Essentially all of Bay Area LEGO Club President Mark Benz’s LEGO creations (MOCs) shown over the holidays at the Museum of American Heritage were stolen last Thursday morning (February 4th, 2010). Taken were about 20,000 parts forming 20 square feet of LEGO models of San Francisco waterfront landmarks: Ghirardelli Square, the new Conservatory of Flowers, Palace of Fine Arts, Maritime Museum and municipal pier, and the USS Pampanito. Also, trains taken: California Zephyr, Whale Car, a red SW1000 diesel locomotive and freight cars, at least 4 small classic town sets: Camera car, speedboat, ultralite and 1 other, about 60 baseplates, and all (500) trees of all types used to scenic common areas of BayLTC layouts. Total value estimate is $6500. The minor good news is they didn’t take the Hyde St. Pier.
I’d very much like to thank all the BayLUG members and ALL (not just Adult) Fans of LEGO (AFOLs) who’ve expressed condolences and sent pictures and support concerning this theft.
A $500 Reward is offered. Today, the Fremont Police Department released their report, and request for assistance from the public. Please contact Detective Bill Veteran at (510) 790-6972.
An Argus Newspaper article appeared, and apparently this news has also made the wire services, and may appear on local TV and radio across the country on a slow news day. A story on The Brothers Brick has also been published. Please be on the lookout for sellers offering these models, or collections of parts that may have come from them, on eBay or Craigslist or local garage sales and flea markets.
JANUARY
BayLUG Meeting, January 24, at Dave Porter’s in Woodside
FEBRUARY
BayLUG Meeting, February 20, at Johannes’ Church in San Leandro
MARCH
BayLTC at Train Collectors Association Cal Stewart Meet, March 12-14. Public Day March 14, at Santa Clara Convention Center. Admission charge.
APRIL
Bricks By the Bay LEGO Convention, Fremont, April 9-11
MAY
BayLUG Meeting, May 15 at Johannes’ Church in San Leandro
BayLUG and BayLTC participation in the Maker Faire, May 22-23, San Mateo
JUNE
BayLUG Meeting, June 20 at MoAH in Palo Alto
BayLUG and BayLTC participation in Johannes’ LEGO Show tentatively June 25 through July 25 at his Church in San Leandro. Set up starting on June 20th after 2 PM, and the rest of that week
JULY
BayLUG and BayLTC at MoAH Vintage Vehicles, July 25, Palo Alto, across El Camino from Stanford Mall.
AUGUST
BayLUG Meeting ,August 22 at MoAH in Palo Alto.
SEPTEMBER
BayLUG Meeting, September 18 at Johannes’ Church in San Leandro.
BayLTC participation in GTE Train Show, Date TBA, San Jose.
OCTOBER
BayLUG Anniversary Meeting, October 30 at MoAH in Palo Alto.
NOVEMBER
BayLTC participation in GTE Train Show, Nov 26-28? Pleasanton.
DECEMBER
BayLUG and BayLTC present 8th Annual “Living LEGO-cy” Holiday Show, at MoAH in Palo Alto.
Set up Dec 3-4. MoAH Members Party Dec 5. Show opens to public Friday Dec 10. Open every Fri, Sat & Sun, except Holidays through Jan 9, 2011.
Show closes 1 week earlier than this year to avoid MLK weekend.
At the January BayLUG meeting at Dave Porter’s house, BayLUG members voted to confirm a new set of bylaws and a new group of officers to serve for the next two years. The new officers are:
Hundreds of people have been swarming every day to the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto to view the club’s “Living LEGO-cy” exhibit since it opened on December 11. As of December 20, our total visitors to date is 1572!
We’re getting more and more publicity each week, and the public attendance has been growing accordingly. We were interviewed Friday morning (December 18) for a Spanish language TV station KDTV Univision (Channel 14) which will be broadcast at 6am on Tuesday, December 29. We were featured in the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Mateo Daily Journal as well.
So come out and see the show, open every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (except New Years’ Day) through January 17!
