# Tech Crew Olympics, need some ideas



## draco17315 (Jul 30, 2010)

Hello, we do a Tech Crew party every summer to show our kids that there hard work is appreciated (as we all know, that most of the people behind the scenes don't get much credit). We always do our own awards called "The Techie Awards" and this year we are adding crew olympics. I was wondering if any of you have done events before that you would not mind sharing or if any of you had any ideas of what we could do. Keep in mind we will be outside more than likely and in the grass. Thanks for any help and ideas


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## CSCTech (Jul 30, 2010)

Who can change a lamp the fastest?


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## Grog12 (Jul 30, 2010)

USITT holds these every year (or at least they did). Wiring a connector the fastest, fastest focus of an ERS to an unusal shutter cut, fastest quick change are the ones I can remember off the top of my head, but there's certainly a lot more.


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## soundlight (Jul 30, 2010)

The first thing that I think of for outside is a knot relay. Always fun times if people know their knots.


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## shiben (Jul 30, 2010)

The focus of an ERS is a fairly good one, maybe have a repair competition of some sort, knots sound fun, etc.


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## MisterTim (Jul 31, 2010)

We race our chairs down the hallway outside the booth...


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## Gretsch (Jul 31, 2010)

Nicropress race, Crosby race, cable coiling race...


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## ruinexplorer (Jul 31, 2010)

Unless you have it to spare, I wouldn't have any competition that required consumables. I do like the knot tying (maybe even one handed knot tying?). Troubleshooting is also fun (set up identical systems with identical problems and see who fixes it first).


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## HSSBO94 (Jul 31, 2010)

Who can convince the TD fastest?


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## pmolsonmus (Jul 31, 2010)

Because you're outdoors I have an idea I learned from a military sound guy. Set up a fully functional PA. Take away the teams and switch out cables bad for good, change mixer routing, replace good mics with dead ones (an empty 58 is a great trick) etc... Return the teams one at a time.

Which team can find all the problems fastest and run a full sound check?


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## erosing (Jul 31, 2010)

I know the high school festival in Wisconsin has used the following in the past:

*knots (clove hitch onto fixed pipe, sheet bend to a smaller diameter, finish with a one handed bowline and lean back on you work hoping you did it right.
*Set up a small system for an iPod.
*Nicopress race.
*Wiring a stage pin connector (pressure plate).
*Focus a ellipsoidal on a funky shape.
*Costume quick changes.
*Set quick change (dining room table to office desk - props only).
*Folding a drop.
*Crosby rope clips.


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## dbthetd (Aug 1, 2010)

Can I just add to this that although it is often the easy thing to measure "fastest" is not always the best metric for quality.

Maybe try to think of things that are best or most accurate as well as fast.


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## erosing (Aug 1, 2010)

dbthetd said:


> Can I just add to this that although it is often the easy thing to measure "fastest" is not always the best metric for quality.
> 
> Maybe try to think of things that are best or most accurate as well as fast.



I should note that there was, generally, a well experienced judge, or two, for each of the things I listed. The goals of the contests were to be the fastest while being correct, otherwise time was added (you had to correct and explain your mistake, if you couldn't they would teach you the correct way), or you were DQ'd if you couldn't.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## chris325 (Aug 1, 2010)

The Illinois High School Theatre Festival includes a Tech Olympics each year. From the 2009 program: "...test your skills in wiring a plug, focusing a light, tying a knot, setting props, nicopress crimping, costume changing, sound set-up, and flat construction." At the 2010 festival Olympics the winning school recieved a Source Four, and all participants got various swag from the companies exhibiting. I was at the festival '09 and '10 and wasn't able to do the Olympics because the school wasn't able to register a group, but by what I heard it was a neat experience. I'm not sure, but I think that the quality of work was a factor in the scoring.

Really, the true speed of Illinois' high school technicians was displayed during the load-in and load-out of each show. There were strict time restrictions, and shows had to be up and down quickly to stay on schedule.


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## flash1322 (Aug 1, 2010)

*pmolsonmus* 
http://www.controlbooth.com/members/pmolsonmus.htmlThat sounds really fun


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## joeb (Aug 2, 2010)

They do a lot of these same things at the International Thespian Festival as well. Two other things they do that I haven't seen listed yet are sewing a button and legging a platform (using carriage bolts and predrilled platforms and legs). They have a pretty extensive penalty system involving safety and doing things correctly that seems to be effective.


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## WooferHound (Aug 2, 2010)

Maybe try Bolting & Unbolting truss sections . . .


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## Steele (Aug 11, 2010)

Greenroom Challenge: (10 pts each question; 10 questions total) Two teams of three. Score based on knowledge of tech terms. 
Cable Coiling: (10 pts) Individual. Score based on speed and coil uniformity.
Spotlight Challenge: (10 pts) Individual. Score based on speed and accuracy.
Sweeping: (10 pts) Individual. Score based on speed and efficiency.
Knot tying relay
Hope this helps.


