View Full Version : Security at St. Louis
CloakAndDagger
18-04-2016, 22:16
Just a reminder to old teams, and a heads up to teams who did not attend worlds last year:
There were multiple break-ins and thefts at last years competition. The head robot inspector had his laptop stolen, and several teams had their driver stations stolen.
On top of that, a remember hearing about a team who's truck was stolen, along with their trailer and robot, as well as a vehicle with sleeping students inside being broken into.
We ourselves were not subject to any break-ins, but I did want to create this thread as a final reminder to get laptop-locks, and bring vehicles with keyless locks, as well as any other precautions that you deem fit.
To be clear, this isn't an attack of any kind towards other teams, or the people of St. Louis, but these events all occurred last year, and teams should keep this in mind while traveling not only to Worlds, but anywhere
St Louis is an urban area. Not really more or less dangerous than any other large city. At least you are not likely to get eaten by a bear or trampled by a moose. :)
Trying to Help
18-04-2016, 23:14
Everyone knows you can't get eaten by a bear! They just eat your food and maybe drink your beer. :)
And it is good for experienced attendees to remind others or just share their experiences with those of us newcomers.
Is there a thread on best place to park? Decent food nearby? How far it is from one place to the next? What's the best idea you could give someone who has never been to Champs?
Thank you!
The broke my drivers door lock by inserting a screw driver/crow bar below the lock handle piercing the sheet metal and then they tried to pop the lock up. Destroyed the door. Worst was my two teen age daughters were sleeping under blankets at the time and when they woke the bandits shot off. There was several supposedly security guards watching the parking lot. That was 2015. In 2013 one of the mentors was broken in the same way. So watch your door locks and look for a piercing below the handle! Even the police was disgusted with the security.
I almost didn't want to go this year but since I am not hauling a trailer for the team, I will park in a more secure spot.
As for writing it off as an urban area, poor security is poor security, whether you are in St Louis or Detroit or LA or New York.
Sperkowsky
18-04-2016, 23:38
The broke my drivers door lock by inserting a screw driver/crow bar below the lock handle piercing the sheet metal and then they tried to pop the lock up. Destroyed the door. Worst was my two teen age daughters were sleeping under blankets at the time and when they woke the bandits shot off. There was several supposedly security guards watching the parking lot. That was 2015. In 2013 one of the mentors was broken in the same way. So watch your door locks and look for a piercing below the handle! Even the police was disgusted with the security.
I almost didn't want to go this year but since I am not hauling a trailer for the team, I will park in a more secure spot.
As for writing it off as an urban area, poor security is poor security, whether you are in St Louis or Detroit or LA or New York.
New York takes offense.
We are not even on the top 10 list of most dangerous major us cities. STL is number 4 with Detroit sitting at number 1. Oakland and Memphis are sitting between the 2. STL also has a claim to fame with the most murder cases per 100,000 residents of any major city in America.
In all seriousness guys just use proper precaution. Make sure to lock doors, keep expensive electronics in hotel rooms and park in secured parking lots. Use proper precaution while walking at night and make sure to never be alone especially if you are a female (Not being sexist you guys are just at a greater risk).
There is an enormous parking area upriver* of the Jones Dome. There are four huge lots with absolutely no markings. They will fill up progressively over the first few days of CMP. I honestly don't know how I managed to back out of a dead-end I found that I had driven into and found a dead end last year; DO NOT DRIVE A TRAILER INTO AN AREA YOU DO NOT SEE HOW TO DRIVE THROUGH AND OUT OF.
3946 had no theft issues in the gravel lots in the big city in St. Louis, but we had our solar panels stolen about a week ago on our own school campus in the small town of Slidell. To quote Alastor Moody: Be Ever Vigilant!
*[Edit]: Probably just an echo of growing up in the New Orleans area; we understand upriver and downriver [especially refereneced to the Mississippi] as better directions than North, South, East, and West. OBTW, I grew up on the West Bank, and regularly drove across the river "west to east" at sunrise using both bridges with the sun at my back, and home to the west bank with the sun in front of me. (For the record, in New Orleans, the river runs largely west to east, but both bridges cross as the river runs from roughly south no north.)
Edit2: For the record, New Orleans is among the worst cities in North America, so perhaps my witness means less than it might otherwise. My only brother was among our region's abysmal 1993 statistics.
Billfred
19-04-2016, 00:02
And one piece of security going the other way: expect your bag to be checked when you go into the building. I've even had to unzip my carry-on suitcase, underwear and all, in the front entry of America's Center to get through.
