Yep, I agree. I think they covered the pat down type security though with "sniffing drinks" which they were saying they weren't trained for & the hotel asked them to do. I think they might be better off just have well trained & fully prepped security with clear cut rules of opporating & interacting with the public. My friend, my mate & I witnessed a bust & arrest outside ine of the hotels this year & while some of them didnt look like furs, some of the others jnvolved definetely were. I also witnessed on one occasion someone smoking weed (which I have no personal issues with & said nothing) outside the main building in plain view of the doors. Overall it was a very different, "party atmosphere" as you stated & honestly...it's probably been my least favorite year as far as what I witnessed on a daily basis there. Hopefully this will be learning opportunity & this con will come back better & not get forgotten.

Holy smokes. I heard about some of the incidents but I had no idea the true extent.
HAA! I laughed so hard when he dissed California saying that the trip to Spokan or however it's spelled if I misspelled was the worst most boring ride he'd ever done and he traveled to California.

X3 It's true though!! I lived only a few hours from Spokane for 20yrs & I can tell you how awful & boring the WA desert is....just tumbleweeds for miles & miles. Bleh!

I could only imagine.

i say no to the pat down im sorry but what kind of impression will that give the rest of the world of course i also think yes it would be good

Same! As long as we can try other methods first I think pat downs arent needed.

xD not a bad idea!

Since they (in the video) were talking about off duty police presence anyway, Im okay with it. Plus, the dog will fit right in! xD

I knew there were an increase in vandalism the last three years - I count last year as well - that I've attended, but last year...was the worst.
It sounds like RF ruined its fragile rep big time with the drug and alcohol use. I watched the vid as well as my father, who wanted too as well. We both figured something was up. Maybe it was the vandalism gone too far, but to hear it was more than that. That security wasn't like it should've been as well as all the drug and alcohol use....was even more troubling.

My father told me he was bombarded with questions by attendees of where this panel was and so on all because he wore a tan shirt like the security staff - just lacking all the patches and his shirt tails were 'tucked' in - not flapping about. When he told me that, I was really concerned.

It was a vastly different con since when I first attended in 2011. First 2 years, it was tight-ship and well run, but the 3 years after that...it just crumbled.

I know I only went a handful of times, but I definetly noticed the decline in staff & security.
while I am happy (in a way) that they cancelled so they could ge things strightened out
Im sad too. It was Roak & I's major furry con for the year & for a while there, our only furry con.
the alternatives are a significantly longer drive :c

'11 and '12 were fine, but the last 3 years were...questionable at best.
Hell, me and my dad sat and looked over where they wanted to hold it in Spokane. I know where they were wanting for the main hotel wasn't the best choice at all. The Davenport is the crown jewel of Spokane. We both agreed that it's not wise at all. Maybe for a GoH, VIP panelists, authors or dealers, maybe...but for the general attendees, hell no.
Where SpoCon is normally held is right next to the Spokane Con Center. Why didn't they try there for the main hotel?

We went around and around for hours. Even if they held it in Spokane...there are pros and cons. Yes, attendance may take a huge hit, but yet you can see you get the same repeat of last year. If you got a decrease in vandelism and other issues by moving, then it should be a wake-up call to all saying 'hey, we had issues while in Seatac...yet not here. We have a locally-based issue we need to address.'

There is RMFC, but I think I may take a break from furry cons this year. I need to get building for MisCon. SpoCon is unknown. I may only have 2 cons this year.

I believe they said the lack of hotel had to do with the hate letters many possible hotels recieved as a warnjng from an RF atendee. I have no idea if we'll make anything aside from miscon either. :/

If that's true...someone screwed up their chances of redeeming themselves at all.

I know SpoCon is a huge unknown since their site is down.
RMFC I'm passing on, at least for this year.
- MisCon is my only con for the year.
- I need to get my attendee bracelet paid for a 4-Day horsemanship clinic I've wanted to attend, but the clinic itself isn't until end of July.

To be honest, furry conventions are coming under a lot of scrutiny now. The furry fandom has devolved into a sex and drug driven entity that it just wasnt a few years ago. People are flocking to the fandom because we present ourselves as a no questions asked, accept all kind of fandom, and the majority of the newer members are the types of people who are chaos bringers. The hotel that we have TFF at was putting us under extra scrutiny last year when i was staff.

