Around 3:30 am yesterday (6 April), I began the long drive to Bondurant, Iowa (northeast of Des Moines) for Surgicon 28. This was the annual model contest and swap meet by IPMS/Plastic Surgeons. After a drive of 388 miles (624.4 km) and with time for fuel and food stops, I arrived at Bondurant American Legion Post #396, the show venue, around 10:00 am.
After registering my three contest entries and paying the fee, I placed the models in the proper places in the contest area. I have one aircraft entry (a 1:48 scale A6M2 Zero) and two in armor (a 1:72 Bren Gun Carrier and a 1:72 6pdr Anti-Tank Gun). I then began to work the contest and vendor areas.
I went to this show as the sole representative of IPMS/Gateway, my home chapter, and as the IPMS/USA Region 14 Coordinator. The Plastic Surgeons Chapter is one of Region 14's members and I make the effort to attend as many of my region's shows as possible, in order to see firsthand how the chapters operate and to personally connect with the members. This gesture is most appreciated by several of the members who see me frequently at these shows.
I bought some raffle tickets and took photos of the contest entries. There were some very good items on the contest tables. From the vendors, I bought two kits and a publication. I also chatted with the contacts from several of the Region 14 chapters present at Surgicon, along with representatives of the Mad City Modelers Chapter in Madison, Wisconsin, who were there to promote the IPMS/USA National Convention they are hosting this July. The latter group assured me that preparations were going well for the convention, but that rooms for the event at nearby hotels were running out.
Around Noon, contest judges began to assemble to evaluate the contest entries. I volunteered (obviously not the categories I am entered in) and headed a three-person crew to judge entries in real space, science fiction, and ships. We took care of our categories in good order and then I helped with those aircraft and armor categories that I was not entered in. After the categories were judged, I joined with other judges in determining the best models in each category as well as Best of Show.
During a break in judging, I found out I did win one prize in the raffle, an aircraft kit. Just after 3:00 pm, the contest results were announced. I later found out that 44 modelers entered 250 models in this contest. Photos of the winning modelers were projected as the winners' names were called out and the awards were presented. My 6pdr Anti-Tank Gun took Third Place in Artillery. I figured it had a chance to win something, as there were only three entries in that category. Still, I was most happy to accept my award.
After packing up my models and saying my goodbyes, I started the long drive back to St. Louis just after 4:00 pm. About two hours later, I made a stop at a convenience store in Agency, Iowa to get a light dinner to go before resuming the drive. After making a fuel stop in Canton, Missouri, I arrived home around 10:30 pm. I was tired after the long day, but happy to have gone. (Another happy thought: The car I now drive has cruise control, which I used during this journey and greatly appreciated this feature.)
Later.
Websites of Entities Mentioned in this Post:
IPMS/Plastic Surgeons: IPMS Plastic Surgeons (ipms-plasticsurgeons.com)
Bondurant American Legion Post #396: Home | Bondurant Post 396
IPMS/Gateway: IPMS Gateway Chapter (google.com)
