From Hattrick I met Patrick - part II

One could say that there are many challenges in Hattrick that leads to fun and a lot of nice memories.
In my opinion, the greatest part of Hattrick is the one when you manage to discover the people outside of the game, which means meeting users in real life to create new friendships who could last forever.
For that, let me present you some countries that are having from smaller to bigger RL events, by finding out from their organizers more things about these meetups.

Pirtniex (4535034) - Latvia

1. Tell us about the meeting that is taking place in your country.

This year, I'm organizing an annual summer meeting for three days in the last weekend of the August. As usual, I think we will gather together for about 20 people including few Estonian HT users. It seems that, this year, Lithuanians won't come as it happens too far from them. The meeting will happen in a sauna by the small river, for about 15 km's away from any cities and villages, in a quiet place between the forest. My wife, who used to play HT for a short time, is gonna come as a ''cook'' for the meeting. Previously, on the second day of the meeting, people were splitting in teams and having mini football tournament, but unfortunately this year it won't happen, as there is no proper place for playing it, but I will make some other sport related activities to be done. On the evening, as usual, there will be poker tournaments and Latvian national card game, called ''Zole'', mini tournament. And, of course, some alcohol, sauna visits and other fun things will happen over the days. :)

2. What impact have the Hattrick meetings over the communities? In which way do you think those meetings are affecting the future of the game?

It's hard for me to say how such meetings affects the users, but in Latvia most people who are attending are hardcore HT users and they will be here while the game lasts. But anyway it should help the game and make it more interesting, so it's always good to have such meetings.

3. What do you think would stimulate other communities to organize such meetings?

As far as I know, many countries already have such meetings, some of our users have been in Estonia and Lithuania for those meetings, I have been in England for similar parties (there it usually happens for one evening in some pub). But anyway I would suggest that every country should have those meetings, as there are good chances to meet interesting people and make new friends or simply have a great time.

4. How would you compare your first meetings with the latest ones?

To be honest, all those meetings are quite similar. The only real difference which comes into my mind is that, unfortunately, they are getting smaller so as the Latvian HT community is decreasing (but it's not just in Latvia, it's a global thing). The second one is related to the first one - when there where more people, we had to look for the bigger places and we had to rent a guest house somewhere. It was a bit more expensive, but it didn't stop users to come, last year and this year the meeting will happen in the HT user's own place or a friends place. :)

---

mollfu (2543268) - Spain

1. Our meetings are with five users, all living nearby:
Arisvil (6821895) Spain, Catalunya
Macredt (12992200) Spain, Catalunya
Darnali (1523153) (Spain, Barcelona, VI.329)
Kuellitropos (1523153) Spain, Catalunya
Mollfu (2543268) Spain, Catalunya

Some of us knew each other from outside the game already and others only because of the game. We are open for new members: if anyone wants to join, he should know that the new members always pay the first round :)
Usually we meet to have lunch or dinner once per season. We pick a place close enough for all of us, which is hard enough because we have one of us is somehow strange because doesn't eat meat. And of course it is hard to pick a date when everybody is available.

The meetings are intense with discussions about tactics, player skills and long term training strategies. Yet it feels like they are always too short, because we never manage to talk about everything we wanted to.

2. I think the meetings are very positive for the HT communities, because they bring the game close to you and take it out of the cold computer into a nice real live ambiance with food and chatter. This way we create friendships that go far beyond usernames.

3. I don't know what would help other communities to organize these kinds of meetings. But I guess that this article in which we share experiences can help a lot.

4. From the first meeting onwards, things have changed for the better. What started as a meeting with people who knew each other only from the game, has transformed to a group of friends.
These meetings have made us better in the game as well, because we talk about tactics, skills and players. This led to three of us (of five in total) being active in the National Team. We used to be 4 helping in the NT, but one of us stopped doing so, because of lack of time. It's just a matter of time until the last member of our meetings will become active in the NT as well.

