A TEST OF THE PEERIBLAH EARLY WARNING SYSTEM:
TESTING THE DOTS FOR A PEERICON IN JULY

I’m curious to know if anybody out there in Dipland would be interested, seriously interested, or even more than just interested in attending a PEERICON at the end of July. I’d value your input and feedback on the idea, but I’m not committing to hosting such an event until I get enough positive feedback to make it a viable possibility. You can respond on any of the FB Diplomacy sites (My listing is under Laurence Peery) or Meet Up Diplomacy pages (San Diego Diplomacy Group works the best), but I prefer a direct email copy to peery@ix.netcom.com. Feel free to pass this on to anyone you think might be interested in attending.

Why: To help me celebrate my 70th birthday the best way I know how --- getting robbed of my dots and pounded at the Diplomacy table.

Who: Thee and me and a few of our Dippy friends of all skill levels, from novice to Old Fart. And of course, beginners and foreigners are especially welcome. This is your chance to meet and greet old friends and make some new ones. My blood type is A-, what’s yours?

What: It’s been XXXV years since the first PEERICON was held in 1982. It attracted 14 players. The second held a few months later and attracted 54. The guest of honor was Ted Williams. Well, that’s another story.

I’ve hosted or attended North American DipCons in ’71, ’89, and ’05; the first World DipCon, the first European DipCon and some 35+ Diplomacy “majors” and God-only-knows how many “minors.”

Events: Diplomacy (regular, variant, individual, team events as desired) and other Peeriblah of course. Not to worry, I won’t be running the tournament(s). I plan to farm out all the work and kick back with a cold Tab, peeritificate and enjoy the show. As I showed with the 2005 DipCon at Sea, I tend to throw out the play book when planning an event. When people object that, I just smile and say: “Why not? I wrote the book, didn’t I?”

When: As is traditional, the 2017 PEERICON will be held the last weekend of July from the 28 -30 (Fri-Sun) with a possible Thurs and/or Mon etension. That’s two weeks after the WDC in England and I know of no conflicting Dip events.

Where, Venue: The big surprise (and you knew there was going to be one, right?) is that I am thinking, seriously, about hosting this event in Salt Lake City, Utah. What, you’re thinking, “Is he crazy?” Well, perhaps. But hear me out! SLC, as it is commonly known, isn’t what it used to be or what you probably think it is if you haven’t been there since it hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics.

Here’s an article from today’s Washington Post (Not exactly a paper you’d expect to be singing the praises of SLC, right?)

It’s all true but I should point out that their story is about snow skiing in the SLC area but, yes you can, also water ski there in the summer, but not on the Great Salt Lake. It’s just not deep enough.

SLC is clean, safe, reasonably priced, visitor friendly, and it’s also fun and interesting --- not to say historic. Trust me, I know. My family and SLC go back a long way.

The biggest arguments for and against having a DipCon class event, and would I host any other kind, are the same: it’s never been there. To those who say, “Why there?” I say, “Why not?”

Where, site: Other than the Diplomacy, the biggest single factor that makes or breaks a DipCon’s success is the site where it is held. I think I’ve found a winner in my choice this year. (Drum roll please.). It’s the Peery Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City; it’s a hotel that is historic, modern and reasonably priced. It has a restaurant, bar, meeting rooms (I’m looking at the Onyx Room which has 2,200 square feet, tables of eight, and everything we’d need and doesn’t have a lot of things we don’t need or want.) Attendance will be limited to 70, maybe 80 tops if I’m feeling particularly chirper that weekend. There are Queen, King, and King + Queen sofa “suites” available. Room house rates run around $125, although I expect to pull a Trump deal and get that lowered. Oh, although you probably won’t be interested there is also a free fitness center, and you will be interested in the free (!!) wi-fi. You can learn more about the hotel at peeryhotel.com.

And, yes, I’ve stayed there. They treated me like royalty which, in SLC, I am.

Transport: A dozen airlines fly into SLC Airport from 90 some US destinations and 9 foreign ones. All the usual airlines use it and it’s a Delta hub. KLM and Air Canada also both use it. From the west coast a RT runs about USD 200 on Southwest. Amtrak’s Zephyr links it with San Francisco and Chicago daily. I should note that it’s about equal distance.

Costs: If you want big, fancy trophies then you can expect big, fancy registration fees. Otherwise they’ll be reasonable.

Last thoughts: Even if it doesn’t happen at least I got to think about it. And during a long, cold, and wet winter, that’s not a bad thing --- especially looking forward to The Big 7-0!