Episode 126: Derek Thomson on YEGPIN

Pinball Profile·podcast_episode·15m 2s·analyzed·May 1, 2018

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.023

TL;DR

Derek Thompson on Yegpin: 750+ attendees, challenging tournaments, non-profit model, Stern Circuit ambitions.

Summary

Jeff Teolis interviews Derek Thompson about Yegpin (May 4-6), a major pinball tournament and arcade expo in Edmonton, Alberta that has grown to over 750 attendees. The event features 190+ pre-registered competitors across multiple divisions, challenging game setups, VIP parties with machine giveaways, and is organized as a non-profit by the Die Hard Pinball League. Derek discusses the event's evolution from casual pinball nights, its community-driven structure, and aspirations to become a Stern Pro Circuit event.

Key Claims

Yegpin attracted over 750 people last year across three days with numbers expected to exceed that this year
high confidence · Derek Thompson stating official attendance figures for the event
Close to 190 people pre-registered for the Classics and Western Canadian Pinball Championship tournaments
high confidence · Derek Thompson providing pre-registration numbers
Die Hard Pinball League operates as a non-profit with all proceeds going back into the league and show
high confidence · Derek Thompson explaining the organization's non-profit structure
Yegpin takes nine months to organize with a 12-person executive team and 65 volunteers
high confidence · Derek Thompson detailing organizational scale and timeline
The number one player in the world will be attending Yegpin
medium confidence · Derek Thompson mentioning top-ranked players including 'the number one player in the world'
Josh Sharp has indicated Stern Pro Circuit qualification requires attracting the best players in the world, not just tournament attendance numbers
high confidence · Derek Thompson paraphrasing conversations with Josh Sharp about Stern Pro Circuit criteria

Notable Quotes

“It's a nine-month endeavor. We have a team of 12 on the executive team that really put together Yagpin. We have 65 volunteers that come together at the event as well during the three days”
Derek Thompson @ mid-episode — Demonstrates the massive organizational commitment required to run a major pinball tournament
“It's non-profit. So Die Hard Pinball, all the proceeds for our event and everything go right back into the league and go right back into the show each single year.”
Derek Thompson @ late episode — Explains the business model that allows Yegpin to offer higher prize money and VIP perks
“Well, Derek, you just got to get the best players in the world to come to your event, and then you have one. It doesn't matter that we get 150 to 200 people at our tournament.”
Derek Thompson (paraphrasing Josh Sharp) @ late episode — Reveals the tension between Stern Pro Circuit's player-ranking focus versus community tournament size in qualification criteria
“We try to loosen the tilts up just a little bit as well since the machines are a little bit more difficult for setup”
Derek Thompson @ mid-episode — Shows specific game setup philosophy balancing difficulty with fairness
“The only time I find a game when it's too difficult is you're shooting a ramp and it flies off the rail and it goes in the out lane. That's not difficult. That's just a flaw in the game.”
Jeff Teolis @ mid-episode — Expert perspective on tournament game setup distinguishing between intentional difficulty and mechanical flaws

Entities

YegpineventDerek ThompsonpersonJeff TeolispersonDie Hard Pinball LeagueorganizationJosh SharppersonTommy FloydpersonRaymond DavidsonpersonJermaine MircellipersonRobert GagnonpersonBrian Holdermanperson

Signals

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community_signal: Non-profit tournament model funding operations through donor community and pre-sales rather than vendor sponsorships; structured VIP party with machine giveaways
high · Derek Thompson explaining non-profit structure and Friday night VIP party with Joker Poker and Q-Bert machine giveaways
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competitive_signal: Yegpin positioning as potential Stern Pro Circuit event; Derek in dialogue with Josh Sharp but philosophical differences exist on qualification criteria
high · Derek Thompson discussing conversations with Josh Sharp about Stern Pro Circuit requirements focusing on top player participation versus tournament size
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event_signal: Yegpin experiencing significant year-over-year growth with 750+ attendees last year and numbers expected to exceed that; 190+ pre-registered tournament players
high · Derek Thompson: 'We had over 750 people attend the event last year over the three days. This year's numbers are looking to exceed that number'
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market_signal: Western North American pinball growth signaled by U.S. players from Seattle committing to attend Yegpin for first time
medium · Derek Thompson: 'This year, we've got the Seattle guys that are coming, you know, and that's a big breakthrough for us, getting someone from the U.S. to actually come up'
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competitive_signal: Yegpin uses Papa-style difficult game setups including fatty rubbers, pulled lanes, and two-by-six boards to balance speed and skill differentiation across multiple divisions (A, B, Novice, Women's)

