Meeting FIRST People in odd places

[Jeff Waegelin]

So, I'm down here at the University of Michigan for Band Week, and already, in just the Trumpet section, I've met three former FIRST people. One was from 226, one from 240, and one all the way from 374 in Anchorage, Alaska. Apparently, there are quite a few FIRSTers in the Michigan Marching Band that I haven't met, also. This got me thinking about something. Where have you met FIRST people in odd places? By odd places, I mean anywhere that you wouldn't consider a FIRST-related activity. So, what are your stories? They don't have to be much, but I think it would be cool to get an idea of where FIRSTers are in the "outside world."

[Rickertsen2]

I met a "First person" in a barber shop once.

[Joe Lambie]

One day at my post office I was wearing a t-shirt from my freshman year on team 93 and this guy asked me if I had been in the FIRST program. I started talking with him and found out he was one of the original mentors for my team, however he retired and left by the time I had arrived on the team. I just found it amusing and neat that in an area of 250,000 people, and maybe 500 having come in contact with he team, and two alumnus come across each other and are able to connect because of FIRST. Definitely one of my cooler experiences as a result of the program.

[RogerR]

met a guy while camping at hart springs, whose brother had been the team captain for a miami team (not sure of number)

[Not2B]

Waitress saw the FIRST logo on my shirt and asked if I worked with a team. She had never been on a team, never been to an event, didn't know anyone on a team, never saw a TV show about FIRST... so I asked how she knew about FIRST.

She is studing marketing, and one assignment was to pick out a cool logo they knew nothing about, and then research it and report back to the class what it ment and who it was for. She has picked out the FIRST logo cuz it was so cool looking, and then had to explaine FIRST's mission to an entire marketing class.

We're everywhere...

[MisterX]

Sadly all summer I have been away as a camp counselor over the summer at a boy scout camp so I havn't been able to check up on the site (its been too long). However, while at camp it was about half way through the summer before I realized that during one of the nasty t-storm a fellow counselor was wearing a FIRST jacket :yikes: and for the rest of the summer we would always talk about FIRST in our spare time! :cool:

[D.J. Fluck]

I was at Purdue the other day and I saw a kid wearing a 2002 OCCRA shirt, but I didnt bother to ask him what team he was from..

The other time this summer I saw someone was when I was in Indianapolis at a mall I saw some kid wearing a 2003 IRI shirt

[Kristina]

I was at the In-n-Out right by UCLA's campus and saw a kid whose team I made a call against when I was ref'ing at the Chatsworth scrimmage. Though he was wearing his team tshirt, I would have recognized him anyway because I remember him not being too happy about being penalized. Apparently the team is located +1 hour away from my school so I don't know what he was doing there but I found it funny (not to mention my friends also found it really funny I was hiding from him...hey, he seemed like the type who would hold a grudge about the DQ).

Btw, all of you people who live outside of California and don't have In-N-Out are soooo deprived.

[Pin Man]

Well honestly I did not meet the person but when my family and I drove down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on the last full week of july through the first week of August we stopped at a restaursant called T-Bones... When I got out of the car I noticed that the SUV next to us had some that autodesk passed out hanging from the rearview mirror... I went to the back of the SUV and saw a team bumber stick it looked like... I forget where the licence plate was from but I bet it was someone that was at nationals...

[OneAngryDaisy]

I met one of 357's members while taking the SAT at good ol' Wissahickon..

[Stephanie]

a team mate and i were taking the SATs at another high school in the district. we bumped into a member from 115 (i believe) wearing a t-shirt from championship 2002. there was a WRRF meeting later that day, however, the 115 guy said he wasn't planning on attending.

in the beginning of august, my boyfriend and i went to play laser tag, and ran into "aonic" of team 1072.

at SVR 2003, i noticed someone on the leland team who looked familiar. upon speaking to eachother, we realized that we went to the same church, but had never really met (it's a big church...).

