Which is the best game fair?

[Downforce]

Having been to game fairs in the dim and distant past that were pretty good then reading the comments here is there a stand out game show that’s worth going to?

D

Edited November 16, 2022 by Downforce

[dipper]

No don’t waste your time and money.Went to Western park for over 30 years but that went rubbish.

[ditchman]

i think the day of the "True" game fair are gone............if a game fair was to appear one year ...it would be spoilt by the Anti's everything...coupled with the fact that organisers of "country fairs"....their pitch charges are totally unrealistic....some of them last year were bloody eyewatering.........

the closest you are going to get to a game fair now.....is tractor backing and maybe fly fishing contests...and country clothing stalls...........

gone are the hounds 

gone is the clay shooting..(although you do see it now and again)

gone is the ferrets

gone are the gunsmiths row

get my drift..................................its all quite sad really

[udderlyoffroad]

17 minutes ago, ditchman said:

gone are the hounds 

gone is the clay shooting..(although you do see it now and again)

gone is the ferrets

gone are the gunsmiths row

Saw all of the above at Ragley this year?

Admittedly, eye-watering admission unless you're a BASC member, and best take a sammich or 2 or be prepared for GBH of the wallet.

There was a long-running thread a while back with people who had a very rigid idea of what a game fair *should be* versus what they are now. During the the thread, a lot of people admitted that they weren't spending any money at them anyway, and were bemused that the stall holders had geared themselves to people who were...

 

[Bigbob]

Went to the Midlands camping for years thoroughly enjoyed that , Went to Scone Palace for a long time while i had terriers then they dropped the lurcher and terrier show  and i moaned about it in the Shooting times mag and was invited to the GWCT caravan at the show  to tell them what was wrong with the show ,"i replied i am sorry to decline your offer where i pay nearly £100 to gain entry to your show for the family  on top of the £7 parking charge and the cost of food for the day To tell you a game fair would have a Lurcher and terrier show otherwise it would just be a country fair selling overpriced ,Clothes , Garden furniture  pictures ,Plants Etc  to which i received no reply LOL 

A short while later i saw the GWCT organisers  posting on facebook looking for donations  , I replied if you allowed Lurchers and terriers to compete at Scone again maybe the working lads would attend it and raise the numbers and give you more money than you will receive from your begging post , Later it was removed 

[Dave at kelton]

The trouble is Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The stall holders get charged an extortionate amount for a pitch so unless they sell or see it as part of their advertising budget browsers don’t pay the bills. Add to that businesses folded in covid and in these economic times people will pull their horns in. I love Scone for the atmosphere etc but it was notably smaller last year with a lot of stalwarts missing.

As to gunmakers row if dealers aren’t selling from their shops they aren’t going to pay to not sell from a fair. I fear the fairs will continue to deteriorate and if not supported that will just accelerate! The only events I have continued to support is Northern Shooting Show and Scone, plus our local fair to keep it going and meet up with pals before the season starts.

 

[Downforce]

👍

[Bigbob]

I used to love a day at a Gamefair wander round speaking to the stall holders trying to strike a deal for all the net making stuff i needed for the year undoubtable the midlands was better as it was larger but as said Scone was local and had a good atmosphere,  but i was giving up to £500 to Johnstone and Johnstone all english firms till they stopped coming up and it started to go downhill now i buy my stuff threw the internet not always buy choice as i have to pay a fair bit for postage .Two years ago i had to fork out £500 to get a complete run of hemp from a mill.Money i would of happily paid at a game fair but with the likes of Scone now what i would call a country fair never a game fair there's little to interest me so i feel its dying a death and its down to the organisers GWCT wanting top dollar from folk going threw the gates and the stall holders if they reduced the cost a bit i am sure more folk would attend 

One of my friends a big shooting guy moved over to fishing and when speaking to him at Scone i asked  "you and the family up for the day ?" To be told " No there's nothing here just popped up on my motorbike get in for free the last half hour get what fishing fly's i want  in and out  and home "

[Downforce]

It’s quite sad

[marsh man]

I used to go to at least two a year and sometimes three , now one of the better ones the Fenland have packed it in , the East Anglian one have moved from Norwich Show Ground to near Thetford and the Sandringham this year was only a shadow of how it once was , now with the cost of fuel and high entry charges our days at the so called game fairs are over , now they resemble a Sunday market with very little for a countryman to take a interest in . 

