Journalist Tool

Kineticist

  • HDashboard
  • IItems
  • ↓Ingest
  • SSources
  • KBeats
  • BBriefs
  • RIntel
  • QSearch
  • NName Review
  • +Health

v0.1.0

← Back to items

Episode 190: Jerry Bernard

Pinball Profile·podcast_episode·18m 36s·analyzed·Apr 19, 2019
View original
Export .md

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.031

TL;DR

Interview with Jerry Bernard, elite NY pinball player ranked IFPA #57, discussing classics mastery and tournament circuit.

Summary

Jeff Teolis interviews Jerry Bernard, a top-ranked competitive pinball player (IFPA #57) from New York State who specializes in classic and solid-state machines. Bernard discusses his preference for simpler rule sets, his home collection of vintage games, his tournament experiences at venues like Rock Fantasy and PinFest, and his aspirations for future pinball themes including Black Sabbath and Evil Dead machines.

Key Claims

  • Jerry Bernard is ranked 57th in the world on the IFPA rankings

    high confidence · Jeff Teolis states this directly: 'When you look at your IFPA statistics, you are ranked currently 57th in the world.'

  • Jerry Bernard turned 50 years old in the year prior to this episode

    high confidence · Jeff says 'Last year was a milestone year for you... You turned 50 years old last year, Jerry.'

  • Jerry's home collection consists of nine pinball machines, mostly older games

    high confidence · Jerry states: 'I think you have nine games. Are they all older games? Yeah, pretty much... I got the Revenge from Mars... And then other than that, it's Dealer's Choice EM, 8-Ball, Whirlwind, Firepower, Six Million Dollar Man, High Low Waste, another EM, and all the ever-so-famous Premier Hot Shots.'

  • Jerry believes he was at his best at pinball in his late teens due to superior accuracy

    high confidence · Jerry: 'I think probably late teens, just because my accuracy was probably best then. Now that things are slowing down a bit, my flipper skills may be better, but I think late teens is probably when I was probably best.'

  • Rock Fantasy arcade owner Steve Keillor introduced Jerry to competitive pinball around 2011-2012

    high confidence · Jerry: 'That's the place that got me into the competitive part of it. Francesco, of course, is the one that steered me towards going there. I went there, I guess it was 2012, 2011 maybe, and Steve brought me in, let me play his games, and showed me that there's tournaments.'

  • New York State had seven top-100 IFPA players in a 24-person state finals tournament in mid-January

    high confidence · Jeff: 'New York State and Washington State, in their state finals in mid-January, they had seven top 100 players in just that 24-person tournament.'

  • The Buffalo Pinball Summer Open appears to no longer be held, possibly due to Canadian players dominating

    medium confidence · Jeff jokes: 'I think that is the underlying reason why there's no Buffalo Pinball Summer Open' after noting three Canadian winners at the event. This appears to be speculation/joking rather than confirmed fact.

Notable Quotes

  • “I just wish he would travel the world because then you'd really know about him. He is a fantastic player.”

    Jeff Teolis @ Opening — Establishes Jerry Bernard's skill level and the constraint of limited tournament travel due to geography/cost

  • “The first one is absolute best horror film ever. Better than The Exorcist? Yes. It's got that campy feel.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Mid-episode — Shows Jerry's passion for Evil Dead franchise and why he'd like to see a game based on it

  • “Just anything that doesn't have complicated rules... I play a lot of the side classics because I just like the easy rules.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Mid-episode — Clarifies Jerry's design preference and why he gravitates toward classics tournaments over main events

  • “The biggest thing so, I mean, just any game, just learning the different flipper skills... the best thing to do is just get your flipper skills down. If you can control the ball, that's the biggest thing.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Later episode — Key pinball tip emphasizing fundamentals over rules complexity

  • “The bounce pass... was simply the bounce pass. Yeah, that's something I didn't use for quite some time. But yeah, that's huge.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Later episode — Identifies a specific game-changing flipper technique that improved his play

  • “Those Canadians, those stupid, stinking Canadians.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Late episode — Humorous complaint about Jack Tabman's dominance; Jeff later jokes this may explain lack of Buffalo Summer Open

  • “I'm not going to any tournament that day. I'm just sitting home and clicking refresh. Not missing this one.”

