Plaid Summer Tour

Meet the crew: Chris

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:06:00 +0000

Meet Chris. Chris joins PlaidNation on week two, and will be along for the ride as we hit Kansas City, Branson, Memphis, Jackson and New Orleans.

Are you constantly telling your friends that the PlaidNation tour dashboard has changed your life, and you just can't stand to ever stop watching?? Chris designed it! This is not an easy feat - he's managed to please the most difficult client of all - an agency full of creatives who normally have a thing or two to say about interactive design.

Chris is one of the award-winning designers on the Plaid team, and part of the hottest design team in the U.S. He's also a runner, (and a musician) and planning for his first ever half marathon sometime later in the year. (He might think twice about this, after the carbo-loading road diet that comes with the tour.)

Follow Chris on Twitter

Plaid Nation show-intro test film!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:42:00 +0000

Matt just completed the test movie for our show intro. Each day of the PlaidNation tour is captured and recapped on video, and each day is devoted to a different city.

Matt's planning on producing a separate stop motion piece for each city that we visit, so that each day's video will have a unique intro.

That's TEN stop motion pieces that Matt will have to finish in the next few days (no pressure). You'll also hear the new PlaidNation theme song, from the coolest band in the world: Pop Heroes. (Available for download on iTunes, soon.)

Meet the crew: Matt

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:53:00 +0000

While at headquarters, Matt is a member of Plaid's crack creative team. He's won multiple awards, created wonderous designs and produced numerous amazing sites. He's also been instrumental in helping to establish the personality of the Plaid brand. He's the designer behind the new look and feel of BrandFlakesForBreakfast.

Matt is the person responsible for the creation of the hottest Ford Flex to ever grace the American roadways. He's designed the graphics for Plaid's tour vehicles three years in a row, including our brand new Ford Flex. Matt is also the master creator for the official PlaidNation tour t-shirts, promotional swag, the animated sequence that opens every day's wrapup video, and the theme song to the Plaid tour!

Matt hails from New Jersey, and is also a musician - the founder of the legendary band Pop Heroes. Matt's the cool dude that you wish you could hang with. We get to do that for the entire second half of PlaidNation!

Follow Matt on Twitter

Meet the crew: David

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:15:00 +0000

This will be David's first year joining the PlaidNation tour. That's kind of a surprise, as he's been with Plaid for TEN years. David has seen Plaid grow from an itsy bitsy design firm into the greatest agency in all of the land. And he's been instrumental in shaping Plaid into what it is today.

What's kept David from joining the PlaidNation road trip in previous years? Perhaps it's the fear of cars. Or long rides. Or maybe it's the work that he didn't want to leave behind: the countless mind-blowing sites that he's conceptualized, designed and produced for clients across the globe.

David designed last year's PlaidNation tour dashboard, and was a major influence to Chris as he produced this year's feast for the eyes. When David's not in front of his Mac, he can usually be found on a mountain bike. He's the best mountain biker in the creative industry and has ridden more miles on his fleet of bikes than your grandma has on her 1978 Cutlass Supreme.

Look for David on week one of his very first PlaidNation tour!

Follow David on Twitter

We come with swag!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:11:00 +0000

When the Plaid Flex pulls into your city, expect the townspeople to get pretty excited. Not only will we be rolling with the hottest Ford Flex that has ever graced the American highway system, but we'll also arrive with goodies.

Be on the lookout for official Plaid tour t-shirts, buttons and air fresheners that will make your cubicle (or car) smell like cupcakes and donuts. That's how we roll.

33 days till the Plaid hits the pavement!

Meet the crew: Renato

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:24:00 +0000

Renato is the founder of Rmedia, and has become a fixture of the PlaidNation tour. Renato (you can call him Reno if you like) is the person responsible for producing all of the video that you see on PlaidNation, and is with us for the duration of the tour. (He'l be the guy with the camera on his shoulder.)

