crackbabydumpsterIf you actually want to go anywhere you should drop everything and do whatever it takes to pull this event off smoothly. If it's in August you're competing with insomnia, with how mismanaged it was this year (as an NA player trying to attend) if you could have stuff set up months in advance it would be a really great event (and easier for international teams to get to) and it would show people you can actually run events and that it's worth supporting you in the long run
my 2cents
Yeah, I'm definitely putting everything I've got into UberJam. A lot of planning has gone into it already, but it's not even close to being fully planned out. I mean, aside from absolute basics, I've mostly been inquiring into things for the last couple of months. I've been calling and talking to people I know that have experience with this stuff, as quite frankly, I have zero experience with hosting events like this. Thankfully my family is pretty awesome, and they're helping me with the event planning. They also have connections, and are giving me access to a ton of helpful resources to hopefully make things go as smoothly as possible.
Right now, my main concern is the budget. I'm setting a goal of $20K, which given the location and venue in mind, is definitely a realistic goal. It's just a matter of getting the initial reservation stuff going, which is what I hope the t-shirt fundraiser can help with. If I need to pay out of my own pocket, I shouldn't be hosting an event like this at all. So ideally, I want to make the event pay for itself through fundraisers, advertisers, and sponsors.
Honestly, I've got a long ways to go, and while August might appear to be far off to most people, it really isn't when it comes to events. I just want this to be done right, and I want TF2 to have an actual LAN year after year, supported by an actual league.
I'm also trying to make travel to and from the venue cheaper. I've been toying with the idea of hosting a custom 6v6 tournament in TFCL, where the winning team gets free travel to UberJam. I'd host one tournament per region, or as many as I can fit into the overall budget. Not sure how this would work out though, or if it's even a good idea. Kinda depends on the budget.
I'm also looking into the possibility of having discounted travel via Uber from the venue to the hotel. Haven't reached out to them quite yet, but with a name like UberJam, Uber would be the perfect sponsor to have.