    Jerry Bernard @ Late episode — Shows commitment to registering for the 24-hour tournament after missing it previously due to phone issues

Entities

Jerry BernardpersonJeff TeolispersonSteve KeillorpersonJack TabmanpersonRock FantasyorganizationBowen KerinspersonColin UrbanpersonAlex Kazmarchukperson

Signals

  • ?

    community_signal: Online pinball tutorials and streams (particularly Bowen Kerins content) are becoming primary learning mechanism for modern players to absorb complex rule sets

    high · Jerry and Jeff both reference watching YouTube tutorials by Bowen Kerins and Josh Sharpe for learning drop catches and rules. Jeff notes young players 'absorb the rules. You know, they'll go on YouTube and watch the streams, watch the tutorials, and just soak it all in'

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Positive reception of young elite players (Colin Urban, Alex Kazmarchuk, Escher Lefkoff, Zachary Parks) who are mastering modern rules through online tutorials and streaming

    high · Both Jeff and Jerry express admiration for young players: 'Between the Colin Urbans, Alex Kazmarchuk, Escher Lefkoff... all these young kids are just blowing it up and falling in love like we did when we were teens. Oh, God, they're just incredible.'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Segment of competitive players prefer simpler rule sets and classics tournaments over complex modern games, viewing modern rule complexity as barrier to entry

    high · Jerry: 'I don't play in a lot of the main tournaments. I play a lot of the side classics because I just like the easy rules... Just anything that doesn't have complicated rules.' Later admits Walking Dead and Star Wars are too complex for him to enjoy

  • ?

    event_signal: New York State competitive scene is exceptionally deep with seven top-100 IFPA players in single 24-person state finals tournament in mid-January

    high · Jeff: 'New York State and Washington State, in their state finals in mid-January, they had seven top 100 players in just that 24-person tournament.'

  • ?

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.056

0:00
It's time now for another Pinball Profile. I'm your host, Jeff Teel. You can find our group on Facebook. We're also on Twitter at Pinball Profile. Email us, pinballprofile at gmail.com. And please subscribe on either iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play. He is one of the best in the world. I just wish he would travel the world because then you'd really know about him. He is a fantastic player. His name is Jerry Bernard, and he joins us right now. Hello, Jerry. How are you? Hey, Jeff. Thank you for that introduction, man. I wish I could travel more, but this year I'm going to try a little more. Well, that's the thing, right? Life, costs, location, they all are big factors. And I wanted to mention that right off the bat because I really do believe you are one of the best in the world. We'll get to that in a second, but it is tough to get around. But thankfully, in the New York State area, you've got some great places to play, and we'll talk about those as well. Oh, yeah. Absolutely. If you ever see the name Sab on a grand champion score, it's a good chance it came from Jerry. He's a massive Sabbath fan, likewise. And I'm hoping one day, and I'm sure you are too, Jerry, with all the games that came out, if Iron Maiden can come out with a game, Aerosmith and Metallica, there's got to be a Sabbath one or at least an Aussie one one day, don't you think? Oh, God, there has to be. It's next. It's got to be. I have no inside information. I would hope that that would be considered, especially since, you know, Ozzy is rather popular and Sabbath certainly is legendary. He's the fathers of heavy metal, if you will. Oh, yeah. So that's, I assume, the number one rock game you'd like to see. I know it's in my top five for sure. Absolutely. What else would you like to see, Jerry? Well, I heard some talk about Evil Dead recently that was supposed to be done but is not going to be, I guess, now. But that would be incredible. I mean, come on, Boomstick.
1:58
You're a big fan of the Evil Dead series? Oh, God. First one is absolute best horror film ever. Better than The Exorcist? Yes. It's got that campy feel. It's just, you know, just everything about it. The camera work of that movie is just incredible. And everything, all the campiness, it's just great. See, that's why I didn't think it was as scary, because of the campiness. I thought, you know, you're laughing a little bit, whereas Exorcist, I'm hidden behind a pillow trying to watch the thing. Yeah. Well, the first one has a lot more horror to it. Then when it got to the second one, it started getting a little more campy, a little more humor. And then the third one was just overboard with campiness. All right. Yeah, the first one is great. Horror, big time. Let's pick your brain then, all right? You'd like to see a Sabbath machine. You'd like to see an Evil Dead machine. What else would make Jerry happy?

