Fast forward a week from the Hinckley show and it’s time for the Darlington show, also known as Sword & Lance. Possibly our most local show. It’s only about 20/30 mins away for most of us, with the exception of Gav who is about an hour away. I’m sure he’ll get his own back at the Northern Show. Surprisingly, there was no storm to contend with this weekend. The show being so close we didn’t have to get up too early, but after getting up and sorting everything out there was still no movement from Chris. When I went up to check on him he was still in the land of nod, slumbering away like a hibernating grizzly bear.
Arriving at the show we found the layout was different than last year. We were now on the top floor. Thankfully there was a lift so we didn’t have to lug everything up several flights of stairs. The lift was a little confusing as there was two buttons for level 2. Apparently, you needed to know which side of the lift to get out from. Thankfully Gav and Trevor had already reconnoitred this hazard. Bags dropped off it was back to the car to pick up the models. Arriving back at the stand the lads were hard at work assembling the stand under the expert direction of Mark Edmondson. A few stand virgins were receiving tuition in the intricacies of stand erection. Oooer Missus!! Stand erected it was soon filled up with models. There being only two tables it was quickly filled.
A few new faces at the show from the club. Andy Hardy broke his show cherry. His first time at a show. He was suitably impressed. Can’t wait to see him at the Northern Show, which is considerably bigger. As for ScaleModelworld, that is simply going to blow his mind. Also it was nice to see our overseas member, Arturo. He popped in on one of his rare trips home. Pretty sure we haven’t physically seen him for over 12 months. Great to see his cheery face.
With everything set up it was time for a mooch around. With everything spread over 3 floors it soon became a bit of a workout going up and down the escalators that weren’t working. It’s really weird stepping onto one when it isn’t moving. That first step is so confusing. Honestly, I’d be prepared to pay a bit extra to have the damn things turned on. Even if it’s just for going up and come down the normal stairs.
Once back at the stand I decided to take my Bronco down and enter it into the competition. Before that I thought I’d give Arturo a quick preview. When I took the lid off the box, staring back at me wasn’t the Bronco, but a Mustang! Doh! A Homer Simpson moment for me. I’d obviously picked up the wrong box from the previous week’s show. In my defence they are both horses so that could explain my Alzheimer’s moment. It was now decision time. Do I enter it into the competition anyway or do nothing. Or it only being 30 mins to drive home, do I drive back and pick it up. Or, the least palatable choice, ask the missus to bring it to the show. The last choice was a definite no, no. So I was convinced by the others to enter it anyway. More of that later.
Lunch time came and it was time to find somewhere to sit and eat our sarnies. Gav suggested a nice comfy sofa just the other side of the lift but some inconsiderate souls were napping on it. Having a mooch down the corridor Chris and I decided to try a random door or two. Surprisingly most were open and we soon found ourselves in an Executive box with a lovely view of the pitch. Nice big table and comfy chairs, it was the perfect place to sit and have lunch. Only thing that would have made it better would have been finding the fridge full of beer, or in Chris’s case, cider. It was so nice we returned later in the afternoon to eat our pork pies.
Other members didn’t fare as well as us when it came to trusting in the onsite catering. Apparently, they ran out of food pretty quickly and Arturo struggled to get hot water. The coffee machine also broke down which upset Gav, our resident coffee snob. A full catering report was delivered by Andy “Tapeworm” Walker. Prices were reasonable but not the greatest of choice and the steak pies and sausage rolls were delicious. He still gave it 4 out of 5 stars but I do have a sneaky suspicion that he’s the reason they ran out of food so quickly.
Mid-afternoon and Andy received a distressing message showing the state of Poppy’s eye. At this stage I should point out that Poppy is his dog and not his daughter. However, he still needed to dash home and take her to the vet. Thankfully it wasn’t too bad and easily sorted with some antibiotics, eyedrops and a cone of shame. All Andy needs to do now is sell a kidney to pay the vet bills. No new models for him for a while. Though I do think we should invest in a huge cone of shame for him to stop him eating all the pies.
Time to check out how everyone fared in the competition. Several of us entered models and it was pleasing to note that the club had come away with a few awards. Gav and Mark Edmondson both got a bronze award. Graham Bullock and Chris both got silvers. And much to my surprise, I also got a silver for the Mustang that was entered instead of the Bronco which I should have brought. Quite pleased at that. Overall a good haul of awards for the club. On top of that it seems that just about every model in one of the Sci-fi and Fantasy classes was worthy of an award of some sort, with the exception of Chris’s Angemon. That really ticked him off.
Show over it was time to pack up and head home. Everyone getting home relatively quickly. When I got home, there in the spare room was sitting the Bronco that I should have taken. Opening the box to put it back in the display cabinet I noticed that the nose leg had become detached from the nose wheel. Obviously, I would have had to conduct running repairs at the show before entering it into the competition. The modelling gods were obviously shinning down on me and there was a reason for me not taking it to the show. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.
