Lego Train Show rolls into Cantigny Park
Some people can look at a jumbled pile of Legos and see plastic toy brick versions of almost anything.
And some people can gawk at creatively fashioned Lego skyscrapers, battleships and railroads and dream about building their own.
Both camps will be at Wheaton's Cantigny Park this weekend for the Lego Train Show.
The holiday show will feature miniature versions of Willis Tower, the Prudential building and military warships, along with scaled down versions of towns, complete with Lego trains.
Marking its 16th year, the show returns after being on hiatus last year due to ongoing construction that's part of Cantigny's renovation project.
"We're excited to be back at Cantigny," said Jamie LeBlanc, president of the Northern Illinois Lego Train Club, the organization presenting the show.
LeBlanc said an estimated 3.5 million Lego bricks will be on display in the visitors center and other park buildings.
"The club has all their own tables. On they day, we just set up all the club tables. Some people bring it in prebuilt, some put it together there. It's all the detail work that takes the longest," said LeBlanc.
The battery-powered trains are made of Legos. Even the railroad tracks are made of Legos.
LeBlanc said he likes to build trains and other Lego projects using both kits supplied by the toy company and designs he comes up with himself.
Many of his 24 fellow club members do likewise. The group is one of about two dozen Lego clubs in the country.
LeBlanc said he will display a nostalgic scene.
"I'm debuting a 1950s retro Dog 'n' Suds," he said. The scene will include a car canopy and carhops on roller skates.
"You can get some silliness going with the trains. You can do something extremely whimsical," he said.
Not all the Lego artists with a flair for engineering are so quick to divulge what new pieces they plan to unveil.
"Everybody's keeping it real close the vest of what they're actually building," said LeBlanc. "The fun thing about the club is we inspire each other."
While some surprises await visitors, LeBlanc said people can count on seeing a few favorites.
One display shows a collision between a Dunkin' Donuts truck and a Krispy Kreme truck.
On display in the First Division Museum, a 25.5-foot-long replica of the USS Missouri battleship, with 400 Lego sailors, will show visitors what a massive collection of Legos can do.
"That's made out of about 500,000 Lego bricks right there," he said.
Inside the Robert R. McCormick Mansion's Freedom Hall, a dozen mosaics made with the smallest Lego bricks will grace the walls. From noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, children can try their hand at Lego building downstairs in the Gold Theater
The Visitors Center also will feature Lego vendors. And a Lego Disney castle will be raffled off. Raffle tickets are $1.
LeBlanc said the show got started in 2001 with about 800 visitors.
"I think in our best year, that year we did 12,000 people. Our usual is 7,000 to 8,000 people," he said.
Admission to Cantigny Park during the show is $5 per vehicle, a fee that will be waived in exchange for an unwrapped toy donation to the Marine Corps Reserves Toys for Tots drop boxes.
If you go
What: Lego Train Show
When: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 9
Where: Cantigny Park, 1S151 Winfield Road, Wheaton
Admission: $5 per vehicle, waived with Toys for Tots donation
Info: www.cantigny.org and (630) 668-5151