<VV> Convention Banquet Tickets

[Vairtec Corporation]

Carl wrote:

 > I had paid for the Awards Banquet at the time of registering and was 
looking forward to 'planting' my small Australian flag on the dinner 
table. On approaching the entry door I was asked very firmly for a 
banquet ticket that I was never provided. My appeals that I had paid for 
the Banquet where responded to with the comment "not my problem, no 
ticket no entry". <


I now respond:

It is of course unfortunate that this happened.  Having not attended the 
Denver event I cannot say with any certainty why this occurred, whether 
Carl was inadvertently not given a physical ticket or whether Carl 
missed the "banquet table assignments" listed on the schedule.  But it 
does appear to have been handled in a less-than diplomatic manner.

Before I go further, a little background:

Over 30 years ago, you bought your banquet ticket and went to the 
banquet.  Trouble was, with several hundred people attending the banquet 
and wishing to sit with their friends, when the doors opened to the 
banquet room there was an "Oklahoma land rush" to grab tables and save 
seats.  It was bordering on becoming an ugly mess.

So Hal Marcus, at the time CORSA's hired executive, came up with the 
idea of the "banquet ticket exchange," whereby once at the convention 
you traded the ticket you received at registration for a new one, with 
an assigned seat.  This has evolved into today's "banquet table 
assignments," which is essentially the same thing although in a slightly 
streamlined fashion.

Generally, it has worked well which is why it is still used.

But I want to ask the group's opinion of something:

For 2012, in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, a trial balloon has been floated 
about a different way of handling banquet seating.  The idea is to 
further simplify the process and to encourage members to meet and mingle 
with new people.  The proposal is, assign the banquet seats as the 
tickets are ordered, period.  You will be seated at a table with other 
members based solely on the randomness of when you and those other 
members' registrations were processed.

Of course, spouses will remain together as will families registering as 
one.  But that's all.  The expectation is that this will be easier for 
the organizers and a great way for attendees to sit not with their 
friends from home but with potential new friends from all around the 
country if not the world.

In your opinion, is this idea inspired or insipid?

--Bob Marlow