Moving to Vegas need tips

So I have always been fascinated by aircraft and absolutely love watching them. Having grown up spending summers in Virginia Beach and getting to observe so much military equipment, drills, and training my favorite was always the aircraft. Now I am about to be living in Nevada where some of the most secret and coolest birds fly! I'm looking for tips, spots to go, and anything else some of you fine folks who frequent this forum can help with. I am super excited to be a 3hr drive from starwars canyon as I've seen the pictures you guys are bringing back. So hit me with it...what times of year are good and where/when? Anything helps as I'm new out here.

Hold on 16 or above, hit on 15 or below.

a reply to: RickyD

Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Park at Gate 3 I think it is. Go along Las Vegas Blvd, but don't go on the base side of the road. You can park anywhere at the speedway along the road and be fine. They'll come right overhead as they land.

The other spot is Cheyenne Blvd. Again, don't park on the base side. Park anywhere you're not blocking a business driveway. They'll pass right over as they launch.

They change direction based on winds, but at either spot you'll get great views.

Keep an eye on the Nellis website for Red and Green Flag dates.

Jedi is currently 1500 and above, so don't drive all the way out there for nothing.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Already thinking about a trip to starwars canyon is it often active or is it the type of place you go a bunch in hopes to catch something? I've never really been this close to,a place that tests so many new things...not even just the black side of things. I will for sure be trolling the mufon sightings for nevada as I noticed when you approach it not looking for aliens its pretty easy to determine when people are seeing black flights and that at least lets you know round about when things are being tested. Thanks for the reply Zaphod...maybe I'll see you around out here sometime lol!

a reply to: Mark08

More of a roulette guy...last visit I rolled 400 into 1600 over about a 4-5hr sit down =P

a reply to: RickyD

Until they lift the restrictions there's not much point in Star Wars, unless you want to go to one of the other waypoints. There's no word on if or when they'll lift them.

Here is a tip. do not blow all your money in the Casinos. You cannot see impressive aircraft from inside Caesars palace on the strip.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Awww...that makes me so sad...that was one of,my bucket list things. Now I need to make friends with a general or something lmfao!

a reply to: rickymouse

I'm not really a go and gamble for the hell of it kinda guy tbh...its fun occasionally though as long as you have limits. I'm moving out here as a lighting tech for live events so it's all about making money not giving it away lol.

a reply to: RickyD

They may lift them after the accident report is released. We'll just have to wait and see.

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: rickymouse

I'm not really a go and gamble for the hell of it kinda guy tbh...its fun occasionally though as long as you have limits. I'm moving out here as a lighting tech for live events so it's all about making money not giving it away lol.

If I go to the casino, I allow myself to only spend twenty five dollars maximum for gambling in a day. I go about four times a year and three of those are while I am at a three day archeology conference. The other is on my birthday usually, I get ten bucks worth of free gambling money and also a free drink which my wife drinks.

a reply to: rickymouse

I checked out the new and old vegas strip last time I was here...i liked the old. Big difference was the table min. on the fancy new strip at night most tables had a 25$ min with a few 15$ min. Freemont which is the old vegas was more commonly 10-15$, however the day we flew out I learned early in the morning the min. is like 5$ and thats the time to,do it if you wanna go cheap. A lot of it is all odds and to let the odds play out beat you need a good 10-20 plays...thats why I wont go often. I'd rather got with 400-500$ once a year than spread it out.

I am more excited about the amount of music I will have access to, the work/money i can make, and the fact I get to enjoy some of my favorite hobbies like aircraft spotting and snowboarding in the rockies again!

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: rickymouse

I checked out the new and old vegas strip last time I was here...i liked the old. Big difference was the table min. on the fancy new strip at night most tables had a 25$ min with a few 15$ min. Freemont which is the old vegas was more commonly 10-15$, however the day we flew out I learned early in the morning the min. is like 5$ and thats the time to,do it if you wanna go cheap. A lot of it is all odds and to let the odds play out beat you need a good 10-20 plays...thats why I wont go often. I'd rather got with 400-500$ once a year than spread it out.

I am more excited about the amount of music I will have access to, the work/money i can make, and the fact I get to enjoy some of my favorite hobbies like aircraft spotting and snowboarding in the rockies again!

When I was in Vegas, I would go bet on a mouse that ran into colored holes when released. Whatever color I put my chip on the mouse ran into that color hole. It was a buck a bet, I made about two hundred fifty times over maybe six trips to that table, all of which I spent in the slot machines and a buffet or two. The girl changed the mouse half a dozen times and every single time it went into my color hole I chose, she even told two people who were there one time to bet the color I chose because I never lost. One time I was there, the manager came over and asked if there was any cheating and the she said no, that the mouse always runs into the hole of the color I choose, every single time, all six of the mice. The guy watched, every mouse every time, he looked at me weird. I told him that I take all the winnings and play them in slot machines and come back when I need more money. He shook his head and walked away and the girl and the couple there laughed and I made another ten bets or so and we all made money.

Why is my name Rickymouse?

U wana see cool things ... go north armagosa or hawthorn

Las vegas is much more mundane than it's made out to be

a reply to: markovian

Oh I know the vegas area is mundane I was more looking for tips on other more remote locations in the area to spot aircraft doing the more exciting training. As well as knowing the state is home to a lot of undisclosed "black" projects that one might happen to witnesses if lucky. I know there are a lot of folks here who kinda know more than they can say about "those things" as well as where training flights occur. So here I am on a fishing trip to see what advice and tips I can catch. I know none of the folks in the know here will give me anything they shouldn't but I also don't know what they can advise so why not find out lol.

a reply to: rickymouse

Dude thats a fantastic vegas story...next time I go into a casino I'm gonna ask about these mice of olden times if I see anyone I think might know. Sounds crazy as hell!

a reply to: RickyD

Go spot Nellis and meet the locals. They'll give you the spots to go to on the range for JFEX where you might get some fun stuff. You can watch the Red Flag guys fighting, the JFEX guys running low level, the heavies landing on dirt strips....

a reply to: Zaphod58

See thats what I'm talking about. Getting to watch some dogfight encounters or any fancy flying outside the air show type stuff is interesting as hell to me. Also seeing the big boys do manuvers that seem to defy physics is an awesome sight to behold! I think it was last month in Nashville I was able to spot a solo blue angel F-18 off my back patio. Not sure what he was doing in the area aside from a quick top off or over night at the airport just 5min from my house, but he was low I'd say about 5k maybe 8k off the deck. Only just barely caught it but having grown up around the sound I immediately knew it was an F-18 and ran out just in time to see the tell tail blue paint job with yellow stripes. I actually got really lucky in Nashville living close to the airport there seeing harriers, A-10s, F-16s, F-18s, F-15s, and God knows how many cargo planes. Not really the place I thought I'd see so many various aircraft at all.

a reply to: RickyD

There isn't a lot to see with the dog fighting, mostly contrails circling each other, but you occasionally get some great sonic booms. You'll catch them going off to the tanker and back too. One guy I know was up on one of the hills and had 3 B-1s go screaming by at his level around the hills.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Well apparently they have a red flag confirmed from 1/27 to 2/14...so if I can get my S#*! together I'll try to get out there for a couple days of it. Maybe I'll make a thread closer and see if anyone else around here will be going out.