After parking in the nearby garage, I arrived at the registration desk to check in and received my convention packet. This included a t-shirt I ordered, a convention program, a decal sheet, raffle tickets, and a ticket for the closing night reception. After that, I brought my models to the contest registration area. I entered two models in the contest: one of the British nuclear submarine Turbulent, and the other of a Soviet alien craft that I entered in the Humor category. Additionally, I brought in ten models for the display-only area. I had filled out the contest registration forms before leaving St. Louis, so I got through the registration process quickly and placed my models in the appropriate areas.
Then, I began browsing among the vendors at the show. Plenty to see and to buy. I chatted with a few people I knew, including some fellow IPMS/Gateway (https://sites.google.com/view/ipmsgatewaychapter/home) members who made the trip.
Late that afternoon, I left the Convention Center and checked into my hotel room at the EconoLodge (https://www.choicehotels.com/econo-lodge?mc=smbibiuseln&cid=Search%7CEcono_Lodge%7CUS%7CCore_Brand%7CExact%7CCPC%7CDesktop%7CEN%7CC_B_E&ag=US%7CCore%20Brand%20Exact%7CEcono%20Lodge&pmf=BING&kw=econo%20lodge&msclkid=99ef48eb46ea1ee5114115b8b5765e46&gclid=CK3LloKkguQCFQ2mZQodvtsBdw&gclsrc=ds) in East Ridge, located 9.8 miles (15.8 km) south of downtown Chattanooga. For dinner, I went to a nearby Wendy's restaurant (https://www.wendys.com/?utm_source=paid-search&utm_medium=search&utm_campaign=always-on).
Early the next morning, after a complementary breakfast at the hotel, I drove to the Convention Center. There, I joined other convention attendees on a bus trip of approximately two hours to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center (https://rocketcenter.com/) in Huntsville, Alabama. This serves as a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (https://www.nasa.gov/) visitors center for the agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. It was there that the Saturn V rocket used to send humans to the Moon 50 years ago were developed. We saw videos on the bus about the Saturn rockets, which helped pass the time until we arrived in Huntsville.
I viewed the Saturn V replica displayed on the center's grounds, then entered the main museum building that housed an actual Saturn V, suspended horizontally above the floor. Displays talked about the role Huntsville played in the US space program, plus full scale rocket engines and other artifacts were on display. The latter included the Apollo 16 command module Casper, which flew around the Moon in 1972, and the quarantine trailer that housed the Apollo 12 astronauts after their lunar mission in 1969.
After going through these exhibits, I shopped in the gift shop and got a snack before looking at the rest of the Center. These included several missiles and rockets displayed outdoors, a replica Space Shuttle orbiter with external tank and boosters, and a display on the Apollo Program and its impact on America. There were some young people attending Space Camp (https://www.spacecamp.com/) walking around the grounds.
After visiting another gift shop and chatting with some of the other attendees, I did selfies with an A-12 Oxcart reconnaissance aircraft parked on the premises and the Saturn V replica. We then boarded the bus to return to Chattanooga, watching videos on Moon exploration technology developed for the Apollo program.
Arriving at the Convention Center, I was invited by one of my IPMS/Gateway mates to join them for dinner at a nearby restaurant, Tupelo Honey (https://tupelohoneycafe.com/location/chattanooga/). I walked over to the venue, which serves Southern food, and joined Marion Morris and his wife, Regina; Rick Keasey; Jim Triola; Jim Victor and his wife, Debbie; and Jeff Bobela from Kansas City. We had a wonderful dinner with great conversation.
After dinner, I walked back to my car in the Convention Center's garage, and drove back to the EconoLodge.
More on the Convention in my next post.
Later.
