[Milsurplus] Hamvention Attendance

[David Olean]

Hi Jeff.

I was at Dayton in 1977. Friday was very busy and crowded, but you could 
get around and possibly get a chance totalk to a vendor in a booth. On 
Saturday, that was impossible. It was almost impossible to navigate 
around in any of the buildings. People were shoulder to shoulder just 
about everywhere. You could not really get a one on one conversation 
with anyone running a booth as : A. You could not move, and B. The line 
was so long to ask questions that you spent all your time waiting to get 
a chance to ask a question!.  I was a regular attendee from 1977 up 
until about 2005. Most of the 1980's were packed with attendees. I 
recall one time in the HARA arena standing in a booth early Friday 
morning, as the crowd was let in at the opening bell. The air went from 
pleasant to highly humid in an instant as hordes of hams surged through 
the gates in a matter of about 2 minutes! (It was raining outside!)  The 
old hockey rink was jam packed instantly. Quite an experience. I have 
yet to visit Xenia.

73

Dave K1WHS

On 6/7/2022 8:35 PM, Jeff Kruth via Milsurplus wrote:
> Well, I dont want to start a fight, it really doesnt matter. But I 
> have been to Dayton since 1972. I was there on the years of over 30K 
> people. The rows were JAMMED, couldnt walk five feet with having to 
> struggle by people. The aisles at Hara were as wide or wider than the 
> infield at Xenia. The insides of the arena were PACKED back then, not now.
> This is not even close to what I saw this year. Folks, you are being 
> lied to. It may be "whistling past the graveyard" because if word gets 
> around Dayton is dying out, it will die faster. But 31K? NO WAY. Maybe 
> there were ticket sales for (a fraction of) that, and people didnt 
> show because of Covid or Gas or whatever. But they were not at the 
> show. Even my kids, who have only been a couple of times said "Hey 
> Dad, there is no one here!" on Friday and Saturday morning. A friend 
> who runs a big surplus establishment in Texas came up by himself, sans 
> family. He told me Saturday morning he did not think he would make his 
> gas expenses. Dont think he will be back at the current rate of 
> Gasflation.
> I wish for the best, but am a realist. Hamfests are going out, Dayton 
> included. Manassas VA, last weekend, I am told, was a bust this year: 
> filled an entire show grounds field years back, so many cars got tired 
> of walking to the end to see the new arrivals, this year 45-50 
> tailgaters, and hardly any buyers. Report from a reputable observer 
> who I trust.
> That was my observation with Xenia this year: No real number of 
> buyers, just other vendors buying stuff from each other. Say what you 
> want, but I go to see my friends, many of whom are regular vendors 
> (remember Billys tent full of High end TE on Metro racks, he doesnt go 
> anymore). They just dont come out. Sad.
> I also judge by what I bring home: usually fill the truck up. This 
> year, it all fit in a copy paper box. And no, its not because I am 
> picky or already have stuff: I look for the eclectic. Tommy, from 
> Maryland, who has the standup "Vacuum Tube Betty" sign (cute!) was not 
> there. He usually brought a load of stuff gleaned from the surplus 
> sales at various Wash DC institutions, cool stuff. Not this year.  A 
> lot of what I saw should have been in a dumpster, but hey, if you dont 
> build anything in a country, there is no surplus stuff to go to the HF 
> with.  I did better at HoCo fairgrounds near Baltimore, a week later, 
> where I "gave away" a trailer load of old test equipment (yah, that 
> was me, made a lot of guys happy with old Tek & Heath stuff, Simpson 
> 260s by the double handfull). It was given to me by my old job, and I 
> wanted to get it out there, I didnt need it. That was FUN.
> Sure, you are seeing stuff from estate sales. Maybe things you always 
> wanted. Good on that, its always fun to find something cool. Give it a 
> new home for a few years.
> I really miss the old days, but nothing lasts forever, especially not 
> us. At >$5 a gallon, those 150 mile one way hamfests will not see me, 
> I cant even make expenses and dont find much. I know a lot of folks 
> hate eBay, but its really become one of the only outlets for past 
> treasures.
> Jeff Kruth
>
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