Hammerhead 2018 Show report

[Paul K]

A massive thank you to all traders, game presenters and visitors for supporting the re-scheduled Hammerhead 2018. The ‘Beast from the East’ was finally defeated when the doors opened in the ‘Gamers Lounge’ and the George Stevenson Exhibition Hall at 9.45, the visitors and gamers flocked in and the show was soon buzzing! A new attraction for this year was the Wargames Illustrated painting competition which displayed some remarkable examples of painting and modelling in a range of different categories and genres.

Despite the forced change of show date, the attendance figures were 1536 based on the wrist-band count, which was an increase on the 2017 figure, but a few game presenters and traders will have escaped being banded in the hurly-burly prior to the show opening. The Hammerhead 2019 show will be held on Saturday 2nd March – it’s usual slot in the show calendar.

The Cedric Ford Pavilion or what we call ‘The Gamers Lounge’ proved to be a great success once again this year and has become the favoured place to eat and drink especially over the lunchtime period. It is a very spacious, carpeted lounge area with a bar, excellent catering facilities and hundreds of ‘comfy chairs.’ There were also 12 participation games, 16 traders and the DBA Northern Cup competition located in this additional 900m2 of space.

The table-top sales area was a hive of activity throughout the day with the goodies on offer changing every hour. There seemed to be lots of negotiation between sellers and buyers, which is the key point of the ‘bring and sell’ concept.

There were 64 public participation games and activities for visitors to play and enjoy, which again has made Hammerhead a ‘stay all day’ show with plenty of activities for gamers of all ages. There were many families with young children in attendance, and that is important – the younger gamers represent the future of our hobby!

The standard of games presented this year was excellent, and for the members of Forest Outlaws allocated the task, singling out just three for awards was far from easy. They scuttled from one table to the next and after much thought and deliberation the three games listed below were chosen. A lot of combined effort, time and modelling skill have gone into the production of each and every participation game at Hammerhead, and this should be applauded, especially so because of the pleasure their efforts bring to everyone who plays the games.

Trophies were presented for the following categories;

1) Best Visually Appealing Game: Gunfight at the OK Corral by Boys from the Bunker

2) Best Constructed Participation Game: Dam Busters Challenge by Peterborough Wargames Club

3) Overall Best Game: Conn…Sonar by Leeds Wargames Club

The winners of each category received a unique Hammerhead 2018 trophy to keep, and in addition the Leeds Wargames Club, Best Overall Game winners, have their name added to the Hammerhead Shield!

£225 in ‘Letters of Marque’ or vouchers, were given out through the gamers prize draw and the game presenters draw, which were spent with the traders who in turn exchanged them for cash. This gave a little extra bonus for traders and provided a little extra incentive for visitors to play the games and in doing so collect the game slips.

A very big thank you must go to once more to all the members of the Forest Outlaws wargames club for all their hard work in helping with setting-up, knocking down, wrist-banding, presenting games, car parking etc. They did a brilliant job and made a significant contribution to the success of Hammerhead. Thanks also to the staff at Newark showground for all their help and support.

As we now look forwards towards Hammerhead 2019, we again make the promise to traders and manufacturers that we will make every effort to keep trade stand prices as low as possible. We have received a number of positive comments about there being ‘plenty of space’ between games and in front of traders. This is very important for disabled visitors and with 3900 square metres of space available in the two halls, we can guarantee this can be maintained next year even if there are more games. Year on year there are always a few improvements that can be made, we will not become complacent and always respond positively to suggestions and ideas.

Sally would like to say a very sincere thank you to everyone who helped to make Hammerhead 2018 ‘a celebration of the hobby.’ Hammerhead 2019 will take place on Saturday 2nd March – put the date in your diary!

http://www.hammerheadshow.co.uk/

[Norm]

Well done on the attendance figures, Hammerhead is certainly well regarded and respected and that only happens with hard work by those involved.

[Sally]

Thanks Norm, will pass on your comments to the rest of the team

[Sally]

The Hammerhead 2018 YouTube collection has been uploaded and can be found here
https://youtu.be/B79UxUHPzAE