The 2023 Show of Shows - Louisville, Kentucky - February 22-26

[stratasfan]

11 minutes ago, Persian Gulf Command said:

Well often when I pursue what I look for I find new things that create new lists and interests.  Picked up a great British Pathfinder Sleeve Patch from BigDogMilitaria and an early Pressure Firing Device from B&B Militaria that add to my collection. Also, made a couple of good connections that could lead to some things I really want.

 

Sounds like you had a fun time, that's for sure! :) Hope youpost the Pathfinder patch on WMF, as I'd love to see it!

[doinworkinvans]

Iron Brigade that video was a blessing

 

thank you

[MAW]

The balloon "basket"/"gondola"/"hamper" was mine.....consigned to Advance Guard Militaria.  The photograph is also mine, although I have a couple of advanced photo-collecting friends who also have the same photograph in their collection.

 

I mention this, primarily to give accolades and approbations to Jeff and Anna of AGM....who did a great job transporting, photographing, and marketing the aforementioned observation "item".  

 

Sometimes the scoundrels in our hobby get the headlines; but there are also many good, reputable dealers out there.  Jeff and Anna are among the later group.

 

SoS is so massive, it's hard to truly focus while you are "in the moment".  There were several friends that I knew were there but I never was able to cross paths or speak with them.  

 

It's the one show where no matter how much money you have or have access to, you simply can't cover everything in a timely manner.  Good stuff is everywhere....you have to take it when you are afforded the opportunity.  I didn't pick up a "jaw-dropper" for the collection this time, but I did manage to get some pretty cool things.  Over all, it was excellent - as always!

[manayunkman]

Some great stuff but were there any pretty girls ?

[militbuff]

6 minutes ago, manayunkman said:

Some great stuff but were there any pretty girls ?

Who knows but there was a lot of pretty militaria!

[36thIDAlex]

On 2/28/2023 at 10:48 AM, manayunkman said:

Jay who is in the picture with you?

 

Looks like some relatively young guys.

That would be I in the suit jacket with the T-Patch pin lol

[Croix de Guerre]

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but over on Facebook, there have been a lot of comments regarding people falling ill Sunday night after the show.  I myself left Saturday afternoon, and by Sunday evening, I became very sick, which lasted about 48 hours.  The symptoms and time frame are consistent, vomiting, nausea, chills, and diarrhea.  The comments seem not to point toward the food vendors but possibly to the restrooms. Do you all know of anyone else got sick with these same stomach bug symptoms after the show?   

 

 

[USMCR79]

I left Saturday at 12:00 noon - Got home at 5:00 PM and was sick overnight and and had the illness you described on Monday - I used the  restroom a few times and 2 times on Saturday - They were disgusting. I did not partake in the food vendors offerings all weekend.

[BigDogMilitaria]

35 minutes ago, Croix de Guerre said:

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but over on Facebook, there have been a lot of comments regarding people falling ill Sunday night after the show.  I myself left Saturday afternoon, and by Sunday evening, I became very sick, which lasted about 48 hours.  The symptoms and time frame are consistent, vomiting, nausea, chills, and diarrhea.  The comments seem not to point toward the food vendors but possibly to the restrooms. Do you all know of anyone else got sick with these same stomach bug symptoms after the show?   

 

 

Same happened to me, I did not however eat anything all week from any of the food vendors . Still trying to feel normal 

[36thIDAlex]

I have experienced no sickness from the show and was around many of the people who said they got sick. Guess us Louisvillians had the hometown advantage 💪

[CombatEng44]

I got extremely sick and now my wife has it.

I’m really getting tired of these morons not washing their hands in the restroom. My wife said the women did the same. One would think that people would know better especially now. 
Some things need to be said. Hope everyone gets well fast.

[stratasfan]

Just to add some info here before we end up killing the best military show in the Country and closing down a good venue. . . If any of you haven't been watching the health news this year, the CDC and the Mayo Clinic have both come out and said that there are three things going around out there - the current Covid variation, Influenza A (respir.) and Influenza B (gastric-intestinal) - and that because of people having not been around and having been masking and everything that's been going on since 2020, everyone has to get these. Because of not being out and about and building up your natural immunity like we all have since childhood, the body has lost all the stored immunity that it had against the normal things that go around. So, they've issued statements saying that 89% of the population will get them before Summer. The other 11% are probably going to stay in long enough that they will end up getting it later in the year.

 

Dad works for a big company in Columbus (big city) and between Christmas and the first two weeks of January, all but two (2) members of his department we home sick. Most had to take off and then work from home for two weeks. His department is almost 100 people! That's all but two people out of almost one hundred! All with the gastric-intestinal bug! 

 

Our Doctor has also said that it is just something everyone needs to get, and that they will get it. Until everyone gets it, you can't have natural immunity so that you can go around and not come down with the stuff from now on. We were at our Chiropractor today, and half of his patients cancelled today, all because of being down with the intestinal bug.

