The official attendance numbers are in: 550! Another record set! Last year we had 400. I guess we are doing something right- that resonates with others as a way for us to honor Gary's passion for gaming. Thank you all for making Gary Con IV a huge success! We could not do this without your support.
Congrats. Seems like it's getting bigger and better! So...when does registration begin for Gary Con V?
I agree: you all definitely are doing a lot of things right. I liked the web pages with the events better this year. The number and diversity of events was impressive -- and the efforts some people made to put on their events even more impressive. I thought the preregistration system was better this year. The number of women and children was noticeably larger. And of course, the games themselves and the people running and playing them were a pleasure beginning to end. At the risk of repeating myself (a risk I knowingly run all too often, alas): GREAT JOB to all involved in setting up and running GaryCon!
That is pretty damn awesome. Not because you are using my name for a city-- okay, it is. We have the best gamers & volunteers at Gary Con! I am humbled by the love we get.
Just curious, Dale - any idea on the number of people under, say, 18? Man there were kids all over the place. Entire games run for kids by kids. SIGPUP* is working! * The Society to Increase the Gamer Population Using Procreation.
I posted this in Facebook, but I think it bears repeating: Cramming another 150 people into the convention this year was impressive, but even moreso was the fact that it didn't feel sardine-like at all. So, you guys did some excellent extra-dimensional space-management! I didn't get a chance to fill out the survey from the program while at the con: do you guys want us to post responses in a new thread here?
Yeah, it felt less crowded this year, perhaps the events were more evenly spaced (time wise) or the extra tables helped spread the foot traffic and avoid choke points?
I agree. I didn't feel crowded at all even with the construction going on out back. It was a blast and I enjoyed myself thoroughly. Thanks for all the hard work.
I was surprised at how well opening up the willow room, lobby and hearth room absorbed the extra 150 people. Donal does a great job balancing out the time slots too. I think that we can continue to grow at the Lodge next year. The main obstacle is the limited number of hotel rooms available.
I totally concur, I know there was an even higher attendance this year, however, I felt very comfortable and really enjoyed feeling like I knew at least half the attendees by the end of the con. Great work Donal, and great work to all the Gary Con staff!
The only place I felt the increase was in the main hall...right where registration and food and the doors to the first room all meet. If one person stops there...or Dan the Bard is playing... Curious questions that came up while my wife and I were talking about it: Can you move the registration upstairs to the little patio area? That way, you would still have the glass room behind it which seemed to be used mainly for the Open(?)like the room downstairs. Can the food be moved to the hall leading to the dealer area? We were just trying to figure out how to alleviate that bottleneck...
Glad to hear it. I really think holding Gary Con in Lake Geneva adds something special, sort of the "gaming mecca pilgrimage" component that you might not get from other locations. A few of the guys I know that came for the first time this year thought it was a pretty cool adventure. Maybe we could partner with another hotel nearby to accommodate overflow. If the Lodge itself is full, the Lodge operators might not mind running their shuttle to the overflow hotel a few times a day (morning, noon, dinner, midnight) for a modest individual charge, especially if visitors were likely to spend money at the restaurant and bar (cha ching!).
This is the second year in a raw that I stay at the Comfort Suites, I felt very well and I hope that the next year a deal for the Gary Con will lower the costs, I'll be there anyway!
My wife and I have been staying at the Comfort Suites for three years now. It's very nice, reasonably priced and offers a decent breakfast. It's not quite as convenient as staying at The Lodge, but we enjoy a slightly slower-pace than most due to her disability.
