By: Brent Greenberg
“With last year getting snowed out, the anticipation for LaxCon 2017 is so high,” said East Coast Dyes Founder Greg Kenneally. Due to a massive snow storm the weekend of LaxCon 2016, anticipation for this year’s convention was at an all-time high. Thousands of people showed up to #LaxCon2017…
Day 1 is for the coaches to take the floor and learn from the game’s best and brightest. They see things differently at fan fest than the kids do. Kids seek out what they know. They are looking for Stringking, Under Armour, and STX. Coaches try to find the best options for their needs, assessing the newest equipment and other offerings. With Day 1 closing up, every exhibitor is anticipating mayhem for fan fest on day 2.
The way you consider a trade show successful, and yes fan fest is essentially a massive trade show, is getting people to your booth and either making sales or getting your name out there. Companies bring inventory for sale but are also trying to spread awareness of their brand. Many booths have fun giveaways to get people interested in their product or events. Here at Shootout for Soldiers (SFS), we tried to get kids engaged through social media by having them take a picture with a giant SFS check and use the hashtag #whySFS. Kids were excited for the chance to win a free pinnie.
Anticipation on day 2 was high evidenced by the huge crowd waiting for the expo hall to open up to the public. But even before that, people could see the live demo fields where stars like Paul Rabil and Taylor Cummings gave instruction to players, coaches and parents to help them improve their game. One of the coolest demos that fans saw on the fields were a group from Wheelchair Lacrosse USA who also had a booth at fan fest. They demoed what wheelchair lax was all about and it caught the eye of everyone passing by. Oh, and did I mention they have played in a Shootout for Soldiers event? These guys are incredible!
LaxCon 2017 was a hit. Whether folks stopped by the East Coast Dyes booth and got a chance to dunk Greg in the dunk tank, were star struck seeing Matt Gibson or Myles Jones walking around the fan fest aisles, or waiting in line for a picture with the Thompson brothers there were smiles all around.
And that’s the great thing about lacrosse, as famous as someone is in the lacrosse community, they love giving back and giving their time to fans. Andrew Shapiro from Tomahawk Shades remarked, “There were all kinds of people, young and old and it was great to see them all here for LaxCon.” With such a variety in the crowd and tons of booths, everyone found something to see. Sarah Aschenblach, Executive Director of the Tewaaraton Foundation summed up LaxCon 2017 best when she said “We were here for the long haul last year [during the snow storm] and it was a great time, but nothing like the crowd this year.”