What a lot of people do not realize is that the hotels and convention centers that host furry cons generally do not like them, but get paid well to endure them. It leads to a tentative relationship at best. It is hard on hotel staff, many of whom do not care for the furry lifestyle, to keep their opinions to themselves and so they become less helpful and more prone to lodging complaints to their bosses. Now that isnt an across the board fact, some hotels love hosting. But the majority just want to get through the weekend as fast as they can and get rid of furries.

It is at the point where the furry fandoms reputation of being sex and drug driven creeps is affecting business for hotels that host furry conventions. This leads many hotels to look for a reason to get rid of the blight on their reputations in a way that wont result in lawsuits.

If furries want this trend to reverse, they have to get off their butts and put their collective feet down.

I very much agree & hope every con will use this as an example of when a con isnt being run correctly or just the overall con is too lax, ie: the no drugs rule without major reinforcement of a well trained security. It's truly unfortunate that this is our "legacy" we're leaving....future gens of furs with nowhere to have a con. Or just being even more severely judged than before.

It's not a problem with one or even most cons. It's a problem with the fandom itself that just presents its ugly face more vividly at conventions. I can't tell you how many arguements with furs both on and offline I have had over the direction that furry fandom has headed. So many refuse to believe that the fandom has devolved into little more than fetish and porn pedling even as they look at their fav gallery full of fetish/porn artwork or stories. It's why I have all But stepped away from being furry. I don't want the reputation of being a sicko however undeserved that title may be. People don't ask what a furry is because the news and tv shows HAVE shown it's true face and furries refuse to accept that is what the fandom has become and change it. Its vile and ruins everything.

Good points xD & yet what can we do except on an indiviual level?

I suppose it has to start at the con level and with the websites we use. Strictly enforced guidelines have to be used. The fetish Crap and porn have their place, but when they leave it and enter the public face they have to be struck down fiercely and without prejudice. What's more, we as a while need to band together as a fandom and back up these rules. We need to let it be known we are taking back what made our fandom beautiful and great. I'm not saying strike porn from existence. But artists need to be able to make money on something other than dicks and tits. So many of them hate having to do porn commissions because that's all will sell.

It could definetey work...would probably take a long time though.
Hopefully something can be done.

Anything worth doing takes a while.

I enjoyed RF, but it could have been better. I loved hanging out with friends and meeting a few new folks but I felt there could have been more?
The one thing that really bugged me about the convention , comparing it to anime conventions I've attended, is the lack of respect towards the hotel and the non-furry geusts, but mostly the disrespect of hotel property. One example is the diapers scattered everywhere throughout the hotel.
I don't know if I'd go back to RF or another fur con. Maybe if it was a smaller or local con.

I wish we could have taken you previous years....I cannot begin to describe how appaled I was @ what went on this year in plain view. Just....no. we're looking for a replacement con @ this point, & hoping the others will be more like RF three years ago.

Honestly, if RF wants to mend their reputation and keep it, hiring outside security would be a good option. That way those who do go against policy,regulation, and laws are delt with swiftly rather than given the blind eye from volunteers who don't want to cause drama. Plus outside security knows how to de-escalate problems quickly and efficiently. Downside to hiring outside is that some security members could be biast and try to find every little thing to harass con goers.

If you do think about going to a convention let me know, I might have to tag along. ;)
I might try the fur con in Portland, since I'll be living near the area and it's said to be a smaller con. Still debating on that one. But going to the larger ones like FC and AC, eh, kind of intimidating after RF. Any word on Furidaho if they're bringing that one back?

I doubt it sadly, there's talk, but no action on FurIdaho that I have seen as of late. As for Portland, Furlandia? Havent heard much, but mostly good or neautral feedback from what we have heard. I agree, I think they need to take a good close look @ security & how crisis are handled.

sorry to say but rf should have never started just saying (not trying to piss anyone off) but Washington (Seattle) is not a sweet place people (not all) are bad there

While i think they def. could have used better planning & I have lived in WA for a long time & since moved away....I dont see the appeal that most see when moving there, water is crap there, hanford is leaking into my hometown, tax is ridiculously high, it's a large & very racist community filled with drugs ect. I've met some great people there, dont get me wrong, but people flocking there because it's a tourist city & a pretty party geared place makes it even worse. I think the point of the location was purely convenience. Near enough to Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, Montana & even Alaksans could fly there pretty easy. Plus...I think they wanted it to be a west coast pride type con. Biggest in the northwest.

i feel and i wish they would blend with the con in Oregon itll go smoother in my thought

Hmmm, it'll be interesting to see what they end up doing.