Well, Blizzcon 2015 has come and gone
and this year it sort of lived up to its name. There was a snowstorm
but the actual drive down wasn't all that bad. Steve Heather and I
left at 5 AM so we could get there to help Chris from CRM set up.
Normally when we do this it takes us a little over two hours to get
there, including a gas stop outside Columbus. This year it took
us about 20-25 minutes longer, which is not too bad considering the
weather. It sure beats the FOUR hours it took us to get back a couple
of years ago!
AMPS had a good turnout with myself,
Steve, Kevin Hess, John Shimek, John Van Sickle, and Chris Davies
making the trip-I think that was everyone. The show itself was
a normal Blizzcon, with over 100 vendors according to the club. I
understand the number of entrants was down but John Shimek took a
First and Second in small scale armor so "congrats" are in
order for John.
Of course the whole show does focus
around the vendors area and there were tons of deals to be had. As
usual Chris Merseal from CRM was there with the latest in kits,
figures, accessories,books, magazines, and tools. Steve bought a
load of "Value Gear" stuff and I picked up some neat
figures, magazines, and accessories. We didn't leave the rest of the
vendors unattended, either. I got my usual "French Connection"
stuff with a French M-24 from AFV Club and a Hasegawa AU-1 Corsair
in Aero-Naval markings. Lots of other stuff was available at pretty
good prices and we saw lots of guys walking around loaded down
armfuls of cool stuff.
We broke for lunch at Applebee's and met
Dean from Depot along with Mike, John S, and Steve and myself. A
good meal and great conversation but we had to break a little
earlier then usual so John could make it back to a National Guard
meeting. Afterwards we made one last sweep at the show before
heading up to Hobby Land on High Street. As usual the store had its
normal selection of merchandise with a lot of Trumpeter armor
marked down and new magazines. We were back on the road by 2 PM and
made it back to my place by 4:30. Not too bad considering the dire
weather predictions which caused a lot of people to cancel
prematurely. Unfortunately, on the way back John Shimek had to avoid
an idiot driver and damaged his Jeep and John Van Sickle hit
some black ice and damaged his car, but fortunately neither
were hurt.
Overall the show was another success for
the Columbus chapter. Blizzcon has been going on for a long time and
every year helps alleviate the winter modeling doldrums. This year it
sort of lived up to its name but in reality was not that difficult a
drive. Graham Holmes and the Columbus chapter deserve a round of
applause for their continued efforts to improve modeling and
sponsoring such events as this and the upcoming IPMS Nationals in
July. They are what IPMS is all about and modelers in Region Four
should be thankful we have them and the other IPMS clubs that
put on events that we can all go to and enjoy. I understand that this
is the last year the show will be held at this location since the
site is to be torn down according to reports. Supposedly there
are several sites relatively close by that are being considered
for next year but as of now nothing has been decided as far as I
know. We can only hope that Blizzcon continues on in the tradition we
have come to look forward too.
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