Feedback from the show...

So I asked for stories, and they're coming in.  This one from this morning...

"This was my first time to Canoecopia and I had a ball. Since I'd purchased a Hurricane Santee Sport 116 from you in October, I of course stopped by the Hurricane booth on the floor. I got to talk directly to Brad Taylor, which was a nice surprise. We discussed the 116, naturally. I told him I bought it as it was the only kayak I knew ofwhich was designed with birders in mind, and I'm a hard-core birder. 

"He immediately asked what could be done to improve the 116 for birding. Since I've not had it out that much yet - thanks to winter - I told him what I thought so far and he made a strong point of asking me to send him e-mail as I continue to use the boat for birding so they can continue to improve it. I wasn't expecting this kind of close contact with the companies and their officers, and really appreciated it. I'll be back next year!"

A Week Out...

...and things are still relatively calm.  A few frantic folks didn't get their exhibitor packets.  I'll work on that one.

Everyone stay calm.  Please.  Worryin' never made anythin' work better, y'hear?

We had a good staff meeting Tuesday.  Bodie ran it.

See you soon..

         Darren

Congratulations, Canoecopia fans...

...you've succeeded in crashing our webserver.

To quote Scotty from the Old Star Trek, "I dinna think she kin handl' much more, Cap'n." We have a very good ISP, but when our traffic takes over the entire server there, they cut us off. So we're cut off.

We're working to solve the problem. I guess if you're going to have problems, having a server get overloaded with requests is a good one.

Thanks!

Darren

Two weeks to load-in.

Things are humming.  And we are getting a little bit silly.  Yesterday we were at a snowball fight and some work broke out.  It might seem strange to you, but the page came over the entercom yesterday:

"Attention all staff...a three-minute snowball fight

 will commence in front of the shop.  That is all."

This was about the same time that Brian build the snowman on the deck.  Before too long he was dressed for action.  Sadly, he melted an hour later.  No, strike that...  Happily, he melted an hour later.  We're ready for this to be over.  We want 50s and we want them now.

Seriously, a little levity is critical right now.  Those semi trailers you see in the background are product coming in daily.  Marit and Joe are running a smooth sailing ship...and the new staff are awesome.  Stuff comes in, gets received, tagged, and is turned around and stored in our warehouse until the big day.  Sometimes our manufacturers make mistakes, but they're all taken in stride and it all works out in the end.

The stress level is way low, for some reason.  Sasha is taking off for a week for a cruise (something that never happens - Sasha's a workaholic) with her partner and is actually not too stressed about leaving.  I think it's a great sign that key staff are taking time off so close to the event...that means the plans are in place, and that the team is willing to pick up some slack so people can get some R&R in before the season starts.

Oh...Mary (the Accountant) is back from her short L.O.A. and was presented with her own Herbert Kornfeld* t-shirt by Charlie, one of the new staff who also loves H-Dog.  

I love these people...

*Note that some of H-Dog's language is somewhat colorful. Word.

Meet Dorian and Ramon

Rutabaga supports several charitable organizations, and one of our favorites is Big City Mountaineers (BCM), a national organization that gets inner city kids out in nature.  A lot of these kids have had difficult lives, and had never been anywhere outside their neighborhoods, let alone the Boundary Waters.  Here are a few pictures and their own stories.

I went on one of the BCM trips last year and I loved it. The reason I liked it so much was because I got to experience how some people used to live before there were buildings and houses. I also got to go with friends and my mentor, Gary.  We all had to work together when we canoed and even simple stuff like putting up and taking down the tents built more trust in each other.

My experience was very good. Not all kids get to go on trips like this and enjoy nature and beauty. I have never seen so many wild animals. I enjoyed walking the portages, because we got to see the woods and animals.  I have never seen so many eagles in one day in my life.

The reason the trip was so much fun was also because of our leaders. One leader's name was Jeff; he always made us laugh and just did what he had to do to make the trip fun. I hope to have him again and can't wait to go again this year. Thank you BCM for making my summer complete.

Sincerely,

Ramon Arroyo

Hello BCM,

My name is Dorian Curtis.  I attended the BCM boundary waters canoe trip last summer.  It was my second trip and I was chosen to be a youth peer leader role model to the younger youth. I really grew by having the title and experience of being a peer leader. Being a peer leader made me more responsible for making sure the tents get up, the food get put away in its proper place and everything stays dry.  Being out on the water all day made us think about getting back to shore to eat and sleep. 

It was a great chance to get away from my harsh environment and meet people like Jeff, Ian, and Robb.  They taught me how to cope with the outdoors and how to canoe the proper way.  Being out in the wilderness is so beautiful and peaceful.  I'm really looking forward to going again in July.  I think everyone should experience the BCM trip at least once in their life time.

Thank you BCM,

   Dorian Curtis   

Both Dorian and Ramon will be at Canoecopia to help us out and talk with folks about their experiences, so stop by the BCM booth and see what Big City Mountaineers has done for them...and hopefully, what you can do for Big City Mountaineers.

