You might want to try set up the event to coincide with a scheduled ARTCC event (example last weekend's ZNY event) and take advantage of that rather than go to these VATSIM controllers and ask for special staffing because we have an event planned. Participation in these fly-ins is typically low no matter what time of day or the week you hold them, so if only 3-4 of us show up, at least they won't remember us as that VA that promised some traffic and didn't deliver. It seems like there are so many ARTCC events these days it's hard to decide where to fly. There's the west coast thing this weekend, and I think Honolulu is going to be continually staffed for 24 hours as well.
Mark Kuebeler, KSLC