SkiAdcock

There's a lot of information & tips shared amongst the attendees in the hallways, over meals & in the bar. You can't get all that from blogs. Plus it's just fun to interact with fellow travel crazies, er, enthusiasts

Cheers.

JHIN

It'd be great to hear an insider discussion bout the AA/Usair merger

glennaa11

You need to be fairly outgoing though to get in on all of those side conversations. The real experts seem to have pretty tight-knit groups. If you are very shy or introverted I think it's less worthwhile and you won't get so much info beyond forums and blogs.

LizGross144

Thanks for the responses, SkiADcock & glennaa11. I may be an introvert by nature, but give me a beer and making friends is suddenly easy. Good to know though, as I doubt I'll be able to convince my husband to tag along. He's just happy to benefit from this newfound hobby of mine.

Travel4Points

Not very nice of you to put down introverts and to discourage people from attending. I am very introverted and I attended FTU and got a lot out of it. I found people to be very welcoming and social and had plenty of time to network during meals and breaks. I was able to take my learnings and start applying them right away.

FlightNurse

^^^

The key is jump in and talk to people, my first year I ended up making some great friends that continued to this day. But for the most part it does seem clickish but we are all there for the same reason...

FlightNurse

Like everything else there are different level's of introverts and shy people, it is very over whelming at times and I can see how introverts would retreat themselves at these events my suggestions for these people would be to contact SkiADcock and help out with the raffle it's a good way to meet people and be part of the group.

SkiAdcock

Great idea! Can always use volunteers. However some introverts might not be comfortable with saying, so how many raffle tickets would you like? As previous attendees know, that's not a problem for me Volunteering in some capacity is a good way to meet others, so if people are interested contact me for charity raffle or hdawg for overall volunteer duties.

Seriously though (and this may be surprising to others who know me!) I'm actually a bit of an introvert when it comes to large groups/where I don't know anyone & often have to force myself to go up to a group or start conversations with folk I don't know. But the alternative is to just stand or sit by myself, so I do make an effort (even if I'm quaking on the inside). Hmm, maybe we should come up with some ice breaker questions for attendees to ask each other. Didn't we do that a couple of years ago?

Re: the cliquish thing. I've never really bought into that. I do think that sometimes it appears that way, but to me it's more a case of people who know each other who may not see each other that often just catching up, whether it be on travel, life, MS, etc. I've not seen any that wouldn't let others join in. I've also seen generosity of spirit by those who have been there many times as well as those who are there the first time. I remember when chemist661 (RIP) attended one year but had a difficult time speaking due to his cancer. He was willing to share his knowledge with first timers but had to do it via writing on a notepad. First timers didn't shun him because he was writing on a notepad or spoke funny, but took the time to interact with him & became friends/shared lots of good info.

Any event with several hundred people & multiple sessions can be a bit overwhelming, whether it's travel or something else. Here's what I would say to first-timers. There will be people at the ORD event who know more about miles/points than you do, there will be people at the event who know less than you do, and there will be people who know the same as you. There are always different levels of expertise, so don't feel intimidated. And remember - you're all there because you have one thing in common - love of miles/points/travel. The other thing I'd say is, there is so much information being shared you're not going to remember it all. If you can get only one tip from each session you'll be good/ahead of the game.

And on the last note, which of course I'll repeat - bring those mileage/hotel points earning credit cards & buy lots of charity raffle tickets. I'll be happy to swipe them & help you meet your spend to get bonus points

Cheers.

SkiAdcock

You'll fit right in with FTers & ORD event attendees

BTW - I'll throw this out there for those who might be new to Flyertalk. If you're interested in meeting other FTers in smaller groups in different locations throughout the year, we have a forum called CommunityBuzz.

This is where people will post get-togethers (often called "DOs", whether it be something as simple as meeting up for lunch or dinner or as organized as activities over a few days in places like London, Australia, Austin, Alaska, etc. It's a great way to meet other travel-oriented folk, but not in academic or large setting like the seminar event. I've met lots of FTers over the years at various Dos & have gained many friends.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/communitybuzz-380/

Cheers.

hockeystl

Definitely observed this when I attended in 2012. Many of the same speakers had the same group of people huddled around them in the bar each evening.

SkiAdcock

Did they turn you away when you went up to talk to them? I've seen speakers who are hanging with people they know but will make a place for those who want to join them.

Cheers.

glennaa11

I'm not putting down introverts. I am one. I went to Chicago once and FTU when it was in my backyard. Hence my observations. For me personally it wasn't worth it. YMMV

FlightNurse

I guess this is what I should have said, was to volunteer to help, this would be a great way to know people..


For me I don't have a problem talking to people, but it was just my observation of what I saw, now it could have been old friends getting together again, now the FTU event I was at in VA, want to talk Cliquish...

TexasYankee

[QUOTE=hdawg;24308923]Hi everyone! Yup, it's me - SkiAdcock, the Charity Raffle Queen, the one who runs around yelling ge-e-e-t your tickets, ge-e-e-t your tickets!

Once again we'll have great prizes, and in addition to cash we will accept credit cards via the square or PayPal app.

Prizes to be detailed as seminar gets closer. In years past we've had such things as Kindles, free nights at Marriotts in NYC & Vegas, 50% off Starwood stays, AA & UA systemwide int'l upgrades, etc. We expect to have even more great prizes this year!

If you have something you would like to donate to the charity raffle, please PM me (SkiAdcock).


suggestion would be to rent a ticket mixing wheel instead of using multiple paper bags.

Mark C. Palmer

I stay each year at DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Chicago Wood Dale - Elk Grove. It's currently going for 20,000 HH or $87 (Hilton MVP rate). Quick drive or Uber away. Good for at least a backup booking now.

See you all there!
palmerlaw aka travelblawg