On Sunday, May 24, a reporter and photographer from WIRED met with us at MoAH to document BayLUG’s plans for Maker Faire. See the resulting photo gallery and story, “Maker Faire 2009: Tech-Savvy Lego Maniacs Assemble a Plastic World” for more. They have a slide show featuring each of the BayLUG members who were present and at least one of each of our models. Click the thumbnails for more:
The Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group and Train Club (BayLUG/LTC) is pleased to announce their 5th Annual “Living LEGO-cy” public Holiday LEGO Show again at the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto.
The annual event is fun for the whole family, and grows larger every year. This year, BayLTC presents a 12 by 25 foot, fully sceniced LEGO train layout with trains running through well known San Francisco, town and suburban scenes. In addition, BayLUG members have a WIDE variety of their own cool LEGO creations and models on display, from huge cranes and dragons, to classic cars and Santa.
The show, in the Museum’s Livermore Learning Center, is open every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 7 December 2008 through 11 January 2009 from 11am to 4pm ONLY.
Free admission, though donations to the museum are always appreciated. The Museum is located at 351 Homer Ave. Palo Alto, CA. For more information please see www.baylug.org or www.MoAH.org or call (650) 321-1004.
The Bay Area LEGO Users Group (BayLUG) is pleased to announce that on October 10, 2008, we turn 10 years old, and we want you to come out and celebrate with us! The party is at the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto on Sunday, October 12. The room will be open to the public from 3pm-5pm. There will be displays to see, LEGO to buy, and refreshments to enjoy. The museum address is:
Museum of American Heritage
351 Homer Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301
* June 28, 2009: BayLUG meeting at MoAH
* August 7-23, 2009: train show at Johannes’ church
* September 26-27, 2009: GTE San Jose (tentative)
* October 4, 2009: BayLUG anniversay meeting at MoAH
* November 28-29, 2009: GTE Pleasanton (tentative)
* December 2009: MoAH Holiday display/layout starts
This offer is available to BayLUG members only. We should support them because O’Reilly/No Starch has sent the club several books, and they are also affiliated with Make Magazine/MakerFaire. Current LEGO titles available:
Forbidden LEGO
Getting Started with LEGO Trains
Jin Sato’s LEGO MINDSTORMS
The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Idea Book
The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Zoo! New!
The Unofficial LEGO Builder’s Guide
The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Inventor’s Guide New!
Virtual LEGO
Get 35% off from O’Reilly, No Starch, Paraglyph, PC Publishing, Pragmatic Bookshelf, Rocky Nook, SitePoint, or YoungJin books you purchase directly from O’Reilly. Just use code “DSUG” when ordering online or by phone 800-998-9938.Free ground shipping on orders of $29.95 or more. See details.
January 6, 2008: MoAH Holiday display ends
January 13, 2008: member’s only BayLUG meeting
January 26, 2008: BayLTC NMRA meeting
February 24, 2008: BayLUG meeting @ MoAH
March 8, 2008: BayLTC NMRA meeting
March 14-16, 2008: TCA Cal-Stewart Spring Meet
April 20, 2008: BayLUG meeting @ MoAH
May 3-4, 2008: Maker Faire
May 31, 2008: BayLTC NMRA meeting
June 22, 2008: BayLUG meeting @ MoAH
July 13, 2008: BayLTC NMRA meeting
July 18-20, 2008: NMRA NTS in Anaheim
July 26, 2008: BayLTC NMRA meeting
August 3, 2008: VVFF/BayLUG meeting
September 27-28, 2008: Great Train Expo in San Jose (tentative)
October 12, 2008: BayLUG 10th Anniversary meeting @ MoAH
November 2008: Great Train Expo in Pleasanton (tentative)
December 2008: MoAH Holiday display starts
As promised in the first communication from the 1st of October we, are informing you of decisions regarding the development of the new LEGO Power Functions train system. Using all the valuable feedback we received from the AFOL community, we have now reached some basic decisions about the scope of the future train system. We are still working on the details of the new Power Functions train system; however, there are certain features that have been decided. Some of these features are a new designed remote control with speed regulator, a new size rechargeable battery box with a built in speed regulator and finally we are exploring and seriously considering new track geometries thanks to the use of plastic rails.
