Frequently Asked Questions

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What is the registration deadline to register entries?

The deadline to enter your competition pieces depends on whether or not you are attending the convention. If you are not able to make it to this years convention and plan on shipping your entries to the NWTF headquarters, we must have those entries before the truck leaves for convention. So if you are shipping your entries, the deadline for us to receive those entries at the NWTF headquarters is close of business February 6th, 2023. If you are planning on attending convention and can check your entries into the contest on Tuesday February 14th, 2023 between 2pm and 6pm at the Gaylord Opryland Events Center, then your deadline is the 13th of February at Midnight.

Where do I ship my entries and will you let me know they have arrived?

If you are shipping your entries you will need to ship to the following address by February 6th, 2023

NWTF Callmaking Contest
ATTN: Kevin Alley
770 Augusta Rd.
Edgefield, SC 29824

Yes, you will be notified by email when we receive a package from you. We do not open that package until we get to Nashville though. We cannot be responsible for damages that occur during shipping.

When do you open auctions for bidding?

After all calls have been received and the judges have determined the winners. We do it this way because sometimes a callmaker has no intention of entering the call they register. The contest should not be used to acquire what the market value is for any piece entered.

Is judging fair?

We do our best to select judges that are not biased. With that said, a judges opinion is always subjective. When they score an entry, the score they give is their opinion on the piece they are scoring and NOT the callmaker. We are able to see every score a judge has given and review those after the competition has been completed. If we feel a judge has been unfair, that judge is replaced the following contest year.

Why was the contest moved to the Gaylord Opryland Event Center

Traditionally we have had section B2 in the convention hall. This year we were originally moved to B1 to make room for more booths because of the high demand for the 50th anniversary. However, the long-standing contract with the Gaylord states that the Gaylord has the ability to rent out section B1 up to 30 days before the NWTF convention. In most years, the Gaylord does not exercise this clause in the contract (in 2021, B1 was used for storage). This year was different. The Gaylord rented the space out back in September as they have the right to do. As part of the contract, the NWTF gets the B1 space back before the convention starts on Thursday. Unfortunately though, the contest area MUST be set up on Tuesday evening so the judges can judge on Wednesday morning. This simply would not work, so the contest was moved to the Event Center so we could follow our pre-designed schedule. The change was not planned by the NWTF until we had no other good choices.

Are you bringing bid sheets back?

No. Online auctions are way more efficient. We understand that some are inconvenienced by this decision and we apologize for that inconvenience. However, it has become too difficult to proceed with the bid sheets. Online bidding opens up the bidding to wider range of people, is prone to less human error, is faster, and has a lot less stress to deal with from everyone involved.

When will I receive the items I win in Auctions?

Live auction items must be picked up after the live auction has completed. Online auction items will be packed up on Saturday afternoon, shipped back to the NWTF headquarters, and picked up by the company who does the shipping for us. You should expect delivery in 1-3 weeks after the auctions end on the weekend of February 25th, 2023.

Are you creating a Callmaking Hall of Fame?

We can neither confirm or deny this rumor. 😀 Come to the Callmaking area this year for something special. *hint, *hint.

What is the schedule of events for the competition?

Please understand that while we do our best to make these dates and times final, sometimes things are added and changed. These changes are beyond our control. Please check back here often to see any changes. We will post them here.


  • Monday February 6th 5:00pm EST - Deadline for calls being mailed to headquarters and registration deadline for mailed calls.
  • Monday February 13th 11:59:59pm - Deadline for calls to be registered if you are bringing your calls to in-person checkin
  • Tuesday February 14th 2:00pm - 6:00pm CST - in-person checkin of calls at the Gaylord Opryland Event Center outside the Delta Portico
  • Wednesday February 15th 7:00am - 6:00pm CST - Calls are Judged (No Callmakers allowed)
  • Wednesday February 15th 8:00pm CST - Estimated time the winners are posted
  • Wednesday February 15th 8:00pm CST - Online Auctions Start
  • Thursday February 16th 8:00am - 10:00am CST - Workshop seminar (Kevin Lynch & Kevin Rouse)
  • Thursday February 16th 10:00am - 12:00pm CST - Workshop seminar (Richard Patterson& Brad Samples)
  • Thursday February 16th 1:00pm - 4:00pm CST - Workshop seminar (Mike Lapp & Bob Fulcher)
  • Friday February 17th 8:00am - 10:00am CST - Workshop seminar (Dave Constantine)
  • Friday February 17th 10:00am - 12:00pm CST - Workshop seminar (Brent Hoover)
  • Friday February 17th 1:00pm CST - Hall of Fame Ceremony (No tickets needed)
  • Friday February 17th 2:00pm - 4:00pm CST - Awards Ceremony & Live Auction (No tickets needed, Live bid Paddle required to Bid)
  • Saturday February 18th 3:00pm CST - Callmaking area starts closing down and packing up
  • Saturday February 25th - Various Times - Online auctions close The weekend after convention is over
  • February 27th - March 10th - Calls are shipped out to online auction winners (About 50 packages a day)