Do you have a "Best DefCon Experience, Ever?"

[Siviak]

There was the DC Cup...

would that have been the big, pink, yard-o-booze that neural whipped up for us to share?

[Gadsden]

would that have been the big, pink, yard-o-booze that neural whipped up for us to share?

That would be this yard-o-booze! The moral of the story: never leave a window open unless you want a party to start up in your room..

[Siviak]

That would be this yard-o-booze! The moral of the story: never leave a window open unless you want a party to start up in your room..

yeah.. I remember when that pic was taken... we figured we would rush the room with the open door and drink all of the booze we could find..... then we found out that it was neurals room.... I mean seriously!!! who's gonna drink ALL of neurals booze????

[Gadsden]

yeah.. I remember when that pic was taken... we figured we would rush the room with the open door and drink all of the booze we could find..... then we found out that it was neurals room.... I mean seriously!!! who's gonna drink ALL of neurals booze????

That would be like drinking the ocean dry..

Speaking of Nerual.. anyone seen him lately?

[TheCotMan]

That would be like drinking the ocean dry..
Speaking of Nerual.. anyone seen him lately?

He spoke online less than 1 week ago I think, but that was the last time I "saw" him.

[JockVSJock]

We have over a decade of DefCon, and plenty of great stories over the years. If you had to limit it to just one event. for all DefCon (1-12) what was your favorite DefCon Experience?

DC12 was the best for me and I've been going since DC10.

What made it so good you ask?

-AP fucking me over on two rooms that I ordered, and only having one room. Payback was a bitch...

-Drinkin' booze w/my friends and making new friends

-Some guy social engineers me and my friends with a wallet
on the ground as we walk by the pool...fuck! Luckly we then became the 'gay pickpockets!' Look out!!!

-Watching DCTV and listening to the Priate Radio

-Trying to pick up three British HBs at the AP pool on the 1st day

-Going out on the Vegas strip each night and having fun!

[meee]

Defcon 10 was my favorite technologically speaking. There I learned more from the people in the main hall than any of the speakers.

Defcon 12 was the best socially. I got to meet the people who I saw on the forums, the toxic BBQ brought good food and good conversation. The forum meet was the best I ever been too… I was amazed someone would actually drink habenero rum.

My least enjoyable was 11… There were too many newbs and kiddies that kept on pestering me thinking I was a scene whore.

That’s my post for the year.

[zero]

Personal best?

I'd say 11. Generally good all around except for the seating issue. Low key and relaxing (well, except for Shatter's episode). Favorite part of it was probably 'Mett the Fed' panel where I got to be the proud Papa. Senator from AZ I believe went on and on on how the goverment belongs to the people as do their resources, then went on to say that people should earn by hacking their own systems. At Q&A time my son raised his hand and asked the esteemed Senator "If we should learn by hacking our own systems as you say, and the government and their systems belong to the people, doesn't that mean we should hack the gov't systems for the experience?" - All the security type feds were desperately trying not to laugh as they passed that on back to the senator to answer chokingly.

Dat's my boy!

p.s. he's looking for an NSA internship while he's at DC this year. I guess it hasn't been all bad.

[zero]

oops

that was 9 - there was no MTF at 10 or 11. Senior moment, just ignore.

[barkode]

Never really post here, but since this particular topic came up, some of my most memorable moments from defcons past...

Defcon 4 - When I got home and exactly a week later got raided by the feds who pulled my mother out of the shower at gunpoint. That was awesome.

Defcon 4 - When that guy stood up in the audience and answered "Who is some bitch?" to the hacker jeopardy question related to some chick who helped catch Kevin Mitnick. You had to be there, but I laughed until I cried. The energy at that moment was already so good and everyone just cracked up. Good times.

Also Defcon 4, when *name removed* distracted the Sidewinder guys and console hacked their box. I was 10 feet away and the crowd surge when someone yelled "Hey, the Sidewinder box got owned!" was rather funny.

Defcon 5 with the repelling-down-the-side-of-the-Aladdin incident that ended up with a party whose name will remain confidential removing a satellite dish from the roof of the hotel and dragging it up the wall, into the room, into the elevator, and then through the lobby.

Defcon 5 when I gave an interview to some reporter, then came home to find out the fun way that "some reporter" was 20/20 and I was featured on a primetime national telecast, prompting some interesting questions from family/friends/employers. (See, hacking wasn't exactly a household term back then.)

Again at Defcon 5, when the two worst undercover agents in history asked us if we could get them a cheap laptop, and specifically requesting that it be stolen, or they weren't interested. I was floored at the sheer ridiculousness of this.

