Been to a few, organized a few, and as Missy said, was part of planning my first one before having attended one.

One thing I can say for sure is that a larger DO is so much more enjoyable when it is spread out over a couple days. This allows for the one big event dinner/party/etc. but also allows for good breakout sessions with the people you have come specifically to see or with whom you find a newfound friendship.

The events continue to increase in frequency and differentiation. The people that come are more numerous in total but not necessarily so at any one event (with the obvious exceptions). The community is finding itself in these events and it is a joy to be a part of this. The splinter dinners and meetings and casual hook-ups are the biggest gain for me. They come in large part from the ease with which so many have learned to enjoy some of the bigger gatherings. I know that wherever I go, that as a result in part of the fact that an online community has for many of us become a face to face community, I have a dinner companion, drinking partner, or even just someone to walk around the park with.

I was once told that it is always best to go home from a vacation wanting to still be there and in this way I would always want to go back again. I have always felt and believe I always will feel this way about every single FT gathering I attend.

So time to go look at the calendar now............ :)

Mike

Yes, besides "Catwoman" here, I be the other.

I couldn't agree more.

I have actually shyed away from the larger events for the last couple of years. While I understand SkiAdcock's point that you shouldn't discount ANY DO, I also like what Missy says about quality and not quantity.

And SkiAdcock, I disagree with the comment that individuals don't have the feeling that Catman states that:

I have heard too many FTers or first-time DO attendees state this to say it is false. Go look at some of the photos from certain events, for example. Lots of photos of lots of people? Or tons of photos of certain people? Listen to the stories told after some of the mega-DOs. There always seem to be lots of posts about "Hey, it was great to finally meet the famous XX". Its self-perpetuating.

That said, FTers are a friendly bunch. I don't think anyone will be left standing on the sidelines. But I also know folks who don't want to go to another DO - or who have decided to limit which events they attend because they HAVE been left feeling that way in the past.

Myself? Like mjm, I tend to enjoy the splinter groups the most myself. That's why I am a big fan of ONE main event for DOs that I'm involved in organizing and letting the folks break off the rest of the time. The four AAsia DOs I've been involved with have all revolved around a single dinner/evening event. Lots of other DOs I've enjoyed have been dinner (and while folks fly in and do other stuff - spas, football games, shopping) - people get time to do things alone or with smaller groups of folks on their own that better meet their individual interests.

Percentage-wise (participants in % of active Flyertalkers on this board) I am pretty sure that so far the Party-in-Paradise I (THE PiP) in late 1999 was the biggest.

For me this first big FlyerTalk event (approx 60 participants) was an ideal mixture of fun (we FlyerTalkers had the full upper-level of a UA 3-class flight LAX-HNL to our disposal!), intimate (how more intimate can any larger Do become than addressing any participant with a personalized present 'reflecting' on of his/her posts from the past in public?), 'virgin' (most FlyerTalkers met for the first time, and by definition 'virginity' can only be lost once ...).

I am surprised that my friend (since the very early FlyerTalker days) Catman in his post above now seems to not happily remember that big event.

Big events like bernie's fabulous Do's in Düsseldorf, currently combine for me the best of big (many FlyerTalkers to meet for the first time, or refresh old friendships) and small intimate (always ending at his wonderfull appartement for Sunday brunch) Do's - something that those never have been participating just can't judge in all fairness.

But on the otherside I like as much small person-to-person-Do's like my multiple personnel meetings with FlyerTalkers (often sharing a side-car with me ...) and also the mid-size-one's (a San Francisco weekend-stay for me wouldn't be the same anymore without the traditional DIM-SUM).

While I have never ever (so far) left any FlyerTalker event with any grudge 'against' any FlyerTalker, but to the contrary: some personnel meetings at Do's did help easily to 'get away' with former slight ressentments that I may have had towards some that I only knew from some 'strange' postings before.

big and small
 

Where to begin.

I have been with the big and I have been with the small. Going because of the size has never been a consideration for me and if the idea was only to go to a dinner or some one-time event to just have a large number of people present it would be low on my list of FT events to attend.

