who joined the ceremony via Skype. The audiovisual was great and gave it a “David Letterman feel” as Litke interviewed the recipients. The first DFI Legends ceremony was unforgettable. Watch the video. John Wolosick, Theresa Engler, Mayor Libby Schaaf, and James Johnson Oakland A ’s General Manager Billy Beane was the Hal Hunt lecturer and delivered an entertaining and energized talk about his baseball career. It was a home run with the attendees. Beane expounded upon the way he changed baseball statistics and encouraged the audi- ence to “hire someone smarter than yourself.” Special thanks to the underwriters who al- lowed DFI to provide this well-known speaker (see page 26 for con- ference underwriters). T h e l u n c h e o n Billy Beane delivering the Hal Hunt lecture utilized a new format this year, which was very well received. As an alternative to having each committee and working group chair come to the podium with a very brief up- date on their activities, Vice President Dan Brown provided an overview of their accomplishments while a brochure was provided with photos of the chairs and bulleted lists of the committee activities. This information is reproduced in the Technical Activities section on page 105 for readers who were not in attendance. President John Wolosick and Treasurer Matthew Janes provided a status update on DFI’s membership, activities and finances for 2015 as well. The membership thanked outgoing chairs Mike Moran, ACIP Pile Committee, and Marty Taube, P.E., P.G., Ground Improve- ment Committee. Incoming chairs are 24 • DEEP FOUNDATIONS • NOV/DEC 2015 Students compete in shake table demonstration. Click here to watch the video. Morgan NeSmith, P.E., from Berkel for the ACIP Pile Committee and Tanner Blackburn, Ph.D., P.E., from Hayward Baker for the Ground Improvement Committee. Legends Awards Ceremony The brand new Legends Awards program was an excellent addition to the annual conference. Scot Litke served as emcee and interviewer in a unique and intimate setting with the awardees and their spokesmen. Charles Berkel (deceased), Contractor Legend, was represented by Alan Roach, longtime friend and employee. Stefano Trevisani introduced and trans- lated for his father, Davide Trevisani, who was the first Manufacturer Legend. Rick Ellman honored George Tamaro, previous partner at Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers and the first Engineer Legend, attendees took photos of various confer- ence and area items and activities. The winner of the challenge was Andrew Verity from Terracon Consultants with Johanna Simon, P.E., from Schnabel Engineering coming in second. Verity announced to DFI that he will provide his prize of a free registration to DFI’s 2016 Conference in New York City to a young professional who is grateful for the opportunity. The Ci ty-by-Ci ty Companions’ Program had a delightful schedule that included a Napa Valley tour with a cooking demonstration and lunch and wine tasting at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. They also visited Jack London Square and took the ferry to Alcatraz for a tour. The companions joined the rest of the conference attendees for breakfasts, the welcome reception and awards banquet. Other Conference Activities The mobile app was a great way to access information and stay connected during the conference. It provided easy viewing of the conference program, meeting schedules, information on speakers, exhibitors and other attendees, as well as social media interaction. New this year was “Click,” DFI’s Photo Scavenger Hunt Game where