As you know, this has been one of the most requested features from the AFOL community over the years. In late April 2007 we arranged a workshop for a group of 5 AFOLs involved in the LEGO train community, and they worked on some of the possible solutions and defined the basic needs for a new LEGO Power Functions train system along with the LEGO design and engineering team.
In this workshop it became clear what sort of elements and features to include in the new train system. The result of this workshop was the design of prototype elements. Detailed decisions about the specifications of the elements are still in discussion and will be for the next couple of months. We wish to continue the cooperation with the AFOL community in the development of the Power Functions train system and in late November we had another workshop where we built on the experiences from the first workshop. In the November workshop there were ten fans from around the world: Denmark, USA, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and United Kingdom. The idea was that the AFOLs and the LEGO team would build with the prototypes in order to determine what additional features to include, what to add to the concept and, finally refining it. This ensures that the new Power Functions train system gets input from the AFOL community and also ensures the features are as close as possible to what is requested by the AFOL community. However, please keep in mind that the new train system first and foremost should be suitable for the use of children, and therefore it is consequently being tested by children as well as AFOLs. There is an established budget for the initial development so while we would like to address all needs that are expressed; there is a high likelihood that we will be unable to address all needs. You will be updated on the results of the workshop and the continued development of the train system early in 2008. We continue to value and appreciate your feedback and suggestions with regards to this project.
Richard Stollery, Head of LEGO Community Development
LEGO 9V Train CommunicationBillund, Oct. 1st ’07
Dear all,Many of you are aware of the on-going discussions on the 9V train system. We
would like to thank you all for the input you provided to us directly and
through different channels. Based on critical business decisions and the
consultations and discussions with various AFOLs we have decided to focus on one
single solution in order to avoid the complexity of maintaining two systems in
parallel and in order to solve the issues we have with the actual 9V system and
the remote control City train system. We envision one upgradeable train system
for all ages in the future.
The LEGO Group has considered the future of the 9v at length, and has come to
the conclusion that there is not sufficient demand for the product line to be
profitable and competitive. The existing machines need to be replaced and
minimum order quantities at external suppliers for motors and speed regulators
are so high that the investment The LEGO Group would have to put in, would not
be rational or reasonable compared to sales figures of the existing 9V system.
The implication of this is that the 9v elements sold now are the last of the
remaining stock and subsequent production of elements for the 9V platform has
ceased.
The LEGO Group will launch elements for a new train system based on the new
electric LEGO Power Functions system in 2009. Using the LEGO Power Functions
system the new train system will benefit from a set of electric elements that
are cross theme, widely available and not completely train specific which allows
us to amortize the development and on going cost across multiple themes. We are
at an early development stage of the new train system and several AFOLs are
already involved in the development process, to ensure that the new system will
accommodate the types of features and functions requested by the AFOL community.
This collaboration with AFOLs is very important to The LEGO Group and we strive
to involve the Adult Fan Community as much as possible.
Holger Matthes, Germany, currently member of the AFOL team which is involved in
the process of developing the new system explains the situation in this way:
“The LEGO train system has to fulfill different needs for different target
groups in a very special way. On the one hand it’s a toy for kids because it is
easy to set up and because of the playability in the kid’s room, and on the
other hand it is also for AFOLs who build huge LEGO train layouts with realistic
looking train models and functionality. The LEGO Group is aware of this and the
company tries to support both needs within the given restrictions (e.g. costs
for a niche product like the LEGO trains).”
Using the universal LEGO Power Functions system for trains will give The LEGO
Group the ability to match the demands and wishes of the AFOL Train community in
the future.
Steve Barile, USA – President of ILTCO (International LEGO Train Club
Organization) and one of the involved AFOLs says about the new train system:
“I am excited that the new universal Power Functions system can make track side
accessories viable and potentially automated and interactive.”
He continues:
“With the track being exclusively plastic the LEGO Power Functions Train system
has the potential for new and innovative track geometries and continued
innovation by both The LEGO Group and the AFOLs.”
These AFOL quotes give you an impression of what will be possible with the
future system and we will keep you up to date on the development of the new LEGO
Power Functions train system. We expect to have more information and details to
share with you before the end of the year.
