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So, who wants to host in 2024, 2025?


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Looking at the members in the clubs I am in (that is 4 across 2 States) about half of the members who attend or are interested in attending have children in school and/or are teachers themselves.

Summer also has the best times for travel, especially if you plan to drive.  The weather out west this year has been trying and it didn’t look much better in other parts of the nation.

We also have to look at holidays which we have confirmed are not great times to hold a Nats.

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Keep one thing in mind. Our convention in it present format is not suffering. Attendance and model entries are at all time highs. Let's work to plan for the future but lets not waste time "fixing" stuff that isn't "broken" about it. 

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Not saying it’s broken at all. But perhaps expanding the convention window of late spring thru early fall might open up different opportunities for cost & lodging affordability. After all, mid summer is peak tourist season and most hotel chains & airlines raise their prices accordingly. A simple survey put out to the members to see how that larger time window would be received wouldn’t change anything aside from gathering information. 
 

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I might suggest that before we spend all the effort and money to run a survey which past history would suggest will produce a very meager return, how about running a straw poll at the national? Get the host to provide a table, make a few signs and prepare a VERY short survey, like one or two questions. You don't even need to have survey forms. Just a clip board and a pencil to record yeses and no's and IPMS numbers to avoid repeat or nonmember voting. Now I know the results will be skewed as those that attend the national are not completely representative of the membership as a whole, but if that group indicates decidedly in one way or the other on the question, it could indicate whether proceeding with a more general survey would be productive or not. For example, if, say, 70% say no I w/couldn't attend a convention other than in the summer, it probably would not be worth asking the entire membership. However, if the majority saying no was only, say, 55% or less, then maybe it would be worth asking everyone else. In my own opinion. I have very low regard for membership-wide surveys for a variety of reasons that I won't go into now, but if a group wants to try it, like the GSB survey that was run, more power to them. 

Edited by Ron Bell
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Ron has made the most salient point thus far; if it ain't broke, don't fix it! The Nats has been VERY successful while being held in the summer "vacation" months, even if it has limited us to higher hotel and travel costs. While I personally generally ignored the school influence on attending the Nats, most people DO take it into consideration and time has shown that it does have an impact on attendance, as do any summer holidays that get tied to the Nats.

As for the average attendance, there's two basic demographics. The first is the "core" that attend every year no matter the location unless some unexpected thing prevents them. I'd estimate that at 20-25% at most. The majority though are those who decide to attend whenever it's within driving distance (8-16 hours or less). These people are interested in attending only when it's "near" them, and not when they have to book a plane to get there. Considering the added cost and how difficult it is to travel with models on a plane, that's not surprising. That's why the Eboard makes every effort to get bids from varying sectors of the country whenever they can, AND also why they may choose one bid over another IF it allows an area to have a show that hasn't had one in a while. The "formal" bid process of rotating the Nats from east to west each year may be gone, but its spirit is still in play!

I happen to think that the Nats COULD be held in one place, at the same time each year and be successful. As mentioned elsewhere, there would be new obstacles to overcome, but many of the things needed such as IPMSUSA financing the show and running registration are already in place. The contest itself is run by the NCC and the judges, with little to no input needed from the local hosts. I believe the manpower issue could be resolved through ways we've yet to try to use and haven't considered simply because there's always been a local host to supply it. That said, the Nats has been SUCH a success in varying locations, there's no true need yet to "fix" it to one spot and time.

If the Nats ever gets anchored to one place and time, I think it'll be by replacement. Some show, somewhere, may become SO popular and well attended that IT simply becomes the "IPMSUSA Nats". Short of that happening, and I'm not aware of any show approaching that status yet, the Nats should carry on as is, with efforts to improve it confined to the events during the show, whenever and wherever it's held.

 

Gil :cool:

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  • 1 month later...

Well I know IPMS Albuquerque has looked into doing another National several times off and on over the last 15 years. 2 things kill the prospects of doing it here. 1st and the biggest one there is only one place here large enough to hold a Nationals and that is the ABQ convetion center and that is waaaaay to expensive unless people want to pay $100+ to enter and $250 for a room at the nearby Hyatt hotel and then walk to and from the convention (which I wouldn't recommend doing after 8PM).

