Are you really ready to read this? It's kind of far out in right field. You've been warned!
thorwren's post in the flag thread has made me decide to field a question to all you folks. It's been on my mind for a little while, but I've been embarrassed to say anything.
Why isn't there a festival for hammocks and hammock related gear?
I know we have these little regional hangouts and having been to one of them, I can say they are great! I'm sure everyone who has been to one agrees. There are so many neato little things that people do with their set-ups. Plus, there is still the motivation for my hammock hostel; a hammocks-are-us for all the people that want to try the different brands and styles of hammocks, quilts, and tarps.
But, here's the problem(s). You have to ALREADY be a hanger, be lucky enough to be in the area when the crazies are stringing up things from the trees, or be a friend of a said crazy to know about the events. Not to mention the fact that if they have manufacturer representation, it is usually only one or maybe two of them; I want people to see them ALL in their glory. There don't seem to be any 'functions' for those, on the outside, who might be interested. Ramblinrev's newest video is a perfect example! Some people would love to hike again, but think they are no longer able to do so. Sooo very sad.
There are so many fairs, festivals, and the like out there for just about anything you can think of, but the only hammock festival I could find in a quick search was in Puerto Rico and I can't find my passport at the moment.
Here's where I get myself in trouble. Colorado is a H-U-G-E outdoor state. The people here live to be outside (for the most part). On any given weekend, you can find a dozen 'festivals' within a 2 hour drive (GREAT if you like live music!!!). I've only been hangin for a couple of years now, but am astounded at how quickly this cult of hangers is growing. I bet it took longer for sleeping bags to catch-on. It seems to me that this might be a good time to consider a hammock festival of sorts. There can be NO denying from the folks on this site that we are serious about our toys.
Genuine Draft and I have been talking about this a little bit of late. She is an HR guru and is already looking into the requirements to organize something like this. Although my degree is in Wildlife Biology, most of you know me as a banker. However, I rose through the ranks as the Marketing Dude, so I've got a pretty good grip on what would be needed in that regard.
ABSOLUTELY NOTHING has been decided, just pipe-dreams for the moment. And no, this would not be an entrepreneurial endeavor. It will be purely missionary style work; enlightenment for the masses. I would expect that if it works and is viable on a long term, that it could grow as the vendors grow and the manufacturers support it through attendance. Sponsorships are already being discussed.
I am constantly assailed by curious people when setting up a hammock in a public, or semi public place. It sure seems to me that there might be some interest. Has this been tried before and failed? If so, was it just too early in the game? I'm going to organize an event this summer via meetup.com., which if you haven't checked out...you should. I just want to guage the interest level of the 'public' with this meetup event. There are about 30 people on another local forum that have overloaded my email when I made a similar post on that site; they want me to do it now. At the very least, it will provide me with justification for having all these dang hammocks in my basement, and also allow the justification for acquiring even more!
So, after a really long, rambling post here's the question:
Hangers: Do you think it is worth pursuing? Would you come to it with enough notice? Manufacturers: Would you spend the money on travel and booth set-up for a hammock specific event that has attendance of less than 10,000 people? If not, what would be the magic number to make it worth the expense or would you be open to providing short-term demo systems for the event? Of course, we will need some entertainment...Shug?
There is more involved with this from a legal and logistic perspective than I ever would have thought possible, but it is all very doable. Should I move on to the next hair-brained idea, or try to build something with this idea? Every really cool event started with somebody saying "you know what we should do". Reminds me of a favorite joke: What are a redneck's last words?....Hey yall, watch this!
Thank you for reading my day-dreams. I'm going to lunch now to deal with the obvious low blood-sugar I'm experiencing.
Flame away.
That sign will NEVER hang at a hammock event that I have something to do with!
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