---

ciuffo-fisc (11147581) - Italy

1. I'm organizing a big meeting in Pescara, September 3rd at the moment, the last one I held was in May, in Rome.
To organize meetings you need time, desire and planning.
First of all, you have to choose the day; after that, you have to find a place that can meet certain requirements like good food, resonable price, perfect logistics. After that, you choose the area, for example Rome or another big city. At the beginning, you could ask your friends if they know locations with certain characteristics.

Once identified the place, you agree with the restaurant owner on menus, schedules and prices (you always try to get as much as ​​possible, while spending as little as possible and fit into a budget that allows you to make even the T-shirts of the meeting).

The place of the meeting in Rome, must have a subway or a bus station nearby. For people who come from outside, I try to organize machines or make them come all in the same railway station and, more or less, at the same time.
For those who want to sleep in Rome, we use to find a nice place at the right price.
For me, organizing is a challenge: you have to try to do all perfectly and it is practically like a job. :)

2. At the past, I have organized and participated in meetings across Italy and the process, more or less, is the same. The meetings are the beautiful part of Hattrick in my opinion: in these ocasions, I had the possibility to met more than 1000 people and now, some of them, are my best friends. We met on HT real life meetings and I attend them.
This is the demonstration that the game is only a medium that allows you to go over and give birth to very important ties.
Many people are 'afraid' to appear because they like more to be anonymous or to keep an online personality that can be different than the real one.
But I invite everyone to participate. If someone comes once, he/she surely will come to next HT meetings!

3. I do not know if abroad there is a 'movement' in every country that organizes this, but I think there are people with great personality who can attract users and stimulate them.
Once, people were joining meetings by their wish, now you have to 'bring them togheter'.

4. Me and the others Roman friends have developed a great bond with the people who came from Abruzzo and there is a sort of 'exchange': when me and others Hattrick users in Rome organize a meeting, they came in Rome, and vice versa, so it was born a good group.
Years ago, we had even 100 people at a meeting, today we are enormously pleased when we have 40-50. The users decline also affected the turnout at meetings but, fortunately, in Rome and in Abruzzo, the presence is always very strong.
There are other meetings in northern Italy and in other parts of our country, but are more like ''regional meetings" and, if I can, I participate regardless the distance just because I like it.
Before, we were almost 1 million users, so it's obvious that there is a decline in attendance at meetings, too. But, as a proportion, I must say that we are really happy with what we did in May, last year.

---

MOD-juckel (2358831) - Romania

1. Hattrick based meetings in Romania involve a bunch of more or less active users in various forums, which get together once a year in a certain region of our country. Every year the location is different from the last ones.
Social protocol throughout these meetings involves cooking, barbecuing, socializing, chatting about Hattrick, following the matches of our national teams and the round played that Saturday, visiting the surroundings, playing football, but above all, DRINKING BEER! :D

Not all the participants know each other in real life, fact is quite frequently users active in the forums join these meetings for the first time. It's really interesting to get to know a user which you only knew from the HT forums and to associate that to the user's face and his behaviour.

Also, among others, some of the officials attend these events too, those which can and didn't quit this sport.
Other users which in the meantime quit playing participate too, they like these gatherings and can't miss them.

The general mood is a really nice one, relaxing and with a lot of Hatttick. What more can you ask?

2. These meetings keep together a community of users, in which there are exchanged informations/opinions about the match engine, latest updates, training, national teams, etc. That way everyone is up to date with the latest tendencies!

It's hard to have an influence when it comes to the future og the game, you can only make it more attractive to the users and make them want to know it better.

3. A well written article, a photo album with the meetings from other countries and a volunteer that takes care of everything. :)

I think there are similar gatherings in other countries, but maybe they're not very well known and not many users attend them.

4. Unfortunately, the meetings from the past years were attended by more users, but we hope that an interesting location and an organization made in advance will attract as many users as in the past.
Several times Burkina Faso national vice-champion in building virtual snowman in the month of July.

If you like the article feel free to click "Like" and/or leave a comment. You can discuss the article on the forum: (17005249.1).

Previous article: Diamonds are forever(19641)

Link directly to this article (HT-ML, for the forum): [ArticleID=19680]