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New Kids On The Block: Lego KidsFest Comes To Hartford This Weekend With Contests, Seminars, Races And Just Plain Fun

By ROGER CATLIN
The Hartford Courant
November 21, 2009

 

Since Connecticut is the North American home to Lego systems, it's fitting that the Lego KidsFest opens in Hartford this weekend.

 

Fitting, of course, is what the world of the little plastic building blocks is all about. And while it won't quite be LegoLand at the Connecticut Convention Center this weekend, there will be almost as many components as a Mindstorms robot building kit.

 

Because the three Lego Master Builders are based at the Connecticut headquarters (possessing the coolest job possible in the eyes of many kids), there have been plenty of chances to catch their creative skills in the past, with constructions including presidents, monuments and movie icons.

 

But if the Indiana Jones replication looks a little more squat than, say, the life-sized Santa Claus, it's because the Master Builders are replicating the purposely stylized Lego version of Harrison Ford. It was licensing movie brands that gave the 75-year-old Danish toy company a boost in the 1990s. Going back to basics is giving it a boost now.

 

"Hands on" is the motto at Lego stores opening in malls nationwide. And so it is at LegoFests. At the event, there will be no shortage of play tables, building contests and ramps on which freshly built Lego model cars can race. Indeed, 50 schools have been busy for a while working on replicas of local landmarks; the top three will win prizes.

 

Enthusiasts can show off their own models as well (if they're pre-registered to do so at the website) and be eligible to win a "people's choice award."

 

But there will also be elaborate displays of models, landscapes and trainscapes made by professionals, including life-sized models of Batman, Darth Vader, Thomas the Tank Engine, Harry Potter and SpongeBob SquarePants. A Lego video game gallery will be there, for those who enjoy that version of hands-on play. And a parents' resting area will let some sit and watch football and have a cup of coffee.

 

Live demonstrations will be augmented by a roster of entertainment and activities on stages, featuring spelling bees, building contests and a fashion show. (If it involves clothes made out of interlocking bricks of colorful acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic, then it truly would be something to see).

 

Scores of other vendors will show off their goods as well, including Big Y, Bowl-O-Rama, the Rock Cats and Six Flags.

 

Rides will be offered on a Roaming Railroad. Kids can race cars on a Roaming Raceway track.

 

A number of charity events tied to the holidays will be part of LegoFest, including an invitation to bring an unwrapped toy to donate to the Marines' Toys for Tots campaign. Kids can have their pictures taken with either a human Santa or a life-size Lego model of one.

 

For $1, kids can design their own Lego ornaments and hang them on the Christmas trees at the show. Proceeds go to the Village for Families & Children in Hartford, and the ornaments will be donated to the Connecticut Children's Medical Center and to the downtown Festival of Lights.

 

Already, two "Star Wars"-themed meetings of the Lego Club Saturday and Sunday are sold out. But there will be an opportunity for the AFOL — Adult Friends of Lego — to meet and show their intricate designs.

 

And of course, a retail center will be set up, showing off the newest Lego products for those wanting to get a jump on the gift-giving season.

 

•THE LEGO KIDSFEST is Friday through Sunday at the Connecticut Convention center, 100 Columbus Blvd., Hartford. Hours are 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $14; $12 for kids 2 to 12. Kids younger than 2 are free; seniors 65 and older are also $12. Anyone younger than 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Advance tickets, which have a $2 discount, are available through 9 a.m. Friday. Group tickets are also available. Information: 860-953-0444, x 146 or www.legokidsfest.com.

 

Copyright © 2009, The Hartford Courant