Hey Pojo, your site is awesome!

Some of you might know me for my editorial, "What has Pokemon Come To!?". 
Thank you to EVERYONE who Instant Messaged me or E-mailed me congratulating
me and praising me for my article.  You guys know just how to make a 12 year
old feel like a celebrity.  Anyway...this sunday I attended a tourny at
Sports Cards Unlimited in Durham, NC  (by the way...the Sports Cards and
Coins that's already listed in the Places to Play section is another branch
of Sports Cards Unlimited, owned by the same guy, just on the other side of
Durham). 
    I won the tournament, and got my boulder badge.  This has been my 13th
tourny win at Sports Cards, unfortuneately, not in a row.  After my 12th win,
a really nice kid by the name of Jon, starting winning all the tournaments. 
He had a huge advantage because they let us play with Japanesed cards at
Sports Cards as long as they are in sleeves (to cover the different backs so
we don't use them as a way to mark our cards) and we have an official
translation book.  This helped Jon because he is Japanese, can read Japanes,
and has TONS of cards from Japan, giving him a HUGE card advantage. This is
not the only reason he wings, I'll just admit it, he IS good.  You can bet I
was happy after winning this for getting my winning streak back.

The Hay-Making, Coal-Burning, @$$-Kicking Machine is a poutpourri deck, fire
fighting and electric.  (Its basically my old haymaker but the Scythers and
Farfetch'd are replaced with the Fossil Magmar).  32 People came to the
tournament.  The tournament was a combo of Swiss and Single Elimination
styles.  We started off by being seated at tables, six to a table.  We played
3 games against the person across from us and 3 against the person diagonally
to the right of us.  The person at the table with the best record went into
the Winner's Bracket, while the rest were eliminated.  Once there were 6
people in the Winner's Bracket, the 6 people played single elimination.  
I'll start off by writing the deck out and putting the tourny report under
it.  Well, here it is, The Hay-Making, Coal-Burning, @$$-Kicking Machine:

POKEMON: (12)

4 Hitmonchan
3 Electabuzz
4 Fossil Magmar

ENERGY:  (26)

12 Fighting Energy
6 Electric Energy
8 Fire Energy

TRAINERS:  (22)

3 Bill
1 Pro. Oak
1 Comp. Search
1 Item Finder
4 Gust of Wind
3 Energy Removal
2 Super Energy Removal
3 PlusPower
2 Scoop Up
2 Energy Search

**********60 CARDS**********
ROUND 1:  Best Record per Table

Game 1:  vs. Nicholas  (my cousin playing my deck other deck)

He's playing a Water/Psy deck I made him with Blastoise, Kadabras, and
Seadras, and lots of Jigglypuffs, Kangaskans, and Chanseys for stalling.  My
Gust of Winds keep his Abras and Horseas in the Discard Pile.  He ends up
trying to kill me with a Kadabra and 2 Kangaskan, but my Energy Removals are
too much.  I beat the Kans down in 1 turn each with a PlusPower and Special
Punch.  My Chan has 20 HP left, and he pulls up Kadabra with no damage and 1
Psy Energy.  He puts down another Psy.  I get an Item Finder, reuse my Super
Energy Removal and discard an energy from Chan, then Scoop Up Chan.  I bring
up a Magmar with 2 Fire, and Smog him to death.  The next two games go
something like this.
RECORD:  3-0

Game 2:  vs.  ????  (he was newbie, never played in a tourny before.  He was
still at the stage where he though zard and dos where the best and laughed at
my chans...I showed him, he never got our his zard, or even his
charmeleons...heh)

He plays a multicolor with pinsirs, Charizards, Pikachus/Raichus,
Spearow/Fearow, Hroseas and Seadras, and some other useless sh*t.  Don't even
wanna talk about it.  He gets to the point where he wants to rip my energy
removals and gusts in half.  Piece of Cake, I cream him.
RECORD:  6-0

**I have the best record at my table so I move on to the Winner's Bracket
where we play Single Elimination**

Game 1:  vs. Shawn

He's playing an improved Blaine's Theme Deck with all Blaine's Fire Guys. 
He's got REAL powerful guys, but between his energy shortage and my removals,
he never gets to use much but his charmanders and ponytas.  Its short and I
beat him both games without him taking one prize (we play best out of 3).   I
move on to the next round.