[Melissa Nute]

When I went to National Latin Convention this year at Trinity University, I wore my robotics shirt one of the days. I had a decent amount of people come up to me about it and we started talking. To think...Robotics geeks are also Latin Nerds...

[Vin211]

I saw someone part of FIRST in a casino.

[Katie Reynolds]

On the plane to Nationals this past year, I noticed the lady across the aisle from me had a FIRST business card sticking out of the folder she was carrying. Looking closer, I noticed she was wearing a FIRST vest. When the plane landed, one of my mentors and I started talking to her and it turned out that she was one of the FLL game coordinators/planners/whatever-you-want-to-call-'ems. We wound up talking about the possibility of my team hosting an edu-robotics competition sometime in the future. It was cool. :)

- Katie

[miketwalker]

I was walking around Disney, and someone was wearing one of the shirts they were selling at nationals at Epcot.. so I started talking to him, found out he was a mentor on a team somewhere in the mid-west, and was on vacation in Florida... I thought it was pretty cool.

[Elyse Holguin]

at lunch with my mom and aunt for mother's day a guy from 1000, wheeler bearcats was our busboy :-D

[Tytus Gerrish]

Originally posted by RogerR
met a guy while camping at hart springs, whose brother had been the team captain for a miami team (not sure of number)


Either Race 212 ,or Ramtech 59

[ChrisH]

I ran into one of the engineers on a team we mentored in the local Home Depot. I just can't image what he would be doing there in the off-season. ;)

[Sophey Chan]

Well, I was at an anime convention, AFO, and I ran into someone who was on Team Pink 3 years ago, that was really odd, he was like "Before they were Team Pink" and stuff, and he started to talk to me about it...Then one day in Fashion Square I ran into one of our Engineers at Subway, whicfh we constantly ate during the season...

[Ashley Weed]

hmm.... as I think I mentioned in another thread.. oddest place.. was in the local Hooters.

I am interested to see if anyone (besides 222 ;)) will be on campus this fall.

[AlbertW]

Vivek and I (both Harker Robotics people) saw Jim and 2 other (presumably 258) FIRST people at Valley Faire.

and then 30 seconds later saw Akshay from MVRT.

[Ken Loyd]

This summer, while waiting for our 8:15 pm flight back to Arizona (which did not leave until 2:10am) I noticed a girl from team 460 (Xavier College Prep) sitting with her parents. We spent a few great hours explaining FIRST to an ever growing crowd.

Ken Loyd
Team #64
The Gila Monsters

[Tytus Gerrish]

i see lots of first people, But i seek them out

[FotoPlasma]

Originally posted by AlbertW
Vivek and I (both Harker Robotics people) saw Jim and 2 other (presumably 258) FIRST people at Valley Faire.

Heh. Actually, that was Bill.

[AlbertW]

i meant to say that. sorry. haha. all of you are so confusing...

::goes and hides in corner::

:yikes:

[Matt Leese]

Originally posted by FotoPlasma
Heh. Actually, that was Bill.
At least I'm not the only one who can't tell you two apart.

Matt

[Nick Seidl]

Originally posted by Ashley Weed
hmm.... as I think I mentioned in another thread.. oddest place.. was in the local Hooters.

Must have been one of the engineers that used to be on 448. Whenever drove to competitions, they'd even bust out the Hooters bobble head for the dashboard.

[Madison]

Originally posted by Matt Leese
At least I'm not the only one who can't tell you two apart.

Matt

Does that make me the only one who thinks they look nothing alike?

[Yan Wang]

Hm... saw Patrick, Vicki, and Lara coming out of bailey hall @ Cornell after a talk by Dave Barry :) Good stuff...

[Greg Perkins]

I met a bunch of cooridinators for RIVERRAGE at a local carshow...they were on the now defunct Blue Lightning team from manchester.

its really cool how many people there are out there!!

