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An open letter to BGE

vidalia1
vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
I know moving from a little fest some years ago to a major event at AMS has been a long hard journey. I for one have only been around BGE a few years but I must say this years event was AWESOME. Hopefully AMS is the final destination as an event venue because it was great.

Yes there were some glitches as there will always be, but for my part as a cook I really don't think it could have been any better. There was no mad crush of people like in years past and the "eaters" were not pushing because they had plenty of room. Also the other attractions such as the pace car rides, bands, rock climbing & bungeeing kept folks busy.

Again from 1 person out of many who attended here is my kudos to all of you. And to all that missed it this year, heres hoping you will return in 2011... :)

Comments

  • Boxerpapa
    Boxerpapa Posts: 989
    Glad to see you had a great time. Someday, just someday I will make the trip to Atlanta from the left coast. ;)
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    It is worth the trip. I guarantee it... :lol: :silly:
  • I have one huge complaint. (well a few)

    If you are going to have people camping outside the speedway (only way to get full hookups - we specifically wanted power) at least make a toilet/shower area that is accessible without having to make a 15 minute venture into the infield. I find that very unacceptable.

    I spoke to the director of operations at AMS as well, they told me that the reason they weren't open on the outside is because BGE didn't pay to have them open. For the future I'd suggest the lots over next to the Family camping area that are full hookup and are right next to the bathroom/shower facilities. Big *HOWEVER* here though - if you would have TOLD US that they were going to be locked up we would have ordered a porta potty for our campsite. However you told us there would be facilities. I even hear the infield showers weren't open Friday night/Saturday AM.

    We probably won't camp again unless that changes or there is some better communication on what to expect.

    It was great having all the space, but also didn't appreciate being treated like criminals for having 20 people cooking and using 8 10x10 spots. We even cut off 2 of the 10 spots we were supposed to have. We mainly needed that space because we needed 8 eggs.

    Overall a great time and loved the fact that it was less crowded and I can appreciate how difficult it can be to organize something like this, but it could have been a little smoother.

    Don't even get me started on the cluster that was Friday night. I didn't even really want to go to that event and the food was mediocre at best. Some of the pork was decent when I finally got it about 8PM because every time I stood in line it ran out.

    Next time make Friday night optional or figure out a better way to serve the masses. We ended up cooking dinner for ourselves back at the campsite instead.

    One other idea. Last year you had one beer truck with 2 beer pourers. This year you had the same number with over double the amount of people. See a problem there?
  • DrZaius
    DrZaius Posts: 1,481
    I will agree with this as well, Kim. Good job on everyone's part.


    :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:
    This is the greatest signature EVAR!
  • I absolutely agree, Kim. The venue was great. It was obvious how hard the BGE people worked on the event. Yes, I heard some complaints but it is very hard to make that many people happy at once. Overall, it was a great time and I'm sure BGE will do whatever they can to correct the problems for next year. Eggtoberfest Rocks!
    Happily egging on my original large BGE since 1996... now the owner of 5 eggs. Call me crazy, everyone else does!
     
    3 Large, 1 Small, 1 well-used Mini
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    John,

    I agree Friday night was a cluster, however we made lemonade out of lemons. The beer & soda lines were short so we had beer & soda while chatting with the people in line for food. Then some of us went out to dinner while others of us went back to the camper & cooked...fun times

    I am confused about the camper issue. There were 7 of us in our group in the Lake camping area. We all had campers with full hookup with water, sewer & electric. We all could shower and go potty just fine in our own campers. Did your shower & toilet not work? Not sure about your camping issue. We had a blast. We will definitely camp again. :woohoo: :lol: :silly:
  • I had a good time at the event.

    This being my 2nd Eggtoberfest (got my first egg at the last one!), and my desire to actually get to know folks -- the one gentle suggestion I would make to the BGE folks is to do something about the name-tags!

    I struggled to find familiar forum names so I could attach faces to names, but it seems like the tags were flipped around 80% of the time so the names were not visible. Maybe the information should be printed on *both* sides? Also, it would be nice if the forum handle was in a bigger font.

    Changing to a new venue was bound to stir up a few glitches, and hopefully things will get tuned in over the next couple of years...

    Don
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    Don,

    I agree on the name tags. They were great but needed bigger font for the forum handle & a great suggestion for it to be on both sides.... :)

    and yes it was a lot of fun... :)
  • tjv
    tjv Posts: 3,830
    looks like ya'll had a rocking fun time.....t
    www.ceramicgrillstore.com ACGP, Inc.
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    Tom,

    I may have a few sales coming your way. Folks were asking about the mini Kim woo and where to get one...I told them about the big Woo's also... :lol:
  • DrZaius
    DrZaius Posts: 1,481
    vidalia1 wrote:
    Tom,

    I may have a few sales coming your way. Folks were asking about the mini Kim woo and where to get one...I told them about the big Woo's also... :lol:

    It is not called the mini Kim woo anymore.?. When did that happen?
    This is the greatest signature EVAR!
  • buddys
    buddys Posts: 1
    this year's event at AMS was my first eggtoberfest, but certainly not my last. i had heard about prior events, and was concerned about the increased size this year. my concerns were generally unfounded. i am sure the bge folks will correct the long food lines of friday night. other than that, i thought the venue was ideal.

    this year i was an "eater", next year i will be a "cooker". my calendar has the third saturday of eggtober reserved.
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    Marketing never informed me. I guess that is why my royalty checks have stopped... :unsure: :S :huh: :ermm: :woohoo: :lol: :silly:
  • tjv
    tjv Posts: 3,830
    thanks for the onsite marketing, always appreciated.

