Hi Folks

Guru

Guru

outta stroke
Silver Member
Hello All. I just decided to start playing pool again. It seems that even after a dozen years that pesky bug can find me and take a little chomp. I stumbled across your happy (sometimes) little community while doing some cue research. I just thought I'd post a little wave to all.

I'm in Colorado now, but back in my heyday I was in San Antonio. I worked and played at Galaxy Billiards (NE. yeah, the biker one). I sure saw a lot of money change hands in that place.

All time favorite cue: A very basic four point Mike Wheeler built when he was working for Richard Black. Stupidity of youth... I sold it for what I paid for it (not much) and it was promptly locked in a safe with a price tag about 3 times what I let it go for.

Oh well, I'm babbling now. Time to go do a server upgrade. Just thought I'd post a little introduction since I've chimed in a couple of times now. Nice place, I may stay a bit.
 
Guru said:
Hello All. I just decided to start playing pool again. It seems that even after a dozen years that pesky bug can find me and take a little chomp. I stumbled across your happy (sometimes) little community while doing some cue research. I just thought I'd post a little wave to all.

I'm in Colorado now, but back in my heyday I was in San Antonio. I worked and played at Galaxy Billiards (NE. yeah, the biker one). I sure saw a lot of money change hands in that place.

All time favorite cue: A very basic four point Mike Wheeler built when he was working for Richard Black. Stupidity of youth... I sold it for what I paid for it (not much) and it was promptly locked in a safe with a price tag about 3 times what I let it go for.

Oh well, I'm babbling now. Time to go do a server upgrade. Just thought I'd post a little introduction since I've chimed in a couple of times now. Nice place, I may stay a bit.
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Hey Guru! Welcome to Colorado! Where are you? I used to play at Galaxy NE for many years. Played on their SWEL and nineball team. Then I played on a team for the Billiard Factory. What ever happened to Don Hoppe, he was a character! I had a great cue by Mike Wheeler when he was with Black also! Wish I never sold it. There was a gorgeous cue by Mike on E-Bay a couple of weeks ago. Think it was built fairly recently, maybe when he was working with Bill Schick?
 
Hola Fellow SA'er

coastydad said:
Hey Guru! Welcome to Colorado! Where are you? I used to play at Galaxy NE for many years. Played on their SWEL and nineball team. Then I played on a team for the Billiard Factory. What ever happened to Don Hoppe, he was a character! I had a great cue by Mike Wheeler when he was with Black also! Wish I never sold it. There was a gorgeous cue by Mike on E-Bay a couple of weeks ago. Think it was built fairly recently, maybe when he was working with Bill Schick?
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Hello! I wonder if we were there during the same time. I was the hulking figure at the door. Some knew me as Shane, but most just called me Tiny (go figure), or Eclipse.

Galaxy was a great place, and Don was quite a character to work for. The last I heard, third hand, was that he closed Galaxy down and kept Lil' Sturgis going (on Austin Hwy), then opened a gay and lesbian bar somewhere and made another mint off of it. I dunno exactly what the story is though, as I've been in CO for most of the last 10 years. I'm in Littleton these days.

Mike Wheeler, wow, another former owner. I saw the one on ebay and followed the auction droolingly. I didn't know he'd left to work with Bill Shick until the auctioner informed me. I'd love to get him to build me a replica of my old cue for sentimental reasons partly, but also because that thing felt like it was part of my arm. I know the cue doesn't make the game, and I played pretty strong with one of my Blacks, but that one just hit like a sledgehammer or a scalpel depending on my need at the time.

You even mentioned The Billiard Factory, another bright spot in SA. Richard was always quick on the discount for me, and I bought half a dozen cues there. The ones I bought elsewhere almost always went there for a cleanup and tip job by Terry. That guy was a wizard with shaft cleanup and tips. His hands must have been leather.
 
Hi you two too

Hehe, I see i'm not alone as a techie in this place. This should be fun.

Thanks for the well wishes Marry and DS.
 
Guru said:
Hello All.

I'm in Colorado now, but back in my heyday I was in San Antonio. I worked and played at Galaxy Billiards (NE. yeah, the biker one). I sure saw a lot of money change hands in that place.
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Is it the one right accross BONE HEAD and by the side of Topless dancer`s club? BONE HEAD is not as good as it sounds.
Welcome to the forum,Guru.
Vagabond
 
vagabond said:
Is it the one right accross BONE HEAD and by the side of Topless dancer`s club? BONE HEAD is not as good as it sounds.
Welcome to the forum,Guru.
Vagabond
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Sounds like the NorthWest location. Off I-10, next to All Stars Cabaret. I only played there a couple of times. I never really felt as comfortable there.
 
