At Fleacon 2021

Just before 2:30 am yesterday (17 April), I left home to drive to Monticello, Iowa. I was going there to attend Fleacon 17, the annual scale modeling contest and show hosted by IPMS/Alexander Lippisch (http://lippischmodelclub.org/). After nearly six hours (driving plus stops for refreshment and break), I arrived at the show venue, the Monticello Berndes Center (http://www.ci.monticello.ia.us/parks-and-recreation/).

This was my first time at this club's show, and I was going both as a representative of IPMS/Gateway (https://sites.google.com/view/ipmsgatewaychapter/home) and as IPMS/USA Region 14 coordinator (https://calendar.ipmsusa3.org/region/region-14-mid-central). Despite wearing face masks for safety during this COVID-19 pandemic, attendees were having a good time.

Arriving at the show site, my three contest entries were registered and then taken to a judging table, where two judges looked over my entries. After they recorded their scores, my models were released to be placed on the contest tables. This was my first experience with this system in an overall contest, although when I had a armor model entered at KC CON last year in Kansas City, Missouri, that used a similar judging system. (The rest of KC CON's model contest used the standard judging system for IPMS/USA contests.) I entered my 1:48 scale Jupiter-C Explorer 1 rocket in Real Space, my 1:48 Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis in Aircraft, and my 1:700 Turbulent in Ships. Depending on the judges' evaluations, a model could receive a Gold, Silver, or Bronze awards, and there were no limits regarding how many awards could go in each category.

I got to chat with several attendees, including Bill Kreuger, Alexander Lippisch's chapter contact; Jeff Hearne, IPMS/US Region 5 (Midwest) coordinator (https://calendar.ipmsusa3.org/region/region-5-midwest); Jim Coatney, Hearne's predecessor as RC-5; and Joachim (Joe) Lotz from IPMS/Plastic Surgeons (http://www.ipms-plasticsurgeons.com/). It was great having face time with people I had mostly or only known via email and social media. There were 30 vendor tables at Fleacon, and it was fun to browse among the kits and related products on sale. I came away with four kits for my stash. I got lunch there at the Berndes Center. A walking taco, chips, and soda were most satisfying and very inexpensive. There was a very nice crowd on the day, helped in part by the pleasant weather for all of us who traveled from as far as Wisconsin and Nebraska, and in part by this being the first scale modeling show in this area for many months. (Fleacon was cancelled last year due to the pandemic.) Walking around the contest tables, I was impressed by the number and quality of contest entries on hand. The final tally was 214 models entered by just over 60 entrants. My three entries were in very good company. I also bought a few raffle tickets. Besides the regular sort of scale modeling show raffle (kits raffled off to winners of regular tickets), there was a premium lottery with higher cost tickets for special kits. The latter prizes were given away just prior to the awards ceremony. I did not win any of the regular and special raffle prizes, but that's fine. I always enter raffles at these shows to show my support for these events and their organizers.

The awards were announced late that afternoon to conclude Fleacon. individual awards for the models were announced. My Turbulent earned a Silver in Ships, while Bronze awards were bestowed upon my Jupiter-C in Real Space and the Spirit of St. Louis in Aircraft. I was most happy to receive these awards. The major awards (such as theme, best of these categories and Best of Show) were then presented.

The hosts asked me to speak briefly to the crowd, and I thanked everyone for coming as well as promoted upcoming contests in Region 14--including the Regional contest IPMS/Gateway will host on 11 September in St. Louis. Then, I packed my models and said my goodbyes to Jeff Hearne (including posing for a joint selfie) and to Bill Kreuger. I also chatted with someone from the the Blackhawk Model Builders Society (https://www.facebook.com/groups/441475143864531/about) from Burlington, Iowa. Several of their members were at the show. They are seeking to join IPMS/USA, and I gave the representative my support for this effort.

After I departed Monticello, I stopped in Marion, Iowa to refuel my car and to get dinner from the drive through lane at Culvers (https://www.culvers.com/) before resuming my journey home to St. Louis. I mostly listened to the radio during my journey, although I did play some CDs in my car during parts of the trip up and back. They included a compilation of Brazilian music that Starbucks (https://www.starbucks.com/?utm_id=bi_cmp-376187578_adg-1233652236403352_ad-77103379775987_kwd-77103416797954:loc-190_dev-c_ext-_prd-_sig-785eacefb5a9155ce210cc93d5dc1082&utm_source=bing&utm_term=starbucks&utm_campaign=BR-Brand-HighVolume-Desktop-Exact&utm_medium=cpc&utm_query=starbucks&utm_matchtype=e&msclkid=785eacefb5a9155ce210cc93d5dc1082&utm_content=Brand%20-%20Starbucks) came out with in 2014, and two jazz CDs: the classic 1959 album "Kind of Blue" by Miles Davis (https://www.milesdavis.com/) and the 2004 album "Motifs" by the French ensemble Paris Combo (https://www.pariscombo.com/). They all made my journey more pleasant.

I made a stop in Hannibal, Missouri to stretch out and get some refreshment last night before arriving home after 11:00 pm. I covered 654.3 miles (1053 km) on the day. I was tired when I got home, but happy about how the day went.

IPMS/Gateway meets this Tuesday night (20 April) at Affton Elks Lodge 2635 (https://www.elks.org/lodges/home.cfm?LodgeNumber=2635). I am making a presentation on current Chinese military aircraft colors and markings. Hope to see you there!

Later.