October 2017 NW Frag Festival with Laura Simmons Pictures

[badxgillen]

I know, You ALLLL want to hear about October 2017 North West Frag Fest... Well it was Freaking Amazing!!!

And for those of you who know me personally, know that "Freaking" is not the word that would be coming out of my mouth had you asked me this in person.

We were not quite sure what to expect for turnout but we were pleasantly surprised when people just started pouring in. I mean we had some pretty busy moments there.

Of course, before that could all happen we had alot of ground to cover,/ The club, the volunteers, and the vendors.

Good thing we haves some of the best people out there on our PNWMAS team.

Miles was one of the Corvallis crew that made the long trip up to Washington early morning to get the setup under control. Thanks for the carpool Mile man, as always it was a pleasure getting some chat time in on the trip. Good company for sure. He has made a fine secretary for PNWMAS. He makes note of what goes on, makes great input on logistics, and is always happy to help. Thanks Miles!

Jim and Roy ot alot of things done before any of us got there including the power cords and surge protectors, salt water made up, and not to mention much of the logistics between the Boys and Girls club venue in general. Thanks man.Sean here on the right had the grueling task of being on the raffle team as well as getting the projector/screen worked out for us all. Sean is a great member of our BOD and a killer idea man. There is a good head on those shoulders thats for sure.Thank you Albertareef, Stylaster, and Gumby.

Cherany was enlisted as a raffle coordinator as well and she did a fine job. She handled the microphone exceedingly well and that little yellow purse sold a lot of raffle tickets I am sure.She has a well deserved seat on our BOD and brings a welcome opinion when it comes to decisions, ideas, and fine tuning various club agendas. Thank You Cherany!

Sirena hard at work setting up the food area with all the tasty goodies she fixes. She pours a ton of love into the club and we just love her back. Thank you Sirena!..I have to also mention that it is completely dark in the background outside as it is maybe 6 something AM when this pictures was taken. Early birds!

Look at Golden Basket and TPA getting ready for the opening hour. Rudy and Garret have both been tremendous assets to the club over the years and are both very nice people with lots of experience behind them.

Jeff made a cameo and dropped off some more raffle prizes! This guy comes through with some crazy discounts and donations for the club. Always a generous guy, thanks a ton Jeff.

Unrivaled and Barrier Reef were side by side. This made for some very nice coral flats that did a great job of representing our Washington friends diversity. I know I will drop a few dollars in this strip of salt water goodness.

Natalia W, getting her ducks, I mean frags, in a row. Her team were veterans at setting up shop via booth/table events. Calm and collected she just talked the talk and walked the walk.

And this guy might be familiar to you all, if not by face then maybe by name...MattV was in the house with David A with StumpTown Corals. Always bringing some fire, these guys just got back from RAP a couple days before this event so they are definitely some die hard reefers here.

Kyle and His Wife Kiera setting up the Tampico Coral Farms table, the Mrs brought some very impressive coral jewelry to display as well. Very cool.

A shot for those of you who wanted tto see this crafty merchandise for yourselves...Or at least in picture on the forum.

I love this pic with Flashy Fins-Left, laughing while Albertareef-center, points in a scolding manner into the room , all while Gill&Fin smiles and shakes her hands explanation of whatever may be going on. A perfect example of the atmospheric feeling of happiness and good cheer. Holly does an amazing amount of behind the scenes work with the Officers and Board of Directors for the club not to mention she is an outstanding member of our community. Thank you Holly!

Lexxiinverts, our Vendor Relations, giving Rudy and the other sponsors a hand unloading and setting up. Andy is a stand up guy, super glad he is in our corner. Thanks man.

Karen AKA KKnight ran the door attendance for a while and boy was that a full time job, so glad we had so many volunteers ready and waiting to help where needed. Just in case you didn't know but she is currently our lead for our famous tanks for teachers program. Thank You Karen!

