Made my travel arrangements for the EntConnect 2010 Entrepreneurial Connections Conference in Colorado

With just six weeks to go, I just finished making my travel arrangements to attend the annual Entrepreneurial Connections (EntConnect) conference, from Thursday, March 25, 2010 through Monday, March 29, 2010. I'll be flying out from New York City (well, Newark)Thursday morning and returning from Denver early Monday afternoon. I'll be staying at the conference hotel, the Crowne Plaza Downtown Denver, which is actually in downtown Denver. I got a $259 airfare on Continental (I think it was actually a $49 fare with $210 in taxes and fees.) I'll probably spend Friday up in Boulder, and maybe Sunday evening as well. The conference rate at the hotel is $89, plus 14.85% tax, which works out to $102 a night.

Traditionally the conference consists primarily of a reunion of former readers of Midnight Engineering magazine (as well as the former publisher of the magazine) and a few newbies who have gotten suckered into trying it out, but each year we try to figure out new ways to attract fresh blood. Check out the conference Web page for an idea of what the conference was like last year. Hopefully the page will be updated very soon for the details for this year.

Here is my traditional 30-second elevator pitch blurb for the converence:

Whether you are an entrepreneur or thinking about starting your own business or simply need a good excuse to go skiing in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, the Entrepreneurial Connections conference (EntConnect) may be just the conference you have been waiting for. Targeted primarily at engineers (hardware, software, and other) and others with a strong technical interest, it is more of a loosely-structured "unconference", with plenty of opportunities for a relatively small group of participants (15 to 40) to network or even give their own presentations on a very wide range of topics from technology, business strategy, intellectual property and legal issues, accounting issues, finance, marketing, sales, and even selling your business. With plenty of time to ski or otherwise enjoy the mountains and Denver area (great time to visit Boulder or Colorado Springs as well), the conference is a great opportunity to "learn and share" and otherwise have an "out of box" experience. Participants and speakers range over the full spectrum from wannabes and newcomers to successful young entrepreneurs and seasoned veterans. The conference is an excellent opportunity to meet up with former readers (and possibly even the publisher) of Midnight Engineering magazine as well. The conference runs from Thursday, March 25, 2010 through Sunday, March 28, 2010.

Visit the official conference Web site, EntConnect.org.

I have been attending the conference since it first started in 1992 as ME SKI '92 and then evolved into ENTCON and then Entrepreneurial Connections or EntConnect.

For a little nostalgia, check out the original ME SKI '92 conference announcement.

Oh, and please feel free to join the Midnight Engineers Yahoo discussion forum.

-- Jack Krupansky