. The new "Rapid
Riches" slot area, parked in
the old Off-Track Betting area,
offers 77 penny and two-cent
machines patterned after the
"Money Factory" slots.
The casino set aside this
room where all 77 machines
are linked together to play for
a mystery jackpot that will hit
a single machine for the win.
"We call it a mystery jackpot
because nobody knows when
it's going to go off," said casino
General Manager Randy Dugger.
"Like any wide area progression,
it sets money aside and pays that
out over time," said Dugger. "You
can win anywhere from $5 to sever
al thousand dollars. You just don't
know when it's going to go off."
"Rapid Riches" will be decorated
with a large colorful carousel,
confetti on the floor and brightly
colored walls with confetti designs
higher up.
More to the point, however,
"Rapid Riches" also will be the
casino's new "high-yield" slot
jackpot room, promising as many
as 100 jackpots a day at three dif
ferent levels.
Kent, Washington-based New
Image did the design. B
Cool Colors The new "Rapid
Riches" room in the old Off
Track Betting area at the casino,
photos at right, promises great
returns for small investments. The
one- and two-penny machines
here are"tied"together for wide
area progression payouts. The
machines set money aside and
pay it out over time. For players,
that means one machine in the
room becomes a jackpot based
on the amount bet in all the
machines. And it should happen
some hundred times a day.
Photos by Toby McClary
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