Guru said:
You even mentioned The Billiard Factory, another bright spot in SA. Richard was always quick on the discount for me, and I bought half a dozen cues there. The ones I bought elsewhere almost always went there for a cleanup and tip job by Terry. That guy was a wizard with shaft cleanup and tips. His hands must have been leather.
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Richard is still there. A great guy. I've only bought a few cues from him. With the service and decent prices, they'll be there for along time. Last time I was in there (June), Richard was doing a tip for Vivian Villareal.

There's a Galaxy Billiards off 410 and Datapoint that I used to play out, I'm sure it's not the same place you guys are talking about. Yeah, it's next to All Stars.

I used to play alot at Bradley's, they only had a few tables (all 9'ftrs), but they never bothered you and kept the music and TV low. Pool and beer was only $1 before 7pm. Great place.

Jim
 
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Welcome to the Board Guru! Sorry to hear you sold the cue you loved so much. Why do we do shit like that? I did say "we" because we all do it from time to time. Just pisses me off....!!!
 
Guru said:
Hello! I wonder if we were there during the same time. I was the hulking figure at the door. Some knew me as Shane, but most just called me Tiny (go figure), or Eclipse.

Galaxy was a great place, and Don was quite a character to work for. The last I heard, third hand, was that he closed Galaxy down and kept Lil' Sturgis going (on Austin Hwy), then opened a gay and lesbian bar somewhere and made another mint off of it. I dunno exactly what the story is though, as I've been in CO for most of the last 10 years. I'm in Littleton these days.

Mike Wheeler, wow, another former owner. I saw the one on ebay and followed the auction droolingly. I didn't know he'd left to work with Bill Shick until the auctioner informed me. I'd love to get him to build me a replica of my old cue for sentimental reasons partly, but also because that thing felt like it was part of my arm. I know the cue doesn't make the game, and I played pretty strong with one of my Blacks, but that one just hit like a sledgehammer or a scalpel depending on my need at the time.

You even mentioned The Billiard Factory, another bright spot in SA. Richard was always quick on the discount for me, and I bought half a dozen cues there. The ones I bought elsewhere almost always went there for a cleanup and tip job by Terry. That guy was a wizard with shaft cleanup and tips. His hands must have been leather.
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Wow man! I have been in Colorado for ten years also, I used to run around with Terry. We were and still are best buds. I worked part time for Richard at the Billiard Factory. I would also set up a booth at the big tournaments at the Galaxy and peddle stuff and do cue raffles. Terry quit doing cue repairs a while ago and sold his equipment to Ron Geyer. Terry works for the FBI in San Antonio now. If I remember correctly, Mike Wheeler got into some s##t and went away for a while. I think that Bill Schick helped him get back on his feet. Don't know how to contact him but Schick would probably know. I bet we know each other. Used to spend a lot of time at the Galaxy. Didn't Don Hoppe marry that hot waitress that worked there? I'll send you a PM with my phone numbers and maybe we can get together and hit some balls sometime. Take Care. Chris
 
This stroll down Memory Lane sponsored by Galaxy Billiards

coastydad said:
Wow man! I have been in Colorado for ten years also, I used to run around with Terry. We were and still are best buds. I worked part time for Richard at the Billiard Factory. I would also set up a booth at the big tournaments at the Galaxy and peddle stuff and do cue raffles. Terry quit doing cue repairs a while ago and sold his equipment to Ron Geyer. Terry works for the FBI in San Antonio now. If I remember correctly, Mike Wheeler got into some s##t and went away for a while. I think that Bill Schick helped him get back on his feet. Don't know how to contact him but Schick would probably know. I bet we know each other. Used to spend a lot of time at the Galaxy. Didn't Don Hoppe marry that hot waitress that worked there? I'll send you a PM with my phone numbers and maybe we can get together and hit some balls sometime. Take Care. Chris
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Wow, small freakin world. I'd heard about Terry going to the FBI, and heard he was really enjoying it. I'm glad, he's a top notch guy. Tell him I said hi next time you talk to him. Just describe me as the biggest white guy that ever walked into the factory. Funny you should mention Ron, that's who I sold the Wheeler to. If it hadn't been for the 4 figure price tag at the time, I'd have loved to buy it back from him (this was in the early 90's). He was pretty jazzed about the fact that it was one of the first 4 cues that Mike had done and had it documented as such. I sure can't blame him for knowing he'd scored big . Damn, I miss that cue, but I digress. Sorry to hear that Mike got himself in trouble. When I started this little stroll down memory lane, researching pool on the web, I expected to hear that he'd gone on to do great things. I guess there's still time for us all though.

