Dadster Posted September 2, 2008 I uploaded my pictures earlier too. Looks like we've got good coverage of this. Page 1 Page 2 Yeah - I kinda thought about posting a recap somewhere else...Gen Disc? News? I was impressed that both Sat and Sun had the turn out they did. I really thought Sun would see much less people in attendance. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skelliesgang Posted September 2, 2008 the venue chosen was a BIG disappointment and crowd control was awful. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lost Viking Posted September 2, 2008 the venue chosen was a BIG disappointment and crowd control was awful. Hey, I duck taped arrows on the floor pointing to the exit and I think I did a pretty good job Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dadster Posted September 3, 2008 the venue chosen was a BIG disappointment and crowd control was awful. Can you offer anything specific? I think the hotel was nice, but suggestions would def help for next year considering they're holding it at the same venue. IMO, they need to have the tickets table (for the public) closer to the entrance and situate the main hall a bit better. Maybe get some cheap roping for the lines suggesting folks which way to head. 'Course, the folks with the strollers might not appreciate that too much, but I know some folks weren't sure where anything was. I think it was more about some parents not keeping track of their kids than just saying "crowd control was awful." The only complaint I heard was "I can't believe I can't use my credit card to buy something..." Yes, credit transactions can elicit higher purchases (according to some of the retailers), but c'mon. If that's the biggest complaint from the public and given the fact that all those folks volunteered their time, I think they did okay. Oh yeah - I almost forgot - there was the one lady who built her son a huge tower full of tan bricks, then got pissed when she found out that "free-build" didn't also mean "free bricks"... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CP5670 Posted September 3, 2008 (edited) There was an article in the Washington Post on Saturday morning about the event, which probably attracted a lot of public attention. The waiting lines were especially massive between 11 and 12 on both days, stretching way outside the front door. The place was at least as crowded as 2006, despite what seemed to me like a significantly lower MOC turnout and the fact that everything was concentrated in the main room back then, unlike this time. The main issue on Saturday was that the chain posts weren't affixed to the floor and they got easily pushed inward when the people started to flood in. I had a few kids touch my models or open the canopies, although it wasn't anything that would cause damage. They taped them to the floor on Sunday though and this was no longer an issue. Todd did say to email him any suggestions for next year. The main criticism I had was the seminar schedule, which should have been spaced out a lot more over the three days. Many of them went over time or conflicted with something else, and I was only able to attend about half the talks I would have liked to. Edited September 3, 2008 by CP5670 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dadster Posted September 5, 2008 (edited) I checked out the BF site and price has gone down for AFOL's by $10. for next year!! For kids 3-10(?) it went up by $2.00... Next year its August 22 and 23rd? No 3rd day? That seems goofy, because I thought they originally said it would be Aug 18-20. Edited September 5, 2008 by Dadster Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CP5670 Posted September 6, 2008 I think that refers to the public days only. Not sure about the discrepancy in the actual dates, but it looks like many parts of the site are unfinished. Good to see the price reduction for registrants though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dadster Posted September 9, 2008 I just rec'd this in email form from the fine folks at BrickFair... Well folks, our event was a huge hit by almost any measure. BrickFair had 402 registrants (not counting the 58 confused public people who thought they had to register). Some even walked in Saturday afternoon to register. We had 447 registered MOCs (plus who-knows how many unregistered), BrickFilms, silent auction, 11 seminars, Free-Build, and 7 vendors spread across 24,514 square feet. We ran a Washington Post ad in the "Kids" section on Thursday, plus the Washington Post ran an article in the "Weekend" section on Friday, plus they ran another article in "Style" on Saturday. Wow! And FOX-5 News was on-site Friday morning from 7am to 9am LIVE. They interviewed Rich Schamus (our Volunteer Coordinator), Alvin Brant (giant crane guy), Steve Hassenplug (Mindstorms), Sam Forker (Skeetball game) and Ron McRae (slot machine). Several other publications were on hand including "Somewhat Frank" and GAMES magazine. There was another post-event article on the front of the Washington Post "Business" section yesterday, Sunday 9/7/08. The public responded. We had 5,000 wristbands ready -- and we used them all the first day. In the end over 10,000 public visitors lined up around the building to get in. Ken Rice and scads of other volunteers kept 3 lines flowing all day, so the line always moved smoothly -- there wasn't a single complaint about the 15-minute line. We had a great time, and raised $8,717 for our children's charity, www.SladeChild.org. Apparently we crossed some magic charitable number drawing a PayPal investigation. I take that as a compliment to our fundraising success. We felt a little light in the MOC department, but it was noticable only to a few AFOLs. The public had a great time, as evidenced by the comments on their raffle forms. And I am personally honored that, from what I've heard so far, our theme leaders and volunteers had a great time too. No doubt, the lobby of the Sheraton Premiere was a bottleneck on Saturday. But that provided lots of opportunities to see the tiny smiling faces shuffling back and forth from the grand ballroom to the auxilary rooms. The BIONICLE people, all showing in the lobby, were very cool folks; they were a great "front man" for the public's introduction to the show! I was blessed with a great team of volunteers who worked hard and seemed to have fun doing it. I would be lucky to have the same team and the same "problems" next year. But of course, we're going to try to smooth out the wrinkles anyways :) Like the online voting thing -- yes, we'll make Internet more available for all. And we'll improve the MOC cards so you don't need 20/10 vision to read them. The Sheraton was blown away. Their restaurant ran out of soda and several food items. They are eager for our return, and return we shall. We have already agreed to next year. Mark your calendars for BrickFair 2009, August 21-23. That's one week earlier, but two weeks prior to Labor Day. Thank you all for being a part of the show! Todd and the BrickFair Team Wow. 10,000 walking through?! I knew it was a lot, but jeez!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Eilif Posted September 9, 2008 Glad to hear that Brickfair went so well. Sounds like there were a few snags, but for a first time convention to draw over 400 participants and as many public guests as they did, is spectacular! I know alot of folks had written it off as just a substitute Brickfest, but it looks like Brickfair will be the DC area LEGO convention, at least through next year. As Brickworld was only about 35 minutes from my door, I did not attend Brickfair, but the success of Brickfair is a great counterpoint to those who thought that a Midwest convention (Brickworld) would draw too much from a potential East Coast convention (Brickfair or Brickfest). Thankfully, it appears that AFOL's are going strong and are capable of having annual conventions all over the US. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dadster Posted September 9, 2008 Glad to hear that Brickfair went so well. Sounds like there were a few snags, but for a first time convention to draw over 400 participants and as many public guests as they did, is spectacular! I know alot of folks had written it off as just a substitute Brickfest, but it looks like Brickfair will be the DC area LEGO convention, at least through next year. As Brickworld was only about 35 minutes from my door, I did not attend Brickfair, but the success of Brickfair is a great counterpoint to those who thought that a Midwest convention (Brickworld) would draw too much from a potential East Coast convention (Brickfair or Brickfest). Thankfully, it appears that AFOL's are going strong and are capable of having annual conventions all over the US. Yeah - Apparently the woman who used to run BrickFest stopped in... I may look into hitting up BrickWorld next year! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