[dessyb]

have you not got a carboot near you same as g/fairs these days.

[enfieldspares]

4 hours ago, ditchman said:

i think the day of the "True" game fair are gone............if a game fair was to appear one year ...it would be spoilt by the Anti's everything...coupled with the fact that organisers of "country fairs"....their pitch charges are totally unrealistic....some of them last year were bloody eyewatering.........

the closest you are going to get to a game fair now.....is tractor backing and maybe fly fishing contests...and country clothing stalls...........

gone are the hounds 

gone is the clay shooting..(although you do see it now and again)

gone is the ferrets

gone are the gunsmiths row

get my drift..................................its all quite sad really

What he says in truth. I went to this year's rescheduled Sandringham Fair and although got some 16 bore cartridges at £10 a box the supposed "gunsmiths' village" was a have a go clayshooting stand, a have a go airsoft stand and a have a go airgun stand. There was ONE...yes ONE...stall selling guns. There was ferret racing, medieval jousting, a dog retrieval of "shot game" (a man with a gun and a a helper launching a retrieval dummy) a good flyfishing set up including casting tuition and whilst I would not go again I don't begrudge having gone this year. Being on Sandrindgham Estate with a visible but discreet police presence what was lacking were a certain type of person often accused of stealing dogs from locked vehicles in game fair car parks. I enjoyed it. But would likely not go again.

Edited November 16, 2022 by enfieldspares

[dessyb]

it went down hill after catton park gamekeeper fair stopped best of the lot

[Dougy]

I have spoken to umpteen store holders over the years and the reason for refusing to attend any future game fair/country shows have all been down to 2 reasons. 

1. The high cost of the stand.

2. The high cost of loosing stock.

This just shows the mark up on our sports equipment compared to, hot tubs, 4X4's, fairground rides and garden sheds. 

[London Best]

2 hours ago, dessyb said:

it went down hill after catton park gamekeeper fair stopped best of the lot

Because that was my most local fair I couldn’t walk more than about 30 yards without meeting someone I knew, be it a beater, picker-up, game shot or a stalker. It was held at just the right time of year for everyone that had not seen the others to be ready for a chat and a catch-up. Brilliant little fair.

[JohnfromUK]

I used to go to the CLA most years, but haven't been for a few years now despite Ragley being quite close for me.  Dougy is right in this. 

14 hours ago, Dougy said:

2. The high cost of loosing stock.

A friend of mine has contacts in the 'country clothing/footwear/accessories' line and apparently the fairs are now seriously targetted by the usual 'caravan dwelling' community.  Security is a BIG problem.  Losses are high.

Personally, I bought most of my gear when in my 30's and 40's (I'm in my 60's now) and since I bought the best I could afford, most is still in use and likely to 'see me out'.  I only now have to replace the 'wear out' type items like wellies.

When I was in the buying phase, the Game Fairs were the best place to see a wide range of different maker's items, rather than just what the local shops stocked.  Nowadays there is more choice 'on-line' if you can cope with not seeing before you buy.

[old'un]

18 hours ago, dessyb said:

it went down hill after catton park gamekeeper fair stopped best of the lot

Used to go to the Gamekeepers fair when it first started at Packington Hall near Meriden, 1976?, when that finished we used to go to Weston Park, last time we went there must be 18 years ago and I thought it was going down hill then.

