Issue 1 Response (Megaevent)

Yes, I do think that the WGA should work towards having a mega event, which would require that the current annual events be increased a bit in scope, and the finding of an appropriate venue. I think it is too late to plan this for 2007, but we should make it our goal to have the annual spring event in May be a mega event in 2008.

To faciliate this, I would support GeoPink’s proposal that the WGA board create action committees to advance specific goals and objectives of the WGA. For example, there could be a 2008 mega event planning committee, with a member or two from the WGA BOD, and the rest the members of the work group being interested volunteers from the rest of WGA.

We would probably want people who have attended other mega events on the committee, since folks like you would have better insights into what is needed to make a mega event a success. One excellent choice for mega event committee membership would be Tami of the Ecoranger’s. I did hear you volunteer, right? 😀

zuma

I feel the same as the other canidates, that yes, with the Proper ground work being layed, that Wisconsin could hold a great mega event. I feel from talking to people that attended the last GeoWoodstock, that it was not fully thought out. One thing we don’t want to do, is to put an event toghether Half A’sed, and then come out of it looking like Chumps, I agree whole heartdely with Anne On that one. I also would support the committee, with at least some members having attended one or more Mega Events, to bring good Ideas to the table.

Justin

I could easily see Wisconsin as a home to a “Mega-event”. I would lean away from the WGA trying to create our own Mega-event in Wisconsin as I don’t see this as being within the scope of our purpose as on organization. Instead, I would hope to be able to latch on to the experiences of other organizations across the country by assisting and hosting an already functioning group (Midwest Geo-Bash, GeoWoodstock, etc.).

I think we should lead the way. Why latch onto an existing event? Why not create our own? Lack of ambition or man-power holding us back? I think we’ve just scratched the surface of the membership resources of the WGA. If we can’t manage it on our own, why not invite the MnGA or GONIL to partake in a Mega-Event with us?

I am in the process of setting up a GeoScouting event in March. I have more volunteers offering help than I ever expected. Ask and they will help. From my experience in setting up Scouting events, I’m familiar with what it takes to throw something together to accommodate 300+ people. That being said – 2008 sounds like a good goal.

While I’m mentioning Scouting. The BSA is reaching out to the Geocaching community. We should be reaching back. Again many, many resources are available (say, BSA Council Camps for annual Geocaching Events)

I’m going to be completely unoriginal and also say that I would love to see a mega-event in Wisconsin.

I’ve never been to a GeoWoodstock, so I can’t speak from experience, but even though I’ve heard from people that enjoyed going, I also read about all the negatives that happened last year. I’ve spoken with members of GONIL about this before, and the vibe I get is that it’s not the kind of event that they would actively court to come to this area.

GeoBash is another story. I enjoyed going to that, and I think the reason is that it put more emphasis on getting people together to socialize, rather than just giving everyone a place to camp while they go caching. I’d like to see geocaching “clinics” as well where we could have things like “Q&A with a cache reviewer,” or “Cool cache container demos.” Jeremy Irish has also said that Groundspeak wants to be a more active by coming out to events like this and doing presentations of their own.

To make this a mega-event, we’d need a place for over 500 people for a weekend or longer, and even with an emphasis on socializing, out-of-towners probably are still going to want to go out caching, so it would likely need to be near someplace with a higher density of caches and not in the middle of nowhere.

The big question is whether there’s room for a third mega-event during the summer, or if we should offer to hold the 2008 GeoBash. That’s a decision that would be left to planners.

I took care of changing the forum topic for you guys (yes, it can be done!)

There actually have been some conversations (not mine) about bringing MWGB to Wisconsin, so the possibility is there folks!

Bec

@Jeremy wrote:

@greyhounder wrote:

I took care of changing the forum topic for you guys (yes, it can be done!)

I must have changed the subject simultaneously Bec… guess we both have nothing better to do than monitor these forums. 🙂

I think you might be right.