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.045

0:00

it's time for another pinball profile i'm your host jeff tiolis you can find our group on facebook we're also on twitter at pinball profile email us pinball profile at gmail.com and please subscribe on either itunes stitcher or google play let's go out to edmonton in fact i plan on doing that when a lot of people out east are going to allentown and checking out that fine event. I'm heading west and going to Edmonton, Alberta, where I'll be seeing Derek Thompson, who joins us right now. Hey, Derek, how are you? Awesome. How's it going? Well, we're Canadian. We have to say, how's it going, eh? How's it going, eh? There we go. That's much, much better. I'm looking forward to this big event, and we're here to talk about Yegpin, something that you've done for a few years. How did it evolve from the diehard pinball club that is so big in Edmonton? Oh my God. Yeah. What have I gotten myself into here? But the story really comes from pinball and I attended that event in 2014 and just before that I got into pinball again and I've been playing since I've been five years old and ended up taking a look at see if there was tournaments around or whatever for competition I just happened to stumble across this pinball tournament called pinball and it was like a world championship I go you know what I have to attend this event this is like a bucket list item for me I've always been pretty good at pinball and And, you know, I just figured I would put my hat in the ring and go fly out to Pittsburgh and didn't know anybody there and attend this event. I go ahead and attend that event. I had a really good time. Met a guy from Edmonton that was actually at the tournament. He was the first guy I actually met. And that really got me going on competition pinball. Right after that, we started what we now call Die Hard Pinball League. But what it was, it was just a pin night format where, you know, I got together with a couple collectors and we ended up having pinball nights, you know, just beer and pinball and chilling out and having a good time. Our group ended up expanding to about 20 people and then it was like, holy cow, you know, maybe we need to start a league. We went ahead and created the Die Hard Pinball League and started having our league out of a bar, a local bar here in Edmonton that one of the collectors that was in our group just started putting machines in. so now we've been running Die Hard Pinball League for three years. Is the initiation to the group, you have to yell, Yippee-ki-yay, Mother Trucker?

No, it's not. In fact, the name was stolen from a buddy of mine because he had a Die Hard Hockey League, and I just incorporated that into the group, so no. But you know what, Jeff? If you come, we will definitely start that tradition. I'm all about that. Well, you know I'm coming, first of all, because I'm so looking forward to Yegpin. It's not just a tournament, but it's a massive show. And when you and I were talking, I think, I want to say we were talking about it at Indus, but maybe we were talking about it before. We were. We were talking about it at Vancouver Flipout last year about how big this event is. And you told me some of the numbers of people that come out there, and I know Nitro Pinball is a big part of it, what Tommy Floyd does. How big is Yegpin? Yegpin's pretty big now. We had over 750 people attend the event last year over the three days. This year's numbers are looking to exceed that number, and we have close to 190 people that are actually pre-registered to both our Classics and Western Canadian Pinball Championship tournaments. I can hardly wait. This is going to be a fun, fun weekend in Edmonton. Now, a lot of our listeners are across the globe, not just here in Canada, but several. In fact, the majority are from the United States and a lot of Australian listeners too. So we have to educate them on what is Edmonton. Edmonton I know you thinking oh it Canada but a lot of people don know It one of the sunniest cities in North America Absolutely it is and the ninth biggest mall in the world as well It used to be the biggest, that old West Edmonton Mall, and for those who haven't been there, it's got a big hockey arena, a wave pool, a roller coaster. Yeah, we've got zoos, we've got, you know, there's Fort Edmonton Park. There's all sorts of cool stuff to do in Edmonton. And, of course, we have the best hockey team in the world. Yeah, what happened to your Oilers? This isn't the 1980s Gretzky-Metzier years. You know, back in the 80s, we were great. You know, you'd think that the 80s would come back. And, you know, we do have a nice, beautiful arena now. I'm a big Connor McDavid fan. I think Edmonton will have a good team for many, many years. Edmonton is also the birth home of Michael J. Fox and the author to one of my favorite books ever. Now, the book was turned into a movie that people know, Field of Dreams. But the original book, Shoeless Joe, W.P. Kinsella, the great baseball author from Edmonton, Alberta. Wow, you are like a wealth of knowledge because I had no idea of those two facts, to tell you the truth. Really? It's also like the festival city. There's like 30 festivals that go on. That's a lot in Edmonton. Yeah, the summertime here is hopping. Absolutely. There is a ton of different festivals and there's a lot of different cultures here as well, so I think that's why you see that. Well, go to our Facebook page on Pinball Profile and check out, which I have told you, and I'll say it now on air, It is the coolest poster for any pinball show and event. Yeah, and kudos to Brian Holderman. You know, he's really the guy that's been in charge of our art design for the past two years and just a wonderful, wonderful depiction of our theme this year, which is kind of a golden axe depiction. So we wanted to go more arcade this year. We want to really promote the arcade side of the event since it doesn't get a lot of love because a lot of people in the pinball community are there, but it's just beautiful art. We've got shirts, we've got hoodies, we've got signed posters, we've got all sorts of stuff that will be at the event for purchase. Well, I'll tell you this, if I go play Donkey Kong, I'll have a higher score than Billy Mitchell. Twin Galaxies will totally acknowledge that, no matter what I put up. We have the number 31 player in the world in Edmonton, I guess, at Donkey Kong, so he's going to be attending our event, and you're more than willing to go ahead and challenge him on Donkey Kong. Not a chance. I just wanted to beat Billy Mitchell. So he may have me in hair, but I can beat him in Donkey Kong now.

