Another one has been put away.  CASM has successfully completed 13 straight years of hosting a model contest. Oh, I know for a lot of IPMS Chapters out there we are still the new kids on the block. Some clubs have been around since the very beginning of IPMS, and they have sponsored and hosted at least one show nearly every year of their existence. We are working on it.

This year 36 contestants entered 138 models in the competition. It was not quite up to our best year, but it was a good show with a decent turnout.  Sproo-Doo drew modelers from Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Missouri.  On the vendors side there were seven vendors including Jane’s Trains from Greenville, Texas and John’s Models from the Pensacola area. Modelers had a choice of tools, kits, aftermarket items, resin and metal figures, adhesives and paints.

This year’s officers, and especially the show committee and coordinator, all deserve our thanks and congratulations for their efforts.

Our first show was in 2001 at HobbyTown USA, and it was not Sproo-Doo at that time, that change would come a few years later. There were no vendors, no raffles or door prizes, no silent auctions and no trophies, just ribbons, but it was a start. The membership of CASM totaled around seven or eight people at the time, and Roger Ellenburg was the club’s sole supporter and contributor for the show.

Through the years the show has grown, the venue has changed several times, the dates for the show went from Spring to Fall, but one thing has stayed constant – Roger’s contributions and support of the club.  He has provided us with our meeting home since the club’s inception, with the exception of a very short period when we met at the Napa Valley Branch Library and then out at the now defunct Aerospace Education Center.  Roger has always been there when we needed his help and support.  He has funded the gas for a few trips to out of town shows, he always has a vendor’s table at the shows, he provides donuts at the club meetings every month and now he gives us a place to bring our hobby out of the closet and into the public eye by building our models at his shop. Roger has been a supporter that has gone well beyond the boundaries of what most of us have seen in the past.

This is my effort to say, “Thank You,” to CASM’s biggest supporter and the man that has been there for us since day one. Thanks Roger, for all you have done and continue to do for CASM. 

I want to take a moment to personally thank everyone that participated in the Sproo Doo 2013 show. Today (Sunday) Bri and I spent most of the day hanging out with John Struck from John's Models and we got a chance to discuss the show with him. He was quite happy with the show and made point of how smoothly it was run. Yesterday at the show I got a chance to talk to Sean Glaspell (our IPMS Regional Coordinator) at length. He was also very complimentary and impressed at how well the show was run. 

There were modelers from Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma and one fella straight out of New York that had just moved to Arkansas and was looking for other modelers to connect with. I had an opportunity to talk to many of these folks and all of them had a great time! The vendors I spoke with (or heard from others) were happy as well. Several of our very new club members made it out to the contest and seemed to really enjoy themselves as well. 

I have seen photos crop up on facebook from some out of town folks posting photos of their models with the awards they got. This really shows CASM in a good light. For one, our quality of awards is excellent and two, many of our top special awards again went to out of town modelers. I'm very proud that our judging is fair and without home club bias. 

This show ran like a well oiled machine with no problems what so ever! Credit goes to the very hard working Show Committee (Bri, Cliff, Daris, Ray, Rusty and Ron). There were certainly a lot of other people that helped as well when called on. I am very proud of the all out effort of the club as a whole and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. A lot of you showed up to help set up on Friday and help tear down on Saturday evening. 

All in all, there were 138 models entered by 36 modelers. Those numbers are up slightly from last year. While I am thrilled at the turnout I don't tend to get wrapped around the numbers because that isn't the only gauge of a successful show. 

A special congrats to Cliff Bullock for earning the 2013 CASM Member of the Year award. He certainly deserved it! 

Again, Thanks to every single person that came to the show. I really appreciate it. 

These pictures are not inclusive of all of the models at the contest.  However, my memory card became full midway through registration.  More photos will be coming later.