Well, I have folded my tent (literally) for 2007, having done my last outdoor show this past weekend.

It was a municipally sponsored Harvest Festival that ran for about 12 city blocks -- with loads of kids who had lots of their own money to spend (but of course they wanted to see all the tricks before deciding what to buy!). There were about 75 vendors/crafters and perhaps a dozen food concessions; it was well publicized, well organized and well attended, and the city also spent a fair amount of money on bands, strolling musicians and other entertainers. A great day, good party atmosphere and good sales, the sort of show that's a pleasure to do and lots of fun.

It was also a bit on the cool side, and pretty windy as well. I had staked my tent legs and also staked the guy lines as well. Some vendors didn't and I did see a couple of blowdowns, fortunately, nobody got hurt.

It just takes an extra five minutes, pleeeease stake your tents, folks! You never know when a gust of wind will come along and pick it up like a giant kite. When I'm on a sidewalk and can't stake the tent, I use four cinder blocks, one for each tent leg; the total cost is only about $6 at the local garden center. That's a LOT cheaper than paying to defend a personal injury lawsuit or satisfy a judgment. Even if you carry liability insurance, this is cheap extra insurance!

Now it's off to the indoor shows until next March, where it's a lot warmer, much less windy and I only have to worry about somebody tripping over my table leg while they're staring at a Magic Worm. SETH

Seth,

"It just takes an extra five minutes, pleeeease stake your tents, folks! You never know when a gust of wind will come along and pick it up like a giant kite. When I'm on a sidewalk and can't stake the tent, I use four cinder blocks, one for each tent leg; the total cost is only about $6 at the local garden center. That's a LOT cheaper than paying to defend a personal injury lawsuit or satisfy a judgment."

If you go back and look at my Svengali pitch DVD,you'll see that I stress this.Good going Seth,keep it up.

Don

Thanks, Don, for the reminder and for including that information on your Svengali Pitch DVD, especially when the fix is so simple and inexpensive.

In the excitement of setting up and presenting a pitch, it's very important not to overlook the safety aspect. I think some vendors just get lazy, or don't realize how unstable one of these tents can be, even in a light wind. Obviously some of them never were Boy Scouts! SETH