NW Model Hobby Expo 2014

Nearly 2,000 attendees visit this 8th annual RC and modeling show in Washington state. Article and photos supplied by Mike Mosbrooker and Ron Swift. As featured in Model Aviation's District XI AMA News.

We had another fine NW Model Hobby Expo at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe, Washington. Attendance was slightly down. Getting there from the south was questionable. Ron Swift sent me a few notes and I will add a couple of my own at the end. I heard nothing but positive remarks from attendees and vendors.
In February 2014, Ron Swift and Sandy DuVall coordinated the 8th NW Model Hobby Expo, continuing the legacy started by the late John Foglesong. Ron and Sandy both worked with John, and they wanted to continue the great event he started. The idea is to provide a venue for modelers and the public for RC and modeling. This year, participants numbered between 1,700 and 2,000 people and the event was a success. There was an indoor fun-fly area, BattleBots, drift-car racing, crawlers, RC carpet-car racing, a pond with RC boats, and more! Some planned features did not make it to the Expo because of snowy weather, but there was still much to see and great bargains available. Inside the Expo you were greeted with warm indoor bright natural light, lots of color, and sounds from the various activities. Wide aisles and perfectly polished concrete made it easy to get around. The indoor fun-fly area was large enough to hold a competition, which was won by Kody Knutson. Second place went to Zach Sweetser and third to Garrett Hanson. There were quadcopter demos and other flying things throughout the weekend. Much of the weekend offered open flying with a wide variety of helicopters, fixed wings, and quads. The R2D2 RC scale model was on the floor Friday and Saturday and was a great crowd pleaser. The scale competition concluded with Sunday’s awards ceremony. Twenty-five awards were presented to excellent models from aviation, boat, and car/land categories. Michael Jones won Best of Show. There was plenty of activity on the pond again this year. Guests were invited to pilot the tugs on the pond and demonstrations were scheduled throughout the event. There were high-quality vendors and many swap tables with great bargains. The AMA booth was well attended and we had an AMA meeting on Saturday where some news about upcoming changes and opinions about future directions were discussed. Plans for the 2015 event are already underway. You can get more information at www.nwmhe.com. -Ron Swift

Best in Show model, the W.T. Preston

Best in Show award - with check!

I should mention that a group of associate vice presidents and I did the judging. Most of us are aircraft guys so it was with mixed feelings that we decided Michael’s US Army Corps of Engineers snag boat W.T. Preston was the best in the show over some beautiful entries. And for you guys who sent your fire boat over to where I was taking pictures and hosed my trousers—I know who you are and where you live!

Photo Slideshow