If in doubt, apply. You can always decide to not come after being accepted, gaining info, etc. (Applying is a 10-15 minute process.)

As to money vs. minicamp: come to minicamp. Especially if you've had little to no in-person contact with this community before. You'll learn more, acquire more money-making skills, make friends, and get into a better position for long-term influence. At least, that's my impression.

We haven't run any on the east coast; at some point we'd like to run do this, probably after refining our curriculum, growing our instructor-set, etc., but probably not in the next 12 months.