Dad spends life savings on carnival game to win banana

[Vampirate Kitsune]

link

Quote:

NH Man Loses Life Savings On Carnival Game

Henry Gribbohm says he lost his life savings, $2,600, on a carnival game and all he has to show for it is a stuffed banana with dreadlocks.

“You’re expecting the kids to win a few things, let the kids have a good time,” said Gribbohm. “It just didn’t turn out that way.”

Gribbohm says he attended a Manchester carnival run by New Hampshire-based Fiesta Shows and wanted to win an Xbox Kinect at a game called Tubs of Fun where contestants toss balls into a tub. When he practiced he says it was easy, but something changed when he started playing for the prize and the balls kept popping out.

The 30-year-old from Epsom says he kept trying to win back his money by going double or nothing. He dropped $300 in just a few minutes, then says he went home to get $2,300 more and soon lost all of that as well.

“You just get caught up in the whole ‘I’ve got to win my money back.’”

Fiesta Shows says the game is run by an independent contractor who has worked for Fiesta for years. Fiesta tells WBZ-TV it is interviewing the contractor to “get to the bottom of what happened” and the game is not being set up at the upcoming carnival in Derry.

“They’ve been with us quite a while,” said Fiesta Vice President John Flynn. “First I ever heard of anything like that.”

Flynn said he did not know the name of the contractor off hand, and said it was “pretty next to impossible” to lose such a large amount of money at the game.

“I know it’s a difficult game. I’ve tried it myself — I’ve done it once, missed probably 20 times,” he said.

Henry says he went back the next day to complain, and the man running the game gave him back $600. Henry split with the banana and the cash, and filed a report with the Manchester Police Department.

Manchester Police Lieutenant Maureen Tessier says the department is investigating to determine if there was any fraud.

The traveling carnival is now setting up in Derry, NH, but you will not see Tubs Of Fun. Fiesta said the independent contractor that runs the game is not allowed to set up while an investigation is taking place.

Gribbohm says he is considering a lawsuit.

“For once in my life I happened to become that sucker,” said Gribbohm. “It was foolish for putting up my life savings.”

[Ringoringa]

And I thought that I lacked self-control, what with my inability to resist those crane things that I know are rigged but play anyway 'cause I won twice in my life and this may just be the time I get a plushie for just one dollar!

[Blood Valkyrie]

When he lost the first two times, he should have stopped.

[Whispyre]

X

emotion_facepalm emotion_facepalm
Ok I spent 40$ on a prize at the fair here once, it was a big fox plushie, but I had already spent that 40$ on tokens to play games and there were no other prizes I wanted. I got lucky on my last try. But I wasn't going to spend anymore even if I didn't win.

It's nice to have fun and lose a few but come on, you shouldn't spend your life saving over a silly plush banana.

[Nyadriel]

Saw this on the news and saw that freakin ugly thing. Seriously. That?
Not even worth it if I were to win it on the first try.

[Hasuki Aatisuto]

Jin Love

X

It's nice to have fun and lose a few but come on, you shouldn't spend your life saving over a silly plush banana.

Actually, he wanted a XBox Kincet but ended up with a silly plushie banana. He was not actively trying to go for the banana. Even then he should've known it would be far cheaper to go into a store and buy it directly, but I guess he had too much euphoria to realize this.

Besides, games at carnivals are usually heavily rigged against you - such as bottles filled with water or sand to make it harder for you to knock them off, or bigger/smaller openings which makes it harder (or even impossible) for you to accurately put something on/through it, and so on.

I avoid carnival games like the plague.

[Grace Gubreez]

totally worth spending your life savings for a toy smile


now what pisses me off about this guy is the fact that he is trying to get his money back AND how he filed a report with the police AND a lawsuit.

You lost your money, suck it up. Should have been smarter about it in the first place. Don't go blaming the carnival....... The only way he CAN blame the carnival is if they physically just took his money.

[Whispyre]

Hasuki Aatisuto

Jin Love

X

It's nice to have fun and lose a few but come on, you shouldn't spend your life saving over a silly plush banana.

Actually, he wanted a XBox Kincet but ended up with a silly plushie banana. He was not actively trying to go for the banana. Even then he should've known it would be far cheaper to go into a store and buy it directly, but I guess he had too much euphoria to realize this.

Besides, games at carnivals are usually heavily rigged against you - such as bottles filled with water or sand to make it harder for you to knock them off, or bigger/smaller openings which makes it harder (or even impossible) for you to accurately put something on/through it, and so on.

I avoid carnival games like the plague.

Ahh I missed that part thanks. =D

He coulda just bought the xbox then after all that money he spent. xD

[Spiritual Machine]

Dumbass...

~ $2600 is not enough to consider it 'life savings', it's barely a down payment on a used car.
~ Stop playing the game you stupid s**t, show some restraint.
~ Stop blaming others for your failure.

[crownvetch]

I don't even spend that much playing games. To me, if a popular video game console is a prize at a carnival game, it's not worth it.

[GunsmithKitten]

How many years have carnies been running these hustles, and yet people don't still realize that it IS a hustle? You think they wouldn't run this if they knew it wasn't in their favor? No sympathy for this idiot.

[Alazon]

Spiritual Machine

~ $2600 is not enough to consider it 'life savings', it's barely a down payment on a used car.

^ for some people that is their life savings, or even more than their life savings. There are plenty of people who are simply that poor. Otherwise I completely agree with you.

[Little Red Otter]

I'm tired of how stupid people are.... stare

[Ratttking]

LOL. His "life savings" comes out to $86 for every year he's been alive. Obviously he is a man of great forethought.

[Green Tea Chi]

Ratttking

LOL. His "life savings" comes out to $86 for every year he's been alive. Obviously he is a man of great forethought.

lol