Tail End Charlie
A QUARTER-CENTURY OF E-DAY
Text: Jan Zdiarský
A few days ago, I came across a portfolio of smaller graphic design projects from years ago while going through my old things. In it were some cards in the colours of the city of Pilsen that took me back to around the turn of the millennium. At that time, my friend and colleague Jaromír Kohout from the Pilsen club asked me to design tickets for a model-making event that he was co-organising. He was acting as the organiser's right-hand man and director of the event. The event, E-Day, took place at the Dukla sports club shooting range in Pilsen and was supposed to be a major plastic modelling competition organised by Eduard, the largest Czech manufacturer of plastic models.
At the time, as an inactive modeler for many years, I didn't know much about the company. I knew it was a Czech manufacturer that supposedly produced high-quality plastic kits and metal accessories, and that was about it. In the years that followed, I gave a lecture on the air war of 1944 at Pilsen's E-Day about twice. I remember that even back then, E-Day had a supporting programme featuring the Czech Army, military history clubs, the police and even auto racing clubs.
While the scale of the event was smaller than in recent years, E-Day still stood out significantly from other model-making competitions in the region thanks to Eduard’s support. With its comprehensive concept, it gradually became an exceptional event not only in Central Europe.
After around four years, E-Day relocated to the Exhibition Grounds in Prague’s Holešovice district due to issues at the original venue relating to the 2002 floods and other technical problems. It spent one year there in 2005, and although this chapter is often overshadowed in participants’ memories by both the preceding and subsequent years, it marked two major milestones for E-Day: Firstly, it broke free from the West Bohemian region and moved to the centre of the country. The second was the event’s integration with the Czech Republic Plastic Modellers (IPMS) Championship for the first time. Personally, I lost touch with E-Day during this period, and I had no idea that I would become part of it just a few years later.
Following a one-year interlude in Holešovice, E-Day relocated once more, this time to the underground car parks of a shopping centre in Prague’s Nové Butovice district. It remained there for an impressive 10 years (2006–2016). The shopping centre's underground garage naturally gave rise to plenty of criticism. However, if you haven’t experienced the event in the Butovice shopping centre car park, it's difficult to imagine how a concrete area marked with parking lines can change when enclosed with green nylon netting, tables and vendor stands are set up, brighter overhead lights are installed to provide the right lighting, and, most importantly, the space is filled with thousands of people and plastic models. While the garages were gradually accepted by most, the later move away from Butovice sparked fresh grumbling. A modeller is simply never satisfied. I believe that it was precisely the Butovice period — which was linked to the Czech Republic Championship throughout — that shaped E-Day's character and influenced the event's future direction. At the same time, it was during this period that the event shifted to a two-day format for several years. However, the environment in which E-Day took place meant there were relatively limited possibilities. The urban housing estate and transport infrastructure in the area made outdoor events almost impossible. Even the indoor events were challenging because everything took place in a single, albeit large and enclosed, space. Consequently, the supplementary events remained merely an addition to the main attraction: the competition exhibition itself and the offerings from a large number of vendors. Personally, I became involved with E-Day again roughly halfway through the Butovice era, in 2008. By that point, I had been part of Eduard for almost a year, and we had started to develop our own independent corporate marketing strategy. Naturally, the activities surrounding E-Day became part of that.
After ten years in Butovice, news emerged in 2016 of upcoming construction work on the department store’s car park. It was clear that E-Day would no longer be able to use those spaces. We scrambled to find new options. For the 2017 edition, we moved to the luxurious Top Hotel in Prague’s Chodov district. However, this was a year that most E-Day veterans remember least fondly, and it was clear that we needed to keep looking. It was also the first year that E-Day returned to a one-day format. We subsequently chose the Exhibition Grounds in Lysá nad Labem, which primarily focused on agricultural exhibitions. A few days after the horses had left the hall, modellers and vendors moved in and transformed the place beyond recognition. The venue offered further possibilities for the event’s development. At the time, complaints mainly centred on the move away from Prague, although transport links from the capital remained exceptionally favourable and posed virtually no obstacle.
Memories of the two-year period in Lysá nad Labem are dominated by the outdoor events, particularly the solo performance of the blue-nosed P-51D Mustang in 2019 and, above all, the Spitfire's attack on a historic train in 2018. These are events that will be hard to surpass.
Following a hiatus in 2020–21 due to the pandemic, E-Day relocated to the former AFV training ground in Milovice, just a short distance away. It retained its one-day format. The Tankdrome and its exhibition hall offered opportunities for a diverse supporting programme, combining the event with a unique atmosphere and the presence of numerous historic military ground vehicles, as well as outdoor activities with an adventurous character.
E-Day at the tank training ground certainly had great potential and appeal, but it encountered some limitations. Although the exhibition spaces were extensive, they required significant compromises from both organisers and participants. Above all, the ever-present dust was not ideal for the top-of-the-range competition models. This complaint was certainly justified.
During the two-year period of the pandemic (2020–2021), the Czech Championship naturally became separated from E-Day. This was not just due to the pandemic itself. For several years, it had become apparent that the concept and organisation of the 'Championship' did not fully align with the event organisers' vision at Eduard. The first Czech Model Masters competition was held as part of E-Day during the first year in Milovice, and it quickly became the largest and most prestigious plastic model building competition in the Czech Republic. Eduard continues to collaborate with the Association of Plastic Model Builders (SMČR/IPMS CZE) as a partner for their Czech Championship. However, this separation has enabled E-Day and its competition to evolve in a way that better reflects the nature of the event itself.
The Milovice period, as well as the previous two years in Lysá, saw a further evolution in the importance of the supporting events. Rather than being mere 'side events', they became a pillar that was just as important as the competition itself and the gathering of manufacturers and retailers in the industry.
This trend was clearly evident at the 2025 event, which was held for the first time at the Litoměřice exhibition grounds. When it became clear that it would not be suitable to continue holding E-Day at the Milovice tankdrome, modelers from Litoměřice and Eduard management colleagues Jakub and Martin Nademlejnský proposed holding E-Day at the Zahrada Čech exhibition grounds in their hometown. Negotiations with the exhibition grounds' administration, as well as an initial survey of the site, revealed the venue's potential and the possibility of cooperation. The first Litoměřice E-Day took place in October 2025. Some years ago, a Friday evening programme was added to the Saturday event for those who did not want to arrive on Saturday morning. The accompanying programme continued the trend of previous years, growing in both interest and significance for the event itself.
One limitation of the 2025 E-Day was the timing — the relatively cold October weather caused problems, which is also why the 2026 E-Day was moved to the end of June. After nine years, it is returning to a two-day format. Including Friday evening, it is essentially more than a two-day event.
The organisation of the Czech Model Masters competition, the participation of major manufacturers and retailers in the industry, extensive club and Special Interest Group (SIG) exhibitions, stylish dining and, above all, a rich supporting programme running across several tracks demonstrate just how far the event has come since the beginning of the millennium.
Today, E-Day is not just a plastic modelling competition with vendors and a supporting programme; it is a PLASTIC MODELLING FESTIVAL — a place and time for gathering where the hobby of plastic modelling thrives and is energised. Come to Litoměřice on the weekend of 26–28 June to experience it for yourself.