Brick Rodeo 2022 Rides Again In Austin

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Today we chat with Will Heron, AFOL Networking Event (ANE) representative for Brick Rodeo in Texas. Last year, we heard all about the renamed convention in Houston but this year the show moves to Austin from June 30 - July 3.

Dave: Hi Will! It is good to chat with you again. With Brick Rodeo coming up next weekend, I have to believe you are incredibly busy so we appreciate your time. The convention is unique in that it changes locations every year. I can only imagine how much work that takes! How do you take a show on the road like that and why would you!?

Will: Of course, happy to chat for a bit. We started this LEGO fan convention in 2011 with the intention of moving through four major cities to broaden our reach—to awaken the sleeping AFOLs in each city. And also to share the workload. Con burnout is real. This was one solution to fight it. After doing the Austin - Houston - Dallas - San Antonio rotation for eight years, people still got a little burned out (or a lot burned out). So we’ve changed our focus to the geographic middle just focusing on Houston and Austin. We’ve grown from just over a hundred participants to over 450 this year.

Corry Lankford's "Rebel Space Station Starcraft Testing Facility".

Dave: Wow, well that certainly is a good reason to go to all that effort. Do you find the same people come to each location or is there a different group each time? How many AFOLs are new this year?

Will: There was definitely a home-town advantage for the hosting LUG—and we’re sad to lose the sharing of that aspect. But our neighbors are good about making the few-hour trip to help us present some awe-inspiring displays. The crowd of MOC builders grows every year. It’s fun to see that sometimes the new kid is a 65-year-old dude. Some years have a theme, some don’t.

Dave: Sometimes the most creativity comes from a brand new builder, I’ve noticed. Last year, your oversized cowboy hat-wearing mascot took the internet by storm. Is there a new event kit or mascot for the year to keep an eye out for, or will we see a return of Li'l Lonestar?

Will: Ha! Li’l Lonestar had a moment last year. He and I enjoyed it together. But he wasn’t as broadly well-received as I’d hoped. This year, he’ll spend a little more time with his family. But they’ll be around.

Li'l Lonestar on the right. Dad on the left.

This year’s storytelling star might come from the Rodeo swag bag (with dope goat art by Michaela Livingston) which will feature an intentionally diverse batch of minifig parts. All three classic themes will be there: Town, Castle, and Spaaace. Special thanks to everyone who brought in their Build-a-Mini bar clamshell packages from the LEGO Store so we could reuse them instead of throwing them out. We’ll try to collect them again if we can to reuse them yet again!

Dave: Speaking of swag, what can attendees expect in their goody bags this year? 

Will: Who knows!? (We like to keep specifics a surprise.) There’s a good mix of fun new parts, useful event kit packages for use at the many workshops, a tee-shirt, and the Michelin-starred con model designed by our own super talented Bart Marable. I’m probably forgetting something great. After picking up your bag at the con, you head right across the atrium and fill that bag up with your door prize. We had a great time putting that bag together.

Jhaelon Edwards’ Star Killer Base

Dave: It seems that the AFOLs in attendance will have a great time! On the other side of the stanchions, what do you think is the biggest draw for public attendees of the show?

Will: It’s too hard to give a straight answer here. There are things to draw in all manner of LEGO fans. For the MOC fans, Patrick Massey always brings his A-game. Tony Sava with the trains. We can usually count on Corry Lankford to reach deep into the Star Wars universe for impressive, large-scale ships. Jhaelon Edwards always brings a large footprint filled with nice details. The Peterson Brothers’ Castle Lionhold is a constantly changing interactive masterpiece. What’s fun for me to see is how year after year, our youth builders never cease to amaze us with their talent and creativity. 

Damon Ryan setting up his fan favorite “Welcome to the Jungle”.

For our set builder fans, there will be vendors selling sets of course—and we’re particularly excited for the return of our favorite enthusiasts, Citizen Brick. I boldly promised that we’d easily cover his costs before the public sets foot in the door from AFOL sales alone. (I don’t know if that’ll turn out to be true. But I’m certain that superfan Michaela and I will drop a few dollars there!)