Roy or "Stylaster" setting up Pacific Corals for the event. This man helped get things all lined up with Jim before the doors opened. Ex President has done his share for the club  and continues to give, Thanks Roy!

I had a few pics of our beloved president but I chose this one for this thread in particular. There was so much good energy and vibe at this show it was astounding. All of us on the BOD and office make a great team accomplishing our goals so effortlessly as a whole, and we certainly are happy to have this lady lead us in her presidency, Thank You Kim!

Left we have The Clark and on the right here we have our own Bicycle Bill! Bill is one of the model citizens who always offers a hand when you need help, gives generously of his tank and corals, and makes great contributions in discussions via forum and in person. We love you Bill. And much love to the Clark, Jeremy here is one of our leading moderators and computer tech  guys, making short work of any of our website problems while being a cool cat and sharing his information and DIY projects with the rest of us.Thanks Jeremy!

And another Shout Out to an Office member Mr Bret, our club Treasurer. He unfortunately could not make it to this event due to some more important family matters but never the less this guy contributes so much for the PNWMAS that I have t make sure he gets a mention for his contributions to the support of our club. Thank You Mr.Bret!

Even though Scott is not on the BOD I want to also thank Spectra for the cooking done and setup efforts made along with just being a good guy. That was good Mexican food man, all the sides you made were spot on! 

Also on the BOD that deserve thanks but are not in these pictures are the Amazing Chief who has helped keep this forum together on many occasions via your technical skills, and Zoolander, who has been a new helping hand in the PNWMAS endeavors. Thank You!

And then there is this guy... Bert or Badxgillen ...Not too sure what to say about this odd fellow. He does like his corals though, and he also likes this club thats for sure. I just do what I can when I can, and I must say It has been a pleasure working on this tteam, thank you for having me!

OH! And Don't let me forget about Joanne and her Spokkan Crew that came all the way over to join forces with the PNWMAS. Having the extra hands and input was great, we loved having them out with us and look forward to getting together for an even bigger and better experience next year. Looking forward to whatever comes out of our clubs teamwork. Thank You!

Zondebok was one of our volunteers, thanks for coming out man, the more the merrier yeah. Hope you snagged some tank loot for the new rock work.

What What!!! Colin from The Photiiczone ready too get it ON!!!

Optimus Prime Say Whaaaaat! That chalice has reached Beast size and the Euphylia rack is Stacked! Dodge on the left was of excellent help breaking down and assisting the vendors in the end, we all got out way earlier than we had anticipated because of all the awesome volunteers here., Thank You Prime!

BShot from behind the tanks, Reefrun grabbing some choice pieces from one of my main mans here Roy at Pacific Corals. She has good taste yeah.

Picoreefer You. Long time no see, as you can probably tell I am getting some mad photography experience in so I should be taking pictures of nano and your caliber any year now. But really, good seeing you man, wish I knew you were coming and I would have brought you a frag or tow. Always next time yeah.

SASQUATCH FOUND!!! But we all call him Derick from time to time. Another good guy here, he has a taste for the finer zoanthids and has recently started to delve into the gorgonians. Glad you could make it out Squatch, and thanks for the assistance man.

DJ from NWA, no attitude here though. Fun guy to chat with and get crazy about corals. I gotta come by and see some of those in person again.

Cody from West Coast Corals was able to make it over in time for the Frag Fest! I am sure Paratore found a few things worth while here. I mean who couldn't!?

Don't get mad Reefermadness, there is plenty of corals to go around for everybody. Mike here was able to snag a couple crazy corals and talk with our Garret  of TPA too  and get a special cowrie set aside for h back at the premium aquarium shop on the way back home.                      Now that's service!         And Mike...Lets make another Milwaukee run soon yeah.

Trailerman caught in the hypnotic gaze of the rare and elusive Monster chalice...Okay, maybe its not elusive, but it is rare.

Albertareef, PDXmonkeyboy, and Holly have a good talk amidst the chaos of what IS NW Frag Fest.