When I go to a large event I actually take a printout of the participants so that I can look them up during the festivities. But along the way I will meet someone and it turns out perhaps we have some common interests and next thing I know is that half an evening or longer has been spent with just one person. For me the face to face omni is the greatest.
To put a face to a name, to actually be able to hear the voice of the person while reading there comments. Priceless

I really do like the events where there are a large number of planned activites around something happening in the location (bernie's are the bestest as belle would say) where one can pick and choose or do them all. I have been to Catman's, Chicago, Seattle, Dusseldorf, as events that most would consider as large events and I have been to Tucson, Maine, Hong Kong, Basel as events that some (at least I do) consider to be boutique events.

The number one activity or the major theme that ran through all of these events is that I got to meet some wonderful folks. Sorry to disagree with some about not wanting to go because someone will show up that you disagree with online but what I have found is that meeting the person face to face as rudi says seems to ease previous resentments. In some cases the person whom I disagreed previously with has now become a dear friend. In some cases not yet but who knows what the future will bring.

A final word for all the organizers of these events. Hurrah!

As magic111 says, Harrah for the organizers. Ditto that sentiment for me.

I've been on both sides - lucky enough to attend dos that others have organized & lucky enough to have been the organizer - on both sides I've attended both large & small dos, and as mentioned before find them equally great for reasons such as mjm and rudi have stated above. And btw, being an organizer of a small do can get complicated too, as I've discovered - it's not just the big ones that bring logistical challenges.

So - back to the OP's questions ;) - think you have a good selection to choose from on larger dos or what was the largest, and our question to you is when you're organizing YOUR version of a MegaDo :D

That is very cool. I really like this group!

Excuses, excuses. :p

Many of the above have offered wise words. And they're all correct.

My wish is that more of you reading this thread that have never been to a FT function, attend one soon. This is the only way you'll get to know some of us. You'll be able to place a face to that writer.

At my first NYC dinner, I didn't know anyone. I felt a little funny at first. By dinners end, I was one of the gang.
At my first FT DO (the CatmanDo 3) in NYC (and I still can't give enough kudos to Mark for helping to introduce so many first timers) ^ , I walked around introducing myself.
< Not shy > ;)

Bottom line, Come join us .

The first Milepost in this thread is intentionally vague, KathyWdrf.

One thing I have learned since posting my first Milepost on FlyerTalk is that FlyerTalk members often offer differing and varied viewpoints from which I learn. This thread, as I expected, is no different. I have learned a lot from it, which is why I did not want to constrain my definition of what counts as the largest gathering of FlyerTalk members ever — I would rather leave that definition to the “experts”.Of all of the comments posted thus far in this thread, this is the one that stands out to me. This is one excellent piece of advice!Not at this time, as I am currently co-organizing a FlyerTalk gathering for (but not limited to) Delta FlyerTalk members.

This brings me to another question: has anyone ever simultaneously organized more than one FlyerTalk gathering?...but I am shy — seriously...

FWIW, I've enjoyed both the larger and the smaller FT Do's (and "events" for those that don't fall under the "technical" definition of a FT "DO"; so I’m just going to refer to them all as “events” for this post). Larger events can meet the various needs of most FTers...whether it's a great venue, to meet a lot of new people, or if it's something one might be interested in attending but wouldn't in the case of a smaller event “because ‘aabbccdd...’ is attending” (as I’ve expressed to others who have felt that way, the larger events are big enough that's it's easy enough to not feel forced to socialize with those one would rather not). The smaller events are nice because it does provide more opportunity to actually learn a bit more about people you're with. I've also gotten a feel in the past year for which groups within Community I feel comfortable in, ones which I don't feel that I “fit in” with, and likewise where I feel more welcome or not. For the most part, I tend to choose my FT events accordingly. We all have our own preferences as to FT events, and that's one of the great things about FT Community -- there's enough going on that there is "something for everyone", or at least everyone who wants to be involved. Lots of good comments on this thread, but a few I’d like to remark on…

I agree with techgirl

I’ve met some great people through FT! Some that have become friends, some I hope will develop further into friends, and others I learned the hard way are not my friends. (Hmmm, sounds a bit like life in general) It’s also nice to know there’s a group of people who understand why I would fly to NRT for 20 hours, or fly to BRU for 26 hours to simply pub hop & chocolate shop (both of which I did this spring….and :eek: I didn’t get any miles for either trip)!