  • The New York City Pinball Championships is moving to a new, larger venue with 1,000 additional square feet

    high confidence · Jeff and Jerry discuss the upcoming championship in May, with Jerry saying: 'I'm excited that they're moving into a new room, and it's going to be a lot bigger, 1,000 more square feet.'

    • Escher Lefkoff
    person
    Zachary Parksperson
    Adam Beckerperson
    Josh Sharpeperson
    Robert Gagnonperson
    Buffalo Pinball Summer Openevent
    PinFest Allentownevent
    New York City Pinball Championshipsevent
    Pinbergevent
    24-hour tournamentevent
    Sean Grantperson
    Trent Augensteinperson

    licensing_signal: Evil Dead pinball machine was rumored/in discussion but may not be happening, according to Jerry's recent rumors

    low · Jerry: 'I heard some talk about Evil Dead recently that was supposed to be done but is not going to be, I guess, now.' No confirmation or sourcing provided for this rumor.

  • ?

    licensing_signal: Community desire for Black Sabbath pinball machine, positioning it as logical next major rock band title after Iron Maiden, Aerosmith, and Metallica releases

    medium · Jeff: 'I'm hoping one day... if Iron Maiden can come out with a game, Aerosmith and Metallica, there's got to be a Sabbath one... don't you think?' Jerry emphatically agrees: 'Oh, God, there has to be. It's next. It's got to be.'

  • ?

    competitive_signal: Match-play formats with four players are preferred over pump-and-dump due to social element, and tournament variety (Pinberg multi-game format) is valued for testing diverse skill sets

    high · Jerry: 'Match play is probably the best, especially like the four-player match play because you get to hang out with people, you get to socialize... The pump and dump is great for its own thing.' Jeff praises Pinberg as 'the ultimate tournament because you're playing a variety of all different machines'

  • ?

    venue_signal: New York City Pinball Championships expanding to larger venue (1,000 sq ft increase) due to space constraints and anticipated growth

    high · Jerry: 'I'm excited that they're moving into a new room, and it's going to be a lot bigger, 1,000 more square feet... It was a little crowded last year... But I think they're going to have more people this year'