Hamby is Bad to the Bone here runniing shop and getting his  raffle on. I love these two guys, high energy and very cool to talk with. Their corals are pretty sweet too, and very well priced.

 

Gil&Fin, Colby, and Lex all taking a look at Pacific Island Aquatics newest accomplishments on cell phone. That man and his facility are going to be doing some big things in the future. Another person I am glad made it to the show and talk on sustainability.

Ann speaking about sustainability!

Laura Simmons talk on sustainability, short chain acquisitions, and conscientious reef keeping was nothing short of enlightening.

When in doubt about a livestock purchase and its origins and possible impacts, feel free to ask questions to the seller, and then do a little research. A little homework goes a long way in this hobby.

So much of what we purchase goes through a number of hands and lands. We all fail to remember this. The slides shown made all the issues talked about very easy to intemperate and digest.

Long chain supply is typical of the profit driven markets that care little of the livestock or the lands they are acquired in. And due to the convolutednes of the situation it is hard for anyone to truly know how sustainable any part of the chain is.

Where as the short chain is much more transparent from having things straight forward.

Just look at how these species are initially caught then only distributed by a handfull of exporters before they almost become "bounced" around other exporter/importers. SHEESH!

The trickle effect of finances becomes very apparent when portrayed in the fashion Laura presented.

.08 Cents per trigger, commonly inflated hundreds of times the Original value. Ultimately the low wages getting to the actual collectors is causing quite some strain on the whole environmental systems themselves via increasing pressures of unregulated fishing for fish collected.

And lets not forget about the illegal methods used in certain regions not to mention the complete lack of incentives and enforcement. But there  is some good  news out there.

 

Some examples of sustainable fisheries that are the leading model to follow, no surprise here is Australia at the peak.

And exactly what are we all shooting for here  our hobby for the long term?

Powerful information as well as questions we have to ask ourselves.Great stuff from Laura here that was not what we typically have presented from a speaker.

I would say it was a Success!!! Andy, Laura, and Colby feel the same!

Just look at that enthusiasm!....Well, actually this is Lex winning the MP40. But it certainly instills the mood I had about this wwole tthing. WHOOP WHOOP!!! Put those hands in the Air!

And speaking of winning.

Karen took home the Vectra I believe. Nice score.

I took home some nice pictures and good memories, If for some reason I didn't mention you personally here I apologize, out of 500 pictures I still didn't get a good shot of everyone. But know that I appreciate everyone of you and I Thank You All.

I mean it though, the people, the officers, the Board of Directors, the club itself...Thank You so much for making all of this a reality...As I quite often leave these posts ended with a nod of encouragement and thanks.

                                                                                                             

                                                                                           You All Rock!!!

                                                                                               Reef On!

 

 

 

 

[albertareef]

Thanks Bert!  Your writes ups and pics are always one of my favorite parts of any club event.  You always seem to capture the excitement and camaraderie of these get togethers and provide excellent narrative for those that weren't able to make it.  I know it takes a lot of time and effort so definitely want to make sure you know it's appreciated!  Awesome to have such a knowledgeable, energetic and committed group of officers who can pull something like this together and make it (at least in my mind) a success.  Hope we get the opportunity to do it all again next year!  (already going over notes on improvements)

BTW  - I hope the baby acro frag made it... I think you will like it.

[albertareef]

Oh - I also love that pic of Cherany, Holly and I!  Probably when she won the aquarium and I was telling her she had to haul it out on her own 

[badxgillen]

If anyone else has some good pictures to contribute to the thread please feel free to post some up. No one person can be every where all the time. Lots of moments that I missed thats for sure, between running around and the speaker event I barely got to hit the tables.

I did however, get some pretty nice coral and tank shots though.

 

[Bicyclebill]

Awesome write up Bert! That was a super cool event!


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[Emerald525]

Love your write ups!! That was a great show!! 

Special thanks to Miles, Bert and Andy for getting up at 330am and making the long journey. I know they always have me covered with set up and clean up! Bert you are truly one of a kind!