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## shiben (Aug 12, 2010)

I like the sweeping challange. Prep people for later in life.


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## LXQuito (Aug 12, 2010)

To the excellent list already growing here, I'd add more complex challenges - ie find the one burnout gel in the hang and replace it as quickly and safely as possible. Scoring on that one would be on speed of finding the burnout, and safety and speed in replacement. I'd also add gelling-up challenges for quick and accurate cutting and framing of colours, and a "sort the gobo" race to put the stock back into order by gobo number. Patching and DMX-control challenges would also be interesting, but I'm not sure how one would set them up.

I also think fast and accurate set and strike of sound instruments is a good idea, especially for techs headed towards live music. Being able to ID the Fender Bassman in the stock, for example, match it to its spike, and place the appropriate Mic, then cable and plug everything in, quickly and accurately, is a great asset to live music stage crews.

And if you've got a fly gallery, a challenge to hang draperies correctly and properly balance a pipe would be a good idea, too, with points going to the team that does this in the correct manner, the fastest and safest.

In a more fun angle, there could be challenges to rig a confetti cannon so that it could be controlled via the lighting board to synch up with an lx cue, or things of that type, with points for the most creative methods within safety regulations.


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## LampieTheClown (Sep 4, 2010)

There's a lot of cable in a load out. You could have the 100' Feeder race, the 10x100' Socapex relay, the 10x100' DMX coil (twist and over/under styles), and the triathlon, consisting of 10x100' Soca - 10x100' DMX - 100' feeder - finish line is when the 3 cases are in the truck with a strap or load bar.
Since you'll probably use the same cases and cable for each competing tech, a 20 second penalty is assessed for each cable that tangles when pulled straight for the next guy, and if a coil goes into the box without being tied (or secured with velcro) it does not count toward the total.

There's the two man & four man (or woman) case / speaker stack competition.

Desk patching race

R&R the 1 bad ACL in a set.

Name that gel number!

Dip-switch math

I would shy away from speed competitions in a few areas, like loading counter-weight onto a line-set, tying in the tails, and anything to do with rigging.

LtheC


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## mstaylor (Sep 4, 2010)

Riggers like to compete too.  Just set up a bridle building compitition. Draw the legs and basket lengths on the floor and then it is time and accuracy.


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## LampieTheClown (Sep 4, 2010)

mstaylor said:


> Riggers like to compete too.  Just set up a bridle building compitition. Draw the legs and basket lengths on the floor and then it is time and accuracy.


 
I'm all for bridle building competitions, for stage crews, AND tack shops. A rigger I know, who shall remain nameless (hey Ricky!) will tell you (and me, and the security guard, and the catering staff it seems) that what you are describing is "ground rigging," and in his words, "it's rigging for the gravitationally challenged". I know this because he's standing next to me right now, and still talking about it.
He doesn't think I'll hit send....


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## mstaylor (Sep 5, 2010)

I am a firm believer that a good up rigger has to ground first. I usually stay on the ground now, but I call the bridles and bridle locations from the ground. I get my share of air time but default to the ground.


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## draco17315 (Sep 16, 2011)

Thanks everyone, these are some great ideas! We go to the PA ITS convention every year and my Tech crew always wants to do the Tech Challange there but they always cancel it, usually due to space restrictions. We did the challenge at the last USITT conferance at Penn State2 years ago and did well it being our first time, we were only .3 seconds from second place and .7 seconds from first place against the State champions. I will say though, they were supposed to deduct for any incorrect actions and for the cable toss event, ALL the other teams wrapped their cables around there arm and elbow like and extension chord and not the correct way. Our girl Mandy did it properly so it took a few more milaseconds and yet she didn't get anything for accuracy, that would have put up in second or first. Anyway, thanks again for the great ideas!


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## Lafalot (Sep 16, 2011)

As I have helped with the EdTA's Tech Challenge at the Thespian Festival (NE) and with USITT's Tech Olympics, as well as judged at many other regional events, I thought I'd share these two documents. They include quite a few neat events. I have to admit there are a few mentioned here that may have to be added to the list. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the events.


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## mstaylor (Sep 16, 2011)

I read through most of the information and it looks like an interesting event. I have a couple of questions. Why are gloves required to focus. They have penalty points for not wearing them. I will occasionally use focus gloves for PARs but nothing else. I don't think I have ever used gloves on lekos of any manufacture. I liked the knot tieing but questioned why is the bowline done around the waist? In your cable wrapping you are penalizing arm wrapping, good job there, but would overunder be allowed? These are not critisims just questions.


