jkoolpe
Well-known member
Hey all!
Thanks to everyone who attended and a VERY special and VERY HUGE thanks to everyone who put in the extra effort to bring games. I and the rest of the very tired (still) and fairly bruised (literally) staff cannot thank you all enough for your efforts! Really and truly we mean this...the show would not be what it is without each and every one of you.
I had a fantastic time I must say...certainly enjoyed meeting and/or seeing the various KLOV'rs, and apologies if I didn't have time to chat with everyone as much as I'd like to.
Here are my pictures for those interested. I haven't even had time to look at them all myself yet
:
http://s140.photobucket.com/albums/r4/jkoolpe/California Extreme 2009/
On a side note, I feel I must comment a bit on some of the discussion in the show's aftermath. While most folks certainly seemed to have a great time, I noticed a few commentors were a bit harsh on some of the exhibitors for various reasons. I don't want to go on too long here, but please remember that the people who do bring games in addition to the staff members do so almost entirely on their own initiative and I'm sure do their best to both bring the games in the first place, and to keep them in operational condition.
There is a back story to every game brought to the show, and if for some reason said game stops working or on occasion has to leave a little early, again, there is a very real and pertinent reason for this. For instance, my Asteroids with the prototype multikit went down on Sunday. I did attempt to fix it at that time, but sadly it was beyond my capability with the tools I had on hand. I'm still working on it now, and I'm sure I'll get it going soon enough, but I simply could not do so during the show despite my efforts. Other examples include one exhibitor who came from Salt Lake City (13+ hours!) with games in tow and he had a Monday morning commitment for his son so he therefore had to leave early on Sunday. Having his very rare games on hand was a treat and we should all be thankful that he was willing to do the major amount of driving to attend the show at all, particularly considering just how rare and special his games are.
The fact of the matter is that no matter how hard one tries, some of these games will develop problems at the show or during transit. After all, many are pushing 25+ years old now! I baby my games with as many new or replacement parts as I can, but still I have the occasional failure. I actually enjoy the process of fixing them now
.
Anyway, please keep in mind that we are 100% a collector/enthusiast driven show. We really think that this is to our advantage despite the often Herculean effort involved to pull this crazy shindig off each year, but it's just so much a labor of love that I wouldn't trade it for much of anything
. But we are stretched each year to the max in terms of manpower...and I just really wanted to point out that each and every exhibitor and volunteer who brought games or otherwise helped out should be showered with compliments. These guys are the best!
Always feel free to offer suggestions and we absolutely do our best to take them under our wing. Each year we have a post-show meeting to discuss what was good, what needs improvement, etc., etc. Since this was our first year at a new venue, there are definitely some kinks to work out, but rest assured, we will do so to make next year all the more better (and smoother).
I've rambled enough...I'll close by saying again how thankful I and the rest of the staff are for every exhibitor, volunteer, and attendee. Thanks again for making our crazy show another fun-filled success, and see y'all next year with hopefully some new faces and/or other KLOV'rs who couldn't make it this year.
Cheers to all!
Jon
Thanks to everyone who attended and a VERY special and VERY HUGE thanks to everyone who put in the extra effort to bring games. I and the rest of the very tired (still) and fairly bruised (literally) staff cannot thank you all enough for your efforts! Really and truly we mean this...the show would not be what it is without each and every one of you.
I had a fantastic time I must say...certainly enjoyed meeting and/or seeing the various KLOV'rs, and apologies if I didn't have time to chat with everyone as much as I'd like to.
Here are my pictures for those interested. I haven't even had time to look at them all myself yet
http://s140.photobucket.com/albums/r4/jkoolpe/California Extreme 2009/
On a side note, I feel I must comment a bit on some of the discussion in the show's aftermath. While most folks certainly seemed to have a great time, I noticed a few commentors were a bit harsh on some of the exhibitors for various reasons. I don't want to go on too long here, but please remember that the people who do bring games in addition to the staff members do so almost entirely on their own initiative and I'm sure do their best to both bring the games in the first place, and to keep them in operational condition.
There is a back story to every game brought to the show, and if for some reason said game stops working or on occasion has to leave a little early, again, there is a very real and pertinent reason for this. For instance, my Asteroids with the prototype multikit went down on Sunday. I did attempt to fix it at that time, but sadly it was beyond my capability with the tools I had on hand. I'm still working on it now, and I'm sure I'll get it going soon enough, but I simply could not do so during the show despite my efforts. Other examples include one exhibitor who came from Salt Lake City (13+ hours!) with games in tow and he had a Monday morning commitment for his son so he therefore had to leave early on Sunday. Having his very rare games on hand was a treat and we should all be thankful that he was willing to do the major amount of driving to attend the show at all, particularly considering just how rare and special his games are.
The fact of the matter is that no matter how hard one tries, some of these games will develop problems at the show or during transit. After all, many are pushing 25+ years old now! I baby my games with as many new or replacement parts as I can, but still I have the occasional failure. I actually enjoy the process of fixing them now
Anyway, please keep in mind that we are 100% a collector/enthusiast driven show. We really think that this is to our advantage despite the often Herculean effort involved to pull this crazy shindig off each year, but it's just so much a labor of love that I wouldn't trade it for much of anything
Always feel free to offer suggestions and we absolutely do our best to take them under our wing. Each year we have a post-show meeting to discuss what was good, what needs improvement, etc., etc. Since this was our first year at a new venue, there are definitely some kinks to work out, but rest assured, we will do so to make next year all the more better (and smoother).
I've rambled enough...I'll close by saying again how thankful I and the rest of the staff are for every exhibitor, volunteer, and attendee. Thanks again for making our crazy show another fun-filled success, and see y'all next year with hopefully some new faces and/or other KLOV'rs who couldn't make it this year.
Cheers to all!
Jon