Also Sean thanks for taking charge and covering the raffles , IT, and setting up!

Zoolander made the flier and the logo. 

Holly made the signs. Joanne Vega the president of the SPCDA gave me lots of advice on how to make this happen and also let us use a square reader.

Gumby and Stylaster did much of the preplanning for set up as we could not access the club! 

Cherany did an awesome job with the raffle announcer!

Sirena was my right hand woman who helped me in so many ways to make this event happen!

Spectra helped with food and made some amazing beans!!

Karen and her friend manned the check in all day and made sure everyone paid!

Cuttlefish donated lots of raffle prizes!

 

Rudy Batara of Golden Basket was a wealth of information on how to make this run !! I had several meetings with him and he is always generous with his knowledge.

I am also thanful for the vendors up north who took a chance and signed up for the first annual frag fest!

Mr Bret put up the web page and helped acquire many of the sweet raffle items!!

 

so who wants to see another frag show ???!!!

 

 

[albertareef]

36 minutes ago, Emerald525 said:

 

so who wants to see another frag show ???!!!

 

Me me me!  I grabbed a few things from Kyle as he was breaking down but I feel like I have some shopping to catch up on 😁

[TheClark]

So much appreciation for all who helped.  This is a great reminder...

Extra special thanks to @badxgillen for preserving the memories through photos and narrative for not only this but every meeting as long as I can remember.  This was allot of work and it really means allot that you take the time to do this.  

[Optimusprime3605]

That was awesome, Bert! I was like a kid in a candy store and I want more candy!!! Haha Can't wait for the next one! You all, are a great bunch of people and I am so privileged to be a part of your group... 

[Flashy Fins]

Fantastic pictures, Bert! I’m seeing a lot of this event for the first time, despite having been there, and I’m wowed! The raffle ticket sales were such a success, I only made it out of the prize room to announce winners and for Laura’s talk. Looks like the vendor room was madness, too. The best kind, of course - photosynthetic madness!

I wish I could recall what was so funny in that image of me laughing hysterically next to Sean and Holly, but whatever it was, that is fine photographic evidence of the fun we all had! 

[MrsBret]

Looks like a fantastic frag show! 

[youcallmenny]

Sad I missed it.  Thanks for taking pictures and doing your writeup Bert, I always enjoy seeing that, especially when I don't make it.  

Looks like it was a great event with some killer coral and all for a good cause!

[Emerald525]

9 hours ago, Optimusprime3605 said:

That was awesome, Bert! I was like a kid in a candy store and I want more candy!!! Haha Can't wait for the next one! You all, are a great bunch of people and I am so privileged to be a part of your group... 

Thanks Dodge for also being so willing to help out! I will be more organized next year with delegating tasks to the volunteers..!

49 minutes ago, MrsBret said:

Looks like a fantastic frag show! 

You and Bret were missed Naomi. I sure wish you could have been there.  I also wanted to send out a thank you to you as well. I know you were helping Bret with the web page and getting the vendor applications over to me.  Everyone was asking about you both. You were missed.

[stylaster]

Awesome synopsis!  You always do a great job with your pics.  So happy this turned out to be a great event.  I look forward to next year!

[Gil&Fin]

I also want to thank Bert for this amazing write up.  I know these take a lot of time, and he always does a fantastic job.  Add that to all the things he does for the club in other ways, which I couldn't begin to count, and the fact that he has to travel two hours every time we have a club meeting, officer meeting, or event, we are super-lucky to have him.

Thanks, Bert!

[milesmiles902]

Those are some great pics!

[albertareef]

3 hours ago, youcallmenny said:

Sad I missed it.  Thanks for taking pictures and doing your writeup Bert, I always enjoy seeing that, especially when I don't make it.  

Looks like it was a great event with some killer coral and all for a good cause!

We missed you Greg!  Hope the tank move went OK and sorry I wasn't able to help out.  This kept me pretty busy