Renato's ability to tell a story in video has made him a natural extension of the Plaid team. He's the person that documented our takeover of the City of Denver, produced countless presentation and pitch videos, and can edit like a madman from the back of a Plaid tour vehicle driving 65 MPH over Texas-sized potholes.

When not editing PlaidNation videos, Renato's also a hard core mountain biker, a raging rock star and the keeper of embarrassing footage of just about everyone at Plaid.

Follow Renato on Twitter

The Q Hotel signs on as sponsor

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:15:00 +0000

The Q Hotel + Spa has signed on as a PlaidNation sponsor, joining Ford Motors and Sprint in making the Plaid tour possible.

The Q was voted the best hotel in Kansas City, and we're more stoked than ever to being staying there while in town. We're also pretty pumped that they've had an eco plan since they tookover and renovated the historic property, and they're the first "green" hotel in Kansas City. They also boast a design aesthetic that is totally, wonderfully Plaid approved.

Interested in a sponsorship? There are still high visibility options available for large and small brands. It's not too late to be a part of the biggest rolling celebration of creativity and innovation ever seen on the highways.

tour stops getting scheduled!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:15:00 +0000

We're in the midst of setting up stops in every market for the tour and have some exciting companies, brands and people to meet.

During each visit we'll share some Plaid love and learn about what these brands are doing that's spectacular in their industries. All broadcast live on PlaidNation.com!

Here's what's been scheduled so far:

Monday, July 20 : Detroit, MI
Morning - Ford Motors
Afternoon - CurveDetroit

Tuesday, July 21 : Milwaukee, WI
To be announced

Wednesday, July 22 : Chicago, IL
Morning - Threadless
Afternoon - 37 Signals??

Thursday, July 23 : Indianapolis, IN
Morning - BlueFuego
Afternoon - To be announced

Friday, July 24 : St. Louis, MO
To be announced

Monday, July 27 : Kansas City, MO
Morning - John & Tugg from American Copywriter
Late morning - Sprint
Afternoon - Dept Zero?

Tuesday, July 28 : Branson, MO
Who's in Branson that we could profile??

Wednesday, July 29 : Memphis, TN
Morning - FedEx
Afternoon - Elvis?

Thursday, July 30 : Jackson, MS
Who's in Jackson that we could profile?

Friday, July 31 : New Orleans, LA
To be announced
Plaid Nation Wrap Party

Want to arrange a stop in your market? Know of a brand or person that deserves some Plaid love? Give us a shout!

Meet the crew: RJ

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 14:51:00 +0000

RJ joins PlaidNation during its first week.

RJ is responsible for a large part of the tour's logistics. How far of a drive is it from Chicago to Indianapolis? RJ knows. Where is the crew staying while in Branson, MO? RJ knows. Do we need reservations for the ferry? Will we be passing a giant ball of yarn anywhere on tour? Ask RJ.

While back at home, RJ is part of Plaid's client service team. He's the dude who makes sure that our online project management system is stuffed with all of the detail to make creatives, producers and clients happy. He's the dude that conjures up magical reports of expenses, billable hours, and other things with dollar signs in front of them.

But that's not all that makes RJ tick. Did you know that he's also on a vintage baseball team? And is in love with the Yankees? RJ bleeds baseball. Which made him the natural choice as Captain of Plaid's Wiffle Ball team.

Follow RJ on Twitter: @iRJ

Tour t-shirts have been ordered!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 14:59:00 +0000

Matt completed the design work for this year's tour t-shirts. Made with 100% awesomeness. And they're orange, for your safety.

Want one? You'll need to be at one of our scheduled tour stops along the way - or if you're a blogger, just write an awesome post about the PlaidNation tour. (We've been known to trade t-shirt love for blog love.)

Sprint: official PlaidNation sponsor

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Thu, 28 May 2009 18:51:00 +0000

We'll be streaming more content than ever on this year's tour and it will all be made possible by Sprint!

