The thing is, "the same names" make the rounds for much the same
reason that well-known bands tour -- because it's horribly
inconvenient for people to travel to other parts of the country to see
them. (OK, they also tour because of the big bucks, but let's ignore
that for now...)
IMHO, one of the great things about OLF is it gives folks who don't go
to all the other shows a chance to meet and greet and, yes, see some
of the big names that they wouldn't otherwise have an opportunity to
see, because they don't usually pop up within convenient driving
distance in the midwest.
Sure, I've seen Chris Di Bona, Jeff Waugh, Ted Haeger and lots of
other folks several times, but I go to tons of shows as part of my
job. I don't think 98% of the OLF audience had the opportunity to
attend talks by those guys before last year when they made the trek to
Columbus.