Meet Al Barsema

Howdy y'all. We've been in a mad rush to get the gazette to bed, and more than half of the folks placing ads have been late (like three weeks late). It's frustrating for poor Annie. If you think of it, tell Annie you think she's awesome. I would have blown a gasket. But now it's all good, still waiting for a few ad agencies to earn their salt.

I wanted to talk about a speaker every few days to give you a little more insight than you can get from a bio or talk description.

Today I want to talk about Al Barsema. I want to be Al in 13 years. Al took a solo trip at 60 into Quetico Provincial Park. I called Al to ask him why.

"Why did I do this? Well, it was a celebration of my sixtieth birthday. After returning from Alaska, I wanted to do something in the outdoors, and I went to the Boundary Waters with some of the guys from church.

"My work is very intense, starting businesses and using a lot of new technology. Luckily, my wife is understanding. She's not a camper, and she understands that I needed to get away and unplug from everything, to get time to reconnect with the Creator and the creation.

"I go up every May and October, and have beeing doing it for 5 years. I was looking at the map and saw a lake in the middle of Quetico called Allan Lake. So I thought, 'Why not go from the top of Quetico to Allan Lake and back?' So I did, then I thought, 'Why not go from the bottom of Quetico to Allan Lake?' So I did. Then I thought, 'Why not go from the top all the way through?' So I did.

"The best thing about it was MAKING it. Seriously, the best part was being alone for 9 days. I'm not antisocial or anything, but I enjoy being alone, and I get into a different zone and it's a special time for me. The challenges of making it is great ...but with a little confidence you can make it. Its a wonderful park to play in."

As I said, I want to be Allan when I grow up.

Until next time,

Darren

Driving to work a few days ago...

...the lake was steaming like a giant bowl of ramen noodles.  I held my camera out the window and took this without taking my eyes off the road.  So you get what you get.  

The point is, the lake was in the process of becoming solid (and now is solid).  Seems strange to plan for a paddling event when the ice has locked up the lakes, but we're just 77 days out.  We've got it all under control here (well...everything under our control anyway), but it still seems weird that we're on the backside of the winter solstice and days are getting longer, and in just 11 weeks we'll be schlepping canoes, kayaks, paddles, and a few assorted semis of product over to the Alliant Energy Center Exposition Hall.

Right now, I just want to think about finishing my gazette assignments and go snowshoeing before the rain melts it all this weekend.  You heard correctly; rain.

Stay safe,

  Darren

Floorplan, Continued

So here's why I love two-headed video cards.

On the left, the floorplan.

On the right, a spreadsheet of verified attendees with their status (contract received, payment received (when appropriate), placed on floorplan, etc.).  Also instructions from myself to myself on placement history of exhibitors over the years so I can try to be as consistent as I can while accommodating new folks, etc.

It's coming together slowly, but surely.  Always does.  This one just has me scratching my head occasionally as we have quite a few new vendors, and a lot of space allocation adjustments based on the popularity of the particular brands, etc.  All while being "fair" which means pleasing everyone, which is, of course, impossible.

Doesn't keep me from trying, though.

  

  DB

The sausage machine.

Annie is our graphic artist and layout queen for our ads and especially for the gazette.  I don't remember who said it, but someone once said that "people who have weak constitutions shouldn't want laws or sausages being made."  There's a sign on Annie's door saying "Keep Out.  I'm Making Sausage."

Putting together a 76-page document is a lot like making sausage, with ads and articles coming in from a hundred different sources.  We're starting to make it look more like a document...it'll get ready for final edits in early January, then it's off to the printer.  And to your mailbox.

Stay warm, we're less than 90 days from the Big Show.

  Happy Holidays,

      Darren

Editorial Note:  Quark Xpress is a horrible piece of garbage software package.  Avoid it like a case of e. coli poisoning.  Adobe InDesign is much better, and despite their annoying customer service, they are much better than the abominable customer abuse we received from Quark.

Speakers

This picture has nothing to do with speakers, but I am cold and this was a 90 degree day in central Utah.

One of the most fun aspects of Canoecopia is putting the speaker schedule together. One of the worst aspects of Canoecopia is putting the speaker schedule together.

There are several reasons for this:

1. An embarrassment of riches. We receive far more applications for great speakers than we can possibly accommodate. This means saying "no" to some really, really great folks, something we all hate doing.


2. An overabundance of interesting topics. We have people who want to speak about a ton of interesting rivers, oceans, and lakes. We have to limit them sometimes as there are just not enough slots. We do repeat some but we have to otherwise people have to make too many difficult choices...we don't want that.


3. Really nice people. With a few notable exceptions (two in the eighteen years I've been doing this), everyone is really sweet. No prima donnas, no high-maintenance superstars. The irony is that the people with the most to brag about, like Jon Bowermaster, for instance, are the easiest to take care of. The few that had the highest P.I.T.A. factor* were relatively obscure folks who thought we owed them a bazillion dollars for gracing us with their presence. Needless to say, they're no longer invited. To anywhere, actually. Word got out...

