Mark Rober Throws Fan Epic Party in Gridley

GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) - In August, the community of Gridley was secretly invaded by a team of engineers and scientists, led by former NASA engineer and current YouTube sensation, Mark Rober.

The covert mission was two-fold. One: Rober and his crew intended to re-take the Guiness Book of World Records title for the World’s Largest Elephant Toothpaste and Two: Give one of Robers biggest fans a birthday that he would never forget.

A little over a year ago, twelve year old Fletcher Rollinson was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of brain tumor called Pineal Parenchymal Tumor with Intermediate Differentiation or PPTID for short. Fletcher and his family uprooted their lives and moved closer to St. Jude’s for his treatment, where mom Megan said, “We spent a lot of time in the hospital watching Mark Rober videos.” Rober’s YouTube channel, dedicated to fun, science and engineering based experiments, has millions of viewers worldwide. During her son’s battle with the cancerous tumor, Megan reached out to Rober, asking if he’d be willing to contact Fletcher. “Absolutely” was Rober’s response and the surprise video call between Rober and super-fan -Fletcher that followed would inspire Rober to dedicate a day of record breaking fun, literally, to the young man.

Rober vowed that if Fletcher made it to his next birthday, he would throw him “the most crazy birthday party ever.” On Fletcher’s birthday weekend August 22nd -23rd, wearing a Fletchers Army tee and sitting along a retaining wall along a driveway in Gridley, Rober says, “SO, here we are...6 months later.” 

But why Gridley? Rober happens to have ties to our little town in the way of a friendship with the Leishman family. Dale and Lynne Leishman had extended the use of their property to Rober if the need for space ever arose for something “BIG”. Well, it had and for 5 days, the Leishman property became ground zero for Rober’s latest project. Dale volunteered the use of his equipment as crews of engineers, chemists and physicists worked in the heat and smoke to erect structures intended to shatter the current world record of the largest (and tallest) Elephant Toothpaste and merchandise a multi-barreled contraption that would trigger a dangerously explosive Devil’s Toothpaste. 

What is Elephant’s Toothpaste? According to Rober, Elephant’s Toothpaste is the result of an exothermic reaction of hydrogen peroxide and sodium iodine. For a dramatic visual effect, soap and food coloring are added to create a “foam” that explodes at a high rate of speed from whatever container houses it - in this instance, a 20 ft tall volcano shaped flask made of steel, lumber, hurricane glass and sealed with flex-seal tape and caulk. A push of a button would mix the chemicals that would hopefully secure the new record. Devil’s Toothpaste could be considered Elephant’s Toothpaste on steroids - a mixture of the same chemicals but at stronger concentrations resulting in a faster, more violent and ultimately more dangerous reaction.

The day before the big show, Rober gave the Gridley Herald an exclusive run-down of the events about to unfold. “I can’t sleep, I’m so excited.” Rober said. The YouTube star was flying the Rawlinson family out from Ohio under the guise of visiting their “cousins’” walnut farm. The Leishman family would pose as the “cousins” while Rober disguised himself as the Gridley High School Bulldog to surprise a completely clueless Fletcher.

It went off without a hitch. After arriving to be surprised by a previously unknown bunch of extended family, Fletcher was shocked when the Bulldog Mascot removed its head to reveal Mark Rober beneath. This was the first time the two had met in person and Rober quickly whisked him away, the sequence of the “best 13th-birthday-ever” events set in motion.

Fletcher was treated to a party only a mind like Rober could concoct. There were bubbles you could cut into shapes, bubble pits you could launch yourself into, a bubble cannon, fire tornados, an Elon Musk flame thrower to light bubbles on fire, high-speed Tesla rides (for the guest of honor), great food, lots of fun and most importantly: Devil’s Toothpaste and Elephant’s Toothpaste. 

Rober had broken the Guiness Book of World Records record previously with his 4 foot version of the Elephant’s Toothpaste flask and in a poignant moment, gifted the certificate for it to Fletcher. Rober also announced that Fletcher would also have the honor of pushing the trigger for both the Devil’s Toothpaste, and the record-breaking finale. 

The moments before 8 months of experimentation and preparation culminated in the World’s Largest Elephant Toothpaste, the exclusive crowd in attendance moved to safe viewing distances and held their breath. A sharp clang announced that Fletcher had pushed the button, and within seconds, red foam filled and exploded from the giant 20 foot flask. The reaction, estimated to be hotter than 300° inside, was so forceful that it rocketed the structure 5 feet into the air before blowing out the bottom. The intended 100 foot plume didn’t make it to its destination, measured by drone, but still “crushed the previous world record by more than double” - Rober.

And in good fun, Fletcher got to actually crush the structure, completely demolishing it, like his PPTID tumor. Fletcher was cleared of all signs of cancer in July of this year.

To watch the full amazing video, please visit Mark Rober on YouTube or follow the link www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHiWygziyso&t=988s