Five laptops, three webcams, a video camera, SLR camera and other tools all recording, streaming and uploading interviews, videos, blog posts and other content. More action than the internet has ever seen, all broadcast from a car. It's all possible with Sprint's Mobile Broadband!

"The Plaid Nation tour is the perfect event to showcase what's possible with a Sprint Mobile Broadband connection on our 3G network. Whether downloading pictures or music, staying connected to social networking sites, streaming video, or simply staying in-touch with friends and family during the tour, we are really excited that Sprint will be a part of the journey and to help Plaid stay connected from Detroit to New Orleans." says Rich Pesce, at Sprint.

Thanks, Rich! We'll be lighting up the internet from Detroit all of the way to New Orleans. Through cornfields, mountain ranges and the St. Louis arch - it's a Plaid internet juggernaut barreling down the highway at 65MPH. Watch it all live in just 55 days!

Meet the crew: Sara

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:32:00 +0000

Here's our first of a few posts profiling the crew on this year's PlaidNation tour.

Sara will be part of the PlaidNation crew for the duration of the tour. While at headquarters, Sara is the Dutchess of Awesome - which means that she's the person that makes sure everyone is having an awesome time. Clients, coworkers and partners. Awesomeness is her middle name.

The fact that Sara is joining the tour is itself kind of a minor miracle. She just kicked Lyme Disease's ass - after it gave her a good smackdown during the latter part of 2008 and early this year.

Sara's also the person who has led the team responsible for PlaidNation's logistics. How do you get a FordFlex wrapped, wired, filled with crew who are fed, have a place to sleep and somewhere to go each day? And how do you keep it on budget? That's pretty much under the domain of the Dutchess of Awesome.

Follow Sara on Twitter: @sarachamp

Mascot not included.

Who's in the Ford Flex

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Mon, 25 May 2009 17:50:00 +0000

We've got a sweet crew for this year's PlaidNation, including a few Plaid folk who have never been on tour before! Guaranteed fun comes in these delicious flavors:

Week 1: Detroit, Milwaukee, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Kansas City:
Darryl Ohrt
Renato Ghio
Sara Champion
RJ Fenn
David Plain

Week 2: Kansas City, Branson, Memphis, Jackson, New Orleans:
Darryl Ohrt
Renato Ghio
Sara Champion
Matt Hunsberger
Chris Spada

I know these people personally - and can tell you for sure that this year's tour will be nothing but 100% awesomeness. Only 55 days until the engine roars!

2009 schedule announced

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Wed, 13 May 2009 00:57:00 +0000

If you live in one of those fancy pants places on the east or left coasts, you may want to consider a trip to the middle of the country this summer. Plaid's about to light it on fire.

Here's the official PlaidNation tour schedule for this year's tour! Some awesome markets where we'll be looking for spectacular brands, agencies and people.

Monday, July 20: Detroit
Tuesday, July 21: Milwaukee
Wednesday, July 22: Chicago
Thursday, July 23: Indianapolis
Friday, July 24: St. Louis
Saturday, July 25: Kansas City (tour crew fun time)
Sunday, July 26: Kansas City (tour crew fun time)

Monday, July 27: Kansas City
Tuesday, July 28: Branson
Wednesday, July 29: Memphis
Thursday, July 30: Jackson
Friday, July 31: New Orleans
Saturday, August 1: New Orleans (tour crew fun time)

If we're coming to your town and you'd like to schedule a tour stop at your place, give me a shout: darryl (at) thinkplaid (dot) com.

Just two months, eight days until launch!!

2009 Ford Flex graphics finalized!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:21:00 +0000

Coworker Matt just completed our vehicle graphics for the 2009 tour. Absolutely the hottest Ford Flex. Ever. Can't wait to see this on the Flex.

2009 vehicle graphics

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Sat, 09 May 2009 01:58:00 +0000

Check out the 2009 Plaid vehicle graphics!