 

Edited November 17, 2022 by old'un

[Dougy]

I dont know whats more frustrating, the fact that the Gamefairs are no longer "Gamefairs" or the companies that organise them really dont give a monkey's if these shows survive or not. They dont respond to any emails sent regarding dropping interest in stall holders or the increase in theft. 

 

They keep taking the money thats all they are bothered about, in reality their not much different from those that nick from the stall holders, only they do it legally. 

[Remimax]

stopped going when it turned into a car boot sale for the caravan club , waste of time and money

[Dunkield]

Been to dozens over the years, and the quick answer is these days is 'none of them'

 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

These days I will only go if given FREE tickets or I am paid to work at them!

[Downforce]

Sounds to me like there’s a demand for a good game fair but because all the existing game fairs fall short even if someone set up a good one nobody’s gonna go because they’ll just assume it’s rubbish? 
So it’s a catch 22

D

[JohnfromUK]

3 minutes ago, Downforce said:

Sounds to me like there’s a demand for a good game fair

I think things have changed over the years.  People (me included) have fond memories of past Game Fairs.  Some of that may be 'rose tinted hindsight'!

The issues of organising and running a big successful event these days are considerable; hiring a venue, traffic issues, insurances, security, staffing, facilities.  It is a BIG lot of organisation.  Few venues can handle really big attendances

The CLA when they were running the Game Fair got complaints from the standholders it was too expensive, and complaints from the public it was too expensive  ......... and yet they claimed to make no money on the event.  How much that was true and how much was poor management, we don't know.

A lot of people had bad experiences with traffic at some venues.  The fact is on a large fair with many cars/vehicles attending - there are few venues that can cope - and many places (it happened one year at Blenheim) a (I believe unrelated) traffic accident cause vast traffic jams and it was taking people hours to get in.

Then, if the weather is bad, attendance can drop down, and it can become a sea of mud very quickly.

Now - when one can 'shop around' from your own home on your laptop ..........

Overall, its a lot of risk financially, and whereas in the past I would have gone (and did travel) long distances with early starts for a day there ........... it doesn't appeal any more - I can get anything I need with less hassle elsewhere, and the 'day out aspect' has rather lost it's appeal (for me anyway).  Perhaps advancing years have made me less tolerant, but my tolerance of traffic queues, hot dusty (or wet muddy) days tramping round a fair and a possibly a long drive home afterwards has left me.

[enfieldspares]

On 18/11/2022 at 21:07, JohnfromUK said:

The CLA when they were running the Game Fair got complaints from the standholders it was too expensive, and complaints from the public it was too expensive  ......... and yet they claimed to make no money on the event.  How much that was true and how much was poor management, we don't know.

A lot of people had bad experiences with traffic at some venues.  The fact is on a large fair with many cars/vehicles attending - there are few venues that can cope - and many places (it happened one year at Blenheim) a (I believe unrelated) traffic accident cause vast traffic jams and it was taking people hours to get in.

A lot of this rings clear and rings true too long the CLA seemed to be of the opinion that unless there was a stately home, or ducal mansion, in the background that the people would not come. So better venues, modern venues, with good mass event access, good onsite security including car park camera coverage, and permanent lavatory facilities were passed by as they had no castle, no palace, no manor, no "hall" or "house".

But that may have worked in the 1950s, it may have worked in the 1960s, it carried on in to the 1970s an the 1990s.

But in the 2000s it has struggled to be a model fit for purpose. The "British Shooting Show" went to Newark Showgroung, then to the NEC. Neither are perfect...charges for car parking....GRRR!...but bot had good access, were convenient major wide roads or motorways and, AFAIK, had good car park security with cameras and therefore no issues with thefts from cars by those who also "travelled" to these game fairs in stately home venues where parking was in anonymous fields.

Finally as others have said anonymous fields in the wet become quagmires. A new model of venue is surely needed?

[billy J]

hi ,been going to scone since 1997 but will never go back loads missing talked to some stallholders price was treble than previous year cost me £55 to go through gate .