[Anarkissed]

Lets see, I met some TechnoKats at a christian music festival in kentucky, it was pretty cool. I wear my FIRST crew shirt whenever I go anywhere and I usually run into at least one FIRSTer. We are a secret cult. =)

[FotoPlasma]

Originally posted by M. Krass
Does that make me the only one who thinks they look nothing alike?

Heh. You can probably count both Bill and me in on that, too. You aren't alone.

[Bill Gold]

Originally posted by M. Krass
Does that make me the only one who thinks they look nothing alike?
Yeah, what Jim said. We used to possibly pass off as twins, but there are very distinct differences in our appearances now.

[ebmonon36]

I met some FIRST members at a callout meeting for some robotics thing...oh wait it was a FIRST callout. Okay..that was my attempt at being funny right now. :)
Eric

[SarahB]

I’ve met all sorts of FIRST people in random places. Over spring break, I went to Puerto Rico. Our plane home was late in arriving so I started talking to some of the other people that were waiting. I started talking about FIRST, and it turns out one of the kids was on team 869. Then another time I was at the King of Prussia mall in PA and I met a kid from team 371. And this summer at smart camp(that sounds kind of geeky…) I met an alumnus from team 571, as well as students from 293 and 708. Together we ended up convincing a bunch of kids to join their schools’ FIRST teams. It was fun :D.

[Wetzel]

Originally posted by M. Krass
Does that make me the only one who thinks they look nothing alike?

No, they look rather diffrent. Bill has this thing that sticks out from his forhead. (Mayhaps that why they call him Bill) :p

I don't think I've run into FIRST people that I didn't know in wierd places, but I do run into people I know.

I did run into Wailua's robot at the Honolulu airport last summer, but it was in a display case in the terminal. It was very random.


Wetzel

[Aignam]

I saw a kid in Walmart wearing a FIRST shirt once. He didn't look like he was having the best day, though, so I used my 'finer judgment' and kept walking. I also bumped into the Team 303 advisor in the local Barnes and Noble a few months back.

[kmcclary]

Originally posted by Meli W.
When I went to National Latin Convention this year at Trinity University, I wore my robotics shirt one of the days. I had a decent amount of people come up to me about it and we started talking. To think...Robotics geeks are also Latin Nerds... That's FUNNY... At our school, this year our team's Teacher IS the school's Latin teacher. If some of his students join the team, I'll bet we'll end up with a cool Latin team slogan this year... :D

(Last year, our Teacher was from the Math department, who became too busy to do it this year. We don't even HAVE a metal/wood shop at the school right now, so getting "the shop teacher" to work with the students isn't an option.)

OBThreadRef: I ran into a FIRST person from another city on a bus once who was wearing a team shirt. I'm often approached when I'm out of town if I happen to wear any kind of FIRST related clothing or jacket. There's so many teams now, if you wear a team shirt on vacation trips, you're bound to meet another FIRSTer (FIRSTite? FIRSTian?), or general robotics fan, and have a nice conversation.

- Keith

[Sophey Chan]

I went to our first football game tonight, against Titusville, and the head cheerleading coach has a neice on Commbat, 21, and we were talking about it, you know apparently they have a 'sign up sheet' in what was it, breeze hallway?, which never actually appeared, it was quite odd...I could only of imagined the game in Commbat was there..

[AlbertW]

Originally posted by Bill Gold
Yeah, what Jim said. We used to possibly pass off as twins, but there are very distinct differences in our appearances now.

haha, i guess i was lucky at the mall. cause i was like (uh... i don't know. pick a name.) "Vivek, this is bill gold."

[Gadget470]

Once when I was working as a Camera-Man for the Easter Bunny set at Oakland Mall here in SE Michigan, I saw someone with a TNT shirt on. I yelled out the team number, but he didn't turn.

I guess that's not really meeting per say.. but still.

[Jeff Waegelin]

I was wearing my FEDS shirt today, and found out that my RA's girlfriend was on Team 301. Kinda cool...

[BandChick]

Along with Jeff I was on campus for Band Camp for the week and was spending time with a bum knee on the sidelines. One of the other girls with a bad knee, Jess, used to be on 87 and her boyfriend (a tuba player) has a ton of friends on 102.