    • 2:47
    Just anything that doesn't have complicated rules. Here, here. I don't play in a lot of the main tournaments. I play a lot of the side classics because I just like the easy rules. So I don't care about if they can make any game they want, just as long as it makes it easy enough for me to understand. Has there been a game that came out that you just went, forget it, not even going to touch it, I can't learn it?
    3:12
    Yeah, most of the turns, but pretty much like Walking Dead, I'm still trying to figure that damn thing out. I don't know. There's just something about it. Me and that game doesn't click. I don't know. It's a tough game for sure. I love the rules in it. I don't know the best way to blow it up, so to speak. I mean, a lot of stacking involved. I know that. Yeah, that's my problem. You know, I've got to say, in the last six months or so, I've actually been going to, of course, the world-famous Rock Fantasy, and I'm trying to learn all the new sterns and all the rules, so I'm getting a little better at them. So I'm feeling a little more comfortable, but, yeah, it's still a lot to learn for each of these games. Boy, that's a great place to learn rock fantasy. Stephen Keillor's a wonderful place. I have yet to go there, and everybody talks about how fantastic it is. Tell me what rock fantasy means to you, Jerry. Well, that's the place that got me into the competitive part of it.
    4:06
    Francesco, of course, is the one that steered me towards going there. I went there, I guess it was 2012, 2011 maybe, and Steve brought me in, let me play his games, and showed me that there's tournaments and all that. So after that, I just got hooked. He's just a great guy. You just walk into his shop and there's just stuff everywhere. You just look everywhere and there's things all over the place. Can't get bored. I think I seen pictures of you online holding the famous Hulk head That the big honor Oh yeah the Hulk head It been a while but I got to get back to that Last year was a milestone year for you I see it on your IFPA so it out there I going to say You turned 50 years old last year, Jerry. Oh yeah. Hey, I'm right around the corner, kid. I'm ancient.
    4:52
    No, you're not at all, but I do have to ask a question because you've been playing a little while now and you've been very, very successful at playing. What age would you say, whether you were a competitive player or not, were you at your best at pinball, or are you getting better?
    5:09
    Well, as far as being the best in my, I don't know, I think probably late teens, just because my accuracy was probably best then. Now that things are slowing down a bit, my flipper skills may be better, but I think late teens is probably when I was probably best. Kind of explains why we're seeing so many amazing young kids that are just, Between the Colin Urbans, Alex Kazmarchuk, Escher Lefkoff, and I hope I'm not forgetting too many others, but Zachary Parks, all these young kids are just blowing it up and falling in love like we did when we were teens. Oh, God, they're just incredible. Every time I've got to play those kids, man, I'm so intimidated. It's ridiculous. And you know what I love, aside from their passion for pinball, is that they, unlike you and I, they absorb the rules. You know, they'll go on YouTube and watch the streams, watch the tutorials, and just soak it all in, whereas you and I are like, eh. Yep, absolutely.
    6:06
    I don't want to learn anymore. There's only so much you can put in there. When you get to our age, yeah, something's got to go. Yeah, one thing goes in, two goes out, you know? That's the sad thing, isn't it, Drew? Oh, yeah. That's why I'm trying to get into this turn-down. I'm trying to learn the rules. I'm getting there. I'm feeling more comfortable playing the newer games. So, you know, I'm getting there. It's another learning experience. Well, I know you have a collection at home. I think you have nine games. Are they all older games? Yeah, pretty much. Well, the newest one is the Pinball 2000 platform, so that pretty much tells you. I got the Revenge from Mars. I got the Star Wars with it. And then other than that, it's Dealer's Choice EM, 8-Ball, Whirlwind, Firepower, Six Million Dollar Man, High Low Waste, another EM, and all the ever-so-famous Premier Hot Shots. Oh, wow.
    7:01
    I love that one. You know, there's something about older games that a lot of people don't realize. The rules are easier, but a lot of times it's harder to execute. Yeah, because I think there's a lot more nudging involved in it. And the tilt is just so much more sensitive. You don't get the warnings, It's just tilt, and that's it. You're done. Be more careful. Nudging is huge in the older games. When a spinner is lit, you better be ripping it because it might not stay lit or you might hit a post and brick and then you're done. Exactly. Accuracy on the older games is very, very important. Not that it isn't on the newer games, but maybe with ball saves and the other things, like you say, tilt warnings, you get a little bit of relief on some of the newer games. Oh, yeah. Absolutely. I was just playing eight ball, and God forbid you miss that spinner. It's going out. It's bricking going. I have that at home, too. It's very frustrating when you miss that, for sure. It's gone, for sure. Love that game. It is a great game. Absolutely. Jerry, the last time you and I, I think, played together was in August at the Buffalo Pinball Summer