 

So, while the bathrooms may have needed some serious janitorial work, it won't be the bathrooms that caused the base issue. This flu has a 24-48 hour gestation period, so anyone could have been spreading it and you would never know. At least a lot of people will now have the immunity! Mom, Sis, and I had this last month, and we got three totally different types, but it was all the gastro-intestinal flu. Not pleasant, that's for sure. However, bound to happen after all the craziness that's gone on over the past few years now. 

[Persian Gulf Command]

My buddy and I attended the show all day Thursday and Friday. Used the bathrooms several times but did not eat at the venue. We left the Crown Plaza Saturday morning to drive back to New York State. We both have felt fine since returning home. 

 

Just wanted to provide our timeline and indicate our lack of symptoms. 

 

Hope all who fell ill will be better soon!

[everforward]

12 hours ago, Croix de Guerre said:

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but over on Facebook, there have been a lot of comments regarding people falling ill Sunday night after the show.  I myself left Saturday afternoon, and by Sunday evening, I became very sick, which lasted about 48 hours.  The symptoms and time frame are consistent, vomiting, nausea, chills, and diarrhea.  The comments seem not to point toward the food vendors but possibly to the restrooms. Do you all know of anyone else got sick with these same stomach bug symptoms after the show?   

 

 

 

Present and accounted for....sick from Monday at lunch until Tuesday morning, just as you describe.. Was only there Saturday. We didn't eat there, and my buddy didn't catch anything.

[KASTAUFFER]

Great show and I made it home without bringing any bugs with me. I was there beginning Wednesday and didnt eat any of the venue food.

 

Kurt

[tdogchristy90]

21 minutes ago, KASTAUFFER said:

Great show and I made it home without bringing any bugs with me. I was there beginning Wednesday and didnt eat any of the venue food.

 

Kurt

Similar story here, Kurt. I was there Thursday and Friday, no food or restroom use. Came out fine and had a fantastic show. 

[MAW]

We were there for the duration....5 people in our group....1 caught the aforementioned crap.

 

I don't think it came from restrooms or food....just a virus that was spreading in some fashion.  

[Garandomatic]

So if Legionnaires' disease was so named for an outbreak at an American Legion event... what do we call this? 

[USMCR79]

2 hours ago, Garandomatic said:

So if Legionnaires' disease was so named for an outbreak at an American Legion event... what do we call this? 

Sounds like “Bad Luck” for those of us who got it!!!

[Alan Schaefer]

Sorry that many caught a horrible stomach flu bug there this year, and I hope you are all recovering quickly. I was not able to attend this year, unfortunately.

 

I just got off the phone speaking w/a friend from here in IA who told me that he had it hit him on the drive back on Sunday, when he was about 3 hours from home. Fortunately he was able to limp home safely and get to bed and rest.  My other friends from IA who were at the show did not catch the flu bug.

 

I realize there are literally thousands of people in the show hall during the show. That being said, and from my growing up on a farm with livestock: the restrooms in the hall itself are absolutely filthy and a real disgrace for such an otherwise beautiful facility that cost probably several hundred million dollars to build many years ago. I have vivid nasty memories of the restroom floor inside the show hall being totally sopping wet and absolutely filthy, and it smelling inside of the restroom like a nasty hog barn with livestock in it. The worst thing about these restrooms in the show hall is the idiotic push button water faucets at the sink, which are absolutely unsanitary and moronic. Are they that worried about loosing one drop of water being lost that necessitated the use of these moronic push down handle faucets that you have to keep holding down with one hand on them to make the water flow?  Only in America do we put up with such nonsense, and and with faucets that are literally 1 1/2" away from the backwall of a filthy sink. Come on, we really can't do better than this in a several hundred million dollar otherwise beautiful facility??? Really???

 

I discovered several years ago that it's well worth the inconvenience to walk outside to the front hall of the facility, and use the restrooms out there if need be, which have far less volume of traffic using them. There's even a couple of private single lockable restrooms around the corner to the north of these, outside in the hallway, on the outside wall of the show hall. They don't have wet floors in them, and they don't reek of the scent of a nasty smelling hog barn inside of them either, like the ones in the back of the show hall do.

[CombatEng44]

Exactly my thoughts. Thank you! Disgusting and disgraceful. 
I discovered those other restrooms many years ago but sometimes there is just not enough time to go there. Next year I will make the time. 
We always bring our own food and don’t take chances with the food vendors. We use hand sanitizers all day and offer it to the customers and fellow vendors. 
Those push facets? Good lord! Should never, ever see those. Can’t believe they exist today. 
I believe they are supposed to stay on for a short period to be able to wash and rinse but they are so old they won’t stay pushed in. 
 

[Indexred]

Here's the centerfold from the show guide.

 

[awm]

All 3 in our group got sick with same symptoms, starting on Sunday and lasting a couple of days.  We are ok now.  We really enjoyed the show other than that.

[Kent K]

Do we know who had that 526th Ike? I'd surely like to get it. 

[Steve Brannan]

I don’t remember that Ike. Sorry.