Your experience was similar to mine at the Cannabis cup in Denver a few years ago. The vendors were forced to charge for their products that you could only smoke at their booths. You were allowed to bring your own and share in the outside part of the venue. The crowd was insane too. We showed up about an hour before they opened and still waited in line for almost two hours. It was fun, but haven't been since.

Its good to see you were able to enjoy your local venue though. Glad to see the awareness is spreading. The "grow tube" that you showed would make a great art piece but i doubt it has enough size for more than a micro green garden.