So now Nancy and I take every speaker and topic and make Post-It notes. We lay them out and start moving them around. Too many kayak sessions at once...too many Canada sessions at once...to many too many too many... It's like herding cats. By next week we should have a good, solid feel for who goes where and when.

I'll throw a few teasers up here next week after I get a schedule. Suffice it to say it's gonna be good stuff.

Stay warm,

Darren

*Pain in the Butt

Floorplan Update and a New Baga Baby

Greetings, all.  Today had two themes:

1)  Dig Out From Under Five Days of Mail, Email, and Voice Mail Day.

2)  Solidifying The Floorplan for Canoecopia Day.

The first task took a while...nothing a few hours with a snowshovel couldn't handle.  Shame on U-Line Packaging for sending me six (!) phonebook-sized catalogs.  Three trees gave their all for these catalogs.  I also received a postcard requesting a catalog...a postcard we mailed out over six years ago.  Very, very weird.

The second task was more difficult but a lot more pleasant.  We're not making any major changes to the floorplan but it's always a struggle to include new boat vendors and other folks who need a lot of space since there's a finite amount of it...but we're making it work.  We always do.

To do our floorplan we use Adobe InDesign.  It's the same desktop publishing program we use to produce the gazette, but Annie has a lot more skill than I do.  I just drag squares around and reshape them until everything fits together.  Some booths get bigger (the ones who put care into making them look good), some booths get smaller (the ones that don't).  The tough part is that most people put extraordinary care into flying their company flags as best as they can in a space they're given. 

Annie's placing ads in the gazette this week, and we're editing copy and dropping that in too.  We'll send it off to the printer just after the first of the year and drop it in the mail soon after.  Both printing and mailing costs are up significantly but we'll manage.

Other news from last week:  John Reinders, our warehouse manager and assistant floor manager added another little Reinders to the brood.  Axel joined brothers Owen and Eli, and Liz was, of course, amazing.  John is on paternity leave for a while so he's missing out on some boat shipments.  Good timing for him, I s'ppose.  We miss him.

  Darren

New Folks - Delta Kayaks

John (l.) and Scott (r.), product testing.  I could have gone on this trip, just so ya know.'

So I was thinking I could let y'all know if there are new folks coming this year.  There are new folks coming this year.  I'll throw one up here periodically so you can see who's coming...

There are quite a few folks who are new to Canoecopia.  I'll just address them one at a time.  Less confusing for me, maybe for you.

A few years ago Mark Hall calls me from Delta Kayaks in B.C.  Has a cool new company, makes cool boats, yadda yadda.  I know Mark from previous industry connections and know him to be a decent enough guy, but the timing was wrong, shipping boats from B.C. is difficult and expensive, and wanted to make sure if we worked together it's a win all around.

Last winter Mark calls again, wanting me to come test some product.  I wanted to go but it's a busy time for me, and Scott is the kayak category buyer, so I thought I'd send him.  He split his ticket and asked if John could come along.  Magnanimous of him.  So off they went.  I stayed home and wrote checks and did budgets while they dived on the product testing grenade.

I'm not sure what that green thing is.  Not a Delta, I don't think.  I'm sure it's pretty to somebody...

They came home enthusiastic about the boats, and frankly, so was I.  They're nice...they hold a lot of stuff, they are pretty, and their value to cost ratio is excellent.  So we bought some of them, and Delta Kayaks will be at Canoecopia 2009.  And at some point in the next 365 days, I am going to British Columbia to paddle.

Coming soon...more new folks!

   Darren

Happy December!

It's as busy as a hive of hornets (kind, non-stinging hornets) around Rutabaga.  Annie has been chained to her desk as she paginates (that's the journalism term for making sausage) the Canoecopia gazette.  As soon as the front page is done I'll post it for the three of you who are reading this blog.

Speakers are being finalized this week.  We do have some standards returning (Cliff, Kevin Callan, etc.), but also a whole crop of new folks who haven't presented at Canoecopia before.  Sure to be a good time for those of you who can hear the presentations (I won't).

The house is starting to book up too.  My house turns into a virtual Canadian Embassy during the show - Kevin Callan, of course.  Brian Cooke from Level Six will stake out the basement futon.  Bear Bass from Ozark Outdoors will be in The Shack with Tera (probably).  Rosie and Megan will probably live at our place if not sleep there, and Roch and Tim from Nova Craft tend to hang around for the pancakes.  A crowd to be sure, but these are lovely people who clean up after themselves and help wash dishes.  In short, the perfect house guests.  Unfortunately, Jodie Lalonde from Turtle Paddles won't be there.  He didn't find a buyer for his company.  If anyone wants to buy a paddle company, let me know.

As I write this we are this far from Winter Solstice.  It can't come soon enough.  I am seriously jonesing for light.  I am photophilic.  Solar-powered.  I don't care if it snows, I love it, but this going to work when it's dark and coming home when it's dark is for the birds.

Until next time,

  Darren

Howdy! We decided it would be fun to have something a little more interactive...we'll be adding updates and such here from time to time. If you want to add something, feel free, but I'll have to double check it before we can post it, okay?

Thanks, and see you in 104 days.

Darren