    the 10 inch grid upgrade lead to the end of the mini kim woo. I learned from the Spider modification couple years ago, having two different pieces with the same name for the same cooker is retail suicide........LOL!

    t
    www.ceramicgrillstore.com ACGP, Inc.
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    and another great marketing idea goes the way of the damned... :):)
  • Photo Egg
    Photo Egg Posts: 12,110
    Still like the older style. Lets you drop in many different kinds of grids.
    Miniwcastironcloseup.jpg

    Mini_FlatIron001.jpg
    Thank you,
    Darian

    Galveston Texas
  • Hoss
    Hoss Posts: 14,600
    I sent you an email through the forum email.
  • Nature Boy
    Nature Boy Posts: 8,687
    Good post Kim. This was a totally new thing for everyone, including the folks at the Egg. They've been working on planning...tirelessly...for a long time. My guess is they've already had a meeting today about all the ways to improve the event for next year.

    A WHOLE bunch of people sure make a different kinda fest than we are all used to! Main thing I regret is that there is a bunch of people I saw only briefly and would have loved to spend some time with. We'll all make sure and get a central location for the before and after parties for next year!

    Good seeing you Kim, and thanks for posting the pix.

    Cheers
    Chris
    DizzyPigBBQ.com
    Twitter: @dizzypigbbq
    Facebook: Dizzy Pig Seasonings
    Instagram: @DizzyPigBBQ
  • FlaPoolman
    FlaPoolman Posts: 11,676
    Chris, how long did it take to clean the parking lot? :whistle: :laugh: :laugh:
    Sorry I couldn't make it this year, hope it works out for the next one.
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    I agree with all you said Chris. We had to lay the ground work for next year right B):) Great seeing you guys as well...Next year will be even better... :P :P :P
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    Hey newbie (LOL) :laugh: look in the latest recipes section...

    http://www.eggheadforum.com/index.php?option=com_recipes&func=detail&id=1225

    I sent you the recipe last week but my spam stuff gets kicked back so I posted it in the latest recipes section...

    contact me at bludyung@yahoo.com

    Enjoy...
  • Tractor
    Tractor Posts: 288
    Boxerpapa, if I make it back to Eggs By The Bay in June, you have to reciprocate and come to Eggtoberfest!
  • BBQDawg
    BBQDawg Posts: 56
    The only thing I was really dispointed in was the FRI night gathering. The Eggtoberfest website specifically stated that eggs would be available if you wanted to cook your own tailgating food. I bought about 30 bucks worth of food and lugged my spider/wok down there hoping to cook for folks. When we got there I went straight to the "information" table and asked where they were -- they didn't know what I was talking about. I checked the website when I got home that night to see if I had just misread it and it still stated that there would be the option to cook your own food.

    C'est la vie -- I ended up waiting 50 minutes in line and got some sub par bbq on half a stale hot dog bun sans sauce as they ran out :(


    That being said we had a blast on SAT -- my wife and I were full after only 30 minutes of walking around we ate so much good food :) We're really looking forward to next year and already have a menu in mind as we want to cook next time :)
  • Hoss
    Hoss Posts: 14,600
    Thanks.I looked there last week. :blush:
  • vidalia1
    vidalia1 Posts: 7,092
    No problemo....enjoy the pie/cake.
  • Boxerpapa
    Boxerpapa Posts: 989
    Hey, I'll be in Nashville next week, does that count? LOL
  • vidalia1 wrote:
    John,

    I agree Friday night was a cluster, however we made lemonade out of lemons. The beer & soda lines were short so we had beer & soda while chatting with the people in line for food. Then some of us went out to dinner while others of us went back to the camper & cooked...fun times

    I am confused about the camper issue. There were 7 of us in our group in the Lake camping area. We all had campers with full hookup with water, sewer & electric. We all could shower and go potty just fine in our own campers. Did your shower & toilet not work? Not sure about your camping issue. We had a blast. We will definitely camp again. :woohoo: :lol: :silly:

    We were just down from you guys and had a pop-up camper (with no facilities) and a fifth wheel with one bathroom/shower, but were sleeping 10 people the whole weekend. I don't know about you, but RV bathrooms aren't the most spacious thing and any time we camp at a campground we always use the campground facilities. I'd rather shower in a bigger shower and use the toilet in a stall than be super cramped. Also when dealing with that many people with one bathroom can be a pain in the evenings and especially with the #2 fairy calls.

    Like I said I understand why it was overlooked - exactly what you stated, but I've never been to a campground that didn't provide easily accessible alternate facilities. They told us there would be facilities - if they had said if you are outside in full hookup you will not have easy access to bathroom facilities we would have rented a portapotty. $50-75 for the whole weekend would have been well worth it.

    Camping aside - Saturday was a blast, Friday night not so much, but that seems to be the general opinion. It wasn't a miserable time for the weekend, we had fun like always, but just points they might want to think about next year.
  • mr toad
    mr toad Posts: 779
    mr tom, you were missed - hope to see you next year

    mr toad
    See no Evil - Hear no Evil - Speak no Evil
                        Smoke no Evil

    BGE - Mini, Small, Medium, Large
  • mr toad
    mr toad Posts: 779
    well said - !!

    mr toad
    See no Evil - Hear no Evil - Speak no Evil
                        Smoke no Evil

    BGE - Mini, Small, Medium, Large