If I remember correctly, Don married Gloria, the buxom brunette waitress. Most of them were hotties, and wild to boot. That was a fun/crazy place. I was sad to see it closed on one of my return visits, but I suppose it's better than going back and finding that it had all changed into something unrecognizable.

To the other folks in the thread... Hey! Thanks for the welcome!
 
Guru said:
Wow, small freakin world. I'd heard about Terry going to the FBI, and heard he was really enjoying it. I'm glad, he's a top notch guy. Tell him I said hi next time you talk to him. Just describe me as the biggest white guy that ever walked into the factory. Funny you should mention Ron, that's who I sold the Wheeler to. If it hadn't been for the 4 figure price tag at the time, I'd have loved to buy it back from him (this was in the early 90's). He was pretty jazzed about the fact that it was one of the first 4 cues that Mike had done and had it documented as such. I sure can't blame him for knowing he'd scored big . Damn, I miss that cue, but I digress. Sorry to hear that Mike got himself in trouble. When I started this little stroll down memory lane, researching pool on the web, I expected to hear that he'd gone on to do great things. I guess there's still time for us all though.

If I remember correctly, Don married Gloria, the buxom brunette waitress. Most of them were hotties, and wild to boot. That was a fun/crazy place. I was sad to see it closed on one of my return visits, but I suppose it's better than going back and finding that it had all changed into something unrecognizable.

To the other folks in the thread... Hey! Thanks for the welcome!
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Man I miss that place and the characters. Bobby Brown, Army Jack, Fast Eddie, and a whole bunch of others that I won't mention to protect the innocent! There were some great tournaments there with great play by great players. The guys that I loved to watch play the most was Little Gilbert from Austin and Bob Vanover. Saw both of them just devastate some top players. Gilbert used to move around a pool table like Fred Astaire around a dance floor. Not that they aren't both top players themselves! And the action! People betting on whether a fly would land on a ball! Great line from David Henson "You play for sport, I play for support". Good times!
 
Glory Days

coastydad said:
Man I miss that place and the characters. Bobby Brown, Army Jack, Fast Eddie, and a whole bunch of others that I won't mention to protect the innocent! There were some great tournaments there with great play by great players. The guys that I loved to watch play the most was Little Gilbert from Austin and Bob Vanover. Saw both of them just devastate some top players. Gilbert used to move around a pool table like Fred Astaire around a dance floor. Not that they aren't both top players themselves! And the action! People betting on whether a fly would land on a ball! Great line from David Henson "You play for sport, I play for support". Good times!
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Oh man, now you're bringing back memories. I had to call Don out to back Bobby against a very young (had to come in with his dad young) Shannon Daulton. That was a sight.

Army Jack was very helpful with my game for a few months, and is the guy who got my one-handed game very sharp (then). I ran by Bjorn's when I was home on a visit a few years ago, trying to track him down, but they didn't know who I was talking about.

"Little" Gilbert, haha. That guy was (i'm sure still is) so smooth. I loved watching him play too. Bob Vanover sure tought lessons in how to win... get ball in hand. That guy was brutal with conservative play.

What was the best part of that place is that you'd have very conservative and strong players like Gilbert and Bob V. show up, but contrasted with folks like Bobby Browns tongue-out-crazy-eyed-style and Smokey Bartlett with his one handed jumps or wild hustles like betting he'd place using a warped house cue, and doing it. The gambling, holy shnikes. I watched guys pitching quarters at the head spot for a hundred a pop just to stay entertained while a 5k round of one pocket was going on at the next table. I had to walk some of the wealthier backers out to thier cars after to ensure that nobody got robbed, as I'm sure you remember how rough that area was sometimes.

You mentioned Fast Eddie, I don't know if you mean the biker that shot there on the bar boxes with the crazy pseudo-fro, or Fast Eddie Parker. Both were real characters. I was sad to read recently about the later's passing. I had a lesson from him once at Diamond J's and watched his show several times. He'll be missed.

I now return you all to your regularly scheduled foruming
</babbling>
 
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