I didn’t think that the first Ignite could be out done. I mean the first Ignite had just under 300 highly enthusiastic people who heard about it via word of mouth, twitter, and the blog scene. But this time the organizers, Legion of Tech, promoted the event through the Oregonian and on local radio.
What a difference a little additional PR does. We had 700+ people in a packed Bagdad Theatre over on Hawthorne. It was a different crowd this time including people from all walks of life (though mostly white, as one presenter pointed out). I got there with my brother in law and my other good friend at 5:15 and the line wrapped around the back of the Bagdad into the alley already. We were kind of worried we wouldn’t get in.
Everyone was excited to be there and the presenters did not disappoint. My favorites were the presentations about photographing abandoned places and how Portland should stake it’s claim about being a start-up incubator.
When the videos get posted up, I’ll update this post. Thanks to the organizers, Legion of Tech. These folks did an *amazing* job of filtering the presentations and chosing the best of the best!