For everyone with a pulse, there’s the historic Texas Brick Railroad display. Their collaborations are always impressive. Who doesn’t love watching those trains go? Their group-wide dedication to verisimilitude is legendary. And they’re not just great builders, they do it Texas-sized. Last time in Austin, I think they had a 50 ft table. This year’s version is sure to be just as fun. 

Dave: That sounds like quite the show! How much are public tickets this year? I was curious how you price them–is it based on the venue or demand or just a gut feeling?

Will: Short answer: $10. This is a fun question because there are so many different ways to solve the equation. We aimed for a simple low-cost price structure. In the past, we offered a family of four admission for $40. A single ticket was higher per person, but we’ve made it a simple $10 per person (and kids under two get in free). That seems as close as we could get to free without putting too much of the cost burden on the AFOLs. Some groups o other cons may move their needles in other directions. This is what we chose for this year. 

Dave: That sounds like a decision that will help more people experience the show. At BrickNerd we are all about community. Can you tell us a bit about the Brick Rodeo community? What makes them special?

Will: Brick Rodeo is a great meeting point for our five Texas LUGs (LEGO User Groups). But we’re not special. We’re just people like the rest of you. We’d sooner pour Dr. Pepper on our barbeque than put sauce on it. But y’all go right ahead. 

Tony Sava’s “Bluebonnet Station” in the Texas Brick Railroad layout.

Dave: Aside from Dr. Pepper, does Brick Rodeo have any fun traditions we should know about?

Will: Dirty Brickster is always one of my favorites. Also, Claire Nordlow is cooking up a mean Tapeball right now. Lasso brings his love of drafts to the masses. Personally, I’m proudest of the charity auction. We’re able to gather as one community, have fun, and give generously to some younger builders in a rough spot. 

Tim Hutchins’ “Wild West”.

Dave: Giving to charity always seems to bring out the best of the AFOL community. I am also partial to the Dirty Brickster (aka LEGO white elephant gift exchange). I’m curious, what are you bringing?

Will: I’ll never tell! But it’ll be from the vault for sure. I remember you took home the Vidiyo Bandmates Series 2 I put into that Dirty Brickster at Bricks LA earlier this year! 

Dave: Oh yeah, that was so much fun. Those are hard to find in the US! I brought the new Doctor Strange set with the olive green tentacled eyeball monster. That went quickly. Speaking of sets, does Brick Rodeo do a raffle of any kind?

Will: We don’t do raffles anymore. We do have a wonderful charity auction that all of our large sets go toward. There will be both a silent auction and live auction portion to raise money for the children’s hospitals in Austin and up in Temple, near Killeen (that’s the location of our fall event, Bricks Killeen). At both Killeen and Rodeo, we fundraise for Fairy Bricks. They’ve also provided us with a fun Rodeo-themed mosaic that we can use as one of the family-friendly, hands-on activities at the show.

Dave: Well it seems like you are ready to go! Did I miss anything?

Will: That was a lot! (Just kidding, you got all the main attractions!)

Dave: Thanks for the chat, Will! I’m sure you and the whole Brick Rodeo team have a long week ahead with last-minute preparations. We’ll see you on the other side!

Will: Thank goodness I’m not doing it on my own. We’ve got a great team: Josh Gilson, Brian Lasseter, Ben Rollman, Justin Brady Joyner, Michaela Livingston, James Browder, Tim Howell and Sarah Silverman from the Houston Brick Club. They’re the ones that are smoothing out that year-to-year transition to rotating cities. For me, I’ve got to restock my tee-shirt table, make sure all the vendors know where they’re going, and do about 94 other things by Friday. Bring it on!

Brick Rodeo will be open to the public at the Renaissance Hotel in Austin from July 2nd - 3rd. Tickets are $10 per person for the LEGO fan convention and are available now.

Are you planning to go to Brick Rodeo to display MOCs or just check out all the awesome builds? Let us know in the comments below!

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