The next AK Fest ?

Clay

A cogent, comprehensive post! Well said, sir!

I like your demo suggestions, and the caution that they be scheduled, with a sign-up in advance, to gauge interest.

I would be happy to sacrifice my personal time to lead a scholarly expedition across the border, to study "Modern Interpretive Dance", at the Windsor Ballet. Not that I have any first-hand knowledge! Umm, is my wife reading this?
 
My 2 cents...... as i have already posted in this thread i thought fest 2005 was perfect, i missed the awards Sat ( did not know they were being done then, was bummed about that.....) but probably just missed the appointment that they were being done...... other then that its hard to improve on something sa well organized and thought out as this last fest was!!!!!
 
I second clay's whole post/suggestions except!

"5. I think it's really, totally, absolutely reasonable to charge a small fee for attending. For all of the members that work for companies that are in industries with national meetings/conventions/seminars...how often are those free? I'm talking about bumping it up to something very nominal, like $50, to help cover expenses, prizes, pizza for lunch and beer & wings on Saturday night, etc."

Call me a cheapskate but I'm not just thinking of myself, I think $50 is a little steap and feal something more like $20 is appropriate!
$50 might put some people off a bit.

Just my thinking here!
 
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As long as it is not further east of this years I will do AK Fest 2006. I think the idea of having some of the members systems, Vintage/New/Diy is what set
it apart from the "New car Show" Thing.

We all can go down and listen to new equipment but the thought of having members systems there and hearing sounds of the past are what AK is all about.

I can do a system set up in a room and a Veneer DIY over the weekend. Just sign me up. :thmbsp:
 
OK, I read it all. VEGAS. Cheap rooms, cheap food, cheap airline tickets from anywhere on the planet. Plenty of wandering tourists could also PAY ADMISSION, imagine that.

My marketing sense kicks in now. If you want to expand, you have to take the show on the road. How many east or west coasters will NEVER attend a Fest just due to distance? It's one of those "If I'd only known it was this much fun I'd have been going for years". You bring others into the fold so they can fly out east the next year. Bring their equipment when the Fest is close, fly in to enjoy when it's not. Just do a three part rotation, east, central, west. East, central, west. Nuff of that.

Vegas has it all, even the wary would go figuring they could find something enjoyable to do if the Fest didn't fill their needs 24/7. Three days, yes, full schedule on paper and online in advance would be a must. However I have to agree, had it been a nicotine Fest I'd have never returned and likely regretted attending in the first place. I'm spoiled now that my state doesn't allow smoking in restaurants, bars, work places, bowling alleys, etc. How nice it is to go out and actually BREATHE. I've fogotten that it's not that way everywhere.

Charge yes, AK members get a discount if they support AK financially, ADVANCE TICKET DISCOUNTS. That would help to set a budget. Lots of great ideas from FisherDude above, did that include a session on reading schematics? I can see the need for a big screen with a remote camera broadcasting the soldering, coning, etc. How about an eBay session on buying, selling, photographing, and all that?

Vegas has more cheap buffets than you can shake a stick at. You all could load up a van in Chicago and road trip out to Vegas with the gear... But I'll tell you if we aren't all exposed to a Fest we'll never take that first step and attend one. The critical mass phenomenom may be simply due to location and convenience. I could personally write the trip off as a business expense and may consider it next year depending on how the year progresses, but if it were nearby it would be a much easier decision. 'Just get 'em in, then they'll be hooked'. The rest will take care of itself.

Just some thoughts from the Left Coast.
 
AK Fest in LV

Vegas is one of my least favorite cities, buuuuut in may ways you are right. one important question is:
do we want it much bigger?

i concur on the basic sentiment of your points. keeping it in the same spot year in and year out will take a toll. however, good points have been made regarding vendors, dedicated group of AKers in MI, etc. i do think that the site should move. one nasty part of vegas is that we may get treated as a convention, when that happens, all the rules change. one has to pay fees for various services (like bringing audio equipment into a hotel) and trust me, after doing trade shows, that aint cheap. on the other hand, LV has a plethora of small hotels where we could likely rent the entire hotel.

but back to your points, i think you are correct, we need to take east and west into account and allow all members equal opportunity to enjoy the fest, hey 'toze you wanna set it up in LV?
:D
 
I think it should stay the same except for one thing. Grumpy needs some serious dosages of Valium for the weekend;)
 
vegas....might be nice

I've never been there and would like a reason to go..I don't gamble. but opening up AKfest to the public, while raising some $ would also take away from the overall "family" feeling from keeping it a members only event. Many times at AKfest 2005 I moticed rooms left un attended, some I walked in to sat down and listened. the owners were off doing their own thing. If the event was open to the public, I wouldn't feel too comfortable leaving MY gear and music un attended. A public event would eventually lead to everyone just staying with their own gear to keep an eye on it. Public also means kids and we all know what kids do to dust caps. :yes:
 
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