Live at the Bike was poker’s first popular stream of cash games. The Los Angeles-based cardroom Bicycle Casino was the first to create a production focused on a single cash game, often showing high stakes with a revolving cast of players. Since its 2005 debut, it was the only stream of its kind for many years…until other card rooms began mimicking the idea.
Several people involved at various levels in Live at the Bike departed that operation several years ago. The stream lost some of its popularity, and its views waned. Those departed players and production people, however, had another idea. They took it to another Southern California cardroom, Hustler Casino, and found an opportunity there.
Hustler Casino Live debuted in 2021 and quickly built a loyal following. With Ryan Feldman and Nick Vertucci at the helm, the new show reintroduced names like Garrett Adelstein to the poker world. Now, the games include names like Phil Hellmuth and Tom Dwan, along with unique personalities like Poker Bunny and DGAF.
Live at the Bike (LATB) needed a reboot. And it found that reboot when Bally’s Corporation acquired the streaming company in late 2021. They revamped the studio, created some buzz, and relaunched on April 30.
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New and Improved LATB
Bally’s Presents Live at the Bike – the production’s new name – brought in experienced television network showrunners like Houston Curtis and Rick Mahr to serve as the show’s executive producers. The plan was to stream live on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitch.
They brought in Veronica Brill and Christian Soto to host the first $200/$400 game. Players included Matt Berkey, Wiktor “Limitless” Malinowski, and Johnny Chan.
Action in these types of games is always on some kind of delay to preserve the game’s integrity while showing hole cards. This one, though, appeared to be pre-recorded. It is unclear how future episodes will film or air.
The debut had a few glitches. The sound needed to be tweaked, and the lighting had issues due to lights blowing out the day before.
https://twitter.com/AceTangiers/status/1520639807805743104?s=20&t=9_K4hJKCo_W3kKZ4Y5aV-g
The new Live at the Bike team will work out the kinks. And soon, Bally’s will begin putting its new features on display. Bally’s hinted at it in its press release. Per Bally’s Interactive North America COO Adi Dhandhania:
“We are excited to take a poker pioneer and elevate its content through gamification and second-screen experiences. Live at the Bike originally made its name by making the sport more entertaining and accessible to all types of poker enthusiasts. Bally’s aims to continue that mission and bring a whole new audience to the stream.”
It appears that Bally’s will be incorporating some of its other acquisitions, like Snipp and Telescope.tv, with the Live at the Bike stream over time to engage viewers on a new level. The free-play gaming option will allow the audience to interact with the hosts and possibly the players. Details have yet to be revealed.
They know that much has happened since the Live at the Bike action pause. Hustler Casino Live took many eyeballs and players, creating a somewhat loyal fanbase for HCL.
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