Last week, Alan Shimel posted that he had a free Black Hat DC ticket to give away to a worthy reader of his blog. The winning commenter was Will Chatham with this entry:

I’ve never been to a convention because they always hold them out west or way up north. This one, however, is not unreasonably far from me (I’m in NC), and being an aspiring security professional, I think it would help me in numerous ways, from networking with people to learning more about the field. You don’t know me from Jack, but you would make someone’s year if you chose me!

My entry, which was far superior (in my opinion :P), explains how I had never been to a major conference and that I was a poor Canadian – a hard sell when people find out you live in Bermuda. In all truthfulness, I have never had the excess cash to be able to attend one of these major events and the companies that I have worked for have never seen them as important (i.e. Important for Andrew != Important for company). In terms of career development, I see these conferences as a way to meet peers and colleagues, enhance knowledge, and grow as a person. Hopefully, now that I’m in a new role that supports my views, I can hit up more conferences in the near future….as soon as this damn economy figures itself out that is.