I can over look over alot of things but I really really hate thieves.
As another show that has a seperate free play room and vendor hall Pintastic has seperate hours for both rooms. Our vendor hall closes at 9pm. For me the biggest reason is to give the vendors a break and a piece of mind that their products are safe. Our vendor hall has 3 exits that are locked and their is a over night security guard walking around the hotel.
This gives the vendors and they help a chance to enjoy the show in the free play areas till 2am. All work and no play make a tired and cranky vendor IMO.
There's no reason the vendor hall should be open after the banquet anyway. People that want to play pinball into the wee hours of the morning should go into the free play hall and play the nice games the collectors bring.
Mike, coming on here and threatening the people who stole these items with the closure of the vendor hall is as effective as the cops going on TV and asking a bank robber to turn himself in.
But, I know with 100% certainty that the Westin has security cameras ALL over the place...if not IN that room, then in the halls around that room. When you asked their security director to see the video from the time and areas in question, what did he tell you?
Last, I don't see this as a "Big" problem at all. If the vendors that had these things stolen want you to make it right, and you think it is either your responsibility or just "good business" to do so, send them a check for $500 each. That is a small fraction of the gross, and this laundry wouldn't be airing out here.
Quoted from PopBumperPete:Vendor hall should be lock/guarded when closed
Anything else is stupid
And so is making this much of a stink over an $80 lampshade.
Any kind of theft is not good, be it a $80 lamp shade or something of even lesser desire or even lesser value......stealing is stealing and the dollar amount should never come into play with it. If it was a $80 pinball part would that make a difference?....certainly not in my book. I really doubt cameras are going to do any good as there is too many people in and out of that room even during the hours that it is "closed" and cameras cant cover all angles unless there monitored and even that is iffy at best. Since all the vendors have access at all hours...(correct me if I'm wrong) but I've walked in there for years as a vendor during the closed hours to check on my booth and to see if anything has been moved and there's always people in there...who's to say that it wasn't another vendor ? I'm not trying to accuse anyone but I'm just saying that nobody should be trusted. I don't see how you'd be able to keep everyone out during the closed hours, some people have to pack up early and leave or to do stuff to there booth etc...its just impossible. Now at PATZ that vendor room is locked down tight at closing and each and every door is locked and checked by Kevin and a security guard once everyone is out. The room is not unlocked until Kevin gets there the next day so I don't know if this would work at Expo but its how its done at PATZ. At Expo and once the room closes for the banquet then I'm done for the night and have never returned to the booth on Saturday night to reopen it because my thinking is that if they haven't bought it already in the three days leading up to the banquet then there probably not going to buy it and I'm going back to the room to rest and sleep until Sunday morning. I like Rob's thing of having his own room and key but we don't all have that option I'm sad to say so I don't know what the real answer is but trying to make Mike look like the bad guy here is not the way to improve the situation. Will the thieves return the items? Of course not, but at least he's trying and perhaps this is the first time its come to a head so keep the suggestions coming and not the bad mouthing directed at Mike.
John P. Dayhuff
Battle Creek, Mi.
269-979-3836
This was my first year at Expo, so I guess I don't know how things are usually run but it seems to make sense to close up overnight. People aren't going to stay awake every hour of every day of Expo. They need to sleep too, so just give them the opportunity by closing and locking up overnight.
Quoted from JoeGrenuk:And so is making this much of a stink over an $80 lampshade.
It's only a $79.99 lamp shade. But the State of Illinois is going to be pissed about losing out on over $5.00 worth of uncollected sales tax.
Robin, are you watching how 80 bucks is deemed not much money here? Just remember that when you finalize your site fees...
Quoted from vanilla:Robin, are you watching how 80 bucks is deemed not much money here? Just remember that when you finalize your site fees...
+1 downvote
Quoted from Mitch:+1 downvote
Hey, don't blame me just because I can think outside the box. Er, this thread. LOL. You know he reads this stuff.
Quoted from vanilla:Hey, don't blame me just because I can think outside the box. Er, this thread. LOL. You know he reads this stuff.
Hope he does thats the only way to down vote now lol
I've kept this deep, dark secret to myself for a few weeks, but I should probably confess.
I was in the vendor hall playing Baywatch on Friday night. I don't know what it is about that game; it must be the dolphin sounds. I was totally in the groove about to hit multiple Roving Jackpots when some guy snuck up behind me, pinched my bum and yelled "LIONMAN!" before disappearing off into the GoT party. Not only did he &%$^ my multiball, but he practically gave me a prostate exam. He just about grabbed my front flipper!
I turned my back on The Hoff, went up to my room, and crawled into a ball on the bed. The coffee in the room was decaffeinated, so I just cried myself to sleep that night.
The suspect was Caucasian and wearing a black T-shirt. He looked like a Misfits fan and had Indiana plates. I placed an ad in the Missed Connections section on Craigslist (Wheeling, IL), but no response, except from some girl that works at Twin Peaks.
Despite this horrific incident, I had a blast at Expo.
Quoted from mikepin:WEll the big reason vendor hall stayed open overnight was because of all the games there to play..Stern and many others .Going to try to figure way to have some og the good games in games hall
If you do as I suggested in the other thread, move ALL pinballs into the large room (freeplay pins and manufacturers pins for playing) and leave that open all the time, and move the parts vendors into the smaller room at the back, your problems would be solved.
Pretty simple (and logical) solution if you think about it.
rd
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:A logical, rational answer? Here?
