He leaves the hotel before the birds, moon still up, for the fairgrounds. The drive is the part he would change.
Forty-Five Minutes of Highway
About 45 minutes, straight road. A left lane is closed and it is not a crisis. The problem is doing it twice a day and missing whatever is happening in town at night. The sun is coming up in the back window. Rain is in the forecast for the day. The night is supposed to be storms, wind, and maybe a tornado. He says watches in this part of the country are ordinary, the way butter sits on toast. About a year earlier he and his wife drove this region and on through Tennessee and Georgia. The news was full of tornadoes. They got storms. They did not get a tornado.
This hour is truck traffic, with a car now and then. He expects a jam and a line at the gate. That is Hamvention, and it is any big event. It might be hot. It is not snow, and it is not a downpour. He keeps driving.
Gate 4, Then the Yard
Traffic is fine. He is at the fairgrounds before the backup, at the edge, and he still has to reach gate 4. Media credentials put him inside before the public. The buildings are not really open. He uses the time to meet Gary and Anna Pike. They run an online testing service he describes as one of the biggest, and he already does VE sessions for them. This is the first handshake.
Food is everywhere. He heads for the boneyard. Vendors are still setting up. The flea market is huge. The upper area is newer equipment, sold the same tailgate way. By 8 a.m. he is hot. The yard is a local hamfest with the volume turned up. He stops at a roll-up end-fed half-wave, a Spooltenna, priced at $139 for the show, and he tells anyone standing there to pick one up while they are in the yard.
About 90 percent of the boneyard is done. More vendors are still arriving. He did not come to buy. You can always find something you do not need. What he sees is boat anchors, Kenwood, and Motorola. He is soaked and glad he walked it before the sun got higher.
The indoor halls are the rest of the morning. Those clips are crowd and PA audio more than narration. He does not name a purchase. When he is done he says he met the other people on his list, hung around a few vendors, talked shop, and traded stickers. A couple of things were tempting. He did not need them. He says goodbye to Hamvention and that he will see it next year.
Transcript
It is a clear morning. He is up before the birds. The moon is still out. The drive from the hotel to the fairgrounds is about 45 minutes of highway. He is not sure he would stay that far again. The road is easy. The time lost is the trip back and forth, and the things happening in town. A left lane is blocked ahead. The sun is coming up in the rear window. Rain is forecast during the day. Tonight is supposed to be bad storms, wind, and possibly a tornado. He says tornado watches here are ordinary. About a year ago he and his wife vacationed through this area and down through Tennessee and Georgia. The news was constant tornado coverage. They had storms. They were never in a tornado. At this hour the road is mostly trucks.
He expects a jam and lines. That is Hamvention, and it is any convention. Be ready for it. It could be hot. It is not snow and it is not pouring rain.
He arrives and the traffic is not bad. He is at the fairgrounds before the backup, at the edge, and he still needs gate 4. Media credentials get him inside before everyone else. Nothing is really open. He can wander. He meets Gary and Anna Pike, who run an online testing service he calls one of the biggest. He does VE sessions for them. This is the in-person handshake. There is a lot of food. He goes to the boneyard.
It is early. Vendors are still setting up. He makes passes. The flea market is huge. The upper vendor area is newer gear, still sold like a tailgate. By 8 a.m. he is hot. The boneyard is not much different from the local hamfests, just more of it. He finds a roll-up end-fed half-wave, a Spooltenna, at $139 for the show, out in that yard, and he pitches it as a deal worth stopping for.
He gets through about 90 percent of the boneyard. Vendors are still coming in. No real deals, and he did not come looking for one. You always find something you do not need. Boat anchors, Kenwood, Motorola. He is glad he did it before the sun climbed. He is already sweating. He heads for the buildings.
The indoor audio is the show, not a clean list of what he bought. When he is leaving he says it was a good day. He met more of the people on his list. He did the boneyard and did not see anything he needed. A couple of things he wanted, and he left them. He hung out with a few vendors, talked shop, traded stickers. Goodbye to Hamvention. He will see it next year.
Frequently Asked Questions
How early did he get there, and how was the drive?
Before the birds, with the moon still up. About 45 minutes of straight highway from the hotel. A left lane was closed. The sun was coming up behind the truck. The forecast was rain during the day and storms that night, with wind and a possible tornado. He treats tornado watches in that part of the country as ordinary. A vacation through the same region, then Tennessee and Georgia, about a year earlier, was all storm coverage on the news and no tornado they were actually in. The road at that hour was mostly trucks.
What did the media pass change?
He reached the fairgrounds before the backup, at the edge, and went in at gate 4 ahead of the general opening. Nothing much was open. He could wander. He used that time to meet Gary and Anna Pike, who run an online testing service he called one of the biggest. He already gives VE sessions for them. This was the handshake.
What was in the flea market?
A large boneyard, still being set up, and an upper area of newer gear sold the same tailgate way. By 8 a.m. he was sweating. It looked like the local hamfests he already goes to, with more of it. He called out a roll-up end-fed half-wave, a Spooltenna, at $139, in that flea-market area. After about 90 percent of the yard he had not found a deal he came for. Lots of boat anchors, Kenwood, and Motorola. He was glad he finished before the sun climbed.
What did he leave with?
No radio he needed. A couple of things he wanted and did not buy. Time with a few vendors, shop talk, and stickers. He had also gotten to the other people on his list. The indoor walk is mostly crowd noise in the captions. His close is that it was a good Hamvention and he will see it next year.