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News Release December 20, 2017: Greene County Fairgrounds/Expo Center Building Expansion

Discussion in 'Amateur Radio News' started by K8KSU, Dec 20, 2017.

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  1. W1YW

    W1YW Ham Member QRZ Page

    We all seem to be missing the point.

    Mike et al. have solved 90 % of the issues you all brought up--already.

    Mud? Well, its a FLEA market. The rain at Xenia was especially bad last year...more the exception than the rule.

    Heck, if you had a good spot reserved at Xenia and are so righteously turned off by the mud, then just pass it off to me!
     
    NK9Y, N0LOH, N0GB and 1 other person like this.
  2. K0WJ

    K0WJ Platinum Subscriber Platinum Subscriber QRZ Page

    I think most people know he meant Hara. Please adhere to your post script.
     
  3. W5JON

    W5JON Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    After 14 years to Dayton, count me out. The fact is, wishing and hoping that it does not rain in Ohio in May, is NOT a PLAN, to solve the mudfest. The fact is here is NO A/C. So in my book about 10% of the "issues" have been, and or will be resolved. See you at HamCation in Orlando, where I will be also be with my wife (W5HAM), something I would have never considered doing at Dayton ....
     
    Last edited: Dec 22, 2017
    KA4DPO likes this.
  4. WU8Y

    WU8Y Ham Member QRZ Page

    After reading just the small amount of bile here on Teh Zed directed at DARA and Hamvention, it's a damn wonder they put up with it.
     
    WA8FOZ likes this.
  5. W5JON

    W5JON Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    No worry about DARA giving up on Hamvention, they just love that M-O-N-E-Y.
     
  6. W1YW

    W1YW Ham Member QRZ Page

    Nope. I won't be there. So you won't see me there.

    My wife won't be there either.
     
  7. W1YW

    W1YW Ham Member QRZ Page

    Really?

    There are far easier ways to make it....

    Perhaps their motivation is not as you describe.
     
    WA8FOZ likes this.
  8. AJ4XM

    AJ4XM Platinum Subscriber Platinum Subscriber QRZ Page

    HARA needed more than paint, paving and plumbing. The building was so far from meeting current codes it should not even have been allowed to open. But local governments often look the other way when they will see income for a little bit. The main issue was the owners, who were the family of the original owners. About half wanted to spend the money and make it all better and half wanted the county to do it for free since they got benefit from it. So it will become a car dealer or hotel or apartments or something else based on the value of the land.

    DARA had plenty of time to look for a new location, HARA's issues did not happen overnight, but remember where this is and there were no fully adequate facilities. Xenia was a great solution. Yes it was not quite large enough. Yes there was no A/C (I never thought of that as an issue while I was there) and the highly improved restrooms and food were outstanding. Yes it did rain a little more than usual (?) and I did wish I had brought some trail boots, and the mud was deeper than when it rains in Orlando (we don't really have much dirt in Fla just 2" inches of sod and then sand and rock). Xenia was still fun, even when my feet were stuck in the mud. After the first morning the parking and access worked very well. Yes my car was in puddles and mud in the on-site parking lot but that has happened to me at Hamvention in Orlando and some other places as well. There was plenty of room to move around in the buildings and look at stuff and talk to people, both vendors and friends. The tents did not work very well and they are fixing that now with a new building! I expect they will address some of the other issues in the weeks to come. Remember DARA (Dayton Amateur Radio Association) puts this on and gets the hundreds of volunteers to work and run things. If they moved this hundreds of miles away to where there might be a gigantic convention center, they would not have the people to actually do it. Being a member of DARA myself I know the Hamfest committee is always open to constructive comments and will welcome any they get.

    This is still the largest Hamfest in the US or Europe and a not to be missed event. If you have never been, you owe it to yourself as a Ham to get there. Remember Contest University and Four Days in May on the Thursday before (and they both have additional evening events). Plus other groups that host the Top Band Dinner and DX Dinner, and more going on. If you are on the West Coast you also have Visalia and Pacific Con and on the East Coast we have Hamvention in Orlando. Hamvention is about half the size of Dayton but has a totally different feel. Plus Orlando is a fabulous place to bring the non Ham family for a vacation. I've been to Hamfests in many states and nothing compares with going to Dayton.