Also, my high school's principal was originally a teacher/student council advisor/principal at 102's high school before Hightstown.

small world.

[BandChick]

Though I am not sure this is a "FIRST person" I did meet someone who works in Princeton Plasma Physics Labs that graduated from WPI and helped out with the FIRST team they sponsor. Her former high school also now has a team.

[generalbrando]

While in line for the Raging Bull with 1064's Kevin (formerly 71) someone from a team around the area spotted my 2001 championship shirt. I can't remember who he was or what team he hailed from. We talked to him for a while and came back to bug him after the ride. I think it made all of our days except for the fact that I finally got to ride V2 and Deja Vu:).

[Alaina]

I was at In-n-Out the other day and I saw a man with a shirt that said "Sonoma Robot Games" but nothing about FIRST....I was too shy to ask him about it...I regret it now...

[The Lucas]

Early last summer, I was walking down Main Street in Newark with a couple other Miracle Workerz Alumni when I saw a guy wearing an old Buzz (175) shirt (2001 season I think, since it just had smily face, without a graduation cap (2002) or a astronaught helmet (2003)). We were thinking about telling him that Newark and all of Delaware was MOE territory and he cant wear that here, but we decided he might not take that joke well. We were starving so we just went to eat at Cluck U instead of talking to him.

[Erin Rapacki]

For Buzz:

2000: smiley with sunglasses
2001: smiley with graduation cap
2002: plain smiley
2003: space suited smiley

... I have no clue who would be down there and would have a Buzz shirt (and actually wear it in public)

that's just weird!


I tend to run into a random person every once in a while and find out that they know about FIRST. It's pretty cool.

[Pin Man]

I like never run into anyone up here... But I saw someones car in SC when I was on vacation... It had a team sticker and an autodesk bandana inside the car...

[Eugenia Gabrielov]

Mmmmm the way I actually got roped into FIRST is that I was browsing IndyDDR Forums and I happened to read a post by a kid who had "FIRST" written in his signature, and a whole bunch of links. Crazy, he's now my buddy. DDR & FIRST bring the world together .:cool:

[Joe Matt]

I have never meet anyone that was in FIRST outside of FIRST who I didn't already know. And I DO wear my FIRST shirts a lot to hotel pools, parks, etc, so I'm bound to be seen....

But seeing some Technocats at a Christian Rock concert is #1 on my odd-FIRST-members-sigting...

[Ryan Dognaux]

Originally posted by a breezy era
Mmmmm the way I actually got roped into FIRST is that I was browsing IndyDDR Forums and I happened to read a post by a kid who had "FIRST" written in his signature, and a whole bunch of links. Crazy, he's now my buddy. DDR & FIRST bring the world together .:cool:


Hmmm... I wonder who this "Crazy Kid" could be? ;)

[Elyse Holguin]

i definately vouch for the whole FIRST does bring the world together part.

[Kiwi_queen]

My friend and I ran into kids from another FIRST team at a chinese buffet during an out-of-state band/choir trip with our school.

[BandChick]

I have a couple incidents here:

1: I walked into my Engineering Orientation Lecture (my attendence based class so I can decide what facet of engineering I want to go into) & behind me walked in a kid in the anniversary FIRST shirt. I asked him, turns out he's from 224 (Piscataway HS), but I think I came off as a little too excited, because he didn't talk to me after that.

2: I was walking to the student center the next day before my chemistry class and passed another kid wearing the same anniversary shirt and i was like "yeah FIRST" and he was like "FIRST is life." but we kept walking, didn't really talk to each other. Then, he just showed up right behind me in my chemistry class later that day. I was playing with my FIRST lanyard from EPCOT & the kid next to him was like "dude, she has a FIRST keychain!"

