First of all, there is a common mis-conception that Challenge raised 4 million dollars this year. In fact, the cheque (and the announcement) says 'money raised to date'. If you look at the cheque from last year, it said 3.5 million, and this year's said 4 million. So, in fact, Challenge raised half a million, not 4 million. Clearly, this is less than in previous years, but it's still an accomplishment.
Second, here are some notes regarding Challenge:
1) if the parties are going to be in places where you are not allowed to sit down, it would be useful for participants to know this in advance. That way, they can either choose to try to reserve a place to sit, or they can choose not to attend the event. There are times when people are physically incapable of standing for 2-3 hours.
2) It would be appreciated if the organized parties (like the tip-off party) could have a dance floor that is accessible to everyone. I understand the need for a VIP area, and have no problem with reserving an area for it, but at Mansion, the only dance area was blocked off for VIP use only.
3) If tickets give a doors-open time (as for skills), it would be nice if they also gave an expected start time. The sun in a place such as Miami is very dangerous, and people would have the choice to avoid being out in the hottest part of the day (around 1 pm) unnecessarily, if they know that the event will not start until 3 or later.
4) Please bear in mind that for many people, this was their first Challenge. Although the organizers have been doing it for 6 years, many of the participants have never attended Challenge before. Schedules, directions, and general information could be made more readily available.
5) If any major event (skills or the game) is being held at a great distance from the host hotel, then some form of transportation would be appreciated. A shuttle bus that we had to pay for would be sufficient. Not everybody had access to a car, and a taxi from Miami Beach to Ft. Lauderdale is cost-prohibitive.
6) Now that the event has been in Miami Beach twice, it might be good to think of a change of venue, for the sake of variety. Discussions with other fans indicates that New Orleans would be a popular choice.
Query:Is it 'to date' from last years event or 'to date' from when the whole thing started? 'Cause 4 million seems like a really small amount for six events...
And for Saturday...when we found out that the thing didn't start until 3, we didn't bother to leave the hotel until after 2...but an awning or cheaper water or someone to walk around and sell in the stands would have been nice.
I've noticed in past years that the check always reads "to date" but I'm with you, from what date do they start the calculations? If anyone can help with that info it would be great.
I haven't found a single person yet who hasn't suggested that it be moved from Miami! Glad you mentioned #1 & #2. I didn't go to any of the parties but I agree, anyone who's paid for a ticket to get in should have the same access to any part that would normally be considered the "public areas" of the club, including the seats and dance floors. The idea of a schedule of events for the weekend is a great idea. Maybe on line prior to and a schedule posted in the host hotel during? I'm sure the volunteers have made similar requests for themselves but that has still left the spectators wondering. Great idea!
As for #3, I agree opening the gates 1 1/2 hours early may have been overkill but with the Skills Challenge scheduled to start at 3pm, I'm sure they were planning it for people to have time to pick up merchandise/water and get to their seats. No one in the planning stage could have known that Chris wouldn't make it down from the hotel until 3:30.
First of all, there is a common mis-conception that Challenge raised 4 million dollars this year. In fact, the cheque (and the announcement) says 'money raised to date'. If you look at the cheque from last year, it said 3.5 million, and this year's said 4 million. So, in fact, Challenge raised half a million, not 4 million. Clearly, this is less than in previous years, but it's still an accomplishment.
Second, here are some notes regarding Challenge:
1) if the parties are going to be in places where you are not allowed to sit down, it would be useful for participants to know this in advance. That way, they can either choose to try to reserve a place to sit, or they can choose not to attend the event. There are times when people are physically incapable of standing for 2-3 hours.
2) It would be appreciated if the organized parties (like the tip-off party) could have a dance floor that is accessible to everyone. I understand the need for a VIP area, and have no problem with reserving an area for it, but at Mansion, the only dance area was blocked off for VIP use only.
3) If tickets give a doors-open time (as for skills), it would be nice if they also gave an expected start time. The sun in a place such as Miami is very dangerous, and people would have the choice to avoid being out in the hottest part of the day (around 1 pm) unnecessarily, if they know that the event will not start until 3 or later.
4) Please bear in mind that for many people, this was their first Challenge. Although the organizers have been doing it for 6 years, many of the participants have never attended Challenge before. Schedules, directions, and general information could be made more readily available.
5) If any major event (skills or the game) is being held at a great distance from the host hotel, then some form of transportation would be appreciated. A shuttle bus that we had to pay for would be sufficient. Not everybody had access to a car, and a taxi from Miami Beach to Ft. Lauderdale is cost-prohibitive.
6) Now that the event has been in Miami Beach twice, it might be good to think of a change of venue, for the sake of variety. Discussions with other fans indicates that New Orleans would be a popular choice.
That's all I can come up with for now.
kifty
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And for Saturday...when we found out that the thing didn't start until 3, we didn't bother to leave the hotel until after 2...but an awning or cheaper water or someone to walk around and sell in the stands would have been nice.
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Glad you mentioned #1 & #2. I didn't go to any of the parties but I agree, anyone who's paid for a ticket to get in should have the same access to any part that would normally be considered the "public areas" of the club, including the seats and dance floors.
The idea of a schedule of events for the weekend is a great idea. Maybe on line prior to and a schedule posted in the host hotel during? I'm sure the volunteers have made similar requests for themselves but that has still left the spectators wondering. Great idea!
As for #3, I agree opening the gates 1 1/2 hours early may have been overkill but with the Skills Challenge scheduled to start at 3pm, I'm sure they were planning it for people to have time to pick up merchandise/water and get to their seats. No one in the planning stage could have known that Chris wouldn't make it down from the hotel until 3:30.
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