Sport Pilot Talk

Looks like the last Sebring Expo was just that: the last.

https://www.sportaviationexpo.com

Not terribly surprised. Looked to me like attendance was down, and there were far fewer vendors and exhibitors this past January.

There were , I think, 3 similar shows in Florida every year - I know there are lot of retired guys there with time and money on their hands but that was ridiculous , something had to give ...

Maybe Deland is the "new" Sebring ??? We'll see.

Another one that will probably bite the dust is the one at Mt Vernon ,IL - it is in the middle of nowhere , I am not sure how it survives in the first place - perhaps as a nice hangout for vendors and dealers so they can chill together having some beers and good time - you don’t need any visiting public for that

I will admit that some 300 miles and a 5 hour one-way drive has kept me from seeing what's happening in Mt Vernon.

ShawnM wrote:Maybe Deland is the "new" Sebring ??? We'll see.

That’s what I was thinking . . . could very well be.

Too bad, but not terribly surprised.

The best Light Sport exhibition I’ve been to was in 2006. I was looking to buy a Light Sport, and all the manufacturers were in one designated area at Sun ‘n’ Fun in Lakeland. Made it easy to take them all in - there were about 17 manufacturers there IIRC - and compare and contrast. It was where I zero’d in on the Sky Arrow as my Light Sport of choice. That concept was apparently abandoned, and Light Sport models are now scattered all over Sun ‘n’ Fun, diluting the whole effect.

I think I’ve been to the Sebring show 3 times, but one of those was called for weather on the day we planned to go to the show. I got good deals on a Whelen LED landing light and an Aerovoltz battery there. But now that I’m not really in the market for anything, the main impetus was social - a chance to touch base with fellow cronies from this site and others. I can’t speak of the last few shows, but attendance did seem to be tapering off. I’m sure the siphoning off of some Sport Pilots to other planes via BasicMed didn’t help.

What I’d like to see is a Light Sport Expo “show within a show” at Sun ‘n’ Fun. Does not seem like it would be terribly hard to pull that off.

FastEddieB wrote:. . . . . What I’d like to see is a Light Sport Expo “show within a show” at Sun ‘n’ Fun. Does not seem like it would be terribly hard to pull that off.

I like that idea.

FastEddieB wrote:
What I’d like to see is a Light Sport Expo “show within a show” at Sun ‘n’ Fun. Does not seem like it would be terribly hard to pull that off.

They did the same thing at Oshkosh for a couple years, but also had the scattered displays. It made it kind of difficult manning two locations.