Enfilade 2003 was held on May 23d- 25th at the Sea-Tac Marriott, a venue change from the Fife Best Western. Though we organizers had considerable trepidation about the change of venue, it was the best attendance year of my tenure as director, with about 240 paid attendees. We had nearly 90 games, scheduled and unscheduled, and the comments about the convention were quite positive.

The overall quality of the games was so good that it was difficult to select a Best of Show. The winners for each of the game periods were as follows:

1. Steven Ward's Helms Deep
2. Ian Croxall's Storming of the Schnelienberg
3. Steve Knight's 25mm WW /Battle
4. Paul Hannah's Soccer War game
5. Randy Lantrip's Breakfast Time of Man
6. Bryan Shein's Ambush Afghanistan

There were many other good games. It always amazes me that Enfilade attracts such great work. Doug Hamm and Eric Donaldson were extremely helpful in developing a rational way of using the scoring too[ I developed to judge events. With the other graders, John Wootress, Dave Mebust, Lloyd Bowler and Dan Proctor, they did an outstanding job rating the games in an objective, reasoned manner.

The Best of Show award went to Ian Croxall. Next year, Ian and others are planning a 25mm reenactment of the Battle of Blenheim for its 200th anniversary, which we're looking forward to.

I tried to take some time to recognize the contribution of volunteers with certificates, medals, and publicly, so I won't list all those who helped. I just want you to know that you are noticed and appreciated. I gave Director's Awards to Paul Hannah and Dave Schueler for their services.

Best of all, there was an exceptionally high level of fun. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Almost all of the comments I hear were complimentary. There were no table hassles, few problems that couldn't be managed. The vendors and swap table made money. Life was good.

There were a few minor blemishes. The separate ballrooms caused some concerns among vendors, which I simply didn't foresee. I will not make that mistake again. The future of the painting competition is in doubt. There was a lack of entries and a lack of voters, which does not to take away from the quality of those entries submitted. They were quite nice and deserving of consideration for their awards. We simply need more competition and more interest. Unless someone volunteers to drum up more interest it is likely the painting competition will take a hiatus.

Except for parking hassles the first evening, the convention ran mostly without a hitch. The hotel received high marks for its work. The concession was great, and the Yukon Landing restaurant was very nice. The ballrooms were cool and comfortable, and though there was still a nice buzz in the room, the noise was not excessive or intrusive. The hotel staff was responsive to our needs. Despite the considerably higher costs, the convention made money. It pains me that we cannot remain at the Marriott in the future (see page 8.)

Enfilade is the largest historical miniature convention on the West Coast. The work displayed there is a credit to the hobby. Thanks for your continued support of Enfilade. We'll see you next year in Olympia.