Xmas Meetup 2019

The annual Xmas meet up (formally the R2 Builders Meet Up, now open to all droids!) was held this weekend in Camberley, Surrey.

Held at the Agincourt Rock Club, we had a nice big open space for droids to roll around in, and also had the first setup of the official 39.1%’ers racing course. Plenty of ideas were forthcoming for the racing course, including obstacles and other hazards to avoid. If you haven’t seen one of these races yet, they are carnage, with plenty of dirty moves being played. This sub section of the builders hobby is growing fast, and it is so much fun.

Along with the usual array of R Series astromechs, we had a healthy gathering of 39.1% racing droids, a few BB8s in various stages of finish, and some other static droids such as battle droids, pit droids, BD-1, and of course D-0. The last two being the work of the one and only Michael Baddeley.

Numerous MOTs were carried out at the event, along with a couple of prospective Tier 2 builds. Unfortunately they weren’t quite there, but definitely closer. Hopefully we will have a decent pool of Tier 2 to pull from very soon.

And of course, there was some money raising happening. To start with, John Gowan kindly donated an Ender 3 printer as a raffle prize, and just over £200 was raised from that alone. Together with a few sticker sales, and a dome sale, just under £300 was raised in total towards the National Autistic Society. Congratulations to Steve Griffiths for winning the raffle.

After the event was over, we descended on a nearby pub for a few drinks and a meal to wrap up the day in style.

Thanks to all those who attended, hopefully see you at events in the new year, or even perhaps in a weeks time at viewings of the new film across the country.