At my first FT event, I wouldn’t go so far as to say I felt like I was one of the gang. But I was really excited to have met a great group of people with some common interests and had a very enjoyable evening that I might otherwise have spent dining on my own. My first FT event was the dinner & drinks coordinated by SanDiego1K in SAN last June. I’ll never forget learning about it a few days in advance and asking “is it too late for me to join in?” As event hostess, SanDiego1K was so gracious and made me feel completely welcome and not like a FT Community newbie and ensured I was introduced to each person there that evening – for that I’ll always be grateful! ^

Likewise, at this year's Freddies, dhammer53 was fantastic and made sure that I met every single FTer in attendance!

And finally…Meow meow! :p

I have to agree that the "quantity vs. quality" theorem doesn't work for me with FT 'dos. I've had wonderful times at a very large "do" (Chicago 2) and equally great times at the small "do"s we've had in the Bay Area, a couple of which I'veorganized. At the large do, the challenge, as so well said by magic111, is to make an effort to meet as many as possible. Chicago was a classic opportunity to meet FT legends as well as occasional or rare posters who were there to -- meet other FTers! Similarly at the small events, almost all have had at least one or two FTers who have not been to a do before. What's so great about the 'dos -- big or small -- is that you not only have the common bond of heavy travel, upgrade scoring and mileage bonus accumulating, but you meet genuinely great people, whether they are famous on FT or not.

I have only attended two meets. The first was a tiny one (four people) in a town outside of Tel Aviv. The second, with 30 people, was in FLL last May.

I enjoyed both immensely, met some fascinating people, and am currently organizing a Venice Meet. Considering that it won't be until November, having 14 people already in the "definite" column and another 8 having expressed interest, it promises to be a fairly large gathering.

It also seems to have taken on a life of its own. It was originally a one-night meet but has now spread over 5 days, including a guided tour of Verona. Obscure2K, our resident Venice freak, had the connections to get us a great deal at a luxury hotel and a boat standing by to shuttle us to the Rialto and St. Marks whenever the mood strikes.

To tell the truth, I have never been a fan of things which are too organized, so I am doing my best to keep this a mixture of scheduled events and free time for small groups (or individuals) to do what they want.

What surprised me most about the FLL meet, and it appears to be happening again with the Venice one, is the lack of local people who show up. F/T is full of people from Southern Florida, but the great majority at the Meet flew in.

We only have one Italian attending the Venice Meet and she is not a F/Ter (she's my girlfriend). The only other European who is going to attend, so far, is from Germany (RalfKrippner).

What is it about F/Ters that encourages them to get to hop a plane from LAX to VCE to go to a Meet but not spend 30 minutes in their cars?

Points & Miles! No EQM's for driving 30 minutes in our cars to reach a destination :)

Which Flyertalker actually first coined the phrase "DO?"

Could it have been me (for Catman "DO?")

I started this mess!!!! :)

Sorry I went off on Mega Dos and other things... Maybe what I meant to say is "Why does size matter?" It's the quality of the event, the restaurant the venues and the people that make an FT event special.

Why worry about having the "biggest" of anything? Or the "best."

I would never say the Catman's DOS were "teh best FT events ever." Lord knows there were problems at "2" (payment) and "3" (too much pre-event drama.) THey were special. "3" in the end came out to be a special weekend (Cite still wants us to come back for a re-do! ;) )

My Dear Friend Rudi... to be honest, I kind of forgot about the PIP but I never thought of it as a DO (that was before the DO became the thing.) I thought of it as a family reunion of people from far away. It was a special and magical weekend that probably won't ever come again. PIP brought me out of my fear of meeting new people and even being part of organizing a big event. Out of PIP I got to know one particular Flyertalker who has become a very special friend and very important part of my life. I

With CMD4... I Even toyed with the idea of a smaller event, putting a CAP on the number of attendees. But I fear another round of drama.

It would be nice to attend more FT events. But life sometimes gets in the way. I have a job that I LOVE, workign with people who care about me and I the same. I hate not being there for them for an extended period of time. Friends, many

Plus, and my apologizes again, there are Flyertalkers I don't like. TO be true to myself is most important. If that means I don't to events with them there. I have to be comfortable at a place to enjoy myself. So be it.

Flyertalkers can come to NYC to see me. :)

That's all.

You really need help.