Final Numbers of Participants at Slingshots in the Smokies Maggie Valley Parade?

    Quote from akfinest

    Does anyone know the final number of Polaris Slingshots that participated on Saturday 6/4/22 Maggie Valley Parade? :/

    Not official but a friend on mine counted the Slingshots as they passed our motel. His count was 185. There were far fewer Slingshot at Maggie Valley this year then the past couple of years. This is the first year that our motel had opening Mon thru Fri during SSITS.

    From a vendor stand point, while we sold all of the inventory we brought down, did a lot of drop ships from the warehouse for heavy/bulky items we didn't bring with us, and took some pre orders on quad kits, this was by far the least busy that event has been since the first time. People are still spending money but the actual turn out was terrible. It seemed slow and not a lot of energy there like in years past. Most of the faces coming through each day were the same from the previous days. It seemed like mostly OGs there this year without a ton of new riders. Most of our sales were to previous customers. Hard to say what the cause was. Maybe due to gas prices, lingering covid worry, the cost of the event goes up each year, people are getting tired of the venue, who knows. Next year should give us a better indicator.

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    Quote from Kyle D

    From a vendor stand point, while we sold all of the inventory we brought down, did a lot of drop ships from the warehouse for heavy/bulky items we didn't bring with us, and took some pre orders on quad kits, this was by far the least busy that event has been since the first time. People are still spending money but the actual turn out was terrible. It seemed slow and not a lot of energy there like in years past. Most of the faces coming through each day were the same from the previous days. It seemed like mostly OGs there this year without a ton of new riders. Most of our sales were to previous customers. Hard to say what the cause was. Maybe due to gas prices, lingering covid worry, the cost of the event goes up each year, people are getting tired of the venue, who knows. Next year should give us a better indicator.

    Kyle thanks for your input.

    Quote from akfinest

    Does anyone know the final number of Polaris Slingshots that participated on Saturday 6/4/22 Maggie Valley Parade? :/

    There was an overview drone shot of all the Slingshots lining up for the parade, counting all of those, plus guessing there were a couple under the tents, the total was around 200-210 in that picture if I remember correctly. I am sure that there were more over the week, but definitely not anywhere near 400 like years ago and seemed even less than last year. From our perspective the event went great, we always book up months in advance for installs, did several turbo installs, swing arm installs, brake upgrades, coolant tanks and a bunch of other things to help people all week. As others have said definitely more low key than previous years, especially just getting back from the Slingexperience in Texas as a comparison.

    I have not had the pleasure of going yet, but as I read more and more, I am less likely to attend. If it is getting too expensive and not as invigorating as previous years then it doesnt seem like it would be worth the trip from virginia to attend. I have only been to a few rides and have had quite a time doing them. Met a lot of great folks. My next event is the ride from DC to NY. Tons of slings go to that.

    Quote from NNEVES57

    I have not had the pleasure of going yet, but as I read more and more, I am less likely to attend. If it is getting too expensive and not as invigorating as previous years then it doesnt seem like it would be worth the trip from virginia to attend. I have only been to a few rides and have had quite a time doing them. Met a lot of great folks. My next event is the ride from DC to NY. Tons of slings go to that.

    Yes there is some cost to attend this event, but for me well worth the monies. Great area to ride and get together with friends I've been riding with since 2015. A friend and I share the cost of the motel (cost me $285.00 Mon thru Sat) and a few meals and gas.

    Quote from NNEVES57

    I have not had the pleasure of going yet, but as I read more and more, I am less likely to attend. If it is getting too expensive and not as invigorating as previous years then it doesnt seem like it would be worth the trip from virginia to attend. I have only been to a few rides and have had quite a time doing them. Met a lot of great folks. My next event is the ride from DC to NY. Tons of slings go to that.

