Amador County Fairgrounds
Plymouth CA
SC 2025 Registration Form (pdf)
DEMONSTRATORS
Adrian Legge, of the UK, will be one of the demonstrators, with Dennis Dusek striking.
Bill Roan will join the CBA demonstration team for the annual Spring conference to be held at the Amador County Fairgrounds in Plymouth next April.
Bill is a very talented demonstrator who brings equal parts of humor and blacksmithing skills to his demo.
Ben Abbott is a Forged in Fire Judge and two-time FIF champion who began making blades after seeing arms and armor in museums and castles around England when he was 13. Not being able to buy a sword at the time, he decided to make one for himself.
Bette Barnett - Studio Jeweler, Educator, Author
Bette is an authority on steel jewelry. She started studying the steel/gold fusing process in 2013. She has developed or refined many innovative techniques, including Keum Boo on steel, fusing alternative metals to steel, fusing powdered metals to steel, and, most recently, painting with powdered metals.
She will demonstrate bonding gold and silver to carbon steel using a process called Keum Boo.The contrast of the precious metal foil against the deep black of patinated steel results in a high-impact way to add a bit of bling to your work.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Demonstrators
Conference Registration
Schedule And Site Map
Getting There And Lodging
Banquet / Pot-Luck
Education / Hands On
Competitions / Field Trip
Conference Merchandise / Tailgating
ONLINE REGISTRATION:
Online registration is open until April 8. After that date, participants may register in person at the event. Limited Banquet tickets might be available for walk-in registrations.
Early Bird Registration through March 26, 2025
- CBA MEMBER - Full Conference – $225.00
- NON MEMBER - Full Conference – $255.00
- CBA MEMBER - Single Day (any day) – $85.00
- NON MEMBER - Single Day (any day) – $115.00
Online Late Registration March 27, 2025 - April 8, after that you may register in person at the event.
- CBA MEMBER - Full Conference – $265.00
- NON MEMBER - Full Conference – $295.00
- CBA MEMBER - Single Day (any day) – $95.00
- NON MEMBER - Single Day (any day) – $125.00
* Non-member rates include a conference duration-only CBA membership. Please consider upgrading to a full-year member for only $35 more. Please complete the membership transaction prior to registering for the conference, then register for the conference.
** Members can register additional participants at the member rate. If more than 2 additional participants are to be registered please contact the CBA Secretary, Michael Suwczinsky (secretary@calsmith.org )
** A non-participating chaperone with a minor participant (8 and older) is free with a fully paid registration for the minor. Chaperone can be registered at the Registration Table at the conference. Children under 8 are free when accompanied by a fully registered adult.
REFUND POLICY
Refund Policy. A full refund of conference fees will be given if a member cancels at least 4 weeks before the conference starting date. A half (½) refund of conference fees will be given if the member cancels one week before the conference starting date. No refunds for “No Shows”, except in cases of extreme hardship, a death in the family, major illness, etc.
MAIL-IN REGISTRATION: SC 2025 Registration Form (pdf)
CONTACT & CO-CHAIRS:
Marc Aspery - blacksmith@ocsnet.net
Victoria Ritter - education@calsmith.org
SCHEDULE AND SITE MAP:
SC 2025 Schedule
SC 2025 Schedule - for phones
(TBD)
GETTING THERE
Amador County Fair and Event Center is located right off CA Hwy 49 in the town of Plymouth, CA. Use the Livestock Gate off Empire Street about 100 yards north of the intersection of Empire St and Hwy 49.
The nearest major airport is about 1.5 hours away, Sacramento International Airport (SMF).
LODGING OPTIONS:
On-site:
Tent camping and limited RV spots with electrical/water hook-ups and RV dry camping spots available. Contact the Fairgrounds directly to make your reservation after you have registered for the conference. Call Sherri at (209) 245-6921 or email havefun@amadorcountyfair.com
- Tent camping on the main lawn: $10/per tent/per night
- Car camping: $10 per night
- RV Camping (Dry): $20/per night
- RV Camping (limited spots. w/hook-up water/electric): $25/per night
(dump station available for an extra fee)
Restroom and Showers available on-site for attendees.
Off-site:
Plan ahead and secure your space to stay:
Lodging Information
Lodging Info Word doc (better for phones)
Plus a variety of additional campgrounds, B&Bs, AirBnBs, and VRBOs are available in the area. Book early!
SATURDAY NIGHT BANQUET
Tickets: $35 each, $18 for Children 12 and under. Must order by March 26, 2025. Click here to get tickets.
A vegetarian/vegan option is available. Contact one of the Conference chairs if you have other dietary needs we can accommodate.
- Education Certificate Presentations
- Live Auction
- Silent Auction
FRIDAY NIGHT BBQ POT-LUCK
For the Friday night potluck, CBA will supply the main dish fixings. Please plan to contribute appetizers, side dishes, desserts, beverages, or supplies.
We will do "Iron-in-the Hat" on Friday during the pot-luck. Bring your ferrous and non-ferrous treasures to donate early!
GALLERY SHOWCASE
Bring your most interesting work to show off in the member's gallery.
Also please bring entries for the CBA Forged in the Box: Flora or Fauna challenge.
LECTURES on Friday night with lead demonstrators
Education (Details here are TBD)
- Curriculum workshops
- Beginner Smiths; Young Smiths (S)
- Advanced topics workshops
Hands-on Workshops
We will have 2 hands-on workshops available. You must sign up ahead of the conference to be hands-on.
Dave Carroll will do 2 sessions of "Forging a Skull" -- 12 registrants per session. $15 in addition to conference registration. This workshop will hone your repoussé skills. Other conference registrants can watch from the sidelines at no charge. Click 'here' to sign up for this.
John Barron will lead a 3-day intensive workshop on building a railing. The first 10 registrants can participate hands-on. $25 in addition to conference registration. Other conference registrants can watch from the sidelines at no charge. Click 'here' to sign up.
COMPETITIONS
Small Contests/Competitions: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights for smiths of all levels.
Field Trip
Knights Foundry (in Sutter Creek, about 10 miles from the conference site) has invited conference participants to a special event -- details TBD
CONFERENCE MERCHANDISE
CBA will offer t-shirts and zip-up hoodies with the conference logo. They must be ordered by March 7, 2025, for delivery at the conference. These are offered on the mail-in registration form and will soon be offered on the website as well.
TAILGATING: Limited spots will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Indicate in the comments when you register or contact Michael Suwczinsky (secretary@calsmith.org) to secure your spot.
VENDORS: CBA would like to invite vendors of blacksmithing related items to come and sell their wares. Please reach out to Mark Aspery (blacksmith@ocsnet.net) for details.
