Join us in June for PLAAY-Fest! Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 06.20.26
Road Trip! We're headed to the midwest this summer, and are planning a day for PLAAY! Join us June 20th in Eau Claire, Wisconsin for a PLAAY gamer meet-up that will include a Reel-Time Pro Fishin' tournament (with prizes!) and the official debut of the updated Fury Football and Fury Hardball games. PLUS open PLAAY all day and local pro sports that evening!
We'll meet Saturday 06.20.26 at "The Bridge" church, 1210 E Clairemont Ave, Eau Claire, WI 54701, starting at 9a. There'll be plenty of room for everyone, and NO admission charge, it’s totally FREE--just show up! We'll plan on ice-breaker type stuff for the first hour or so and then launch a couple of OPTIONAL organized activities (participate or not, totally up to you)...
• 10a, Reel-Time Pro Fishing Tournament: We’re planning to create a Reel-Time version of (local) Half-Moon Lake, stocked with lots of surprises! PLAAY prizes for the top catches!
• Noon, Fury Football PLAAY-Fest Championship: Again, continuing the local, down-home, grass-roots theme, we’ll bring Fury Football versions of the Axemen and the rest of the league’s teams, with a mini-season or tournament (depending on how many people we have!) to crown our own PLAAY-Fest Fury Football Champion!
• 2p, “League of Their Own” 1940s Women’s Baseball Mini-Season: This is something I’ve always wanted to do, and, well, what better place than here? Wisconsin was home to several of the real-life All-American Girls’ Professional Baseball League teams, and we’ll create a special “what if?” Eau Claire-based AAGPBL team for this event, to compete alongside Kenosha, Racine and the other real-life 1944 clubs!
Aside from these activities, we'll have open PLAAY for whatever game you want to bring. We'll have demo copies of all the PLAAY games if you want to try something new. Come and go as you like, we'll have the community room all day!
Then, that evening, we'll have not one but TWO local pro sports options! Eau Claire is home to both the Express of the Northwoods Baseball League and the Axemen of The Arena (Football) League, and BOTH are in action that Saturday evening (06.20.26). The Express play the Willmar Stingers at historic (and beautiful!) Carson Park while the Axemen host the Iowa Woo (7:05p) at the state-of-the-art Sonnentag Center.
• NOTE: We are exploring options to extend "PLAAY-Fest" into a second day (Friday) at a second venue, check back soon for more information!
It'll be a memorable day of tabletop and live sports, shared between friends. It's totally FREE admission for the Saturday tabletop games portion of the event, you spring for your own ticket if you decide to go with us to one of the games that evening.
Please let us know if you have any questions, and give us a heads-up if you think you're going to attend (so that we can plan better!). Hope to see you this summer in Eau Claire!
Here's some additional, helpful information...
• We don't have an "official" hotel for this event, you can choose what works for you from among the many different options Eau Claire offers. The Holiday Inn Express West (2703 Craig Road) is located just two miles from The Bridge and has great reviews, so we're recommending it as a first-choice option for folks making the trip in from out of town. Suggested that you book earlier rather than later because Eau Claire's annual Summer Jam concert series is happening that same weekend (outside the city): Friday night's line-up features Third Eye Blind, The Wallflowers, Blue Oyster Cult and Starship. Saturday's line-up is Styx, Bret Michaels, the Gin Blossoms and the Spin Doctors!
• Here's the official Northwoods League baseball website for more information on the league and the Eau Claire Express.
• Here's the official website for The Arena League Football for more information on the league and the Eau Claire Axemen.
• Here's the website for The Bridge Church, for more information and directions.
• Here's more information about Eau Claire’s Summer Jam 2026.