The CSTA’s Sport Tourism FORE-um and [un] GOLF event not only brought members of the industry together, it was a textbook blueprint for creating a themed event from start to finish.
From the initial teaser information to save the date sent out in September to the golf ball dessert cake pops as the evening concluded, the golf theme was the lynch pin for the event.
The CSTA was looking for an opportunity to engage the sport community, destinations, and industry suppliers with the same energy, information sharing and social networking that pervades Sport Events Congress. The Sport Tourism FORE-um provided the professional development, with industry leaders facilitating discussion on 13 different trending topics ranging from the decision making behind a bid, to issuing the request to proposals, engaging the media and attracting unorthodox events and selling sponsorships.
There were five different round table rotations, giving participants the opportunity to sit in, draw on the facilitator’s expertise, and share ideas in lively discussion. Sometimes the conversation was so engaging that people stayed for two sessions in a row on the same topic!
Heather Bury, Sport and Event Sales Executive with Tourism Saskatoon, who led the roundtable on Economic Impact, enthusiastically endorsed the concept. “A HUGE thanks to you and your crew for putting on another amazing CSTA event! I had so much fun and as sport folk, it’s always nice to have that element of competition. 🙂 I especially liked mixing a forum with a fun networking event.”
As the educational element concluded, people moved to the Driving Range Social in the LIFT lounge of the Delta Ottawa Hotel sponsored by Fort McMurray Sport Tourism, where the networking and dialogue continued over refreshments.
When guests arrived at the penthouse floor of the Delta Ottawa, it had been transformed into a sea of green, with the various stations serving as the [un] GOLF holes for the golf tourney part of night. The ‘holes’ were a combination of food stations, fun activities, (photo 0238) photo booth and social media interactions. Teams collected points for participating in the various games/activities at each hole, while also enjoying pasta, veggies, tacos and, of course, the famous CSTA donut wall, as they moved around the penthouse.
Course Marshall Derek Johnston kept the afternoon and evening on track, and found his golf course ‘Quiet’ sign to be very effective when he needed to capture the crowd’s attention for announcements. Since the sport tourism industry can be very competitive, there were prizes handed out at the end of the evening. Tyler Cole, Sport Tourism Coordinator with Fort McMurray Sport Tourism won the ‘longest drive’ for the person who travelled furthest to attend. Team STEP Offside, from Destination St. John’s and Canada Soccer were the best dressed team in their throwback tams and plus fours, and The Bogeys & the Beast, a team combined of Edmonton Events and OSEG’s Greg Amiel edged out The STEAM Machine for the first place trophy.
The engagement of the many different sponsors for the evening contributed to the success of the afternoon and evening, as did the support of the many volunteers who were on hand to manage the hole activities on the course. As people headed off into the night, there was a definite #golfvibe that this event should be carried on as an annual activity.
Visit the online photo gallery to see more fabulous photos and stay tuned for a video highlight reel, and a re-cap of the trending topics from the roundtables in the coming weeks.