Open. Yeah, probably. Yeah, that was great. We were in the Final Four. Now, as it came to the final game on Space Shuttle, we weren't in a position to win. It was between Jack Tabman, who won, and Trent Augenstein. So you and I were playing for third, had a little fun on the stream where we both threw down a 20. I threw a Canadian down. You threw an American down. So I was already ahead of the game. That's not worth as much as the American money. But, hey, you know. I was trying to see if you knew the math. All right. You were right. Yeah, I scammed you. Yeah, at that point, it was just all for fun, you know. Why not? It was for fun. And in fact, because we weren't in a position to win, we elected to go first to let the drama unfold between Jack and Trent. Now, on this podcast, I've had a bunch of people talk to me about the importance of a main tournament versus a classics. And I don't 100% understand or agree with that because a lot of times the points are the same. If you're chasing the whopper points, the points can be the same on a classics tournament as it can be on a newer tournament. But the point was made and there is some truth to it that on an older game let take a game like Stingray You know it very well Oh yeah If you get that 55 scoop lit and you hit it or you even plunge into it that can be a big difference maker whereas there isn't that much of a scoring imbalance on a newer game. So, you know, on an older game, you might get a house, especially a solid state where you only have three balls, you might get a house ball. Yeah. Do you think there's more variance of luck on older games versus newer games? Yeah, there is a little more luck involved, but yeah, that's part of it. You've got to live with it. There is imbalance in the newer games, too. Look at Star Wars with the damn, I don't know how many X's you can get on that, play field multiplier and all that, but you've got to be a little more skillful to get that thing going. There's a lot of luck in the games in all the solid states, but that's part of it. I also blame myself, though, for not really learning the rules, so I've still got some hope for that game, which makes sense for Star Wars, to have a little bit of hope. Yeah, I mean, I do play when I go to Rock Fantasy and that, but I don't like playing it. I just play it just so I can try to learn the rules. That's it. Well, here's the thing, Jerry. You know we're going to come across it, whether it's at a tournament. So, you know what? If you can't beat them, join them. So you've got to learn these things. Yeah, that's what I've been doing lately. That's exactly what I'm doing. And, Jerry, you know you're going to see some of these new games at some of the tournaments you have had some great success at. including pinberg i know pinberg not last year but the years before you were 24th you were 31st and that was a reason why i picked you jerry bernard as one of my five picks in the unofficial pinberg pool of pick five players to see how well they do i looked at jerry bernard i'm like this guy's an aid he's top 30 guaranteed i'm gonna kick butt jerry i let a lot of people down jerry what happened where's pinberg showing by the way i'm not one to brag either i stunk it up too but i also didn't put my own money on myself there was no money by the way it was just for fun but uh yeah you know what pinberg's a great format too and i know you like it and i love it yeah because to me that is the ultimate tournament because you're playing a variety of all different machines and you have to show skill set on all of them so it's easy to say it's your favorite do you Do you prefer match play versus any other format? Yeah, match play is probably the best, especially like the four-player match play because you get to hang out with people, you get to socialize, and it's just a great time that way, I think. The pump and dump is great for its own thing. You get to get the pot going in that, but I don't know. It's just so much more socializing when you're doing the four players. Another place that you've had some success at is at Pinfest in Allentown. Tell me about Allentown and your success there. Yeah, Allentown's good. That was actually the first year I did it, I think in 2012 is probably when I did best. I think I got like third or fourth. And that was probably one of my most intimidating times playing because there was a lot of great players there. I didn't know anyone really, and I was still learning. So that was fun. That was real fun. Jerry, you talk about learning. What is the biggest pinball tip that you've learned? What was the game changer for you? Oh, a game changer? Oh, boy.
    12:38
    So many different things. I mean, the best thing to do is just get your flipper skills down. If you can control the ball, that's the biggest thing. So, I mean, just any game, just learning the different flipper skills. And there are different fields, especially from the EMs to the South States, the New Stearns, there's just so many different fields that you have to have with those flippers. It's just a lot to learn. I think the biggest game changer for me, and probably one of the easiest ones for anybody to do, was simply the bounce pass. Yeah, that's something I didn't use for quite some time. But yeah, that's huge. And drop catches and just learning the different angles of how everything bounces. Well, slow down on the drop catch. I still have to learn that. I asked Adam Becker, I'm like, you've got to teach me this. You've got to help me