Where will Christel Kasselmann; Vin Kutty; Dennis Wong, Cara Wade & Cory be in May?

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

Do you know where the giants of our hobby (Christel Kasselmann; Vin Kutty; Dennis Wong, Cara Wade & Cory McElroy) will all be next spring? They will be gathering in Seattle the first week of May for the Aquatic Gardeners Association 2019 International Convention. Not only will there be inspiring presentations by the subject speakers there will be aquascaping demos, wabi-kusa workshops, and a vendor room with manufacturers and vendor tables. To top it all off is an all day plant auction featuring hundreds of exciting plants many of which we don't often see!

Have you always wanted to visit an AGA Convention but didn't want to travel cross-country - this is your chance! Space is limited, registration opens in early November, don't be left on the outside looking in! More information will be provided when registration opens - hope to see you there!

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

Registration for the AGA Convention next May is not open and registrations are coming in at a fast pace. If you want to attend
I suggest going to the AGA Convention Website and signing up now at AGA Convention Registration!

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

Registration for the Aquatic Gardeners Association (AGA) International Convention is open, you can sign up here!

The workshops are booked however you can still observe and learn as well as attend all of the talks. There are still a limited number of tickets left for the Saturday night banquet where Christel Kasselmann will do her second talk.

According to the AGA folks this is on track to be one of the largest conventions they have ever had....very likely it will be 'sold out' if folks wait until the last minute.

This is the first major aquatic convention for the Seattle area, let's have a huge turnout so we can bring other conventions to our area (cichlid, livebearers, catfish, killifish, etc).

 

[Betty]

Roy, I'm really interested in attending this, but can't commit to the dates until the "last minute". Is there an actual limit of people that can go? If so, is there a way to tell when it's getting very close to that limit? I hope it doesn't sell out!

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi Betty,

Yes, there is an actual limit to the number of people that can attend due to 'room capacity' limits set by the Renton Fire Department. At this point the Saturday Banquet Dinner where Christel Kasselmann will do her second talk is rapidly nearing capacity.

This weekend I start putting of posters for the event at our local GSAS Sponsor Stores and other LFS. It is fully expected that the entire convention will be sold out before it opens (which may be a 1st for the AGA). That is why I am doing these posts so local hobbyists know that space is filling up. It would be a shame to miss out on one of the biggest events for our hobby here in the Northwest for many years.

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

It is hard to believe that just over five (5) weeks from now the Aquatic Gardeners Association 2019 International Convention starts - right here in Seattle!!

If you haven't booked your registration for the convention there are only 35 spots left; and for the Saturday Banquet with Christel Kasselmann's second talk there are only ten (10) open spots. Don't hesitate or you will likely lose out on what should be the best AGA Convention ever.....don't be on the outside looking in! Register here!

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

It is now one month until the AGA Convention in Seattle, so here is an update with news and information for you!

The convention is now sold out!! There was record interest, and we are now expecting an attendence of around 240 people! If you are unable to attend, please reply and let us know immediately, so we can refund your registration and offer the spot to the many people on our waiting list.

Please book your flights and hotel rooms! Register for the Red Lion from the sidebar of the convention registration page at https://aga2019.com/register.

See you in Seattle!

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

The dust has settled, the rooms are empty, the last of the vendor pallets have been shipped home, and exhaustion has set in.....how about a short recap.

It was a great convention! There were approximately 207 registrations plus another 40 registrations for AGA folks, speakers, volunteers - the previous high number was about 150 registrations. There were approximately 20 vendors, both national and 5 local vendors in two vendor rooms. On Sunday, there were 1200 items (mostly plants) sold - the auction took over 7 hours (that's almost 3 items per minute). This was by far the largest, best attended, AGA Convention has ever had.....I hope you didn't miss it.

However, if you did miss it here are a few pictures I was able to grab as I ran by...

Aquascaping and Wabi Kusa Workshop results

Dennis Wong Aquascape Demo tank

Fluval 12 gal Aquascape by Jeff Miotke (serpentine stone from Tom Barr)

A couple of shots when the vendor rooms were 'quiet'

Banquet Room prior to dinner and Christel Kasselmann talk

Christel Kasselmann presentation

 

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Hi All,

Opps! I missed one......more eye candy done by Bailin of CAPS and Jen of AGA!

 

[Betty]

Thanks for the recap ... I did miss it. I have a very old ailing dog and just can't leave her for any amount of time.

I'm sure it was a good time and nice that it was so well attended. That Dennis Wong tank is amazing!

 

[lloyd378]

Love the tank scaping even though I don’t personally keep them.

Would love to check out more photos if anyone else in the group took some...... just saying haha