ABCon 2016 – Farm Haven – Union, Kentucky

ABCon 2016 – Farm Haven – Union, Kentucky                     July 21 – 24, 2016

Note: I am several days behind in writing of the travels I have made but trying to catch up as quickly as possible.

I have been part of an online gaming community called The Amazon Basin since 2001 where friends play online games with other friends.  The community has grown over the years and what started out with one game, Diablo has turned into a guild for several other games including Diablo 3, World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, and Path of Exile to name just a few of the game titles.  The original idea was to have a forum to discuss different character builds, tactics, armor and weapons to use while playing.  The community grew in membership to over twelve hundred people with at one time over 6,000 active players at any given time.  Our membership ranged from kids in high school to members who were in their seventies.  Many of the kids have grown up, gone to college and working now.

What started with a few people at a backyard BBQ sixteen years ago has grown into an annual gathering which varies location each year to a different part of the country to help make it easier for people to attend.  Our biggest ABCon was in Las Vegas in 2005 where over one hundred people attended from all over the world.  That year we had members from Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and other countries in attendance.  We have had events in Las Vegas (2), Chicago, Portland (2), California (2), Florida (3), New Orleans, Austin, Boston, Kentucky, Seattle, and Toronto Canada.

This year’s event was held on a three hundred acre farm in Union Kentucky.  

It had an assortment farm related items from being a working cattle farm, corn for maze in the fall, pumpkin field, animals for petting, egg laying chickens and three llamas, one of which was named O’llama Bin Laden.  There was also a herding dog who kept the chickens and llamas from wandering off.  Our hosts Ian and Amy were welcoming and glad that the Basin had finally had a gathering here as Ian had tried for several years to get the farm on the schedule.

Mike Gaddy (Baccer) and I arrived at Farm Haven just before ten in the morning so we could drop off my vehicle and then go to the Cincinnati airport (CVG) to pick up our friend Russ (Russtovich) who had flown from Western Canada to Toronto and then south to Cincinnati. It only took about twenty minutes to go from the farm to the airport so on the way back to the farm it was time to stop get some ice and drinks for the coolers.  A few snacks and beer later we were back at the farm and hanging out on the back porch welcoming everyone as they arrived.

Thursday afternoon had mostly people who had attended other events or traveled a long way to get to Kentucky. About 2/3 of those coming arrived by late afternoon or early evening, the pulled pork that Mike and I prepared yesterday was served for dinner. After dinner several members of our makeshift long distance band called The Bacon Boys gathered on the back porch to play the rest of the evening. The band members live all around the country and play musical instruments at home.  

People attending ABCon will get on the forums and suggest songs for the playlist.  They will learn the songs alone practice them a few hours before our Saturday night banquet. Great music was played late into the night before everyone broke up and headed off to sleep.  Several of us went down to the barn area and camped out there while others were in rooms on the property or nearby motels.  It was a fun day and great seeing old friends again since last year.

On Friday morning everyone gathered at the main house for breakfast and those who were going on excursions could coordinate the day’s activities.  Several people were going to the Cincinnati Zoo while others were meeting for lunch.  Another group left later in the afternoon which was going to eat an early dinner then take in a Cincinnati Reds baseball game.  Mike, Russ, and I stayed at the farm with several others enjoying the quiet and were amused by the dog herding the llamas from one field to another paddock.  He also herded the chickens which were too close to the road several times. For those of us who stayed at the farm we grilled out hamburgers which came from one of the farm animal stock which was recently harvested for fall and winter food stores.  It was fresh and delicious flavor which everyone enjoyed.

Saturday morning had everyone back for Ian’s breakfast and to coordinate the day’s activities and the arrival of several more people.  A group went to the underground tunnels in Cincinnati. It gave history of the prohibition days and had a brewery or two in there. Most stayed around the farm and the Bacon Boys did an afternoon rehearsal before the evening’s fun began. Ian and Amy were giving tours around the farm. The area we were hanging out was just a very small part of the overall size of this beautiful farm.  It had rolling hills, two different herds of cattle with a bull in each pasture taking care of things.  The spring calves were several months old but were doing well.  The corn maze was coming along and growing taller and will be ready for the fall festival on the farm.  The pumpkin field was also being readied for fall.  There is a lovely barn area where weddings are held with dance floor and nice mood lighting. There is an old house which was moved to the property many years ago which is a museum and has some really need items from the late 1800’s and the turn of the century.  There were many old photos and artifacts on display.  During the festival they serve ice cream in that building.

The banquet for Saturday evening had more BBQ from a local diner and after dinner everyone gathered on the lawn for an evening concert by The Bacon Boys with several people joining them on the porch to sing songs.  It was a great evening as we watched the sun set and moon and stars come out over our heads.  The first set was many favorites everyone knew by heart so there was a lot of singing from the crowd gathered. The second set had a variety of songs with some new ones that rocked late into the night. The mood was great, Stuart, Ian’s dad brought out his drone several times over the weekend and flew it around the farm and surrounding area.  At the start of the concert he was filming an aerial view of the singing and all of us out on the lawn.  It was pretty cool to see him operate it over the several days we were on the farm.

The party broke up between one and two in the morning with most of us hanging around as those that were staying in local motels departed. Russ, Mike and I went down to the barn and camped out there for the second night. It was hot with only a slight breeze so the bugs were bad that night getting plenty of bug bites between the three of us.  Around four in the morning a slight breeze was flowing through the barn driving away the many bugs so it was easier to sleep the rest of the night.

Sunday is always a sad day with everyone slowly making their way out of town?  Several people stopped by for breakfast, saying their goodbyes until next year and heading out of town.  Most were driving but several were flying out so there were several trips to the airport.  The rest of us were taking tours of the farm and spent the day relaxing.  Mike headed off to Asheville and I took Russ to the airport in the afternoon so he could make his flight back to Toronto Canada. By late afternoon pretty much everyone was packed and departed. 

The evening had several of the stragglers who were not leaving until Monday morning in the living room playing several board games.  I unloaded my vehicle and repacked the camping and other gear so I would know where things were and consolidate items to take up less space. Once I finished I saw on the porch, watched the sun go down and planned my drive through Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia in the morning.

ABCon 2016 was officially in the books with everyone having a great time on the farm. This was completely different from anything we had done before so everyone’s expectations were varied not knowing what to expect. For me it was a great place to hold the event since the farm has plenty of room, several great places to interact with each other and nature all around us to amuse and entertain us as well as experiencing a slow paced lifestyle.  

Thanks Ian and Amy for hosting a great gathering this year. The farm is vibrant and beautiful; it was great spending time with you.

Ice