3: This didn't actually happen to me, but I don't think the actual person will post here. At my Engineering Orientation (Mandatory) Picnic, one of the kids on Team 25 stood in the middle of the quad and shouted "Yeah FIRST" just to see how many people would turn around. Needless to say, it was more than half the kids there.

[RogerR]

i live in a dorm, and and at USF (i don't know 'bout other schools...) each floor has 2 RA's (resident assistant), who are 2nd-, 3rd-, or 4th-year students who keep the freshmen in check.
i was talking to one of my floor's RAs, and it turns out that not only is she the president of the school's robotics society, but is also alumni from team 386 (voltage). the vice-president of the robotics society is also from 386.

[Matt_Kaplan1902]

This summer i was at Bush Gardens in Tampa and at one of the food places I saw someone wearing the shirt they gave out at the 2002 nationals. I didn't talk to him but I did see him staring at my 108 shirt.


P.S.- RogerR: An alumni of 108 is at USF (not sure if he lives in a dorm)

[Jeff Waegelin]

Well, I met three more FIRSTers in Bursley Hall... one from 469, one from a team I can't remember, and one who was working on the student dining hall staff. He saw my 2001 Nationals shirt, and said "hey, I was in that." I asked him what team he was from, and he said something in the 300s, and that they were NYC regional champs one year.

[RogerR]

Originally posted by sigmakid108
P.S.- RogerR: An alumni of 108 is at USF (not sure if he lives in a dorm)

do you have his name?
i might have classes with him (assuming he's majoring in engineering)

[Alaina]

I was at Great America on band/orchestra tour and I ran into my GRT buddy...That was back in May...

[BandChick]

this morning i walked into the dining hall and there was a kid getting a bagel that had on the anniversary FIRST shirt, so i walked up to him while he was eating said breakfast to ask what team he was on...team 53 from maryland :)

and then we chatted about the insanely large numbers on FIRST teams these days

*cough*1089*cough*

[Specialagentjim]

I think the most unexpected one was as we're taking a break during my dual-enrolled college class (Im in high school, but take college english). We're out on the... I guess you could call it o deck like thing, outside of the room. I'm talking to one person who just graduated stoneman douglas (A local h.s.) and Im saying how im on robotics. She then also asks another girl near us where she came from. She says from Ely H.S. I tell her the name of my friend there who's on robotics, "Hey, ya know a guy named eric cho?" her response "Yeah, from robotics team". me: "You were on the team??? I'm sigmcat!!" "You're sigmcat?? We love you!"....that REALLY confused the stoneman douglas girl...heh

[ahecht]

I was in a chat room discussing the show 'Push, Nevada', and someone used the word Co-Opertition in the conversation. I asked, and of course he was a FIRST person (I forget which team). Plus, I actually convinced someone else in the chat room who was a Mechanical Engineer to volunteer as a mentor.

[Wetzel]

I went sailing this weekend on the Chesapeake Bay, and it happens that one of the guys on my boat was a mechE mentor on a team in Lexington Park, MD. A few other guys knew about it because they were being bugged at work to mentor local teams. (Pax River NAS is a major Navy R&D base).


Wetzel

[BandChick]

This is not so much a strange place, as it is a strange story.

I went to Final Bin Bash yesterday, and while I was there I saw this guy wearing a Rutgers University (where i go to school) hoodie, so I went over to talk to him. Well, we chatted for a couple minutes and when i got back to my dorm room last night my friend Ang (who lives across the hall) was like "this kid in my lab group was there yesterday, his name is John" and it turned out to be the kid i met. so this morning i walked to breakfast and he was eating in the dining hall, and we started talking about FIRST & it turned out that he was on 102. then we were talking about Houston and i told him that my friend Kim (kimr) and I were stalking the two guys from his team that went (because their whole team didn't go, just 2 of them) to get a 102 shirt, and it turned out to be him and his best friend. so then a couple minutes later my friend Lindsay (who's in marching band with me) comes over and sits next to him and i'm like "how does she know John" well, he's in like half her classes and for their major.

