"It's like getting a Nobel Prize for a lifetime of work when you celebrate integrated luminosity," said Oddone, who assumes the directorship officially on July 1. "I can only imagine the years of dedicated work, the sweat, the tears, the curses that went on over the years."

Oddone followed by reading a congratulatory message from Robin Staffin, DOE Associate Director for High Energy Physics, Office of Science. The message began with "We," to which Oddone riposted: "That means, 'I, Robin Staffin.'" The full message from Staffin read: "We note this important milestone with great pleasure. It's an achievement that everyone at the lab, and the users too, can be very proud of. We look forward to the physics results that will come from this huge dataset. We also hope the lab has plenty of champagne available, because with the Tevatron running so well, the milestones for two, three, four inverse femtobarns are going to start coming quickly over the next couple of years."

Oddone responded: "My reply to Robin was to keep the money coming, and we'll keep the champagne cold."

Ron Lutha, DOE Deputy Site Manager, congratulated "the people who make the machines work and the people who collect the date from the detectors." He added a promise: "We'll try to keep the money flowing." Steve Holmes, Associate Director for Accelerators, said that two years ago, "a lot of people doubted we'd be having a party like this one." He congratulated AD's work in having the Tevatron "working better than any accelerator in the world has ever done." Holmes added: "In my 22 years here, I've never seen the entire lab pulling together like this for a single goal." Noting the ultimate Tevatron Run II goal of eight inverse femtobarns, Holmes said: "Now it's one down and seven to go!"

AD deputy head Peter Garbincius emphasized the work of "all:" every division and section, DOE and users. DZero spokesperson Terry Wyatt declared that "the next few years will be the most exciting time for the Tevatron," while CDF co-spokespersons Young-Kee Kim and Rob Roser drew a laugh with, "One down, eight to go—whoops!" Wyatt chimed in: "Eight more would be fine!"

Whatever the eventual total, Oddone offered a reminder of the physics prospects ahead. "One inverse femtobarn is great, but that's just where we get into the region where it really starts to get interesting. We're looking forward to the fun in the next couple of years." Alvin Tollestrup, part of the original Tevatron effort a quarter of a century ago, added historical perspective, and Giorgio Bellettini, of INFN-Pisa, offered the appreciation of the international community.

"It's great for a lab to have created an atmosphere where users and members of the international community feel at home," Oddone concluded. "And with that, let's party!"

And they did.