I don't disagree with any of Mr. Cervo's comments. I've vented on the subject of model contests quite a few times in this Forum; quite a few people have disagreed with me, but I've been surprised at the number who feel the same way I do.
In 57 years of model building I've entered, and judged, more than my share of model competitions. (I was a judge at, among others, the 1990 Mariners' Museum contest - which, until it was discontinued, was widely regarded as one of the biggest competetive events in the ship modeling world. I also, when I was working at the MM, wrote most of the rules for the 1985 version. I was supposed to judge that one, too, but I got laid up in the hospital with a bladder stone. Fate does work in mysterious ways.)
Three basic things bug me about model contests. One is that, somehow or other, they seem to bring out the worst, most childish behavior in people. (I used to be a little league baseball umpire; I'd rather face a herd of screaming kids and parents than a couple of guys who've lost at a model contest.)
Two: winning or losing seems (though it shouldn't) to have such an emotional effect on people. Docidle knows better than to give up ship modeling after his loss at that IPMS contest, but it sounds like it did discourage him a bit. Like I said, it shouldn't. (If you enter contests to have fun - great. If they're a major part of your existence and winning is crucial to your self-respect - not so great. I've known people who fall in the latter category. Most of them are not happy people.)
Three: people sometimes let their experience in competitions influence their modeling. I firmly believe that's inappropriate. No judge's opinion (and that's what judges have: opinions) is ever going to influence how I build a model. I love to look at other people's models, and I've gotten all sorts of good ideas from seeing how other people do things. But I don't need a judge to tell me which ideas are good and which ones aren't. That's my business.
I'm a big believer in model exhibitions. The model club I belong to (Carolina Maritime Model Society; next meeting Dec. 1 at the NC Maritime Museum in Beaufort) has an annual exhibition that coincides with the NCMM's wooden boat show. The members bring in their models and display them to the public. (Several thousand visitors usually show up.) I take pictures of them with my DSLR against a tailor-made backdrop, put the results on a CD, and give copies of it to anybody who wants them. The guys in the boat restoration shop make little 5-part fishing trawler kits out of wood scraps, and kids are invited to build them on the spot. (Most enthusiastic participants: Girl Scout troops. Typical reaction to the experience of building a model: ecstasy.)
There's no competition of any sort in that club. In about 15 years as a member of it I've never heard an uncivil word exchanged. The membership includes plastic modelers, wood modelers, and people who (like me) don't identify themselves as either. There are modern warship enthusiasts, HECEPOB enthusiasts, RC experts, and a guy who builds huge models of people's luxury yachts on commission. We all learn all sorts of things for each other, and have a great time. That's my kind of model club. The meetings are well worth the two-hour drive.
At my age (62) I don't feel like I have anything to prove as a modeler (or anything else). I don't need a judge to tell me my models aren't as good as Donald McNarry's, Harold Hahn's, or Phillip Reed's; I'm perfectly capable of figuring that out for myself. I'll never judge another model competition. I just might enter one, though - if the grand prize is a brand-new Ferrari and each Honorable Mention gets a new Corvette. And if I don't win, the judges better watch out.
It should go without saying that all the above observations are personal opinions, with which everybody is free to agree or disagree. But I do think they're worth thinking about.