Defcon 6, when we picked up the Door Prize (The GTE Van Door) from the previous owner, which we've been brining to Con pretty much ever since. I think it was 6.

Defcon 6 was when I saw the most amazing vomit stunt in my life, courtesy of Skully. I was in the suite and I turned towards the bathroom just in time to see Skully, who was probably 15 or 16 at the time, put one foot into the bathroom and projectile vomit directly into the toilet - several feet away - in a concentrated stream, hitting the target perfectly and making zero mess. The best part was the simultaneous groan from about 10 people in the room who witnessed the same event. That image is burned into my brain.

Also at Defcon 6, when pinguino owned the Windows box in the Kiosk at the Star Trek Experience without even touching the keyboard and got kicked out of the Hilton. That was just a classic moment.

Defcon 6 again, when I got really drunk at the Horseshoe and wrote a functional-but-barely telnet client in perl on my placemat using a crayon.

I don't remember anything about defcon 7 except that I was there and I was drunk before I even left my house, and I was still drunk when I got back, and that was the last time I did that.

Defcon 8 was when some 15 year old kid whom I did not know came into my room, drank and entire bottle of jack daniels that I had procured, barfed everywhere, and then passed out and literally stopped breathing. Fortunately we had a medic of sorts nearby and CPR did the trick, and an ambulance took him away. That was his first and last defcon trip from what I hear. This was the last year the Ninja Networks party was non-invitational.

Defcons 9 and 10, the enormous turnout of awesome people at the Ninja party, which went so very well both those years. Defcon 11's party wasn't up to snuff (for many reasons, mostly that the guy controlling the strippers did a poor job and then tried to rob me, failed when he realized I was among a large quantity of friends.)

Those are some of my favorite defcon moments, the ones I can talk about anyway. :)

I dunno. I think Defcon 10 was the most fun I ever had at defcon, but that was also the end of an era as far as I'm concerned. Since 1993 I've seen one full generation of the "scene" roll by, and I think the current generation is on its way out. As far as my immediate circle - the Ghetto is basically disassembled, Ninja Networks (our crew) pretty much gone, all the people I grew up with in the scene have gone their own ways. As far as the con, I'm not even running a Ninja party this year, hell I didn't even book a room this year. First time in 10 years I haven't. About half or more of my side of this crazy world isn't going to even show up. It's weird thinking that it's kind of over for us. Hell, I let my CCNP and CISSP lasp and I quit the tech industry altogether to pursue some more artistic desires. It's just... weird... feeling like something I was a part of, and was a part of me, doesn't exist anymore.

Defcon 10 was great. Everything went well, all the people that I've been in this with since the early 90s were there, and you could just feel in the air that it was a last hurrah of sorts.

That's what I try to remember about Defcon. Not the kids with the glowsticks and the dj equipment at pool 2 at the Alexis Park, but instead a couple hundred guys packed into a room at the Monte Carlo with Bootleg right outside selling the Oregon DMV database on CD-ROM. The BO2K release party. The CDC antics. The Defcon announcement being posted on the BBS with a single reference to the silly new "website". The miswired T1 at the Aladdin causing mayhem. The list goes on.

...and of course, I try to remember every time I got to hang out with some of the coolest and smartest people that I'll ever know.

Sigh.

-barkode

[TheCotMan]

Defcon 5 with the repelling-down-the-side-of-the-Aladdin incident that ended up with a party whose name will remain confidential removing a satellite dish from the roof of the hotel and dragging it up the wall, into the room, into the elevator, and then through the lobby.

Yes. That was an amazing event. There were also "power failures" in the hotel on that night I think. The hotel security running crazy down the halls, trying to kick people out of rooms if they "were not registered for that room." (They did not want any parties.)

I remember the ABC of drugs game in one room, where we went through the alphabet naming off drugs that began with the present letter, and then wrapping around to do it again without repeating drugs previously mentioned.

Weird eletronic games that people brought to the con that were like the old fashioned "simon" but more advanced.

Defcon 5 when I gave an interview to some reporter...

The media cannot be trusted! Danger! Danger! Will Robinson!

Defcon 6, when we picked up the Door Prize (The GTE Van Door) from the previous owner, which we've been brining to Con pretty much ever since. I think it was 6.

That kicked ass.

all the people I grew up with in the scene have gone their own ways. ... It's just... weird... feeling like something I was a part of, and was a part of me, doesn't exist anymore.

