
COUNTDOWN TO the great Florida Bigfoot conference rescheduled to July 10, 2021
‘The Skunk Ape’ of Florida
Headlining this year's event is Loren Coleman and Cliff Baracknan. Exhibitors will also be set up all day with tons of related merchandise.
Doors open at 9am and we go until 5pm. This event is open to the public but advance tickets are required as we cannot guarantee them at the door. Tickets are all day in and out entry but don't miss the end segments as we bring back the full panel of speakers on stage for an interactive Q&A along with a segment of encounters from the audience.
Additional events are planned for the weekend to include a Meet & Greet Dinner on Friday, July 9, 2021, and a couple other surprises TBA. These events will have limited availability and ticketed on a first-come basis. Email announcements will be sent to all ticket holders first so be sure to check your emails.
Traveling into Florida? Lakeland is located just 42 miles East of the Tampa (TPA) International Airport and just 57 miles west of the Orlando International Airport (MCO).


TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Admission Tickets
+ VIP Packages Available!
$20-$50
Vendor Booths
20 spots available, Starting at..
$150
Sponsorships
available. Participate for as low as..
$250
FEATURED SPEAKERS
Cliff Barackman
Cliff Barackman
Having a sizable break between classes, Cliff started spending time in the college library reading books on his various interests. After researching Bigfoot, he realized that not only was Bigfoot interesting, but it might actually be a real, biological creature.
Cliff had been an avid camper all his life, but around this time he started camping with the singular purpose of doing Bigfoot research. On his first expedition to Bluff Creek, California in 1994, he stumbled across possible Bigfoot footprints, as well as tree damage evidence and a possible hair sample.
Cliff's interest in physical evidence led him to take a keen interest in footprint casts. Over the years, what started out as the gathering of a few Bigfoot souvenirs has eventually led him to holding one of the largest cast collections in the country.
Complete Bio
Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman
Coleman has written seventeen books and more than three hundred articles, has appeared frequently on radio and television programs, and has lectured throughout North America, as well as in London and at Loch Ness. He has been both on- and off-camera consultant to NBC-TV’s “Unsolved Mysteries,” A & E’s “Ancient Mysteries,” History Channel’s “In Search of History,” Discovery Channel’s “In the Unknown, ” and other reality-based programs. He contributes cryptozoology columns, “On the Trail,” to the London-based magazine Fortean Times, and “Mysterious World” to Fate, as well as regular articles to The Anomalist and Fortean Studies. In 2000, he served as the Senior Series Consultant to the new “In Search Of…” program which is scheduled for future broadcast on Fox and USA Network. During 2002, he was featured in the Sony Studios’ “Search for the Mothman,” available on the DVD of the movie The Mothman Prophecies. He served as the Screen Gems’ national and international publicity spokesperson for their Richard Gere-Mark Pellington movie.
Complete Bio
Stacy Brown Jr.
Stacy Brown
When he’s not in the swamp swatting mosquito’s, Stacy is making movies. Recently he released “The Skunk Ape Lives” which dives into his research covering all the best evidence and reports that he has came along on his quest for the truth.
Robert Robinson
Robert Robinson
Along with Bigfoot and other cryptids, Robert and his wife Tracy also investigate haunted places, UFO, buried treasure, and mysterious places. Robert is an active member of the following groups; MFON, The International Cryptozoology Society, the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, The Ghost Club, the International UFO museum, and the World Explorers Club. He is also the Florida representative for the North American Dogman Project. Robert is an investigator and member of the UFO Hunters of America. Robert has been a guest speaker at a large number cryptozoology conferences and written for numerous magazines. The 2016 International Cryptozoology Society Journal published his research into the Florida Skunk Ape legend.
Robert published his book “Legend Tripping: The Ultimate Adventure” in 2016, wrote the chapter on the Florida Skunk Ape in "Wood Knocks Vol 3", and has a new book, “International Legend Tripping: Adventure Outside the Box,” will be coming out this fall.
David Sidoti
David Sidoti
In 1998 David joined up with a large organization for a short term, then in the early part of 2000 he founded “The Independent Sasquatch Research Team”. He and his team have been focused on acquiring scientific evidence of these creatures and to try to establish first communication with them. As ambiguous as that sounds, David has investigated many encounters in Florida and other parts of the US. He has been in close contact with these creatures but has yet to have laid eyes on one.
He has twenty-five years’ experience on the subject, during which he has gained the skills needed for definitive evidence collection, which include tracking, DNA collection and self-taught wilderness survival skills, which he feels is a necessity in all aspects of field investigations.
** Speakers are subject to change **
EVENT LOCATION: RP FUNDING CENTER, LAKELAND, FL
REFUND POLICY FOR REGISTRATIONS
Once paid, registration fees for the Great Florida Bigfoot Conference are non-refundable.
REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION: It is essential that we have your correct email address as we will email you an order confirmation and electronic ticket upon successful registration. You will also receive a Great Florida Bigfoot Conference Information Sheet including Hotel/Venue information BY EMAIL. If you have not received your ticket via email within 1 hour, please check your spam folder. If you did not receive it, contact us at info@gatherupevents.com so that we can assist you.
ABOUT THE POSTPONEMENT
After careful consultation with our venue’s management team and our speakers regarding the health and safety of everyone involved in our event – attendees, vendors, sponsors, and long-time partners – we have made the difficult decision to postpone the inaugural Great Florida Bigfoot Conference. The event will still be held at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland Florida. The new date for the event will be July 10, 2021 with the VIP Meet & Greet Dinner being held on July 9th.
Following increased and overwhelming concerns about the COVID-19 virus, we felt this was the best way to proceed during such an unprecedented global situation. We are very disappointed that we are unable to hold this event for all the bigfoot enthusiasts, vendors, and supporters. But we know it’s the right decision based on the information we have today.
We thank everyone who shared their input on the formation of the upcoming event and the decision to move it to July. We are convinced that this move will allow us to have a larger, more engaging event, while diminishing the likelihood that we will lose speakers, vendor, and sponsors that are unwilling to travel at this time.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?
Attendees & Vendors: Your tickets and booth reservations automatically transfer to the new date. No action is required.
Sponsors: Your sponsorship transfers to the new date. We will work with you to get additional exposure during the extra 5 months your sponsorship now covers.
The COVID-19 Pandemic has been hard on everyone but absolutely brutal on us in the event industry. Please bear with us as we make all the changes that a rescheduled event requires. A couple of the speakers currently scheduled were already saying that they would likely not come to the January event. This new date improves our chances of keeping the lineup intact.
We promise to do everything in our power to take advantage of this extra time to make sure that the event in July is the best it can possibly be.