Logical and rational are my middle names. In between Rotor and Dave.
rd
Quoted from rotordave:If you do as I suggested in the other thread, move ALL pinballs into the large room (freeplay pins and manufacturers pins for playing) and leave that open all the time, and move the parts vendors into the smaller room at the back, your problems would be solved.
Pretty simple (and logical) solution if you think about it.
rd
This makes the most sense and will give vendors a break being in a secure room that can be locked down. It might be worth giving vendors the option of what room they want to be in (cointaker has that nice vault setup), which will also help balance out the big room if we are unable to get more games there next year.
-c
Quoted from CraigC:This makes the most sense and will give vendors a break being in a secure room that can be locked down. It might be worth giving vendors the option of what room they want to be in (cointaker has that nice vault setup), which will also help balance out the big room if we are unable to get more games there next year.
-c
I wonder if we sub divide the room like we did when free play was in the main hall. That area can be locked up with the false wall still out. This would create a new machine room, or a launch room or whatever we would want to call it. This would also leave enough room for the vendors to setup and be secure when the hall closes.
I don't think the free play room is large enough, and I am hesitant to recommend splitting the vendor areas up.
Would love to get some feedback from Vendors and folks who brought prototypes and the like to the show...
Andrew
Quoted from MrBally:Hard to believe the Westin, a Hotel that is under ten years old, does not have security cameras. At least in all hallways that have doors that access the ballroom where these thefts took place.
Even the old Ramada, before it was remodeled and converted to a modern Holiday Inn Express, had security cameras that were used to identify someone going into the auction area the night before the actual auction with a few gassed out displays. The same guy came out with good displays swapped out in some machines for the auction. Search RGP for details.
we got this story,plus Dayhuffs/Kruzmans play field story,plus this years theft.Nice.
Its all about the PEOPLE in this hobby which makes it soooooo special(when lit).
Vendors like the traffic having games brings as people walk past their booths to play them.
In makes a huge difference in sales.
We have had shows here, with vendors in a separate room, and after walked once, maybe twice,
one usually doesnt visit again.
Sure the game noise changes the discussion volume, but the flow of people is needed.
A compromise, using Daves thoughts, and if the room physically allows, is to have Parts Vendors
and sales walked through all the time to reach new game vendors.
Finding a way to keep that, and change paths, or entry to Just games, after vendors close,
solves both.
A Main entrance during the day, and after hours, just to games, a different entrance...Curtain divider,
sliding walls are common in Hotel room rentals, etc.
Working with floor Plans, its one way to secure Vendors products, under lock and key, and allow foot traffic
to flow through to sales, even Tourney are as well, by people walking through Vendor area.
I know at the last show, I walked by parts booths a dozen times in a day, and found things to buy, I missed
the first or second time.
Vendors definitely want the foot traffic.
Quoted from OLDPINGUY:Vendors like the traffic having games brings as people walk past their booths to play them.
In makes a huge difference in sales.
We have had shows here, with vendors in a separate room, and after walked once, maybe twice,
one usually doesnt visit again.
Sure the game noise changes the discussion volume, but the flow of people is needed.
A compromise, using Daves thoughts, and if the room physically allows, is to have Parts Vendors
and sales walked through all the time to reach new game vendors.
Finding a way to keep that, and change paths, or entry to Just games, after vendors close,
solves both.
A Main entrance during the day, and after hours, just to games, a different entrance...Curtain divider,
sliding walls are common in Hotel room rentals, etc.
Working with floor Plans, its one way to secure Vendors products, under lock and key, and allow foot traffic
to flow through to sales, even Tourney are as well, by people walking through Vendor area.
I know at the last show, I walked by parts booths a dozen times in a day, and found things to buy, I missed
the first or second time.
Vendors definitely want the foot traffic.
Art you are exactly right. We at Pintastic spent a ton of time figuring out how to get good foot traffic and have a separate free play room. What worked for us was put the sterns and Jersey Jack distributors in the far corner of the vendor hall. Than put the tournament on the far other wall. Finally put all the free kids entertanment on the other far corner. This forces people to walk by all the vendors to get to those other things.
Theft is not exclusive to pinball, Expo or any other pinball show. It's human nature unfortunately and happens in every day life. I wonder how many people expressing shock and disgust in this thread have taken home employer supplies or goods. Or they cheated on their work hours... And they justify their theft in various ways.
One percent of people will always be honest and never steal. Another 1% will always be dishonest and they will find a way. The purpose of locks or security is to protect you from the 98% of mostly honest people who might be tempted or see an opportunity.
Sounds like Mike P is taking action for his show which is great. But John Dayhuff has nailed it by showing he's taking personal responsibility to safeguard his shit. - I suggest neighboring booth operators work as a team to further security.
Prediction: A pinball show somewhere in the future will have theft of some kind.
if we used the room dividers in the big room, the smaller side has too many doors to sneak in and out of. perhaps it makes sense to move the tournament in there (might help with lighting and glare issues) with any vendors that have a fort knox setup, like Cointaker or any vendors who can pack up easy.
the bad thing is that the back of the room is not a high traffic area, so maybe change the hall entry to be the in the middle of the long wall at the front of the hotel? this should help flow and disperse folks better.
-c
Wow. It does sound like Expo has problems. From lampshade pilfering thieves to pervert Lionmen. I would not want to hang out with half of them.
Quoted from Taxman:Wow. It does sound like Expo has problems. From lampshade pilfering thieves to pervert Lionmen. I would not want to hang out with half of them.
Actually, the Lionman perverts should be the security!
Quoted from Gryszzz:Sounds like a pretty cool guy.
I dunno, sounds like his battery is a few charges short of a full charge.
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