Save Hunahpu's Day! (positive/constructive feedback only)

Here's my assessment of the day for what it's worth. The first thing was the tickets and getting into the event - there needed to be more people taking tickets at the gate than the 2 that were there when we came in. I would say at minimum there needed to be 6 people scanning tickets and probably as many as 10. As far as the ticket scanning either a different ticketing system could be used or a disclaimer (duplicate tickets will be rejected no questions asked and if people risk buying tickets from a source other than eventbright then they will assume the risk). As far as the bottle distribution -if you did not see the line and understand that there was going to be a wait to get your 3 bottles that responsibility has to be a little on the people that did not get their bottles. With that being said there definitely needs to distinguished lines formed with an exit strategy in place. Getting your bottles and then having to fight through to crowd just to get out of the way was crazy. Also I think the bottle distribution needed be more in the back towards brew house 2 and as far away from the crowd as possible. Having it in the packaging area makes sense for CCB but it was basically in the middle of the entire crowd. With that being said if the ticketing issue was not present most of the other issues probably would have been avoided. The ticketing issues are definitely what caused the majority of the issues for the entire day but how many people made copies, it wasn't everyone and I would guess it was just a small % of dbags so copies could not have been the only issue for the amount of people that were there. I still support CCB 100% and bought a 6 pk of jai Ali tonight which I am enjoying now. Unfortunately with the crowd I did not get to sample this years batch of Hunahpu just yet which was disappointing but that will be coming soon. I think with proper planning and ticketing the event would be very enjoyable if it were to continue but there definitely needs to be a limited crowd with proper line distribution throughout the event.

 

Sucks that they decided to cancel the event going forward. This was one of the events I wanted to attend so hopefully they will bring it back in some form!

 

You could always spread it out through multiple time spots and is there really a need to have endless pours? Honestly, I'm more content when events have an amazing tap list, but limit it to only 10 or so 3-4oz pours like Stone does for their Oakquinox. The ten tabs are on the wrist band, you use them and once you get your bottles of Huna at the end, they cut the wrist band.

It's a great way to not have complete drunks walking around, but also have folks feel like they got their money's worth, a nice buzz and you know exactly how many bottles to allocate.

 

I too would like to see it remain an annual event. As tough as the crowds were (and i'm crowd adverse), i just loved the events, other than getting shut out of huna. That was partly my fault b/c i didn't get in line until 4 for my 3 bottles. I figured they had enough. Oops. I hung out shares all day and had a freakin' blast. The ideas above are really full of thought and I think if CCB really reads all the feedback, picks and chooses the stuff that makes the most sense,they can make it successful. You have a huge fan base that wants it to be so... and then a bunch of opportunists that don't care and won the battle saturday. That doesn't have to be the case.

 

There's not a lot more to say that hasn't been said already as far as suggested solutions, but I would like to let Joey and the rest of the CCB staff know that we very much appreciate their efforts to make this happen each year! I can only imagine the frustration and anxiety you must have felt when you saw things heading in the wrong direction with the tickets and then the bottle allocation.
The fact is that there were a lot of positive changes made to this event, and I believe you were very close to getting it where it would have worked well. If the ticketing worked and the crowd was kept at 3500 as intended, I believe most of the other issues would have worked themselves out for the most part.
I realize that the 99% ahole free number may be a thing of the past (which seems to reflect the increase in the entitled attitude in society in general), but I believe that there are still a strong majority of craft beer lovers who are unselfish, generous and appreciative.
We will continue to support what you do for us regardless of the ultimate decision, but please consider giving it another shot next year in some form.

Thank you,
Jeff

 

This. Yes, it will piss people off who complain about the prices, but that is the simplest way to cut down the crowd and still make the event enjoyable for the smaller number attendees while remaining economically viable for the brewery.

 

Hunahpu Day.. 2015
- lottery system where ID is tied to the ticket
- sessions for bottle pick up from 11am to 8pm with a check off list like thr El Catador "Book"
- buy bottles and have an opportunity to enjoy 1 snifter of Hunahpu.
- Go Home

Problem solved. Have the lot wet-zoned so people can coordinate bottle shares in the lot or in line. The issue was too many peoole waited until the last min to buy bottles. Spave out the events in sessions

Use DLD and the DDG releases as models

But please dont leave it to the retailers, th ey can be just as bad as the idiots who caused this debacle

 

I honestly do not know what people are talking about when they say "people waited until the last minute to get bottles". I got on line at 11:15 in a line that had at least 3500 people in it, I got into the event just after 1pm, ate and and had 3 samples and then waited from 2 until 3:50 to get my bottles. How is this waiting until the last minute.

