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Small town,
big responsibility
"You can’t force anyone to do something, but you just have to be there to help them when they need it.”
The Powderhorn Saloon sits in the heart of Bragg Creek, a small, sleepy hamlet 40 minutes west of Calgary that's popular with outdoor enthusiasts. The saloon certainly a “cowboy" establishment, with saddles hanging from the rafters, swinging saloon doors, and the various brands of nearby ranches burnt into the bar.
It’s also home to three of the 6,000 video lottery terminals (VLTs) found in Albertan pubs and bars. Other than buying a lottery ticket at the gas station, the machines are the only opportunity for gambling in the area.
Powderhorn bartender Matthew Field has seen his share of gamblers sitting at the slot machines.
Rhyme or Reason
Tough times
Like patronage of the bar in general, usage of those VLTs hasn’t been immune to the recent economic downturn in Alberta.
“Those locals that we know on a daily basis, we rarely see them gamble like they used to,” explains Powderhorn bartender Matthew Field. “The customers coming and playing a twenty, that hasn’t stopped, because you can still afford a quick twenty and a cheap thrill for five minutes. The ones that I’d consider actual ‘gamblers,’ they’ve definitely decreased.”
Gambling Down
Video still: Powderhorn bartender, Matthew Field
(Patrick Gibson/Calgary Journal)
Knowing your neighbours
Ninety-nine per cent of the patrons who take a seat at one of the three stools and put some cash in the machine do so quite responsibly, says Field.
“People who want to gamble, they’ll go there, they’ll win or they’ll lose and then they’ll leave. Generally, it’s not an issue at all, people are great and manage themselves,” he explained, adding gambling could be more problematic in the city. “I think it might be different in bigger places. I think casinos deal with that problem more often, of people blowing a thousand a day. (Our VLTs) but they’re not that fun.”
Bragg Creek is one of those small towns with that “everybody knows everybody” sentimentality. In the rare case that someone becomes overly engaged with one of the slots, Field says often it just helps to speak with them like an old friend.
"If you know the customer, you can talk to them. We're a small town, so we generally know a lot of the people that are coming in. You can talk to them, even just distract them a little bit."
Continued the bartender, "Even just being friends with them, like 'How're you doing? What's going on in your life?'”
Tricky incident
In the eight years that Field has worked the bar at the Powderhorn, he says he’s only had to call for outside assistance once with a problem gambler.
"I had one gambler in here, and I actually called the AGLC and said 'I don't know what to do with this guy,' and they gave me some good advice on how to get him to stop gambling, because he was getting angry,” the bartender recalled. “I came up to him and told him to calm down, that he was causing a ruckus, and he got aggressive, punching and swearing at the machines. The AGLC was really good about it, and actually remotely shut the machine down for us."
Tough Incident
Big government
Field and his employer, proprietor Rose Dallyn, had praise for the AGLC and the technical infrastructure it has set up to make sure gaming in Alberta is conducted in a responsible manner.
"The AGLC hotline people are very good,” says Dallyn. “Even if we have a power outage, they'll call right away to ask what's going on. They know everything, and they're very specific about what they do."
However, while Dallyn is happy with her establishment’s relationship with the provincial regulatory body, she says there’s a little bit of hypocrisy at play.
“They even advise you on what chairs to put in front of the VLTs. They want you to be comfortable and stay, but then they don’t want you to over-gamble,” the owner added. “The AGLC has this fine line. You want to be friendly to them, make them comfortable so they stay longer, but don’t get addicted. They want a little bit of everything.”
“We want the money, but we don’t want to be accountable for someone’s problem,” said Field, summing up their take on the AGLC’s position.
The pair still maintain that gambling has a place in Alberta’s bars and pubs. It’s different across the border in British Columbia.
“They don’t have VLTs in B.C.,” Field continues. “It’s weird that they don’t want that there. I like to gamble too when I’m places, and I find it really weird going to B.C. where they don’t have that stuff.”
At the end of the day, they’re just looking after their friends and neighbours, says Field.
“You can’t force anyone to do something, but you just have to be there to help them when they need it.”
Slots as Attraction
Patrick Gibson/Calgary Journal