Sox-Fest

2005 revisited…10 years later…
First time attendee, and aside from a few areas of improvement, I loved the overall convention. I had a 1-​day pass for Saturday’s events, so I can’t comment on the goings-​on for Friday or Sunday.
A nice mix of White Sox players old and new were present. From the current 2015 roster: outfielder Adam Eaton, starter Jeff «Sharky» Samardzija, closer Nate Robertson, and even our underperforming catcher, Tyler «T-​Flo» Flowers. Numerous fan favorites from the ’05 championship team were in attendance as well, including Tadahito Iguchi, Aaron Rowand, Jose Contreras, Scott «Scotty Pods» Podsednik, Bobby Jenks, Joe Crede, and Jon Garland. The players were friendly and very receptive to photos with fans, although several showed up late for their scheduled timeslot.
Having a wristband system in place was a great idea to prevent line-​jumping and guarantee a spot in the player’s queue. But a lack of places to sit resulted in most people chillin’ on the hotel’s floor, which looked odd. The seminars were entertaining, although not particularly insightful, as the last third were Q&A with fans («what’s your favorite ballpark food?», etc)
The convention layout was a little convoluted, and a good deal of time was spent running back and forth between rooms. The Sox-​themed decorations on the elevator doors and lining the hallways were nice touches. The kids’ zone featured tons of interactive elements for younger fans, while the player meet-​and-​greets were a huge hit among the dreamy-​eyed teenage girls (‘omg Jon Garland is sooooo hot in person, blah blah blah’).
The biggest disappointment was the absence of Orlando «El Duque» Hernandez, the man responsible for beasting through perhaps the most nail-​biting inning in White Sox history (ALDS game 3, bottom of the 6^th inning, bases loaded, AND NO OUTS). My dad had his heart set on getting El Duque’s autograph, but a family emergency prevented his appearance. Without a replacement player, that portion of the program was a bust.
Despite having to wake up early on a cold Saturday morning, both my dad and I had a great time. We got signed memorabilia and left happy, but agreed that one SoxFest was enough. Excessive crowding (the event was completely sold out), rude/​pushy fans and high price point are enough to discourage us from going back in 2016. But if they win it all this year (and they could!), we’ll certainly be back in 2025 to celebrate another 10-​year anniversary of a World Series title :)
Oh, and the Cubs still suck.

Get there early, in order to get in line for wristbands for photos or autographs. I hate waiting in line, so it was tough. We bought just a Saturday day pass, but I would recommend buying the whole weekend, as you have numerous opportunities to meet with players if you miss them on a certain day. A lot of weird old people who shouldn’t be getting autographs or wearing jerseys of players who are half their age… oh well!

This the Annual White Sox Fan Convention.
It has been three years since it moved to the Palmer House, and it has gotten worse every year. What was a well run event at the Hyatt Regency has turned into a clusteryouknowwhat of epic proportions.
It’s only really good as an autograph show. The seminars are still ok, but they dont schedule enough of them for each day.
VIP packages suck what’s left of the life of this event. For $ 250 extra, you get to cut in autograph lines. Why would I want to spend 3+ hours in line for Jim Thome’s autograph knowing I’ll be pushed further back so some spoiled rich kid can cut in?
The outside dealer area also took aturn for the worse. Skyrocketing vendor prices and smaller crowd mean sless vendors offering deals on sox gear.
2010? Save your money and buy autographs off ebay.