If CCB had just done as promised and actually kept it to 3500, had a decent security set up and better line mgt this was readily avoided. Doing H-Day as they advertised this year is the answer.

That said I'd love to see the event continue in some fashion. An actual chipped bracelet would be a good start to thwart scammers (Although I refuse to believe that 4000+ people were there under fake tickets).

 

This. Only just now, thanks to you, do I realize that NO ONE HAS TALKED ABOUT THE BEER.

My only request is that they participate in TBBW next year. I don't care if they do a Huna release party ever again, but I DO hope they'll not shy away from being the week's highlight. They can't NOT be a part of Tampa Bay Beer Week. Release the Huna bottles any other way, but please give us access to tasty beer taps and good times next March.

 

A copy/paste of my thoughts from yesterday.

The queue to get through the door was absurd. Not enough people working the gates. Dozens of people snuck in from the side street/line by crossing the guardrail and entering behind the semi-truck. The MBA in me is screaming for CCB to reach out to USF and get some operations management and process modeling help. There are Grad students that will do the work for free and CCB would be better off for it in my humble opinion. I'm dead serious about this point. Theres a better way and there are students that would love to handle a situation of this scope and magnitude as part of their studies.

Selling additional tasting glasses was an error in hindsight. People were double and triple fisting at the taps. We were told this wouldnt happen but invariably it did. See Double Barrel Hunahpoopoo for an example.

My group got our allotment of 3 each and I really wanted a few more but I'll live. I had serious safety concerns at the bottle pickup location. Those purchasing bottles should have been allowed to exit through the back of the warehouse. Tensions were way too high to have them return through the crowd.

Lastly, I love that CCB is pet friendly. I'm a dog owner and animal lover, but dont bring your fricking dog to Hunahpu Day. The crowd is already too large and the last thing I need is to be tied up in the leash.

I believe wholeheartedly that CCB can save its image and Hunahpu Day.

 

The cell phone scanners that Eventbrite sends work perfectly fine so long as you have a connection. They should have never relied on 3g or 4g data but rather Wifi or some form of Mifi. Though if you are letting people in with tickets that already come up as scanned that defeats the whole purpose of having the scanners and I am not even factoring in the people sneaking in without tickets.

 

It's been said several times already, but there isn't a single issue from the past two Hunahpu Day events that can't be fixed by strictly adhering to the ticket limit and better security.

I know there was backlash at the idea originally, but it was the right decision to require names on the ticket to match the ID. That alone would name made the event so much more manageable. Then, ensure that no one can sneak into the grounds with some sort of temporary gates and maybe hiring a few guards to watch the perimeter.

At 3500 people the event would have been amazing. It's been a vacation weekend for myself, friends and some family and I hate to see this amazing event lost

 

Honestly, this theme keeps coming up. Many of us in South Florida, and clearly all around the country, choose Hunahpu's Day to be the center of our vacations. It's the cornerstone of Tampa Bay Beer Week, though of course there are several other events that make it worth it to attend.

Cigar City Brewing has always been about 1) Amazing beer and 2) Tampa. This event HELPS TAMPA during TBBW. The influx of cash to the area is largely centered on this event. Many of us travelling to Tampa are also foodies/localvores and we CRAVE the local businesses, like CCB that make the Tampa Bay area great. The Refinery, Yummy House, Datz, Dunderbak's, Cajun Cafe, and soooooo many more great businesses have Hunahpu's day to thank for that influx.

What I'm saying is to reconsider. I understand the difficulties this year make it very difficult to rebound, but getting the logistics right isn't unattainable. My main point is this: THINK OF TAMPA and how great it is to be able to bring people in who are hungry to support small businesses, the businesses that MAKE TAMPA GREAT. Joey has a heart for Tampa, that's clear. Let's appeal to that heart.

Thanks for reading,

James

 

Having the name on the ticket wouldnt cost CCB anymore and if someone cant make it oh well. Less crowded event. Maybe let people change names on the ticket up until 10 days before the event.

Also offer VIP tickets. I would gladly pay double for an airconditioned space with tables and chairs.

Read something online today that Joey may do a Huna day next year but it would be minus a bottle release. I'm good with that.

 

1. More people scanning tickets and send out actual hard tickets instead of print outs.
2. Get real security personnel.
3. If the event is held again and at the same location, it may be a good idea to add gates around the sides of the building.
4. Either don't sell cases (#1 choice) or if you are going to do that, have a separate area for people to pick up their 3 bottle allotment.
5. Hire an actual event planner that knows how to plan for an event of this size.
6. No pets ( I tripped over a small dog once) and specially no damn snakes

 

This was my second time making the pilgrimage to Hunahpu's Day. I had friends fly in from Minnesota too. We had around 10+ people in our group. We arrived @ 10:45am and waited in line for about 45min and immediately setup shop behind one of the food trucks. EVERYONE in our group had a blast. Sure the lines were long but were able to get our hands on a couple special releases. Took turns waiting for Huna bottles (which everyone secured). People around us were popping bottles and sharing with all. We did the same in return. I guess we got lucky and I would do it all over again tomorrow.