Matt's in the process of finalizing the design, but these are pretty close to final. This will be the hottest Ford Flex to ever hit the highway. Plaid = awesome. Blue = hot. Flames = fast.

Ford Motors: putting Plaid on wheels.

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:50:00 +0000

This year's Plaid tour will be bigger and better than ever before. Starting with the Plaid ride. Thanks to the Ford Motor Company, we'll be riding in a sweet Ford Flex from Detroit to New Orleans!

Ford Motors has agreed to become the official vehicle sponsor for the PlaidNation tour. That means comfy seating. Ford Sync technology. Built in GPS. And countless other luxuries that the Plaid crew don't typically deserve.

While in Austin attending the SXSW Conference, Ford's own Scott Monty took Dave and Darryl on a nice test drive, while previewing some of the car's awesome features. We're already dreaming up super hot vehicle graphics, and thinking this will be the most Awesome Plaid ride, ever.

2009 tour route: Detroit to New Orleans

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:26:00 +0000

We've finalized our 2009 PlaidNation tour route, and it's cutting right through the middle of America!

We'll kick things off in Detroit on Monday, July 20 and won't stop until we hit New Orleans on July 31. Along the way we'll be stopping in Milwaukee, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City, Branson, Memphis, and Jackson.

Expect to meet even more interesting people, brands and firms this year - as well as some new Plaid surprises. Want Plaid to stop by your place? Give us a shout!

2009: Plaid visits middle America

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:53:00 +0000

It's official. We're already counting down. On July 20, 2009, we will kick off the third annual Plaid summer tour. PlaidNation 2009 will take place in the midwest.

We haven't yet planned a route - so if you live in the land-locked states and would like a visit from Plaid, just let us know. (darryl AT thinkplaid DOT com)

We've got a vanload of super cool ideas for PlaidNation III that we're nearly wetting our pants to tell you about. But we'll have to wait. Until at least 2009. Start paving the roads, mid-westerners. Plaid is coming to town.

2008 is complete. Just wait for 2009.

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 01:48:00 +0000

The van has been de-plaided and returned to Avis (what they don't know won't hurt them) and the Plaid team has returned home to rest and empty their inboxes.

We're uploading final photos in the next few days, editing a couple of final videos for the dashboard, and then we start putting together the details for next year. We've already got a load of fun ideas to push the tour past anything that's ever been done. Just wait for 2009!

Thanks to everyone who wrote about the tour, emailed, tweeted or called us with input and accolades, and especially to those on the west coast who graciously gave us their time.

See you next year!

Vegas ain’t for work.

noreply@blogger.com (mtlb) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 21:07:00 +0000

No kidding. Deals may get done over drinks and strip clubs, but when it comes to having to get some work done in the room, not havin it. Yeah, I know Vegas ain’t for work, but when your flight is cancelled and you decide to catch up on some posts and stuff, it quickly becomes a PITA. It’s not just Vegas either. A few extra plugs close to a table makes a big difference in half the places we stayed. An ice machine less than an hour away would be nice too. And of course, wireless.

It’s easy to take that last one for granted, but it’s still an iffy proposition at many places on the road. If we didn’t have the USB sprint cards, we would’ve easily lost a third of our uploading ability at night. It’s ironic the first time on tour we stay at a ~~motel~~ hotel and there’s no wireless, only an ethernet connection on some sort of vaccum cleaner cord Retract-O-Matic thing. (You can see how far it reached in the photo, just to the right of the laptop.)

Just close enough for me to work on some chairs and peer out at the future Darwin Award winners poolside.

You are your brand.

noreply@blogger.com (mtlb) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 20:29:00 +0000

Now there’s a guy with a call to action. Snapped quickly as we walked by with an iPhone was one of the people in the ‘old’ Vegas casino area responsible for saving Vegas and mankind, possibly in that order. He’s probably known as ‘The Jesus Guy’ by locals. The sign in his right hand has a list of everyone Jesus hates. The usual suspects like: Homosexuals, Muslims, bloggers, etc. Say what you will, but the overall messaging is direct. And with two foot letters, he didn’t have to shout a single word. (He also had Jesus schwag like flyers and shirts.) Always be branding people!

