Robots, sparks and sportsmanship fill Waltham museum

Engineering met creativity in the ring Saturday as the sixth MassDestruction robot combat event drew nearly 400 builders and spectators — including 122 children and youth — to the Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation in Waltham.

Competitors faced off in one-on-one matches that ran morning through afternoon, fueled by the spirit of competition, steady good sportsmanship and the occasional battery fire.

The builders came in every configuration. Craig, a solo designer, ran his bot Money Shot. Martin and Martin, a father-and-son duo, competed as Team Tri-Harder. Peter and Jonathan, friends since college, fielded Team Huge. Aaron and Jenison, who met more recently, brought a bot called HAMshake.

Their paths into robot combat varied just as widely — some through college engineering clubs, others from old VHS tapes of television shows such as “BattleBots.” All of them, they said, build for the love of the game.

Energy ran high from both sides of the glass — the crowd and the engineers alike. The museum set up a live stream in a separate section for anyone who wanted a quieter view.