6:07

So we talked about Nitro Pinball being a big part of this event. The show itself, I mean, with over 700 people last year, I cannot imagine how long it takes for you and those involved to put this together. I know you and I were talking about it in September, but it really is probably a whole year-long thing, isn't it? It's a nine-month endeavor. We have a team of 12 on the executive team that really put together Yagpin. We have 65 volunteers that come together at the event as well during the three days and then as well a couple days for setup. It takes about two days to set up the show and it takes about two days to tear down the show. Okay, a little birdie told me something about this event and they said, wait till you play the games. They're going to be in the tournament. They're going to be very, very challenging. Some might say a little steep even. I've heard. We've been noted to maybe put a two by six down here and there when required, and you'll definitely see stuff like fatty rubbers. You'll see some stuff like pulled in lanes. Yeah, I think they're difficult but fair. So we try to make it like the Papa format, and we really want to make sure that the games are challenging because we've got 190 people plus that are going to be playing on the machines. We want to get through people quickly, but at the same time we want people to show their skill. So we try to find a balance We try to loosen the tilts up just a little bit as well since the machines are a little bit more difficult for setup I heard about how steep these games are so I been practicing on the upper playfield of Banzai Run I be fine Yeah, I know. It's you know, and like I say, game setup is always controversial. You see it all the time on tilt forums or inside or wherever. You know, and like I say, as a TD, you try to find that fine balance the best that you can to try to run the show as best as you can and to make people happy that way. but at the same time try to make the machines challenging enough for the clientele that's going to be on them. We've got some really good players that are going to be at the event. We've got Raymond Davidson, we've got Jermaine Mircelli, we've got yourself, Robert Gagnon, a number of top players that will be at this event. So we need to balance that out to make sure that the games are difficult enough that someone aren't on them for a long time, to also having a fair chance for the other people that are going to be at the event as well. Because we do have other divisions such as a B division and novice division as well that are going to be participating as well as a women's division. You know what, Derek? As a guy who goes to a lot of different tournaments, I have zero problem with games being made difficult. Certainly not that you would normally see at your house or maybe at an arcade because you don't want those long lineups. So I'm totally fine with that. The only time I find a game when it's too difficult is you're shooting a ramp and it flies off the rail and it goes in the out lane. I mean, that's not difficult. That's just a flaw in the game. Or something like I played in a tournament, played Medieval Madness, and you'd pop it in the castle and when it kicked it out, shoot it right down the middle. You had no chance of saving because the tilt was so tight. It was just kind of a weird kick out. And that's the only time that it's a little difficult. But making the rubbers bigger, making a little steeper, I'm all for it. It'll be fun. I think the most thing is just make sure a machine is fair. And as long as it's fair, then it doesn't matter what the difficulty is on it. A player will always adapt. And especially in our format where it's an unlimited format, you'll have as many tries as you can get on that machine in order to figure out how that machine is set up and how you can go ahead and take advantage of it and be able to score the best that you can on it. This sounds like a lot of fun, so I'm looking forward to going to that. And you really look after your VIPs, by the way. That's a nice thing I see a lot of tournaments do. I saw Tommy do it out at Vancouver Flipout. You do it at the Eggpin as well. Well, I think the one thing that makes our show a little bit different than others is that it's non-profit. So Die Hard Pinball, all the proceeds for our event and everything go right back into the league and go right back into the show each single year. So you see that our prize money is a little bit higher than maybe some other tournaments. You see that we do the little extras, really nice lanyards and really nice passes because we can put back all of our expenses and put them right back into the show, the people that support us. And it's really important. We need our first adopters, and we need people that are going to go ahead and purchase and pre-purchase those items for us so that we can go ahead and use those dollars to help fund the event and to pre-purchase a lot of stuff that we need to make the entire show happen. May 4th to May 6th, Yagpin, Y-E-G, which, by the way, is the code for the airport. Edmonton, Alberta, Derek Thompson is putting on a great event. I hope you can join us there if you're on the west side, if you're certainly up north in Canada or wherever. It's worth the trip to Edmonton with all those things going on and a great tournament and show, too. So thanks for having me come to the show. I really, really appreciate it, Derek. We love having you, Jeff. And you're such a great, great advocate for pinball, the voice of pinball in Canada. So really appreciate you coming down. In fact, appreciate you coming down and supporting and helping out with the show as well, too. So you're going to be our guest speaker at the VIP party. You going to be commentating on the stream It going to be epic That all I can tell you It is going to be a lot of fun And I know you give awards too kind of best in show and some of those other things too You know and the one thing where we a community show so what that means is that we need a really big donor community to make this show happen, because I don't have a vendor community that can just go ahead and donate pins for the show. So what we do is we actually retro a new Joker Poker pinball machine, and it's done top to bottom. It's like a HEP rebuild on the entire machine. And I tell you, we give that away on the Friday night to our donor community, so they all get put into a draw. Whoever brings in a pinball machine will go ahead and have an opportunity at winning that. And then as well on our arcade side, we have a Q-Bert machine that's been fully refurbished as well too, and we give that away to our arcade side. So we give away two big machines at the event on a Friday night, and that's why we call it the VIP party, because only volunteers, donors, or partner sponsors actually get into that event. So it's a three-hour pinball party. You turn off the lights, you play some pinball, you have a few drinks, and you celebrate this great hobby of ours. When is it coming? Let's get it here already. I want to go.