out. And I've heard Josh Sharpe say, you know, to practice, take the glass off, put the ball up near the top of the play field, let it go, and practice that way. Yeah, yeah. I do that from time to time. Absolutely. So you do. Okay. You know what? There. I've said it. You've said it. Josh has said it. I guess we've got to do that. That's how we have to learn the drop catch. Yeah, no doubt. There's lots of great tutorials out there. Oh, yeah. The tutorials are great. I love watching those especially Bowen Cairns He just does great with those Love him Speaking of Bowen he was the winner last year at the New York City Pinball Championships It coming up again this May You were there last year Did you get your ticket? Yeah, I did. Thank God. That's a nice, easy trip for you. I mean, we talked about traveling and how difficult it is, but right there in New York City, that makes it a lot easier, doesn't it? Oh, yeah. Very easy. And since I've got so many friends down there, it just makes it even better. That was a good format. I'm excited that they're moving into a new room, and it's going to be a lot bigger, 1,000 more square feet. Yeah, that's big. That's good. It was a little crowded last year. It wasn't bad, but it worked out pretty well. But I think they're going to have more people this year, so that would be good. You were on the wait list for a big tournament that happened in November. My first crack at the 24-hour sank them, and obviously an easier place for you to get to, but you were on the bubble, as they say. Oh, yeah. That's the other one I had with my phone problem. Yep, I didn't get in. My phone wasn't cooperating that day. I was at a tournament, and we stopped the tournament to try to everyone, you know, get into the 24-hour. And for some reason, my phone was acting up on me, and I couldn't get in. So I just went there and was hoping, and I didn't get in. My first one I missed. That's too bad, Jerry. I didn't know you had been at all four. I mean, that was a fun event. They even had the plaque waiting for me for doing all five. but I just didn't make it. Oh. So I went away. I didn't know that. Oh.
    15:26
    Yep. This year for sure. So the price got recycled. This year for sure though, right? Yes, absolutely. I'm not going to any tournament that day. I'm just sitting home and clicking refresh. Not missing this one. When you look at your IFPA statistics, you are ranked currently 57th in the world. And again, as I said, had you traveled more, you would be much, much higher than that. Anybody who plays you knows that you are one of the best. And you proved it at Pinberg, even though the main tournament wasn't good. Intergalactic was very good for you. You tied for second with Robert Gagnon. That Jack Tadman got you again. He did it at Buffalo and he did it here. Yes. That Jack, I tell you, he's something. He's a great player. Those Canadians, those stupid, stinking Canadians. Some border control there? What's going on? We're building a wall in the wrong spot, aren't we?
    16:14
    That's what I'm saying. Jeez. You know. Thank you, guys. You know, I think that is. I don't think Nick and Kevin will say it, but I think that's the underlying reason why there's no Buffalo Pinball Summer Open. That's a shame, too. Well, fingers crossed it'll come back, but you had Jack Tabman and John Flinton win the Classics, and you had Adam Becker win the main one. Three Canadians in Buffalo, New York. I know. That's a shame. I knew my role. That's why I knew I didn't want to upset the New Yorkers, so I stayed back. I laid low. Yeah, you let your other guys win it, right? Well, I can't speak for them. They went rogue. They're great players. Thank God. It's good that you guys come down here. Really, I've got to get up there more. I just have to get out. Just got to do it. Even though you don't travel, you certainly see a lot of amazing competition. In fact, let's point this out. New York State and Washington State, in their state finals in mid-January, they had seven top 100 players in just that 24-person tournament. That's how tough those tournaments were.
    17:18
    Well, when I got down there at Sunshine Laundry, I told my buddy outside, I said, you know, any person here can win. There's just so many great players. It's crazy. And I got knocked out in the second round by Sean Grant, went to seven games. But, I mean, it's just a ridiculous amount of good players that are around here. Yeah, there's no shortage for sure. It's a great hotbed for pinball. Yeah, no doubt. It's a great place to be. Jerry, it's always great to talk to you. You've always got a smile on your face. You're a great player. I love watching you. I hate playing you, but no, I do. I love playing you. It's fun. Yeah, I bet. You probably kick my butt every single time. It's fun. You're a great guy, man. I love it. Hey, thanks very much. It's been a long time coming. Finally, we got you on Pinball Profile, and we will see you at a tournament soon because you're going to get in all these tournaments. No more phone problems. We're going to see more of Jerry in 2019. Yeah, I hope so, because I want to play you more, man. You're fun. Thank you very much. Okay, Jerry, all the best. Thank you. Same to you. Take care, man. This has been your Pinball Profile. You can find our group on Facebook. We're also on Twitter at pinballprofile. Email us pinballprofile at gmail.com. And please subscribe on either iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play. I'm Jeff Teolas.