Golden State Bonsai Federation 2015 Show

[Bonsai Nut]

Riverside, California ⋅ October 29 → November 1, 2015
The Golden State Bonsai Federation presents its 38th convention:


Bonsai Fusion ⋅ “Where Tradition Meets Innovation”


Riverside, California ⋅ October 29 → November 1, 2015


Registration is NOW OPEN!

 

[justBonsai]

Man I'd love to go, its only several minutes from my school but it will be right smack in the middle of my fall quarter during a weekday no less.

 

[michaelj]

You can buy single day tickets. You could buy just Saturday if you wished.

 

[justBonsai]

You can buy single day tickets. You could buy just Saturday if you wished.

I didn't realize that. I thought it was a entire package deal. I'll look at it again.

 

[michaelj]

On the registration page, click "alternate registration" and all the options appear. You can buy a Saturday ticket, without meal, for $100, and you can add the dinner for $75.

 

[Smoke]

On the registration page, click "alternate registration" and all the options appear. You can buy a Saturday ticket, without meal, for $100, and you can add the dinner for $75.

Yea you can add a 6.00 dollar meal for 75$ yahoo!

 

[justBonsai]

I may be getting a ticket, but definitely not the $75 dollar meal haha.

 

[michaelj]

I've never gone to the dinners. Can anyone share their experiences? Was it worth it? What do you get other than a conventioneer chicken breast or steak? $75 seems a tad steep unless they are serving nyotaimori.

 

[Smoke]

I have been to about 20 or so full registrations at the conventions. I was a trustee for GSBF for 5 years as well as chairman of the Grants and Scholarship Program for GSBF. (I have Boon's thank you letter). The banquet on Saturday night is where all the awards are given out for the year. New members to the board, trustees and chairs are recognized (sometimes) the prize for small club newsletter and large club newsletter are given out. Every other year the outgoing President speaks and the new President is introduced for a boring speech. The chairs for the next years Convention make their pitch as to why you should not miss their convention as it promises to be the best yet and the talent for the next convention is introduced, sometimes with a video showing all the sights available for the patrons. Most of this takes place while dinner is served.

All of the headliner trees are brought in and the talent introduced for a round of applause or boos depending on who comes. As the dishes are cleared and desert is served the demo trees are auctioned off. Many reach into the thousands and are a great deal if you came prepared to spend that much money. Trees from collections are auctioned sometimes too as well as dead members who have donated their collection to the convention to raise money.

Then finally John Thompson will begin the raffle which can take 45 minutes to go through the Sat. nite banquet table of goodies. I buy tickets $100.00 at a time to get all the colors. They sell five colors so if you don't purchase all of them you could be out of the running when John calls yellow ticket and you have none.

Whole thing lasts about three hours. If your lucky Kathy Shaner will call the meeting of Caca-kai to order in a banquet room. That can last till 2 AM.

There are lunches and and other meals where there are raffles also like Friday nite and Sunday afternoon. Tickets are good for all the raffles. GSBF's way of getting you to stay for the whole thing and spend more money. Money well spent, right?

My ole friend Harry Hirao with a fist full of yellow tickets



This tree by Ryan Neil went for less than $3000.00

 

[Smoke]

Here is a couple shots of some of the demo trees that are auctioned, the three guys at the right end of the table are Harry Hirao in the middle ( still got those damn tickets behind him, his normal pose) and Peter Macasieb on the right, I don't know the other guy unless he turned around. The entries for the Joshua Roth New Talent Contest on a table being viewed by Ann Erb. A view of my banquet table, all this in 2009

 

[michaelj]

Do you need the banquet ticket to participate in the raffles and auctions?

 

[Smoke]

Do you need the banquet ticket to participate in the raffles and auctions?

Thats the whole point of having to pay 75 bucks for a meal, to gain access to the raffle.

I have won tons of things from GSBF raffles at conventions. That year 2009, I won 12 prizes over the course of four days. Thats a lot. So far out of all of the conventions I have gone to I have never recouped my raffle ticket money. Some people do but I haven't. Kinda like the lottery. I
have known guys that have bought 2 or 3 hundred dollars worth of tickets and won a shohin pot that they could have bought in the vendor room for 30.00 bucks. Depends on your budget and what you are willing to throw away on a chance......

 

[ColinFraser]

I just did my "full registration" for the convention. Anyone else going?

 

[ianb]

I just did my "full registration" for the convention. Anyone else going?

I'll be up there on Sunday morning, maybe I'll see you there.

 

[carobone]

Just to confirm, this is happening at the convention center?

 

[ColinFraser]

Just to confirm, this is happening at the convention center?

Yeah, riverside convention center. I'm here now, taking a lunch break from helping set up the invitational exhibit

 

[Smoke]

Yeah, riverside convention center. I'm here now, taking a lunch break from helping set up the invitational exhibit

Take pictures. I didn't go this year, buying another gun for my wife. Her birthday gun was too big. She has her heart set on a Sig Sauer p232 stainless. I'll go to shohin this next year instead in February.

 

[ColinFraser]

Take pictures.

Definitely. Here's a panoramic teaser:

 

[Vin]

Classy, very classy.

 

[sorce]

Definitely. Here's a panoramic teaser:
View attachment 85227

Is the one void of foilage? Deadwood especialle?

Thanks Colin!

Sorce