I was in Florida last week with my client for a business conference and trade show. We gathered ideas at the trade show and it was well worth the effort. But the time I enjoyed most was riding back and forth beside him on the plane. During that time no phones rang, there was no internet. It was a chance to get to know him better and also discus at length the project we were working on. As we talked of the various areas in the park and the things we might do I drew furiously in my sketchbook, illustrating our inspiration and ideas.
One of the areas we discussed was the Wilderness Trail - a play area for kids (and their parents). We had seen a gold panning attraction at the trade show and we discussed incorporating it into this area. The thing is however that we didn't want to do it like we saw at the trade show, but rather in the same style as the rest of the park. No problem, I knew just what to do and I drew a quick sketch ti illustrate how it might look. My client watched me scribble down my idea and loved what he saw. He bought off on the concept right there at 35,000 feet somewhere between Orlando and Denver.
On my return I spent a couple of hours refining the drawings, working out the logo artwork that would appear on the sign and on the packaging/advertising material. I also did a finished drawing of the tower to better illustrate the concept to him and his wife.
I also worked out the vectors I would need to create the routing file. The date on the logo is significant... it's my client's birth year (minus 100 years to fit in the proper era)
I arrived back home on Thursday evening. Friday, after getting the crew going, answering my emails, and getting through necessary meetings I needed a fun little project to get my head back in construction mode. I scrounged through the back forty scrap pile and found just the right pieces for what I needed. Then I fired up the welder and got to work. Four hours later the frame was ready on the mining car for the attraction. We'll sculpt the wooden and metal box on the rig later this week.
In the next post I'll show how I built the routing file for the signs. It's a fun project!
-dan