12:32

I know, I sell it good, don't I, Jeff? So I tell you, you know, we've had great response. We've had an increase of people that are coming in every single year. And this year, we've got the Seattle guys that are coming, you know, and that's a big breakthrough for us, getting someone from the U.S. to actually come up, come to the show, support us. We really appreciate that. And I think word's getting around. It's getting very popular, and I'm just excited, you know, to get this thing going. Well, that being said, it would be great to have this as maybe another one of Canada's Stern Pro Circuit events. Is that a goal? Yeah, I would love to. And, you know, all my conversations with Josh Sharp over there, you know, we have a little bit of philosophical differences when it comes to how the calculation is made, you know, to get into a Stern event. So he always tells me, he says, well, Derek, you just got to get the best players in the world to come to your event, and then you have one. It doesn't matter that we get 150 to 200 people at our tournament. You have to have the people that count. And I love Josh. He's a great advocate for pinball. But at the same time, I think that we've got enough people that support our pinball tournaments, and I would love to see a CERN Sturgeon event in Edmonton in the future. And maybe we'll get there. We'll see what happens. We've got great attendance this year. We've got some high-ranking players that will be there, including the number one player in the world. So hopefully that will help us and put us over the edge. If you need me to rough up Josh, I know a guy. Yeah, I know, I know. And I know you two get along so well. So absolutely. I think that, you know, if we double-team him, maybe we'll get an opportunity and try to get our digs in and get another event here up in Canada. Because it's just a wonderful thing. I love what they're doing with the Stern Circuit. And what Josh is doing with the IFPA right now is just phenomenal. So kudos to him. Kudos to everybody that's involved in pinball right now and increasing competition, pinball awareness everywhere. Okay, enough of the Josh love. I'm going to be sick here. That's it, Derek. We'll see you at Yagpin. Looking forward to it, May 4th, May 6th. It's going to be a great event and glad to be a part of it. Thanks very much for joining us today. Right on. Take care, Jeff. Hey, thanks for doing this, eh? This has been your Pinball Profile. You can find our group on Facebook. You can also find us on Twitter at Pinball Profile. Email us pinballprofile at gmail.com and please subscribe on either iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play. I'm Jeff Teelis. Hey, don't go. No, come back, eh? Look what you did. Everybody's going. You, you. Come back. I won't let him do it again. My fault. Yeah, your fault. You're such a loser.