In today's podcast we welcome back Carter Johnson, the affable and infamous creator and director of the Gorge Downwind Champs. In this casual chat we recap highlights from the 2017 Gorge Festival and discuss lessons learned and improvement plans for the 2018 event.
If you've been to the Gorge, then you know what its all about, and I'm certain you'll be excited to hear from Carter about the plans for 2018. If you have not yet experienced the Gorge Downwind Champs I highly recommend listening to this podcast to get a great understanding of what its all about. Some of the items we cover include:
- Plans for more live bands throughout the week
- Plans to keep the beer tent open later
- A firm and detailed schedule of the various beer tent presentations and discussions published in advance
- Dedicated volunteer teams responsible for each of the key aspects of the event (i.e. lots of delegation so Carter isn't running around like a mad man)
- A better system for executing the race start
- No hotspot (too hard to setup and monitor given the nature of the river course)
- A better system to confirm those who register and attend the week long festival but choose not to race (note: The race almost becomes an afterthought for many at the Gorge because the week long event itself is so much fun and ultimately what many come out for. Those who want to come out and enjoy the week with no intention of racing are more than welcome!)
- Update on the fires (short answer - no visible impact on the Hood River area)