Richard Stollery, Head of LEGO Community Development
For the third consecutive year, BayLUG and BayLTC members exhibited imaginative LEGO trains and other creations for the holidays at the Musuem of American Heritage in Palo Alto. The exhibition of “Living LEGO-cy” was open for a month, closing Sunday, January 14th. Propelled by wonderful Bay-Area-wide media coverage, including multiple newspaper articles, web and radio event coverage, the last weekend brought more than 1300 visitors of all ages through the exhibit and musuem. The incredibly popular show again demolished the Museum’s attendance records, set the previous year by the last BayLUG/LTC holiday exhibit!
Once again, a common comment was “I didn’t know LEGO made trains!” The multi-track operating LEGO train layout featured both realistic and fanciful locales. Some of the more prominant LEGO entities shown were: the Calgary Tower, shown below, a large arch bridge, representations of the Island of Sodor, and several parts of San Francisco decorated for the holidays.
Surrounding the train layout were adjacent complemetary displays including a HUGE LEGO castle featuring a Harry Potter theme. Many technic construction equipment, cranes, cars, Mecha, an automatic trolley, and other interesting creations filled the display cases lining the walls.
Club members and Museum leaders were all very pleased, and also relieved as the popular exhibit drew to a close. As a result of its success, there may be a large display opportunity at MoAH for BayLUG/LTC coming this summer.
Calgary Tower, City and Layout Overview Thomas, Tunnels and Trains
The Scale Rails Online site has two LEGO Trains forums, one for general LEGO Train discussion, and one specifically for BayLTC discussion, which is sponsored by our club. I am a moderator of both forums, and I have been asked to help promote the LEGO forums. I would like everyone to take a look at the forums and let me know if you have any suggestions for either promoting them or enhancing the content, like more categories, etc. I have already placed links to them on both of our club LUGNET pages, and I would like links to them added to our links section.
On Saturday, July 15, members of BayLUG converged on the LEGO store in Valley Fair Mall to update the exhibit our club maintains in the “window on the community” display there. The old display, using “Micro-scale Space” as a theme, was removed and a new Castle-themed scene was installed. It will remain there for about six weeks. Stop by the store and see it!
A new LEGO trains forum has been created on the Scale Rails Online website. This is a good thing for LEGO trains because this site is for all model railroad scales, and it shows that traditional model railroaders are accepting LEGO trains into the hobby. I have been participating in the discussions for a couple of days now, and these forums are full of very friendly people. I invite all of you to check it out.
Updated: BayLTC has become a site sponsor and they have created a public forum for our club. I will post club news and events here, and everyone is encouraged to participate in the forums.
BayLUG is pleased to announce a special event: Exploring Mindstorms NXT with Mark Edelman, NXT Developer and Founder of Playing at Learning, a Northern California FLL affiliate.
Find out all about the new version of LEGO Mindstorms, with its all new motors and sensors, 32-bit processor, and built-in Bluetooth among other great new features.
The event will take place on May 13th, from noon-3:00pm in Byrd Hall at Wesley United Methodist Church, 463 College Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94306 [map]
The church sanctuary faces Cambridge Ave, and the social hall entrance faces College Ave. There is some limited parking on College, and a large parking garage at Cambridge Ave & Mimosa Lane. If you park there, you will have to walk through the church courtyard or go down Sedro Lane to get to the social hall.
We have chosen the theme of “micro-scale space” for the May 14 27 meeting at MoAH. (Note: The meeting was rescheduled to avoid a conflict with Mother’s Day.)
Build a model in a futuristic or science fiction setting, in micro-scale. Micro-scale means that a human is about the height of a LEGO brick, or smaller. There are two categories (micro-moonbase modules, and micro-scale spacecraft) and three age groups.
The contest is for members only. If you’re not a member, sign up prior to the meeting and you can participate in the contest.
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(8-wide Zephyr only)
On Saturday, July 15, members of BayLUG converged on the LEGO store in Valley Fair Mall to update the exhibit our club maintains in the “window on the community” display there. The old display, using “Micro-scale Space” as a theme, was removed and a new Castle-themed scene was installed. It will remain there for about six weeks. Stop by the store and see it!