Trying to Help
19-04-2016, 00:27
Are there prohibited items? Leatherman tools? Pocket knives of a certain size?
Are there prohibited items? Leatherman tools? Pocket knives of a certain size?
Besides the usual Missouri State Laws, (http://www.knifeup.com/missouri-knife-laws/) can't say in the 5 years of going to Champs I've ever been frisked while entering, though also can't say I've ever attempted to bring in a knife with a blade over 3".
electroken
19-04-2016, 05:59
Are there prohibited items? Leatherman tools? Pocket knives of a certain size?
I've carried my trusty Leatherman Skeletool in plain view at champs for the past 3 years and it's never been mentioned.
Given that the place is full of power tools, forbidding a Leatherman would be remarkably silly.
Given that the place is full of power tools, forbidding a Leatherman would be remarkably silly.
A powertool tends to be a lot harder to conceal than a multi tool.
But yes, it would be silly
CloakAndDagger
19-04-2016, 08:04
I would say that if you are planning on bringing items that you are unsure about, pack them in your trailer, seeing as they tend to be more lenient with things in your build cart/ things of that nature
techtiger1
19-04-2016, 08:11
Wait till the championship event in Detroit :o
I love St Louis but like any urban area there are problems. We are a convention of high tech people and are prime candidates to have easily pawnable stuff in our cars. The criminals know this so don't leave anything in the passenger area of your car, not even a jacket on the seat (it may look like you are hiding something.)
Also the security in the parking areas last year was a non-existent joke. I wrote to FIRST complaining it. Lets hope they do a better job this year.
Are there prohibited items? Leatherman tools? Pocket knives of a certain size?
Mostly food. You will need to keep your leg of mutton outside the grounds.
Also the security in the parking areas last year was a non-existent joke. I wrote to FIRST complaining it. Lets hope they do a better job this year.
+1 for this. They even warned not to leave your trailer overnight in the provided trailer parking. It would be better to collect a parking fee to provide some security.
krtanjek
19-04-2016, 09:07
Hoping security in the parking area for trailers and buses is better than last year. Last year our RV was broken into and lost ~$7k worth of equipment in the designated parking area where "security" had been. We thought about adding an electric shock floor this year. :-)
Hope everyone has a safe trip to St. Louis and look forward to having fun.
as long as you carry your important devices with you or leave them with someone who will watch them, you should be fine. and also make sure someone is always in your pit. if something is stolen, there should be security footage that could be reviewed. i asked the security staff to do that at UIC pavillion at the midwest regional.
We thought about adding an electric shock floor this year. :-)
This makes me wonder if there would be any way for police or security to build a 'mouse trap'.
May be a market for such a trailer as a product.
Munchskull
19-04-2016, 10:03
Are there prohibited items? Leatherman tools? Pocket knives of a certain size?
I have carried my Leatherman Wingman in plain sight at multiple events this year (there of the four were actually schools) without anyone saying a word. It seems that they are seen as tools and therefore allowed.
Ryan Dognaux
19-04-2016, 10:21
I'll just echo what everyone else has said. Don't leave expensive stuff in your cars or trailers. Actually lock your doors. Don't leave items laying around in plain view. Keep them with you or in your hotel room if it's not necessary at the venue. Common sense right?
I've never had a problem feeling unsafe downtown, even around the dome area. But again, use common sense and travel with at least a few people especially after dark.
Hopefully the garages will step up their security game this year, sounds like it was pretty awful last year.
pfreivald
19-04-2016, 10:28
I've never had a problem feeling unsafe downtown, even around the dome area. But again, use common sense and travel with at least a few people especially after dark.
And don't cross the bridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_St._Louis,_Illinois#Crime
Ryan Dognaux
19-04-2016, 10:41
And don't cross the bridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_St._Louis,_Illinois#Crime
Yeah... I definitely wouldn't take a midnight stroll through East St. Louis. Accidentally drove over there once and just turned around though, still alive.
pfreivald
19-04-2016, 10:49
I did research on a novel for places to not go, and for police corruption. East St. Louis topped the list on both.
