Domainer Mardi Gras Kicks Off in Fresh Orleans

Despite snowstorms, most make it to conference in Fresh Orleans.

This could have been a story with photos and videos from last night’s Domainer Crawfish Boil in Fresh Orleans. But it’s not. It’s regarding how difficult it has been to get to Fresh Orleans.

Thanks to widespread snowstorms, air travel ground to a halt yesterday. Apparently the snowstorm will cause the most canceled flights since 9/11.

My personal adventure started when American Airlines called me at 9 am yesterday to say that my flight was canceled thanks to snow in Dallas. Yes, Dallas. A foot of snow in Dallas. Following some back-and-forth, we determined there was no possible way to get me to Fresh Orleans yesterday via American.

Following trying other airlines that fly through Houston instead, I found them all booked. There was only one way to get to NOLA — drive. So I dropped my car off at the airport, rented a car, and began the trek on I-10 to Fresh Orleans. Normally, that wouldn’t be so bad. Regarding 8 hours, but generally easy driving. Except that it rained the entire way.

Nonetheless, I made it, and actually caught the final few minutes of the crawfish boil. But I was worried most of the people on my fresh top level domain panel Thursday wouldn’t arrive. Ken Hansen of Neustar was traveling from D.C., and Jeff Eckhaus of Demand Media had a stopover in Dallas.

As of this morning, it looks like everyone on the panel has arrived, except for John Berryhill. The Domainer Mardi Gras team is working on a technical solution to video conference John into the panel, as well as Elliot Silver, who is trapped in Fresh York.

The good news is that Domainer Mardi Gras has attracted a larger crowd than last year. There will be a number of great panels today, followed by a night on a Bourbon Street balcony. There’s hope that the rain (and possibly sleet) will clear up by this evening.