Hello fellow taggers,
Here is my review of Tag Fest 2005. Last weekend my good friend Duncan Mackinnon and I were lucky enough to be able to attend one of the three days of the 2005 Tag Fest put on by David Roman and his wife Kathy. These two really know how to do it right. I left my house at 4:30 am Saturday to pick up Duncan and we headed out for the 4+ hour drive to Wilsonville Oregon. I did not get back to my place until 1:30 am the next day but it was worth it. What beautiful country. The Magness Memorial tree farm is a fine place for group tag events. When we arrived at 9:30am on Saturday morning David was busy at the four different grills set up in his out door kitchen. Breakfast was ready to go. Pancakes, sausages, danish, fruit and juice. Lunch was Hotdogs, Hamburgers, potato salad, chips and all the fix'ns. Diner was grilled chicken, salad, corn on the cob, hot dogs, hamburgers etc. There was plenty to drink all day. I was eating better at Tag Fest then I would have at home!
As the attendees started to gather it was great to see familiar faces that I had met at other Tag events over the years, Doug Ross, Peter Montgomery, John "laserbait" as well as some names in the tag community that I had not met before, David and Kathy, Gabriel, Brian "Tagferret" and Wayne. As everyone knows Brian is the creative genius behind the LTTO electronics. Wayne is the mechanical designer responsible for the LTTO housing designs.
These two were kind enough to bring two working prototypes of the new Lazer Tag Master Blaster. This thing is going to be a fun tagger. The rocket is a great addition to any taggers tactical arsenal. And the 1.5 dual lens on top of the blaster has great range. Brian took one of the prototypes across the clearing in the park and was able to tag the rest of us on the other side of the clearing in the middle of the day. I am not sure how far away he was (see image). Maybe not quite as far as a football field. They also brought a pile of goodies from Hasbro that were given away to the participants along with items donated by others.
One of the most original tag designs I have ever seen was brought by Doug Ross. He called it the Amphibious Assault Weapon. I am not sure but I think the fact that he had to bring this tagger to the event on a commercial airliner may have had something to do with the overall design of this most unusual green tagger. Check out the images and judge for your self.
John "laserbait" was there with his Phil Higgins board Flame Thrower. John commented to me that it was fun to use but the batteries ran out very quickly. No kidding John? 36 Infrared LED's have a tendency to do that. What a great unlimited tagger.
There was plenty of Steradian gear to use. I had never had the opportunity to compete with this quality tag gear before. I must say it was sturdy and seemed to function very well. Some of the night games were quite a spectacle as the super bright yellow LED's simulating muzzle blast and the red LED's on the head bands were flashing wildly along with the great sounds of different weapons blazing away when we had an assault on the cabin game. Two teams, one inside and one in the woods and in the clearing going at with wild abandon. The taggers were set with unlimited ammo and no friendly fire so it was a real firefight. Quite fun to witness in the total darkness of the park.
During the day there were plenty of LTTO based games. This gear seems to be a great entry level solution to clubs looking to build up the membership. And it will be fun for those who like to "brew their own". It works as it should, the price is right and it held up well even the hands of a scout troop that participated in the battles. I am looking forward to many good things from Hasbro thru the creative and forward thinking team of Brian and Wayne from Shoot the Moon.
It was fun to see my good friend Duncan compete in his first tag event ever. He was able to keep up with and actually land some good shots on the younger players during the night games. Old age and treachery will overcome youth and enthusiasm.
I had a great time and I can't wait for Tag Fest 2006. Thanks to David and Kathy and to all who volunteered during the event. Great job!

Mike Yates
P.S. I have posted nine images from the event that go with this post to the photo gallery section of the 2005 Tag Fest section