I miss you guys, and I can't believe it's been six years!
For me, the LMGs were really uplifting. The folks from New Hartford were unbelievably hospitable for all the events, and always made me feel welcome. The "tours" themselves were truly amazing and I ate all that stuff up. At that time, I was really optimistic about the brand flourishing there, despite being wary of the economics of it. The 5+ year run there just seems way too short to me!
It's worth noting that Kaman Music, who owned the New Hartford facility, was all-in from the beginning with regard to the LMG events. They'd held Ovation Fan Club (and Hamer) events for years before that and knew the value of all that. Fender probably wouldn't've allowed us to come in there had it not been for the Kaman management team that was still there when Fender took over in 2008. As far as I know, Guild never had events like LMG, even pre-Fender.
Anyway, most of all I miss you guys (LTGers). Sorry it's been so long since we've all gotten together. Those were indeed good days!