DISCAIMER
This is MY article, views, and opinions of the CodeMash Conference, Sponsors, Speakers, Talks, and all associated activities.
I wasn't asked to do this article.
I am not getting compensated for this article.
It's all ME from here on out.
Content Starts Here ...
I consider CodeMash to be one of the finest conferences around (and not just in the Ohio area). I first got exposed to this conference over a decade ago and have attended as often as I can.
I currently am on the Speaker Selection Committee, DE&I Committee, and Safety Committee; maybe I am a little biased, but I do these things because I care about this conference and the experience it provides.
I tell people ...
CodeMash: Think about a conference where the hotel and conference center are one building. It's at the Kalahari in Sandusky, Ohio, a facility with an indoor waterpark where you can attend in the cold of January and never go outside. The conference is four days long with two days of precompilers where you get to build something and two days of amazing hour-long sessions.
About
CodeMash is a conference for developers. We eat, drink, and learn about all things code and do it all in shorts and sandals by a pool.
CodeMash is a unique event that educates developers on current practices, methodologies and technology trends in a variety of platforms and development languages. Held every January at the lush Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, Ohio, attendees will be able to attend a world-class technical conference amid Ohio’s largest indoor waterpark. Nobody will frown if you show up in shorts, sandals, and your loudest t-shirt. You might even win a prize for doing so.
It’s not just about a grind of sessions, but also providing attendees the opportunity of continuing the conversations and networking outside of the daily conference events. The goal has always been to achieve this mission by creating a conference environment that focuses on professionalism and respect for one another.
From a Survivor
“This was the best four days of my life. Since CodeMash I’ve reinvented my life, purchased my dream electric car, built a water slide in my backyard and adopted a baby penguin. CodeMash changes lives – forever.” - James – CodeMash Survivor
Sponsors
Before I got into what it was like for me attending this year, I want to thank the sponsors. Having participated in many conferences (as an attendee and speaker) I know that no conference happens without solid sponsors.
InfernoRed Technology
DigitalOcean
CGI
Jumpmind
Jumpmind is a software company specializing in enterprise commerce and data integration software.
JPMorganChase
Uno Platform
Uno has The Uno Platform Studio Community version that is free. It provides access to the most complete Hot Reload in the .NET ecosystem.
Secure Ideas LLC
NetJets
AWS
BPS Technologies
CAS
Having worked at CAS, it's always amazing seeing them sponsoring and continuing to strengthen our community.
DryRun Security
ImmyBot
Sponsors without Booths
There are a few sponsors that didn't have booths. They hosted particular activities.
- Nx (sponsored the Lightning Talks)
- Manifest Solutions Corp. (sponsored the Thursday Night Cocktail Party)
- CyberDrain (sponsored the Water Park Party)
- CNWR (sponsored the Water Park Party)
- Improving (sponsored the Game Room)
- NimblePros (sponsored the KidzMash - Key Sponsor)
Day 1
I spent some of this morning in a rush, getting my Staff gear and settling in. I forgot a cable and needed to track down information for two "lunch panels" I'm coordinating for Thursday and Friday.
Today and tomorrow are precompiler days (workshops). Each session is 4 hours.
The first session I'm attending is GitHub Actions: From Zero to Hero by Scott Sauber learning to build robust pipelines from the ground up using GitHub Actions.
Then ...
... there was LUNCH!
The second session I attended was Enterprise Grade Micro Frontends with Mark Thompson & David Nicholas. We explored implementing various techniques within a Micro Frontend architecture.
Throughout the day I had some amazing conversations with:
- Larry Rickard an amazing Recruiter I used to work with.
- Cassandra Faris another recruiter I've known for a while.
- Kyle Jenkins a Principal Engineer I've worked with.
- Eric Amiralian a strong developer I worked closely with.
There were probably a dozen (or more) side conversations with people that didn't go into hour-long talks; people I've worked with, met at other conferences and meetups, or just simply had a Coffee Chat with.
Day 2
I got a late start on day two due to the NASA tour.
NASA Tour
This was an amazing tour of some of their test facilities. The tour guides were wonderful. They truly enjoyed showing off the work that they do. I can't recommend this event enough.
Back at CodeMash
Upon getting back, I changed and got lunch.
(I told my wife that I dressed myself, but didn't get to pick the color scheme here).
After lunch, I got a chance to speak with a good friend, John Gaynor, about both tech and faith.
Then, I had a meeting for the CodeMash Outreach committee (we've got two high schools bringing students over the next few days). We needed to finalize a few details.
I might got to the Lightning Talks tonight; 6-minute talks on any topic. We'll see, they've been fun in the past.
Day 2 Update
I just finished dinner with a good friend from Dayton. Do any of you have those people that feel like you've known them forever? Even if it's only been a short time?
I got to know Hanen Alkhafaji when she reached out via LinkedIn to ask if I wanted to speak at a Meetup in Dayton (HERE). As a graduate of the University of Dayton, I was honored. The talk was fun ...
... tonight, she showed up just as I was going to default to a pizza. Instead, I managed a good burger and a wonderful conversation with a friend.
I keep thinking I need to get all of my friends together. Then I realized that most of them are here at CodeMash.
Day 3
OK.
Today was one of the busiest days I've ever had attending CodeMash.
I started the day working with our Outreach program - shirts and attending their track sessions.
Then I tried to go to sessions ...
... and managed one all day.
8-Bit
This was an amazing session by Steven Swenson.
While I was excited about seeing a modern 6502 chip, I didn't get to attend as much of the session as I would have liked.
Outreach Panelists
I coordinated the Outreach lunch, during which these students would get a chance to speak with different people in the industry. We had about six (6) panelists who rotated tables.
Everyone had fun.
It did shorten my time in sessions.
Sessions
I attended a complete session, "Testing Strategies for Monoliths and Microservices" by David Lucas. It was a solid session with good details.
Day 4
This was another busy day, given a second Outreach day. I was running almost non-stop all day.
I did get to go to "The Power of Feature Flags in CSS Development" by Chris Demars. This was a great talk about Split Tests and "testing in development."
My family arrived about 4 PM. My son immediately went to track down a few of his friends and was in the board-game room for quite a while. Jen and Anne hustled to the water park.
At the closing, I was honored to be listed as a "Special Advisor" for the conference (close friends told me I got the same honor last year and don't remember due to the drugs I was taking to stay on my feet) ...
Oh.
CodeMash will be returning (mark your calendars) on January 13-16. 2026!
Decompile (Day 5)
No, there is not a fifth day.
I like to book a few more nights to allow my family to come in and enjoy the Kalahari Waterpark. This is my decompression.
Top comments (2)
Seem Like a great Conference..
It absolutely is … amazing!