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Top 3 things we learned at
We actually learned WAY more than 3 things this year, but how could we not? With eight industry presenters from the top companies in the business, to almost 50 attendees from 17 states and two countries, SKYnext is becoming THE place for young professionals to mingle with the best of the best in the amusement industry!
And like each of the young men and women who were here for multimedia presentations, construction site tours and nightly mixers, we actually learned quite a bit. Here are our top three takeaways:
1) Orlando, Florida is where it's at for amusement industry professionals.
One day before the scheduled start of our event, we got a call from a longtime friend and a scheduled presenter. Due to an unforeseen event, he had to cancel his appearance and was truly upset about leaving us in a perceived pickle. He felt terrible, because he knew that it would be almost impossible to find a quality presenter to fill his spot on such short notice.
Or would it?
Here's the magic of Orlando. It's chock full of a veritable who's-who in the amusement business, and as many would attest, some of the most passionate and dedicated people in the world! Through our friend Donna Young at Merit Fasteners, we found Jeff Jensen of ITEC Entertainment and instead of a one-hour slot of eating leftover pizza and mingling in the front hall of Skyline's office, SKYnext attendees were treated to a mind-blowing presentation of some of the most cutting-edge attractions in the world!
And only in Orlando would one of the nation's top theme park operators, Sea World Parks and Entertainment, make time to host SKYnext on a hardhat tour of their exciting new MAKO coaster that's set to open this summer! (Big thanks to Mike Spencer and Brian Andrelczyk of Sea World Orlando for making this happen!)
2) We're gonna need a bigger boat.
This was only the second year for SKYnext, but young professionals in this industry are absolutely clamoring for opportunities to rub shoulders with the people who make fun happen. We almost doubled our attendance year-over-year, and next year we're already looking to bigger venues to deal with the massive brainpower that comes with so many creative minds.
Fortunately, attendees had a chance to "spread out" a bit at Fun Spot Orlando, and take a few spins on White Lightning or Freedom Flyer. And the evening event at the Orlando Eye (which hosted a construction tour last year for SKYnext 2015) gave us all a view of just how much more room we've got to grow!
We're already in talks with several Orlando companies to help us build that bigger boat. In the meantime, we might point prospective talent to the TEA's boat: the NextGen initiative. Until we get that massive carrier built, we'll just have to make use of the capacity that we've got!
3) This is - by far - the coolest business to be in.
Even though we're all "professionals", we at Skyline never lost the amusement park "bug." And what we got to see during SKYnext 2016 was every bit as exciting for us as it was for the attendees.
When Mike Haimson of Dynamic Attractions gave us a glimpse of some of the inner workings of their SFX Coaster, there was an audible gasp in the room. When Mark Stepanian from Premier Rides and Katie Kelly from Disney told their own stories about finding their path, we all felt a personal connection with their journeys. And when Greg Senner of Universal Parks and Resorts had the room rollicking with his fast-paced game of Universal Trivia, the mouse pads were flying and the group was eating it up!
SKYnext 2016 proved again...without a doubt...this is by far the coolest business to be in! A huge thanks to all of our sponsors, speakers and hosts, including those mentioned above as well as Talon Simulations, who offered guests a chance to experience their own coaster designs in full VR! We can't wait to see what happens for SKYnext 2017! Until then, see you in Orlando!
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