UK Consumer Fireworks Competition

meggsy

Registered User
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To get this area up and running I am posting links to some films of this years competition....each year I arrange a competition for teams to enter from all over the UK. Basically, each team has to use 730 Euros ( $950 - £500 ) worth of fireworks that are on sale to the public, and fire a display of 5 mins which can be set to music.....I think you will agree the results are pretty good....

In addition to these displays we also have Pro displays and other pyro shows...maybe some year a team from another country might take part

Thanks to the Madbob's for the films and the hosting;)


The Jumping Jolly Blokes
http://www.flashpointfireworks.com/movies/displays/stgeorge/first.mov

Team Sky Monkeys
http://www.flashpointfireworks.com/movies/displays/stgeorge/second.mov

Bouncing Bangers
http://www.flashpointfireworks.com/movies/displays/stgeorge/third.mov

Newsbox Toyboys
http://www.flashpointfireworks.com/movies/displays/stgeorge/fourth.mov

Probably The Best Fireworks Team In The Competition...Ever
http://www.flashpointfireworks.com/movies/displays/stgeorge/fith.mov


Steve
 

PyroKid

Registered User
Hey guys!

Hows it going?

Hope all is well!

I believe that we have already come in contact with one another online via the UKFR forum - i believe my user name was Adam at the the time or it might have been PyroKid but since then my membership has expired however i hope to renew my membership sooner rather than later!

I believe the PRO displays you refer to were put on by MLE Pyrotechnics and Flash Point Fireworks - A mate of mine, Phil Hooper, was taking part in one of the teams attending the UK Consumer Fireworks Competition.

I am glad that you have taken it upon yourself to organise a yearly competition in which the general public can take part . I believe that there was an attempt to achieve this a while back known as the Semi Pro Firework championships however this event has now once again turned back into a competition for Professional bodies.

Now that i am aware that such a thing exists, i may well enter the competition next year, that is, if im alowed, taking into consideration that i am a trade member however in the nature of the event will resort to using materials only available to the general public!]

With regards to the videos, i have tried to view them however quicktime keeps displaying an error message stating that i do not have the required compressor in order to view the video?

If you could give me a hint as to where i might be going wrong that would be great as it would be a shame if people couldnt gain access to the videos which, if nothing else, would provide people with an idea of what can be achieved by using Cat2 / Cat3 only!

All the best!

Adam Elameer
 

PyroKid

Registered User
Hey guys, not to worry, the problem has now been rectified however please note that in order to view the videos correctly, you will have to make sure that you have the latest version of Quicktime which is version 7.1.1.
 

PyroKid

Registered User
Hey meggsy, sorry to present yet more problems but the only two videos which seem to be working are that of the Jumping Jolly Blokes and that of the Newsbox Toy Boys.
 

meggsy

Registered User
Thanks for that I have checked my end and they all seem to work OK can't explain it.....my usual advice is turn the machine off and try again....I said Hi to Phil, I just I gave him a dodogy PS2 lol!!!...been working with him on some pro shows recently.....

Steve
 

PyroKid

Registered User
I have tried shuting down and re-booting the computer but still i am faced with the same problems - I have no problem what so ever with the Jumping Jolly Blokes and the Newsbox Toyboys videos but all the other videos are stating the following error whilst trying to open the files " Error 2048 - The file is not a movie file "
 

PyroKid

Registered User
I have FINALLY been able to make all five videos work, dont ask me how !

From what i can see, the competition must have been estremely close as i was extremely impressed with what all team members had to offer, especialy considering the fact that choreographing / hand firing a display to music is difficult at the best of times without having to compete against one another!

I guess this stands as a prime example of the kind of things that consumer material combined with careful planning / choreography is capable of!
 

PyroKid

Registered User
Hey Starsky, I am currently a BPA Level 1 / 2 accredited display operator working on a freelance basis for a number of display companies on an as and when required basis however i am looking to increase my involvement within the fireworks / pyrotechnics industry.

I am hoping that in the not so distant future that either i would be able to seek employment with an existing display company on a more regular basis or begin to explore the possibility of opening my own display company.

I am always on the look out for ways in which i could further increase my level of involvement within the fireworks / pyrotechnics industry so if anyone out there are on the look out for additional crew members either on a permanent or an as and when required basis, feel free to get in touch with me in order to discuss this matter further!
 

Starsky72

Registered User
aaaah - quite a large percentage of the guys who were taking part in the competition had some connection to a display company in one form or another so I wouldn't worry about that aspect :)
 

Tikey

Registered User
Hey Guys,

the videos looks very good. There is in Germany a consumer fireworks competition, too. It take part at the third weekend in September. This is the Webside:

http://www.feuerwerk-wettbewerb.de/

Is there a chance, that mabey FPM organize a consumer fireworks competion in Belgium or the Netherlands?

Greetings

Tom
 

meggsy

Registered User
Hi Tikey,

Good to see such enthusiasm extending out across the EU. Might be nice to pop over and see it.

Is there links to some videos in there, ich bedauere mein Deutsches bin nicht sehr gut

Maybe next year we can get a team out to Germany to show you how its done he he ;) :)

Steve
 
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brayno

Registered User
Meggsy,
Your videos of the Consumer Firework Competition has inspired me! I want to first thank you for that and now I must know what went wrong with it? (Normally a person asks what went right but since I want to do something similar in Canada I have to learn from their mistakes)

Could you provide me with more information such as was there sponsorship for the fireworks AND the event? Was it for charity? What do the winners get? What about the competitors do they get any compensation? Was it all shot electrically or done by hand lighting only?

So many questions,

Thanks,
 

meggsy

Registered User
Thanks for the kind comments…….

Organising something like this is not easy, but will try and sum up the pitfalls as succinctly as I can.

1. Venue - make sure you have a supportive venue - I by chance got to know a landlord of a pub with a field that was miles from and significant population - those that were close were advised well in advance (nowhere near livestock). The bar and food takings for the event was the venues payback.

2. The Team - The teams were made up of people who fire professionally mostly…it was showing the public what could be done if you had half an idea. Call on a lot of mates as well. They enter and pay for all the fireworks (which they were all able to source at trade price - the companies who provided the pyro usually get a mention.

3. Event Insurance - basically over here forget it, the costs was ridiculous you can understand that thought. So the event was a private event by invite only. The public who just happened to turn up at the pub ;-) saw the whole thing for free as did the spectators, word get round.

4. Additional Entertainment - the Cat 3 pyro whilst impressive I think needs bolstering, as I work for or have links with a number of pro companies they over the years kindly agreed to provide some extra entertainment again for free just to make the night special….the last two years have also seen a TV & Film Special Effects Company I have worked with come along and terrify the audience with some nice explosions.

So overall I would say it’s not what you know when organising something like this, its who you know. Its also about whether your willing to take on all that time organising it without making any profit, and you have a thick skin. I think that because it’s a free event no one gets hung up about money and are more than happy to provide entertainment gratis. Of course, the one thing that is more important, perhaps more than anything is peoples enthusiasm for fireworks, invite them and they will come.

The drawbacks/mistakes, there are non if you take this path , except the ribbing afterwards about the winners!!!!!! LOL

Good luck with it all if you do it.

Steve
 
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Jim Takacs

Registered User
WOW!!! Amazing stuff guys!! Your fireworks look soo different than the stuff we can get over here in the U.S. What is the maximum composision allowed in a cake over there? What size are your reloadable shells?? I just joined so I apologize if these are stupid questions to you! Once again, excellent stuff!! Jim
 
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