Sun ‘n Fun Wraps On An Up Note

"We came into this week not knowing what to expect," said John Burton, president of Sun 'n Fun, in a wrap session with reporters on Sunday. "And we're all relieved -- we made it through this week safely and successfully." The week got off to a bit of a slow start, he said, partly due to weather that delayed some flights, and partly due to cost-saving tactics by vendors. "Less than half of our exhibitors had checked in by last Sunday," he said, which was unusual. For a vendor, cutting their show time short by a day or two can be a substantial savings. Overall, this year's show hosted 500 exhibitors, down a bit from last year's record of 522, but pretty close to the usual number of 505 to 510. Reports about sales activity were mixed, but Burton said each vendor is surveyed as they leave the show and he expects to have those numbers soon.

"Visitors were down about 5 percent overall," he said, which he added was not surprising given the uncertain economy. One accident occurred, when a Sport Cruiser ran off the edge of the grass runway at Paradise City, but the passenger was unhurt and the pilot survived. Burton added that last year's appearance by the Thunderbirds may be repeated in 2010, with the Blue Angels to follow in 2011, but those plans are not yet confirmed. The weather at the site was "outstanding" all week long, and Saturday crowds were substantial, Burton said. A lot of eyes were on this show hoping to find some signs of how the economy is going, he said, and his feeling was that overall the show provided positive news that people were still coming to the show and still willing to spend.