Bricks by the Bay

Call For Presentations

admin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:59:56 +0000

Bricks By The Bay 2012 is looking for LEGO-related talks, roundtables, and special activities for the Convention, taking place March 16 -18 in Santa Clara, CA. Going to and putting on sessions are one of the things that makes a Lego convention fun.

Past talks have included publishing LEGO-related books, Using RCX bricks to control motorized models, using LEGO Mindstorms in the classroom, among many others. Roundtables, or moderated discussions, have included Planning for the NMRA convention, discussions about publishing BrickJournal, and creating LEGO sculptures.

Possible ideas include:

Steampunk LEGO Creations
An Introduction to LDraw and related programs
An Introduction to Lego Digital Designer
Packing models for shipping without breaking
De-yellowing Bricks
Lego Plans on eReaders and the iPad
LEGO at Burning Man
Building Big – skyscrapers and other large buildings
Bricklink — An Average Seller’s Perspective
FIRST LEGO League
Collecting Rare Elements
LEGO Pirates Roundtable
Steam Locomotive Design Techniques
SNOT techniques
Half-Plate offsets
Microscale building
Sorting & Storing Roundtable

All we need for more talks, roundtables, and activities are ideas and people to run with them. A projector and screen for your computer will be available.

Anyone who would like to run a presentation or activity should e-mail proposals or questions to Paul Sinasohn (singlow AT gmail DOT com—please mention Bricks By The Bay in the subject). If possible, please include a possible title, brief description for the event program, and any time constraints or facility requirements. Events are typically scheduled to run up to sixty minutes but can be scheduled for more or less time.

I need proposals by February 26 to have time to prepare the schedule and the program. Earlier is better. All presenters must register for the full convention.

Bricks by the Bay is an annual Lego hobbyist convention and exposition in the San Francisco Bay Area. Bricks by the Bay 2012 will take place March 16 – 18, 2012, at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara. For more information or to register visit www.bricksbythebay.com

Registration is now open for Bricks by the Bay 2012

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 23:55:40 +0000

Convention Registration is now open!

For the serious LEGO® builder we again will offer a LEGO fan convention! The event will be held Friday-Sunday, March 16-18. Benefits of attending the convention include:

Custom engraved name badge made out of LEGO bricks
Access to speeches, presentations, and discussion sessions
Show your models in the Grand Ballroom for convention attendees and the public
Become a vendor (additional fee applies) to sell LEGO and related products at the convention and public show
Exclusive discounts at the LEGO store (TBD)
Chance to receive free LEGO sets in Prize drawings and contests

The event theme this year is “Green.” It is inspired by the fact that St. Patrick’s Day takes place that weekend, but we’re not limiting it to that: any creative use of the color green, subjects relating to the environment, and of course Ireland or St. Patrick’s Day themed models are suitable. In 2010 our theme was “The Brick Artistic” and in 2011 it was “Creative Combinations.”

If you’re interested in attending the whole convention, read all about the Convention, Hotel, Registration, and Schedule, along with more information about the weekend’s events.

Not sure if you want to come to the convention or just the public day? Read our FAQ to find out more.

How to Register:

Go to the hotel site and reserve your room if you’re staying at the hotel – $10 discount per room on convention fees.
Go to our convention registration form and register for the con.

Participation Options:

If you’re bringing anything to display, we are using a wiki workspace to plan space for each theme. Request a wiki account and add what you are bringing to the appropriate wiki page(s). (Click the Edit tab at the top of the page you want to edit to get started).
If you want to volunteer to help behind the scenes, subscribe to our planning mailing list.
If you wish to be a vendor, first register for the convention, and then fill out out Vendor Registration form (everyone working your booth must be a registered attendee).

Public Day Running Smoothly

admin — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 20:28:52 +0000

Live-blogging from Bricks by the Bay 2011… when we first opened we had hundreds of people waiting in line with their pre-paid PayPal receipts in hand, and only a comparative handful of cash customers. But after the first half hour or so, we got everyone in, and since then the lines have been quite reasonable. Thanks to the great staff at the Hyatt Regency and Convention Center for accommodating us, and we’re so glad to have a nice spacious area. As long as the current trends continue, if you get here by 3pm, you should be able to get in without much wait.

Open for Business

admin — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 17:18:44 +0000

The public day has begun! We had 1,671 people pre-registered before our cutoff deadline last night, and the cash line is already forming. Come on down and enjoy the show!

Last chance for hotel block

admin — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 01:00:28 +0000

If you’ve been waiting until the last minute to decide whether to reserve a hotel room or not, this is it. Today’s the day the hotel releases our block of set-aside rooms. You may or may not be able to get the $105/night rate after today, too – it’s up to their discretion. So book now if you are going to!

Remember you get to either save $10 off the convention fees (which are currently $55 for basic or $100 for deluxe) or get a free day pass for the public day if you’re only coming Sunday. (Convention attendees will have access to free passes they can give to friends & family, so don’t worry about that if you’re coming for the whole weekend.) If you previously registered without the hotel send me your confirmation number and I can refund the $10.