    I find that as I go to many events, I generally steer away from the "organized" stuff like rides, meals, etc. I instead focus on the vendors who are there and then finding small groups of people (<10) to go on rides with. It is much more fun and less stressful than the huge rides with 100's of Slings, police escorted or not.


    Maggie Valley (and that whole Blue Ridge area) is still on my "Things to do when I retire" list to just go there for 10+ days and ride all over the place. There are lots and lots of great rides, things to do, things to see in that area and I want to do them all. I'm gonna get a bunch of those FreemanMaps and check off every single one. I also like the Ozarks, wanna head into the desert with SoCal & Edward Neal , hit the Dakota's etc.

    Quote from chavey2

    I find that as I go to many events, I generally steer away from the "organized" stuff like rides, meals, etc. I instead focus on the vendors who are there and then finding small groups of people (<10) to go on rides with. It is much more fun and less stressful than the huge rides with 100's of Slings, police escorted or not.


    Maggie Valley (and that whole Blue Ridge area) is still on my "Things to do when I retire" list to just go there for 10+ days and ride all over the place. There are lots and lots of great rides, things to do, things to see in that area and I want to do them all. I'm gonna get a bunch of those FreemanMaps and check off every single one. I also like the Ozarks, wanna head into the desert with SoCal & Edward Neal , hit the Dakota's etc.

    So many rides and so little time.

    Quote from chavey2

    I find that as I go to many events, I generally steer away from the "organized" stuff like rides, meals, etc. I instead focus on the vendors who are there and then finding small groups of people (<10) to go on rides with. It is much more fun and less stressful than the huge rides with 100's of Slings, police escorted or not.


    Maggie Valley (and that whole Blue Ridge area) is still on my "Things to do when I retire" list to just go there for 10+ days and ride all over the place. There are lots and lots of great rides, things to do, things to see in that area and I want to do them all. I'm gonna get a bunch of those FreemanMaps and check off every single one. I also like the Ozarks, wanna head into the desert with SoCal & Edward Neal , hit the Dakota's etc.

    I did the same. Avoided group rides in favor of hooking up with smaller groups of 6-10 and going our own way.



    Last year was my first year. Had a great time. Spent some cash with vendors at the fairgrounds on goodies. Met a ton of great people and shared a lot of conversation. And, spent tons of time driving some awesome roads and seeing breathtaking views.



    This year was close to a carbon copy of last year. There were a few additional vendors at the fairgrounds. Met just as many new people and got to catch up with those I met last year. I spent close to the same amount of cash with vendors. And, spent even more time exploring roads and visiting Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.



    As for the event itself….. At first, I thought asking patrons to buy tickets to an event for the privilege to spend money was a bit out of line. But, last year I had some long conversations with Scott (event coordinator). I then realized how much effort and funds it takes to host an event of this size. Those cost just can’t be absorbed by one entity. The choices are either increasing vendor rent for the event or charge admission. With limited vendors, such an increase would likely yield less vendors and ultimately the event would dwindle and eventually end entirely.



    So, with that said, I have no issues buying tickets in support of the event. I had a great time this year and plan to attend next year.

    All of the Slingshot events around here are free - - - - - - - - - - - Oh wait!


    We don't have any


    Never mind ;(


    All joking aside I would gladly pay admission for a slingshot event of this size if it were held somewhat locally.

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    Yeah, I don't mind paying for admission - if I get something out of it. I know the organizer has to cover costs like rental, equipment, safety, telecommunications, etc. Even if I don't pay admission, my rule is to buy a t-shirt to support (which is why I have 20+ slingshot t-shirts now . . . .)


    What I did with the Avalanche club when I did those events was charge something like $50. But for that they got a t-shirt, a decal, some swag, and a meet-n-greet BBQ dinner. My direct costs were about $25 for that stuff, but their value to the participant was at least close to the ticket price. That left me some wiggle room to cover the rent, raffle prizes, other supplies, etc. And at the end, all leftover cash (just a few $100) went to a charity of choice instead of into someone's pockets.