Second is a follow on to the last reason. The crime in the area is horrible and I could almost guarentee numerous problems related to that and we wouldn't want to subject people to that headache.

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On 6/27/2023 at 2:47 PM, TheDude said:

Well I know IPMS Albuquerque has looked into doing another National several times off and on over the last 15 years. 2 things kill the prospects of doing it here. 1st and the biggest one there is only one place here large enough to hold a Nationals and that is the ABQ convetion center and that is waaaaay to expensive unless people want to pay $100+ to enter and $250 for a room at the nearby Hyatt hotel and then walk to and from the convention (which I wouldn't recommend doing after 8PM).

Second is a follow on to the last reason. The crime in the area is horrible and I could almost guarentee numerous problems related to that and we wouldn't want to subject people to that headache.

Sad to hear.  I haven’t done it in years but I loved doing a Rte. 66 driving tour starting in Albuquerque by Old Town, then thru NM and AZ…

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I wish we could put together a good National convention in Norman, Oklahoma. WE have an Embassy and then three other hotels on the same side street within walking distance and then plenty places to eat and shop on the main street there. Several other hotels in nearby blocks. And a good model shop in Norman.

The Ft. Sill museums by Lawton and the 45th infantry Division in OKC, as well as Tinker AFB.

Problem, finding enough guys willing to do the work.

Dak

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Hi Dave,

Checking their website it looks like total space available is  42,111 which is a bit small for a Nats, especially a central one that could have a big draw but if you could get it for a good price and good room rate who knows.  

If interested, reach out to John (2nd VP).  He can give you some advice on what is needed to pull one off.

As for help, you do need a good local ground team.  However, with the NCSC's help that could be a small local team.  Volunteers are usually going to show up and if you offer them free T-shirts or other bennies you can do one.

I keep trying to get SLC to do another but still a few guys from the 1980 show around who remember loosing a lot of money.  This was before the Board stepped up to cover certain costs and I hear there were some other things that contributed to the cost.  There are 3 IPMS clubs in the area, a Gundam club, Auto club and an AMPS club so I think the manpower is here but the cost of facilities has been the biggie.

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 7/13/2022 at 10:03 AM, PeteJ said:

Ralph, much as I would love to see San Diego, knowing how much attendees complain about the cost of rooms, the convention center down town is out of the question.  The best room rates in July and August are at least $250.   I believe that IPMS San Diego approached us(San Diego Model Car club) about cosponsoring a bid and I think that just went no where fast.  A lot of discussion about what happened in Anaheim(yes, bad news travels far and fast and takes a very long time to die!).

  I personally like the Florida ideas.  Jacksonville would be nice.  How about Pensacola?  Home of the Blue Angels.  We had the home of the Thunderbirds last year.  Give equal time to the Navy.  I have a sister who lives in that area and it appears that the price of a convention could be reasonable.  Lots to do in the area also.

Pensacola would be very nice (and convenient for me). Their next local show is on the books for September 9th. Maybe someone could speak to John Struck to check the interest level for 2025. He's a vendor at this year's Nats and Pensacola club member). 

https://calendar.ipmsusa3.org/event/blue-angel-modelfest-2

 

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We have discussed it. The "Retired Admirals Club" has actively blocked the construction of a decent convention center here for decades. Studer has tried recently, and was blocked.

In exploring if and where to host a Nationals, the closest place would be Mobile. The have a good convention center with tons of rooms downtown. It's close to the Battleship, about an hour from our museum, 90 minutes from Stennis, 2 hours from the National WW2 Museum (ex D Day Museum) in NOLA and the USAF Armament Musuem at Eglin.

The problem: there's no club in Mobile! Our two clubs in the Pensacola area are too small to staff a National. There's been little interest (in working it) from the guys we've spoken to in the Louisiana clubs.

A Gulf Coast National is do-able, but would require serious lifting by the NCSC and the membership in general. There have been voices calling for a standing committee to run the Nats, and perhaps it's time has come.

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James; I want to be first in line NOT to volunteer for that committee. It will take some brave people with a lot of time on their hands all year. 

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"Ron, you've done plenty for the Society over your decades of service & leadership. Thanks, but enjoy your "IPMS retirement"

AMEN!

James: IF y'all ever do get around to planning a Gulf Coast Nats, I'd like to help if I can.

 

Gil :cool:

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