National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

[Gadge Europa]

(First off a disclaimer, while i was working at this event as part of the Airsoft Action stand these are *my* views not Airsoft Actions, or for that matter any other airsoft body i work for such as Gunman... just my thoughts)

I attended the national shooting show/british airsoft show this weekend and couldnt help feel that we were totally in the wrong place.

For those not aware of the event the shooting show is one of the largest in europe and had over 300 exhibitors selling everything from air rifles to shot guns to decoy ducks, night visions, tweed jackets, flat caps scottish whisky and all the other deerstalking/hunting paraphenalia

Tacked onto this in a hall at the back was the British airsoft show with several traders exhibiting and selling, meet and greet stalls by both Airsoft Action and AI, a CQB demo by stirling services and an introduction to airsoft stall among others.

Getting in cost about £17 quid for the paying customer and if you're into outdoors events, shooting and the general culture it was probably well worth it... if you only like airsoft and have no interest in shooting animals in the fens it might not have been such good value?

My main worry though is that we were piggybacking this big shooting show at stoneleigh (the national agriculture centre or some such, a vast convention hall) and the crossover of interest seemed non existant. I saw few 'traditional shooters' (ie shotguns etc) visit the airsoft side and those did seemed to have come in for a laugh at us. In fact having browsed through a few deer stalking and hunting forums it seems that at best they found it hilairious and at worst many felt that airsoft was everything they *didnt* want to be associated with with shooting sports.

As the show was so huge and managed so badly (not the airsoft side the entry/exit from the site and entrance to the hall) some people were in traffic queues for over two hours to cover the last mile into the grounds. (we set off on the saturday at 8,30, arrived at the area (2 miles from venue) at 9.30 and finally got inside about 12 o clock!)

I cant help feel that such a badly organised show , primarily for game hunters didnt really do us many favours to be associated with.

Any one who went there for the airsoft side knew what it was all about before they went there and i dont think we got many 'converts' from the traditional shooting crowd...

i'm *amazed* the show wasnt saddled in conjuntion with the earlier january stoneleigh militaria show... then you would have had a *massive* cross over between airsofters, kit collectors and militaria enthusiasts.

I mean I've done my fair share of traditional shooting in the past but I know when i went around the shooting show i really had no need for 300 quid wellies....

A store with some good surplus field kit on might have peaked my interest though.

Did anyone else go and what were your thoughts?

[Opossum]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

Set out early, was first in the queue until we decided to get some food, then we were like 4th. Few mins later the doors opened.

Easy mode :D

Never seen so much tweed in all my life.

[Jez Armstrong]

I went

It sucked and i will never bother wasting my time or money again

[curlyboy]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

I went to the show and I agree how poorly ran it was, I bought my tickets in advance and had their vaunted 'priority' parking pass but on getting there I had a 40 minute queue to get in and was then parked nearly a mile from the entrance so much for 'priority'.

The Airsoft side was let down by the amount of stalls but I liked that the stalls appealed to more than just Airsoft people and it even had a what is Airsoft booth with a nice little booklet explaining Airsoft provided by Airsoft action so that would help explain the sport.

I was happy also that UKARA was been enforced by the stall holders as I have heard all sorts of stories at shows and the sale takes priority where here this was not the case.

I would say if they did it again they need more stalls with more traders and sites but what there was was a start.

Curlyboy

[crimeblitz]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

I didnt go myself but i read a few posts on the facebook page and the few i read said it was crap and generally poorly organised and not worth the money unfortunatley.

[madwelshman]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

It was inevitable.... a re-run of the Newark Shooting show, that was also a complete waste of time!

Ruperts in tweed think airsoft is for kids, you'd be better off at a paintball event, rather than piggybacking at an event where the target audience are 35+ years old, and stinking of ammonia... (wet tweed) Newark was a waste of time, didn't even bother going to this one, seeing as I don't work in the industry anymore, only reason I was at Newark.

[Heinz]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

It would be better off combined with the militaria event. Far more cross over with re-enactors than the trad Huntin', fishin' and shootin' brigade. Then again, I frigging hate driving to Stoneleigh at the best of times. I always get stuck in the sodding traffic!

[Gadge Europa]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

I couldnt help wonder why on earth it hadnt had been put side by side with the militaria show for a few reasons

1. the aofrementioned massive crossover of interest between airsofters and militaria collectors
2. Their would be a lack of snobbery/offensiveness about 'toy guns'
3. the militaria show is half the size of the shooting show and it would be much easier to get about and even get to the event.

[Fenriz]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

Money. Id imagine that has something to do with it.

I didnt go, but i didnt hear the best things from those that did.

[mike1967]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

Instead of trying to sell airsoft guns etc. like the airsoft stalls were primarily trying to do, they should have taken into account that there would have been more hunters and farmers there than airsofters so they should have promoted airsoft and concentrated on publicising it and getting more people interested but still giving the option of purchases. Was disappointed really I wasn't interested in the other stuff there and came away with nothing in the end

[madwelshman]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

yeh... retailers paying a couple of grand for a pitch to promote airsoft... nah, not going to happen.

War and Peace + airsoft, works, simples.... Airsoft and Rupert's... doesn't.

[Gadge Europa]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

I dunno among the war and peace crowd airsoft has a terrible reputation, at that show anyway.

[madwelshman]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

at least its common ground, and we get to pick up cheap loadouts and bits n bobs... if it was played a little better, a bit of Sterling's "inflatable interaction", some of the themed airsoft groups represented en masse, I think it would be better received, anything is better than being laughed at as the "chav" element of shooting in the UK....

[dieselmonkey]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

With W+P, you've got exactly the same problem of it being a huge, badly organised show full of arseholes with an attitude.

At least the Militaria show at Stoneleigh is more low key, smaller, and would both sides would benefit from the increased traffic.

[madwelshman]

Re: National Shooting Show and British Airsoft Show - are we in the wrong place.

agreed, ANY militaria show would be better than tweed