    73,
    Tom Loughney, AJ4XM
     
    KD4MOJ, WA8FOZ and K9SS like this.
  9. N0LOH

    N0LOH Ham Member QRZ Page

    Maybe if the wheelchair guy had a few dozen of these for rent...
    [​IMG]
     
    N8DAH and W1YW like this.
  10. K9UR

    K9UR Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    Over the years, I have been to SeaPac in Seaside Oregon, Visalia in CA, HamCom in Dallas TX, Hamvention in Dayton OH, Harumi Ham Fair in Tokyo Japan.... and coming up, a first year try to Orlando Hamcation. Did the Mid-Michigan race track event prove to be any good?

    None of those named above comes even close in comparison to the Flea Market at Hamvention in Ohio.

    Plain and simple, it is the super-bowl of ham events globally. But it is going to die out if it's not improved upon. Many hams gave it a "first year chance" but are watching closely to see if the major issues can be fixed, namely - traffic flow, mud issues in the flea market, and commercial vendor space creature comforts.
     
    WA8FOZ and K9SS like this.
  11. N7JI

    N7JI Ham Member QRZ Page

    THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PERFECT VENUE.

    I went to Dayton (Hara) 12 times from the mid-80s through the early 2000s.

    It was never NOT a good time. The weather was always questionable.

    So many good memories. You never remember dull times, only exceptional ones.

    Once or twice, I got snowed on...and there was that 1000 mile round trip with the blown head gasket, where I had to leave the radiator cap loose and stop every hour...or going without a confirmed hotel reservation and sleeping on the floor of a friend's hotel room. Those were the days.

    More than once, I baked in the April/May sun, and had to bum sunblock off of a friend.

    Once, I found someone giving away 50 amp-hour gel cells as the flea market closed, but I was parked way down at the mall...but it was first-come, first-served, so...I walked all the way down to the mall carrying a 50 amp-hour battery, stopping frequently on the way, and I used it in the shack for 10+ years.

    Once, I was fooled by a forecast of "60°F and partly cloudy," only to get drenched in a sudden 45°F downpour that turned into an hours-long drizzle. I went into Hara and huddled with the masses to try to get warm, as I hadn't brought any appreciably warm clothing, and everything I was wearing was wet.

    Once, I was leaving Hara with friends and someone had gotten stuck in the mud. We pushed them out. I was lucky enough to be at the left rear corner of the car as the left rear tire lost traction and spun super-fast, soaking me head to toe in mud.

    To anyone who has ever been involved in arranging an event of ANY appreciable size, it is really, really, really hard to pull something like that off without something going sideways. We once did field day at a community park, and had 12 hours of rain...the previously dry, grassy field was 2" deep in water, and it took forever to drain. What are you going to do?

    I guess there's always pavement, but it's a lot harder to hammer tent spikes into blacktop than into soil.

    If you treat it like going on a hike - bring boots, a poncho, snacks, and water - the potential for mud isn't so much of a turnoff.

    No A/C? If you're able-bodied, drink water - hydrate!

    Try going to work with me outdoors in east Texas in the middle of summer, and see if the show arena seems hot in comparison

    :)

    73 - I hope I can make it there in 2018!

    Scott N7JI
     
    AC5RH, WA8FOZ, W7RY and 1 other person like this.
  12. W1YW

    W1YW Ham Member QRZ Page

    You should assume it helps that the Xenia Chief of Police is now a ham....

    The DARA folks did an outstanding job fixing the problems they could--in realtime--last year. This year they are obviously fixing the big problems that couldn't be fixed in realtime last year--like the tents and electricity and so on.

    What likely limits the FLEA placement is the requirement to maintain the horse track for the horses.

    Face it--you'll just have to go to Hamvention and have a good time. Worry about something else.

    73
    Chip W1YW
     
    Last edited: Dec 23, 2017
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  13. K9UR

    K9UR Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    Indeed... we will party on regardless of mud or no mud.

    But it would be more than just nice to have an update on the elephants in the room....

    or, put another way, this press release update is akin to asking Mrs Lincoln how she enjoyed the rest of the play.....
     
  14. K9UR

    K9UR Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    ex-NF3I, Burtonville, MD right ? Actually I've got your QSL card sitting right here from a mobile contact we made on 10M back in about 1993. Anyway, Scott, hope to see you there !
     
  15. W1YW

    W1YW Ham Member QRZ Page

    Not really.

    You've got 6 MONTHS til Hamvention. DARA is hard at work. Thats a great and courteous
    update.
     

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