Also, T-shirt preorders are now being accepted for all sizes of shirts. The official attendee shirt (available to attendees only) is free with a Deluxe registration, but Basic members can order them too, and Deluxe members can order extras, for $15 each (more for larger sizes and alternate styles). We have a wiki page for placing those orders.
http://bbtbattendees.pbworks.com/w/page/37441005/2011+T-Shirt+Orders

We also have a T-shirt that will be available to anyone, sold at the public day from the BBTB vendor booth. These are white shirts with our logo in red, blue, and black and convention information. You can preorder those too – just email me.

Other merchandise includes a lapel pin ($5), custom designed for this year’s event, and a special LEGO kit designed by yours truly ($30). Both are included with a Deluxe membership, and will be available for sale during the convention while supplies last. But you can email me if you want to reserve one.

Want to upgrade your Basic membership to Deluxe? Let me know. The cost will be $45 (save $5 off the cost of the extra goodies sold separately).

Opening ceremonies are two weeks from tonight. See you then!

Vendor Registration Available

admin — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 07:59:05 +0000

Do you operate a business related to LEGO? Would you like to sell your wares at the Bricks by the Bay convention? Sign up to be a vendor!

Hotel room update

admin — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:09:18 +0000

All attendees are strongly urged to consider staying at the hotel at least one night. Not only do you get $10 off your convention fees, you won’t have to leave the premises in the evening when people are still hanging around and spending social time together after the scheduled events are over. It also helps the convention, because we are contractually required to fill at least 200 room-nights at the hotel and we would be charged a penalty for those rooms if they are not used.

Coming for the public day and need a place to stay? We’ll give you one free public day ticket (or an $8 discount if you are coming as a group) if you stay at the hotel. If you’re driving from a great distance, spending the night in a quality hotel room and being onsite to get in early Sunday when we open will greatly enhance your experience.

If you’ve already registered and later reserve a hotel room, let us know and we can refund you the discount that you missed on.

Reminder: The cut-off date for hotel rooms at the convention is March 3, 2011. After that date, our special rates and guaranteed availability of rooms may be no longer available. If you haven’t reserved a room yet, please do so by March 3rd.

Go to the hotel’s Bricks by the Bay reservations page to start the registration process, or call the hotel at +1 800 633 7313 and ask for “Bricks by the Bay” or “clarabbay2011″ group rates.

For those with economic hardships (unemployed, etc.) please contact us privately if you need a place to stay. The hotel will give us a small number of free rooms based on how many room-nights we fill, and we plan to make those available for people who can’t afford a room. (Proof of economic hardship will be required.)

Call for Presentations

admin — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 04:58:29 +0000

Bricks By The Bay 2011 is looking for any talks, roundtables, and special activities you would like to see at the Con this year. Going to and putting on sessions are one of the things that makes a Lego convention fun.

Past talks have included publishing LEGO-related books, Using RCX bricks to control motorized models, using LEGO Mindstorms in the classroom, among many others.

Roundtables, or moderated discussions, have included Planning for the NMRA convention, discussions about publishing BrickJournal, and creating LEGO sculptures.

Possible ideas include:

Steampunk LEGO Creations
An Introduction to LDraw and related programs
An Introduction to Lego Digital Designer
Packing models for shipping without breaking
De-yellowing Bricks
Lego Plans on eReaders and the iPad
LEGO at Burning Man
Building Big – skyscrapers and other large buildings
Bricklink — An Average Seller’s Perspective
FIRST LEGO League
Collecting Rare Elements
LEGO Pirates Roundtable
Steam Locomotive Design Techniques
SNOT techniques
Half-Plate offsets
LEGO Universe Roundtable
Brickwiki – what is it and how you can participate
NMRA / NTS 2011 Roundtable
Microscale building
Sorting & Storing Roundtable

All we need for more talks, roundtables, and activities are ideas and
people to run with them. Projectors and a computer will be available (although bringing your own laptop ensures compatibility).

Anyone who would like to run a presentation or activity should e-mail proposals or questions to Paul Sinasohn (singlow AT gmail DOT com—please mention Bricks By The Bay in the subject).

If possible, please include a possible title, brief description for the event program, and any time constraints or facility requirements. Events are typically scheduled to run up to sixty minutes but can be scheduled for more or less time.

We need proposals by February 6 to have time to prepare the schedule and the program. Earlier is better.

All presenters must register for the full convention.

Convention Registration Now Available

admin — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 09:06:49 +0000

Have you been eager to register for Bricks by the Bay 2011? Your wait is over! You can now sign up online for the convention using our new registration form. Register by February 25 for the early bird discount (save $5)!

There is a limit of 400 attendees, of which no more than 100 Deluxe packages will be sold. So hurry up and register today!

You can see who’s signed up so far on our Roster page.

Public Expo online pre-sales now open

admin — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 00:44:56 +0000

The PayPal link for online pre-sales for the Public Expo is now active. Go to the Public Expo page now to order your tickets. Cost is $8 per person; children under are 2 free.