That's a wrap!

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 22:42:00 +0000

Today we completed the last meeting of the tour, and disassembled the van. This van could write a book about its travels, and it's only a few thousand miles old.

We've removed webcams, power and internet connections. We've discarded about a dumpster full of garbage. And shipped leftover swag back to the Plaid headquarters.

And then we removed the wrap. A little bit depressing, and a whole lot hot - as we de-plaided the van in 108 degrees of Las Vegas love. Professional grade heat, as Bill calls it. Watch the entire de-plaiding process in the wrap up video, tomorrow.

After a few hours of uploading, blogging and editing, we're headed out for some end of tour celebratory fun. Watch out, Vegas. The web cams are off.

Plaid meets Zappos

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 22:20:00 +0000

Our last meeting of the tour was at Zappos!

Plaid was treated to the ultimate tour of the Zappos facility, which is unlike any corporate workplace that we've ever visited. Anywhere. This is a firm with hundreds and hundreds of employees, yet they've managed to keep a culture and vibe that's consistently ZAPPOS.

Just a handful of the thousands of things that make them awesome:
+ A nap center, with those super-future nap-pods.
+ Employee groups decorate each zone of the office. There were jungles, tents, and more themes than I can even remember.
+ Tony, their CEO, and all the Zappos executives work side by side all other employees, in a cubicle.
+ There's an employee coach, masseuse, and a mayor.
+ Employees have created their own original greeting for any visitor to the Zappos facility. This has to be seen to be believed.
+ Employees (and guests) are treated to free books for continued learning. There's a library in the lobby of books that Tony has suggested, all free for the taking.

The Zappos workplace is a more creative space and culture than most creative agencies of their size. A testament to the fact that you don't have to be in the creative business to have fun in the workplace.

Look for video of the Zappos headquarters on the wrap up show. If you live in Vegas, this looks to truly be one of the best places to work in the country. Thanks to Tony, Jerry (the Mayor of Zappos), and the entire crew for showing Plaid the ultimate Zappos love.

When bloggers are attacked

noreply@blogger.com (darryl ohrt) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 20:55:00 +0000

We stay at some pretty damn skanky motels while on tour. That's part of the adventure, and part necessity for a small agency footing the bill for a national tour. Stays at the Motel 6, Super 8 and Travel Lodge will usually yield some pretty good road stories.

So we were all pretty stoked to check in at the Excalibur in Las Vegas, for our last couple of days on tour. And had no idea that it might turn out to be the most dangerous night of all.

Here's how it went down:

Dead asleep in my room, I was woken by someone knocking on my door during the middle of the night. Figuring it was a drunk who couldn't find his room, I ignored for a minute. And the knocking turned to pounding. I jumped up, peeked through the security hole, to see a complete stranger. I yelled out "you have the wrong room", thinking that when he hears someone's voice that he doesn't recognize, that he'd move on. Instead, he begins screaming "LET ME IN" and literally begins to KICK DOWN THE DOOR. Full force kicks, doing everything he can to knock it down. Now I'm scared for my life - literally - and call security.

Meanwhile, a couple of doors down, Bill (who is of much larger build than I am) OPENS the door to the dude. Because Bill is more man than Chuck Norris. Bill discovers that he is indeed just a drunk, who believes the best way into a hotel room is by force, and moves him along.

I'm still a bit upset with how Excalibur handled this situation, and won't be staying here again. I'd even love to press charges against this individual - but security indicates that 'he got away.' The most secure place in America (other than the Canadian border) and you can literally kick in the doors of any guest, and drunkenly walk away.

Lots of brand love lost for Excalibur at 4:16AM this morning. Anyone looking for a good bodyguard should get in touch with Bill.