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## Lafalot (Sep 19, 2011)

Gloves are required as a safety factor. Over the course of the 4 hour event, the fixtures we use get rather 'warm'. To make it fair, all the students wear gloves. As for the bowline around the waist, It's a one-handed bowline. As Arez said above, "knots (clove hitch onto fixed pipe, sheet bend to a smaller diameter, finish with a one handed bowline and lean back on you work hoping you did it right.)", proof of accuracy. EdTA has switched back to allow two-handed bowline now, but still around the waist. Cable wrapping was new this year, and they stuck to no arm wrapping. I'd have to ask the judge on the event about the overunder. Good catch. Hope this answers your questions.

Check out the video from this year's event: Tech Challenge video | Educational Theatre Association


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## mstaylor (Sep 19, 2011)

Certainly does, thanks. Hopefully they will allow over/under, some guys only know that method. Personally you should know both but not allowing arm wrapping is key. Sounds like a good event.


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## PeterBuchin (Sep 19, 2011)

1.) Team: Tech Theatre Family Feud/College Bowl.
2.) Thread a sewing machine.
3.) Tie a tie on someone else. (advanced: bow tie)
4.) Team: Flip a Marley floor.
5.) Team: Build a wheelbarrow and use it to move stage weights.
6.) Find the mistakes in the floorplan/hook-up/costume pattern.
7.) Team: Back a bob-tail truck to the loading dock.
8.) Climb to the grid and back down.
9.) Make a two-fer.
10.) Identify everything in a box of hardware.
11.) Team: Build a flat with a hung door/window.
12.) Solder components to a PC board.
13.) Wire a practical torch.
14.) Reassemble a disassembled gel swatch book.
15.) Team: Move a large amount of cable through an obstacle course.


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## DuckJordan (Sep 19, 2011)

PeterBuchin said:


> 1.) Team: Tech Theatre Family Feud/College Bowl.
> 2.) Thread a sewing machine.
> 3.) Tie a tie on someone else. (advanced: bow tie)
> 4.) Team: Flip a Marley floor.
> ...


 
Way advanced for the high school/middle schools this was aimed for...


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## Lafalot (Sep 20, 2011)

I love the tie a tie on someone else! I also may steal the identify hardware idea. The simplest ideas get me thinking about new events to add. Thanks!


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## ValleyTheaterKid (Oct 10, 2011)

Ummm here in vegas we had an event they called the Tech Olympics at a high school. it was part of a two day leadership/tech conference. it was pretty awesome. they had one for every main part. cutting a 10 dm circle, rigging, costume, sound, and lights. for sound they had a time limit to hook up mics and monitors to a board and make it work. for lights i had to hang a light plug it in, cut it to a perfect square, and then take it all down. it was pretty awesome.


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## jbrem003 (Oct 11, 2011)

I would recommend having a few bad instruments "pre-faulted" and seeing who can correctly diagnose and repair a lamp fixture the fastest (have a short inside or a "frayed" wire somewhere hidden in the cable.


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## Ljdonnelly (Oct 12, 2011)

i would recommend doing something with gels. like swap gels the quickest or sort something like that


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## mstaylor (Oct 17, 2011)

If you want to do somethig with gels, give them some gel cuts and several different companies swatch books and have them identify them. This happens in the wild way more than it should.


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## Misha (Apr 12, 2012)

old topic but hey... good ideas here...
A few that we do at my university are;
Hang and Focus a light
Sew a button
Quick change someone blindfolded (Cus hey it's dark backstage)
Set up a microphone, stand and all and plug it in.
Charades 
Props table (bunch of props... having to put them in their spot on the table with just the minimum outline)

One that we did in class that took a bit more time was a communication challenge. Our prof had made an object and we had a chain of command we had to follow to build it. One person was allowed to look at the object and then report back to the next person. That next person was allowed to talk to the builder of the object. The builder was allowed to talk to the buyer of the supplies. It was really fun and really good in teaching us just how to be specific on what we wanted.

At the CITT student night we did a junk challenge where we had to get a ping pong ball into the center of this circle on the floor. We had a bunch of things to use, paper bag, rubber bands, stickey notes ect and we could use them any way we wished.


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## gregeye (Apr 26, 2012)

I did something similar back in high school. It was very fun and became a yearly thing. What we did was first have everyone line up with a power drill. In front of them was a 2by4 with 4 different sized screws in it, 4 different sized screws on the ground, and a broken head screw in the wood too. The first one to unscrew, screw in, and pull out the broken one wins. Mind you there was some swearing involved but it was all good fun.
Another game we did was name that tool. We had all the tools out on a table and had labels scattered around the building. It had a scavenger hunt twist on it.
And the final game we did was, put together a ellipsoidal source four, plug it in, focus it, and write a cue. The fasted one wins.

Hope this helped out.


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