The 2018 Western Pool & Spa Show in Long Beach, Calif., was memorable in different ways. The putting green in the exhibit hall raised a record amount for the California Pool & Spa Association — and show organizers managed to overcome major computer difficulties to keep WPSS on track.
“The printers went down six times on our busiest day,” said Peter Haverlation, director of registration. “But we worked through it.” For a time, attendee badges had to be hand-printed, and Haverlation was forced to delay the start of classes 15 minutes that first day.
Attendance at the March 15-17 event reached approximately 9,000. Not surprisingly, technical seminars were popular, with 120-plus attendees, Haverlation said. Proceeds from the nine-hole putting green exceeded $500. Half went to the winning player and half to CPSA.
Truck giveaway winner Mark Navickas of The Pool Guyz, a Northern California company, said he’d been saving to buy a truck and was thrilled to drive the Dodge Ram home.
