DemiCon 2011

It's Almost Been Two Years

On April 3 our local builders group will be two year's old. We decided to have our anniversary barbecue early to coincide with Lynelle's visit for the VEX Robotics Championship. Brad kicked everything off by firing up the grill. And as usual, open flames draw a crowd.

Those who could, brought their R2s for a group picture. We kept them inside while we were eating.

I bought an R2 Cake Pan off of Craig's List. I baked and decorated my first themed cake! Of course I had to walk around and see whose mouths turned blue from the icing.

There was no building today. Everyone just hung out, played games, and enjoyed each other's company.

As the day got later we took the droids outside for a group picture in front of the pool.

The feminine portion of the builders club posed for a picture.

...And then the rest of us decided we wanted to be in a group picture to.

2010 VEX Robotics Championship Of The Americas

The 2010 VEX Robotics Championship Of The Americas was held this weekend at the Omaha Kroc Center. The builders club was asked to come entertain the crowd for the participant party after the championship on Saturday night. Our contact, Allison Pappas, reserved a booth in the main hallway between two of the game areas so we could interact with everyone. We had two mobile R2s and a mobile R3. Lynelle, Jason, and I had our non-mobile R2's on display also.

Everyone took turns manning the booth and fielding questions from parents, teachers, and competitors

Brad ran his R2-D2 around.

Jeff got his R2-TD running about an hour before the event. It looks like his maiden voyage was a complete success!

Lynelle's all aluminum R2-AL was on display.

T3 ran around entertaining the crowd. Most people didn't recognize it and referred to it as a large robotic dog.

Many thanks to Rob and Ben from the 501st volunteered to watch the booth and answer questions.

As we wrapped up the evening, we gathered the standing droids and posed for a picture

2009 Holiday Air Affair

The 2009 Holiday Air Affair was another success. As an R2 Builder, I took on a lesser role this year opting to spend more time with the kids. Santa arrived on an Ashland Fire Truck and was escorted in by Stormtroopers.

Hannah and Joshua got to sit with Santa and tell him what they wanted for Christmas. Wouldn’t you know it, a huge building full of airplanes and the kids decide to play with blocks.

The R2 Builders gathered before everyone got there for pictures.

The crowds and the picture line formed. Everyone loves Star Wars, and Brad and Syrena (Darth Vader and Princess Leia) decided to ham it up.

I saved the best picture for last. One of the 501st members let some kid dress up in his Jawa costume. The R2 Builders got him to hold Brad’s R2 dome above his head (Brad suffered only a mild heart attack).