exmouth 2009

Exmouth 2009.
by Gerwyn Renyolds

It's warm it's looking like it's going to be a sunny day and it's only 4.30am in the morning. We are off to the Exmouth Society Show. This time we are partnered up and travelling with Celtic Knot Bonsai.

We have spent the last couple of days selecting some trees for the display and putting together some really great accents and trying everything out on display back at our base in Bonllwyn. Everything to us seems to work really well and after the slight hiccup with the display accessories at Bournemouth we all have made a double double check to ensure we will be taking everything we need and more !!!!!!!!

As a general rule it's the Show Committee that usually selects the trees and organises everything pertinent to the shows, but on this occasion they came up with a suggestion that it would be a good opportunity for some other willing members to try out their skills and have a go doing what the Show Committee would normally do. So a couple of very brave members volunteered to take up the challenge led by Lewis and under the watchful eye of Chris and Bob ( Jerry being on holiday )

We decided for this show that we would like to try and keep things really simple and create a theme for the display. After much debate the theme was going to be a progression of Larch from Low to High altitude with accents that complemented the different environs that we were trying to replicate within our image. As I have said we had some great fun selecting the trees and experimenting with various display stands and accents until at last we were all very happy with what was about to be packed up and taken down to Exmouth. So just one last job before we closed the van doors and that was to gather some moss and a final clean up of the trees.

So back to that warm and sunny morning. We have all got pick ups to make and we decide to meet up at Sedgemoor Services on the M5. Nobody gets lost and we meet for a fresh brew of coffee. It's that early even the young girl who serves us looks a little bemused as we are the only people in the services, undeterred she stirs into action and we are all sitting down to coffee in a matter of minutes. By the time we leave there is still nobody pulling into the services and as you can imagine we are able to fly down the motorway to Exeter without any delay. Once off the motorway Exmouth is only a matter of minutes away and we arrive around 8.30 am.

What a fantastic venue. It looks like a grand old pavilion set right on the promenade overlooking the sea. No time to loose, although we have ample time to set up we begin the transfer of everything out of the van and into the pavilion. That done we set about building the displays in between the leg pulling and banter after our episode at Bournemouth . This time though everything just falls into place as sweet as you like and we can set about the actual display of the trees, but having rehearsed this back at Bonllwyn this to takes no time at all so we spend the next half an hour tweaking this and tweaking that until we can tweak no more and realise it has got to be time for breakfast.


Roy and Chris walk the show.
	The tree in question
Lewis considers the hawthorn cascade

Now some of the lads have been here before so they know exactly where they want to go for breakfast, a cosy little café no more than 100 yards away. So off we go and join quite a few guys from other societies sat out in the sunshine waiting to order their ‘ Full English ‘. I thought until today I knew what a Full English meant, but this café puts an extraordinary twist to the term. The menu included so many permutations it took up a full page and takes me ten minutes to decide on one. It turns out to be a good choice and the breakfast turns up freshly cooked, looking delicious. We all sit around after breakfast just catching up with the guys from the other societies and discussing this and that and spend a really enjoyable half an hour or so and head back to the pavilion just before the show is ready to open to the public.

There are numerous societies showing and they have all in my opinion done a fantastic job and should be deservedly proud. The comments I heard from the public support my opinion and justifiably so. It appears to me that the public have turned out in masses to support the show, now whether the sunshine played a part in that I do not know but it was great to see and hear them comment on the displays and trees and to ask so many interesting questions. It did go a little quiet though around lunchtime so I decided to try and gather the boys together for a spot of lunch. I found everyone except Brian and I hunted high and low for him until someone suggested I try outside. Did they know something I didn't ? They certainly did . There outside basking in the sunshine on a pub bench with a pint in his hand was Brian. This remained the theme for the rest of the day's banter. Where is Brian ? Guess ?

Time went by really quickly with so many people wanting to ask questions and generally discuss Bonsai and left us with not much time to walk the show as a group and have a bit of a constructive critique of what was on display. We believe this is an exercise that is always well worth doing as it's a fantastic opportunity to network, pick up new ideas, broaden your own knowledge and generally admire the time and passion that everyone here puts into Bonsai.

Five 'o' clock arrives and the public file out of the pavilion and it is time to pack up. That done there is just enough time to say goodbye to everyone. Thank the host Society for their hospitality and putting on a great Show at a great venue and of course just enough time for Brian to have that last pint before we head for home.