Game 2:  vs.  ????

This kid is playing a messed version of my old haymaker.  Luckily I knew
everything about what was in his deck, and I knew how just to cut through his
deck like a hot knife through butter.  I play the retreat game, and whenever
he pulls up a scyther, i bring up magmar, whenever he switches for chan, i
pull up my chan who has more energy, when he pulls up Farfetch'd, I retreat
for Buzz, when he brings up Buzz, my chan comes up.  He has NO chance and
doesn't play with Super Energy Removals, only 4 Energy Removals, which I only
see 2 of.

Game 3 (finals for 1st or 2nd place):  vs.  Jon  (my good friend and bad
enemy)

He plays a pourpourri too, cept with 4 scyther instead of 4 Fossil Magmar. 
Our decks are IDENTICAL besides that.  Luckily I get 2 Bills in my starting
hand, and get the upper hand on the first game.  The second is kind of unfair
to him, but I'm not complaining.  He brings up Rocket's Scyther as his active
and has NO benched.  My active is Magmar with a benched Buzz.  I go first,
attach a fire, and do smokescreen.  He's weak so it does 20.  He goes,
pokecenters his Scyther, attaches a grass, and tries to do Double Team but
flips a tails for Smokescreen.  I energy removal him, attach a fire on
magmar, and do Smog.  He's weak and it does 40.  I flip to poison
and...YES!!!...its heads.  He's poisoned so it does an additional 10.  He
then forfeits and shows me his hand, he no energy, and no basic, and no
trainers that could be helpful at that time.  The poison would've killed him
right after he was done with his turn. 

I get 28$ store credit (  bad  :(..cuz last week the prize was 35, but 6 less
people showed this week).  I but two Gym Leaders 1 Packs, and an English
Basic Set Pack.  I pull rare trainer Brock (going in my deck), rare trainer
Erika, a holo Erika's Vileplume, a holo trainer called "Team Rocket's trap." 
I trade the Team Rocket's Trap to Jon for a Lt. Surge's Electabuzz (he's
going in my deck!!!), holo trainer Giovanni, and Erika's compassion (also
going in my deck).  I trade the Erika's Vileplume, which has no use to me,
for a 5$ fancy-shmancy translation book with prices and pictures, and LOTS of
commons and uncommons (all first addition) I need.  I also get my pic taken!!!
Here are the translations to all the card I'm putting in my deck that are
japanese:1. 

Brock (trainer card)-remove 1 damage counter from each of your pokemon

Erika's Compassion (trainer card)-  remove 2 damage counters from 2 of your
pokemon

Lt. Surge's Electabuzz (basic poke)- 70 HP, 2 retreat, weak fighting, no
resistance.  1st Attack: 1 electric, search through your deck for 2 Electric
Energy and attach them to this card.  2nd attack:  1 Electric, discard 1
Electric and flip a coin for every Electric Energy attached to this card.  30
for each heads.  He is ultimate bird killer (fearow, pidgeot etc.)  He can
kill any bird pokemon weak to electric with only 2 heads.

NOW ITS TIME FOR PROPS AND SLOPS!!!!

Props:  1.  To my cousin Nicholas for having a record of 3-3 and being a good
sport
        2.  To Sports Card Unlimited for having SWEET tournaments week after
week
        3.  To Jon for being a good sport, and trading with me
        4.  To me for winning and getting my boulder badge (heh..:)
        5.  To whoever invented Props and Slops

Slops:  1.  To Jon for getting all upset when I beat him
        2.  To my friends Andrew and Perry for not coming this week to the
tourny
        3.  To the person who made the machine at WotC that keeps giving me
Lass after Lass in booster packs.
        4.  To Sports Cards Unlimited for not having the Fossil Theme Decks
and not having another box of Gym 1 after I bought the last two packs from
the last box

Thanks for reading this and getting bored to death cuz its such a long
article (whoops..).  You guys all rule!!!  YEAH!!!!  (*Lots of screaming fans
in backround*)  ::jumps up and down::  ROCK ON CLEAVELAND!!!!!....ROCK
ON!!!!!!!!!!  (eh-hem ::clears throat::...sorry bout that...heh)

-Stefan N.  <<Zapdos2229@aol.com>>