**EXHIBIT 31.1**

 

**HERBST GAMING, LLCCERTIFICATION PURSUANT TOSECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002**

 

I,David D. Ross, as a person performing the equivalent function of principalexecutive officer and principal financial officer of Herbst Gaming, LLC, aNevada limited liability company (the “Company”), certify that:

 

1.              I have reviewed thisquarterly report of the Company;

 

2.              Based on my knowledge, thisquarterly report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact oromit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in lightof the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading withrespect to the period covered by this quarterly report;

 

3.              Based on my knowledge, thefinancial statements, and other financial information included in thisquarterly report, fairly present in all material respects the financialcondition, results of operations and cash flows of the Company as of, and for,the periods presented in this quarterly report;

 

4.              I am responsible forestablishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined inthe Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal controlover financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and15d-15(f)) for the Company (but not Herbst Gaming, Inc., the Company’s predecessor)and I have:

 

a.              designed such disclosurecontrols and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures tobe designed under my supervision, to ensure that material information relatingto the Company is made known to me, particularly during this period in whichthe quarterly report is being prepared;

 

b.              designed such internalcontrol over financial reporting, or caused such internal control overfinancial reporting to be designed under my supervision, to provide reasonableassurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparationof financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generallyaccepted accounting principles;

 

c.               evaluated the effectivenessof the Company’ disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this reportmy conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls andprocedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on suchevaluation; and

 

d.              disclosed in this report anychange in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that occurredduring the Company’s most recent fiscal quarter (the Company’s fourth fiscalquarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or isreasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control overfinancial reporting; and

 

5.              I have disclosed, based onmy most recent evaluation, to persons performing the equivalent function of theCompany’s auditors and the persons performing the equivalent function of theaudit committee of the Company’s board of managers:

 

a.              all significant deficienciesin the design or operation of internal controls which could adversely affectthe Company’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial dataand have identified for persons performing the equivalent function of theCompany’s auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and

 

b.              any fraud, whether or notmaterial, that involves management or other employees who have a significantrole in the Company’s internal controls.

 

Date: November 15, 2010

 
|   | **HERBST  GAMING**,**LLC** |
|--------|----------------------------|
|   |                       |
|   | By:                        | /s/  DAVID ROSS |
|   | Name:  David Ross          |
|   | Title:  *Manager*          |

 

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