Anthony Galea
19-04-2016, 10:59
Wait till the championship event in Detroit :o
:deadhorse:
jnicho15
19-04-2016, 11:15
And don't cross the bridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_St._Louis,_Illinois#Crime
How bad is O'Fallon IL? Our team's hotel is there
Ryan Dognaux
19-04-2016, 11:17
How bad is O'Fallon IL? Our team's hotel is there
O'Fallon, Illinois (not to be confused with O'Fallon, Missouri) is completely fine, just ask 1208 the Metool Brigade :)
They also put together a great PDF containing a lot of information for food, hotels, etc. check it out - http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1557632&postcount=25
This makes me wonder if there would be any way for police or security to build a 'mouse trap'.
May be a market for such a trailer as a product.
You know, as smart as all of us are one would think we could create a solution with a cRIO, LOTS of LED's, a bunch of barely-functional web cams, an on-demand cell connection, plenty of 12V batteries from a couple of years ago and perhaps some servos or motors to make things move.
It could literally serve as a beacon for "security", or the police, to say "hey, the thieves are right here, right now". Plus there would be photo evidence, auto-stored in the "cloud".
Then the marketing team could make some graphics that say
"What would you like to tell the Internet?" or
"Ha! Gotcha! If you run, our robots may chase you..." or
"Autonomous Apprehending Device Activated" or
"WARNING: This device is a prototype and may explode if it detects fear" or
<insert witty and snarky remark here>
Ok ... I (mostly) kid - this wouldn't help personal vehicles much. We had an incident in 2013, but the car was a rental and there weren't any personal items in it. It seriously needs to be addressed...
Everyone knows you can't get eaten by a bear! They just eat your food and maybe drink your beer. :)
And it is good for experienced attendees to remind others or just share their experiences with those of us newcomers.
Is there a thread on best place to park? Decent food nearby? How far it is from one place to the next? What's the best idea you could give someone who has never been to Champs?
Thank you!
For eating, I can recommend two restaurants near the arena. They're next to each other. One is a pizza place (can't remember the name) and the other is a sandwich shop called Snarf's (highly recommended,good prices and service, also has cool sodas, ice cream). Both tend to have large lines so get there early or late. Some members of my team took shifts waiting and texted everyone when they were about to order. We also go food orders for drive and pit crew when the robot needed fixing.
There is also a starbucks and a few convenience stores nearby along with other lunch places that are more of a walk.
My suggestion is to bring some snacks for yourself/your team and some water for the day. If you're going to eat go in pairs or groups and do shifts for waiting in line. The food at the venue is pretty expensive but there are a few interesting kiosks that open for part of the day.
ATannahill
19-04-2016, 12:37
For eating, I can recommend two restaurants near the arena. They're next to each other. One is a pizza place (can't remember the name) and the other is a sandwich shop called Snarf's (highly recommended,good prices and service, also has cool sodas, ice cream). Both tend to have large lines so get there early or late. Some members of my team took shifts waiting and texted everyone when they were about to order. We also go food orders for drive and pit crew when the robot needed fixing.
There is also a starbucks and a few convenience stores nearby along with other lunch places that are more of a walk.
My suggestion is to bring some snacks for yourself/your team and some water for the day. If you're going to eat go in pairs or groups and do shifts for waiting in line. The food at the venue is pretty expensive but there are a few interesting kiosks that open for part of the day.
I second the recommendation for Pi (http://pi-pizza.com/).
Robomarfa
19-04-2016, 12:44
Our school van was broken into at the public parking lot across from City Museum last year. Happens every day say the cops. Take care.
Thanks for this great reminder. Many teams are coming from rural or suburban areas where the typical sorts of urban crime are non-existent. With St. Louis definitely being above average in petty theft (and dangerous crimes) this is a good reminder that team's should be talking to their students about proper safety procedures and typical city-living practices like not leaving anything in your car, covered or not.
I would highly recommend teams, especially those from rural/suburban areas, hold a safety meeting to discuss these things. It may be unnecessary, but if it educates one member of your team and keeps them from losing something to theft, or saves them from a dangerous situation you've done something good. I'll be putting together out team's "Urban-Safety" briefing in the next few days and would be willing to share the bullet points here if anyone is interested.
How bad is O'Fallon IL? Our team's hotel is there
O'Fallon, Illinois is an upper/middle class suburban community with a low crime rate and a very good police force. It was recently named the 3rd best city in Illinois in which to raise family.http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/illinois/raise-family-il/
jnicho15
20-04-2016, 08:50
O'Fallon, Illinois is an upper/middle class suburban community with a low crime rate and a very good police force. It was recently named the 3rd best city in Illinois in which to raise family.http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/illinois/raise-family-il/
Nice!
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