By: Olivia Sherman, News Writer
May 4, 2014
An overly ambitious convention organized by a dedicated few turns from fan devotion to pandemonium after a series of detrimental incidents occurred at the event. PeakCon 2014 was supposed to be an action-packed, three-day weekend of panels and fun for The Peak’s most dedicated fans, spanning from the Humour Section fandom, to guest speakers from the Opinions panel, and special appearances from the Sports section.
Attendees buzzed with excitement over these panels from their favourite fandoms, as well as guaranteed time in a highly-anticipated rock climbing wall, and a computer lab with high-speed Wi-Fi to submit last-minute articles to their section editors. The PeakCon attendees were to be accommodated in downtown Vancouver’s Marriott Hotel.
However, of the 5,000 registered attendees, only 500 arrived at the convention. With the deposit for the Marriott Hotel unpaid due to a lack of door sales, the hotel requested the bill be paid in full immediately, racking up to the thousands. One organizer of PeakCon, who requested to remain anonymous, stated the volunteer PeakCon staff were instructed to ask for donations from those who did attend the event. “It’s not like I’m being paid for this,” the staff member stated. “First the TA strikes, and now this?”
Due to a lack of attendees, as well as the event’s poor overall planning, panellists began dropping out of the convention lineup. “To make up for that, we gave guests extra time on the rock-climbing wall,” the anonymous staff member said. “We eventually had to take that away. They didn’t give me a reason.”
Attendees were disappointed that the promised computer lab was a singular desktop with a mouse that was out of batteries. However, because of the thick, concrete walls and high ceilings of the Marriott Hotel ballroom, guests in the lineup said the Wi-Fi connection was similar enough to the internet connection at SFU Burnaby campus, and they felt at home.
Despite hundreds of rooms at the Marriott Hotel being vacant, the hotel room mini-bars were found mysteriously empty. The vendors, selling their merchandise and artwork, packed away their wares because everyone had spent their cash on keeping the convention open another day. By the second day of the three-day convention, PeakCon was abandoned.
“We intend to learn from our mistakes to make 2015 even better,” an anonymous organizer said. The Marriott Hotel Vancouver did not respond for comment on whether they will welcome PeakCon back in the future.
