We’re gearing up for the Startup Tucson Hackathon this Friday, and various details have solidified. This event is one of the first of its kind here in Tucson. And so we are learning as we go what the community wants. If you have questions or ideas, please email me at chris at enemyhideout dot com.

“Should I register ahead of time?”

Absolutely. We currently have a significant number of people who haven’t RSVP’ed but say they are coming. We sure could use a better idea of what the final head count will be. If we hit our maximum number at the event, we may need to limit the number of participants. Please register via EventBrite on the event page.

“Is it open to the public?”

Some people feel like they don’t have the technical competence or time to participate in the event, but still want to take part. To this I say, just go for it. You don’t have to be Linus Torvalds to take part in the event. If you still can’t make the commitment, no problem. I’d recommend coming by Friday at 7pm at Spoke6. This will be the kickoff time, where people can grab a slice of pizza and socialize. Above all else, the hackathon is a place for the Tucson tech community to come together.

“I’m a designer, not a coder but I still want to register.”

Again, go for it! Coders and designers collaborating means that you’ll not only be able to make something, you’ll also make it pretty!

“I don’t have a team but want to go.”

Not a problem. Come meet potential teammates at the Hacky Hour the night before. 7PM August 9th at Gentle Ben’s we’ll be having an informal get-together so that participants can say hello before the event proper. If you can’t make it to that, we will be having some team-building and brainstorming activities at the beginning of the event to get people gelling.

Mentors and Judges

During the event, Mentors will be available to help answer questions you might have, or give feedback on your project. Here are a few of the mentors available:

• Mark Grimes is an Android developer here in Tucson who has taken part in hackathons in the past.
• Jeff Kaufman is CFO who mentors budding companies professionally.
• Tim Colson is a SW Architect at Cisco, with nearly two decades of experience with Internet-related technology.
• Chris Hill (that’s me!) is a local iOS developer and helps run the local Cocoaheads meetings.

We have some very influential judges who will be judging at the end of the hackathon, also.  We have three local angel investors from the Desert Angels, and a member of the Industry Advisory board for College of Engineering at the UofA.

• Frank Oliver
• Emre Toker
• Base Harper
• Dave Smallhouse

Prizes

So what exactly are the prizes for the hackathon? And how do you win?

We have two winners, the Hackathon Winner and the People’s Choice Winner. At the Presentation Ceremony, each idea will be presented to the judges and the audience. The Hackathon Winner will be chosen by the judges. The People’s Choice Winner will be voted on using text messaging via Poll Everywhere.

Each winner will receive a trophy, and a ‘geek’ basket with gadgets and geekery to be divided up across the team. The basket and trophies are very similar. But the real prize will be the adoration of the Tucson geek community, and the ability to proudly say that you won the first ever Startup Tucson Hackathon.

We’re all very excited about this event, and can’t wait to see you there!

chrishill (2 Posts)