A couple of us went to CCB Sunday for free beers and made it a point to tell every CCB staff member we had a great time and not to worry about the critics. The last thing we wanted was a knee jerk reaction. Businesses don't operate successfully when doing so.

For us it was about adapting to the environment, spending time with old/new friends, enjoying the awesome day and most importantly drinking amazing beer. I do feel bad for those that had a rough time this year. Maybe I would feel differently if we got shut down on bottles or got in a flight but it just didn't happen so I won't.

10+ happy customers here and we will continue to support the best brewery in Florida.

 

So, now we need to hear from Gunhaver.

 

I love hunahpu day. Save it!

CCB, have the tickets printed with some anti-counterfeiting features built in with names on the tickets (generic hologram or something). Require a photo I.D. with each name having to match to get in. Have security staff on hand to make sure nobody gets in that isn't supposed to be there (especially along the gully behind the food trucks on the edge of the parking lot) and arrest people that make a drunken scene.

Everything else is perfect the way it is. Keep the tickets to 3,500 and make sure that's the actual size of the crowd and you'd have the perfect day!

 

Also wanted to add the suggestion for a PA system that you can address the crowd with. I think most reasonable people would have simmered down if they knew what was going on.

 

I’ve posted in other threads, but I like the concept of this one too much to NOT repeat myself. I want to be able to say that I bought tickets to Hunahpu’s Day 2015. Bring it back!

I flew down from NYC with my lady specifically for this event. I was fortunate enough to get into El Catador – and forced my buddy who’s in Oldsmar to join as well. He and his wife were not big beer drinkers originally, but they have been coming around in recent months, thanks in large part to the club. Add in another friend from NY that was in Boca for work who rented a car that she paid for (not expensed) to drive the few hours north to come to this event, and you have a nice crew of 5 newbies for this release/festival. We were able to get our allocations and taste some really damn good beer. This will be my first ever taste of Hunahpu’s Imperial stout.

With that said, I’ll echo what others have mentioned in terms of how this event can be fixed without going with “the nuclear option”. In no particular order:

- Limiting the event to a finite # of attendees via hard tickets or printed. Matching names on each ticket to a gov’t issued ID will be the only ones allowed entry, NO EXCEPTIONS. Tickets can be transferred after purchase, but the names must also be changed to reflect the new owner.

- Use real ticket scanners that recognize both counterfeit tickets AND tickets that were previously scanned. Reliance on internet OR wifi for said scanners should be avoided.

- Increase the # of windows/areas for Hunahpu bottle purchases, equally spread out throughout the grounds. An alternative would be to force every fest-goer to purchase their bottles immediately after entry. It’s their prerogative to either sit with their beers or bring them back to their cars.

- Please, please, PLEASE hire a professional event organizer that has experience dealing with mass gatherings with alcohol being served.

- Consider moving this event off the grounds of the brewery (unless the # of attendees can be realistically controlled with fenced off areas and plenty of security. Oh right…)

- Hire professional security to be stationed throughout the event, NOT volunteers.

- Consider only featuring CCB and Brewpub beers. While not my favorite suggestion, it goes with the theme of celebrating the release of a single beer from a single brewery. I get the camaraderie aspect of inviting guest brewers, but maybe this will cut down on the amount of whalezbro attendees. Or…

- Force brewers or actual brewery representatives to be on hand to pour their beers with a cap on the number of beers they can serve. SAVOR uses this model as well as Firestone for their Invitational. I actually encountered, on several occasions, people who poured samples who were clueless as to what the liquid was flowing from their pitcher. Events in NYC often go out to Bartending schools for volunteering at the very least because most have minimal training in beer.

- Serve the beer at the location of said beer’s posted sign. This is easier said than done, and I don’t agree with having 100s of ropes designating stations. Just have some more breathing room in between stations.

- Map out the grounds ahead of time and distribute said map in advance of the event. Designate specific areas for resting, chair setup, and hydrating stations (yes – I am saying to provide water free during the event. Include this expense in the overall ticket price).

- I’d also reconsider allowing pets of any kinds, animals on leashes and snakes alike.

This is the cornerstone of Tampa Bay Beer Week. Even with the mishaps in the past, it remained a cornerstone this year. That means the local community really wants to see these types of events succeed. Please don’t be rash in making the decision to forever ban Hunahpu’s Day. With improvements and upfront expenses, these types of releases CAN work!