For me it has been different. I started out as mostly a loner, with a very small number of friends, and keep close with them. I also kept to myself at most DefCon (only hanging with one or two people that came with me) and was never part of the scene.

Thanks for the GREAT post! Very good stuff here.

[blauman]

Well, perhaps a lustro and a half ago, when some guys were filming some X files episode, we got interrupted by them about defcon, and the location...
other memorable moments... running out of gas in the desert... and the beautiful woman that join me, after had me follow around in the hotel... defcon was interesting too but she was much more remarkable that year :D Hmmm... wish I could find her again. through maybe she is the reason I keep no girlfriend around hehehe :)

[tendency]

Word up, Barkode.

10 was it, man.

it went as smoothly as a Defcon can, everyone and their mom was there, and even the parties were not to much of a pain. Hospital trips were kept to a minimum, inebriation was maxed to its limits, and it felt....smaller...somehow.

besides, XBS was still there.... That alone qualifies 10 for an honorable mention.

tendy-chan

[Ricky1146]

Anyone remember that good ole wall of sheep

Humm, my most memorable would be, one of these two.

Defcon 11 that good old wall of sheep.

Defcon 12. Dancing with that 1 stripper gal, and getting photos a few times.

Unforntunatley you guys wont see me this year. No i aint afraid lol. Ive been hunkered down, i nearly am married now. To the gal i knew since 12 years old. So ya lack of funds, then kelli doesn't want to come. Then the fact i went through a ugly felony court battle. And ITT Tech eating my money up. No DC 13 for me this year. I shall try Dc14

Maybe ill tease ya all in 1 year. And say try to get me on the wall of sheep, if ya can. Since lol, i was not it in defcon 12.

Gawd nearly 20 and almost married. Scary isn't it

See ya in a year and a half folks.

[Neural]

It's so hard to pick a favorite moment...at least one that I can fully remember. :)

Defcon 2 was when I finally got to meet noid, phax, the #phreak and #hack people. I think I still got my copy of Barfing Yak that Noid gave me. Other things that come to mind is trying to video tape Hacker Jeopardy after having a fifth of vodka, my friend Robin flirting with Phil Zimmerman and insisting that Dead Addict had to sit with us for the duration of his cigarette for borrowing our lighter. This was also my first trip to vegas, well actually I think it was my first trip anywhere out on my own.

Defcon 3 was the year that everything seem to go wrong starting with car troubles getting there, including one flat tire, the money spent to replace flat tire, getting to vegas and barely having enough money for the room and the badge and having to social a 2nd badge for the friend that came with me. We spent the weekend living off of AM/PM hotdogs from across the street from the tropicana and having people buy us drinks. :) We finally got to really eat on the way home when we got our cash room deposit back. That was kinda funny.

Defcon 4 I missed. Moved the month before and didn't have the cash to go and I didn't want to do it poor again...ever..

Defcon 5 was the Aladdin I believe. This was the first year I started sharing a room with people which made things interesting. The guy staying with me met two bored canadian girls who were staying at the hotel which made things interesting. Also it was the year I came back to my room to find Antix passed out. Apparently he drank more than he could handle and someone thought it was best to deposit him in my room. I think this was also the year I discovered that vodka and xanax go well with each other. And for some reason everyone kept asking me if I had any vasopressin with me. Smart Drugs were "leet" then. Also had steak and eggs with someone who turned out to work for the NSA who seemed to know me but I wasn't sure who he was. You know how it is.....they act like they've talked to you before..you try to be polite and go with it while trying to remember who it is.....yeah...

Defcon 6 I was on my own pretty much. I didn't hang out with too many people and spent lots of time seeing the city and doing stuff around town...walked up and down fremont street, went down to the strip and gambled. It was the start of going to defcon to see people and missing the talks.

Defcon 7 is when the heavy boozing started. 2 friends of mine came along that year. We started drinking at the airport waiting for our delayed flight and pretty much drank the entire weekend. That was the year I met siviak and traded him the infamous mad dog screwdriver for the girl he was with.

Defcon 8 through 12 are pretty much an alcoholic blur..not so much the alcohol but also because it's like 6am in the morning as I type this and I haven't gone to sleep yet. Fortunately there's lots of incriminating photographs to fill in the blanks. :)

I have to say I did have a lot of fun last year, but I think Defcon 11 was the pinnacle so far. I don't thing anything can beat the yard tall long island ice tea. It's unfortunate that I'll be missing this year, but it'll give my liver an extra break so it'll be ready for next year.