There were a lot of events that were a lot of fun to watch at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim. One of the highlights for me was the droid races. These happened daily on the main show floor and offered droid builders a chance to show off what they and their droids can do. Each of these droids are built with a lot of time, effort, and tender loving care. The results are absolutely incredible: Living, rolling droids that could easily be seen in any Star Wars movie.
The R2-D2 Builders Club had an exhibit on the second floor of the Anaheim Convention Center for Star Wars Celebration. To say it was awesome would be an understatement. The builders showed off their droids and were more than happy to chat with fans about what it takes to build your very own droid. Here is a brief tour of the R2-D2 Builders Club exhibit:
On Friday, Annie and I stopped by to watch the droid races. They were awesome. The day got started off with a race between Star Wars favorite R2-D2 and Star Wars Rebels newbie Chopper. Each race involved a course the droids had to navigate. The course also included pushing cones into taped off squares and Jawa obstacles. Two children would help with each race as well. One would start the race and one would wave the checkered flag at the finish.
For the race between R2 and Chopper, there was quite a lot of attitude in the room. Both of these droids are known for being temperamental. The race did not disappoint and was quite fun to watch. You can see it here:
As you can see, it wasn’t the fastest race in the world. However, it was a lot of fun to watch knowing that each droid was built by the guy controlling it…. without a kit! There are some blueprints that can help get people going in the right direction. However, it really comes down to a lot of patience and money as these droids come to life in garages around the globe before they make their way to places like Star Wars Celebration. I talked to one droid owner who told me that sometimes these droids will make appearances at museum events or even hospitals to help lift the spirits of younglings there.
I personally find these droids to be completely fascinating and if each one wasn’t as expensive as my car, I would probably be very interested in building one of my own. What do you think of these droids?
Make it a GREAT day!
- Mr. DAPs
