Ladies and Gentlemen:
Most of you know by the magazine and this website, that I'm a big fan of making things a better value for the consumer. I don't believe in taking a good horse and riding it into the ground - I prefer to take care of it and see that it can go the distance.
To that end, I'm looking at doing some thing for the Rod Builders Show that will make it a better value for everybody. I'm talking about a larger show, but one with lower booth fees for the vendors and lower admission price for the attendees.
What I don't have a good feel for, however, is how important some of the outside amenities are. For instance, how important is having a vibrant shopping area outside the actual show location? How important is having a host hotel right across the street from the show? How important is night life for after show hours? I have a great feel for the show itself, but not much feel for what you guys do after show hours. Do you just go back to a restuarant and then to your room and crash? Or do you like to go to bars and nightclubs afterhours? Do most who travel in from long distances (and this is 80% of you) drive or fly in?
If you have comments on this, please email me directly at
rodmaker@earthlink.net. I may not be able to reply to everyone, but I would like to hear your thoughts. Again, don't post a reply here, just email them directly to me. Thanks.
We will have a bigger and better show in 2007. I just want to see how much bigger and better I can make it outside the acttual show experience, if that's even important.
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