Autumn is by far the
nicest of Washington’s four seasons: cool days after the summer, mostly
dry until the winter monsoon starts to kick in, with visits to the pumpkin
patch on the schedule. Spring tends to be a lot wetter, and just when you think
you’ve got past all those days with highs in the 40s and 50s, you are
confronted with a string that seems to last into May.
But one of the bright
spots in what can be a gloomy grey season is the IPMS-Seattle Spring Show.
Historically, it is the biggest show west of the Mississippi and north of San
Francisco. The home club is 100+ members strong, and there are some very
talented members doing aircraft, armor, figures, ships and even a few cars
(though the car guys have mostly formed up other clubs, in the northwest at
least).
The weather is a great
wild card. We’ve had shows where snow was threatened and shows where the
outside temperature was 80 degrees. Neither of which, I should point out, are good
omens for show attendance.
It is held on Saturday,
April 27 in the Renton Community Center, a large facility. We use two
gymnasiums which are normally separated by a movable wall. There is a rug that
keeps the gym floors from getting ruined. Lighting is fairly decent for a show with a
high ceiling. Fees are $10 for unlimited entries and $5 for spectators with no
entries. Vendors are arranged around the outer wall in the same room. Most of
our vendors are private parties, though we always have Skyway Models and RJ
Models, and occasionally get national fellows like Draw Decals and Kit Collectors
Clearinghouse.
All the usual
categories, using standard IPMS judging guidelines. There are a number of
special awards, listed on the IPMS-Seattle website. IPMS Seattle
I
encourage anyone within driving distance to give the show a try. For the last
few years we’ve hovered around 600-700 models. Individual quality is quite
good. Club members are friendly and helpful. You really can’t go wrong for
generating some inspiration to get building a model. I could use some of that
myself this spring!
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