I completely didn't realize that he was the one that we traded shirts with, and after I mentioned the shirt thing to him, it turned out he had just recently been talking to his friend about that event.

Ok, now if you followed all of that congratulations, you win the "I can girl talk award!"

[shyra1353]

Originally posted by BandChick
Ok, now if you followed all of that congratulations, you win the "I can girl talk award!"

SWEET!! i just won an award!!!

[Alaina]

I just found out this out today...

My current Physics teacher used to student teach at Los Altos High, home of team 114, and his mentor teacher was one of the team advisors!

I guess that qualifies....Team 814 is leaving him alone since he's new but he better be our advisor next year! Oh man, koolness...

[BandChick]

I met a kid in my physics class last week that was on team 11. I was talking to another girl about why i chose mechanical engineering as my major and i mentioned FIRST. He turned around and gave me a strange look, and we started talking about FIRST. so now, we sit together in physics and make fun of our professor, play calculator games, and chatter about FIRST here and there.

[gsensel]

On move in day at college I was wearing a shirt and met a kid from Ohio during a fire drill.

[Aaron Knight]

I ran into a mentor for the only other team in the syracuse area (liverpool) at our annual jazz fest....happened to be wearing a shirt from the canadian regional (2001) and he noticed it.

[Melissa H.]

Haha I actually met two people in "odd" places...

I was at an awards banquet for karate to receive my next level in rank. She was there for her younger sibling and noticed I had a robotics sweatshirt sitting near me, and asked if I was in robotics. I told her that I was, and asked if she was. Turns out, she's a team 65 team member. w00t!

The second one was during my Physics class. An exchange student staying with a family knew the team of the sweatshirt I was wearing (team 469). Apparently, the family has two students on that team, and she knew instantly that I was in robotics by seeing that shirt. She's not in robotics, but still, it was interesting. lol

[IBApril180]

I've met FIRST people at theme parks a couple times. Last year, when I went to Night of Joy at Disney's Magic Kingdom...I saw someone wearing a Heatwave shirt, so I ran up to him and told him I was from SPAM. He just gave me a really weird look until he realized what I was talking about.

And I saw 3 people wearing Demolition Squad shirts at Universal, but they didn't turn around when we screamed at them, so I think they weren't really team members, they looked too young.

[Brm789]

Standing at the receptionist's desk, waiting to have blood drawn...

that was one of the oddest moments of my life because I was like...wha...you work here??

[Koko Ed]

I have a pair of ex-FIRST members in my class. One is an ex-X-Cat from last year Sakath our scout mistress in our theater production seminar(we're doing a comedia play "the Servant of Two Masters" she is part of the mask making team, I'm on props. For some reason the professor is making a big deal about a six-week production schedule. ;) ) and in my Wednesday class I have a past member of Rush robotics Zachary Wheeler who was on the team back in '97. He beamed with much pride when I informed him that his old team had won a regional Chairman's award. There was another kid in my class who knew an awful lot about FIRST. I'll have to grill him further on what team he was affilaited with.

[Jessica Boucher]

She'll probably kill me for posting this....(ssh! don't tell!)

...but here's a pic of me & one of my SigKap sisters, a 571 alum.

[ngreen]

I talked with FIRST student from half (4) of the team in my state (9) while running an K-State Open House display about FIRST.

I sat next to a kid in macroeconomics in the fall all semester and one day I saw him wearing a stack attack shirt. So after class I asked if he was from Newton, he was suprised that I knew where he was from. I had to explain to him that I saw his shirt and there were only two teams from Kansas at the championship and one was the team I was on.

[rachakate]

I was in the gym a month ago, and in the recycling bin was one of the Shasta FIRST water bottles. That was from 2002, right? It surprised me.

[OZ_341]

OK!

So in September, I am standing around the cafeteria on lunch duty and a girl walks by in a Buzz Team 175 shirt. Our school is in Ambler,PA and Buzz is from CT. What was even more strange is that Buzz was one of our Galileo Division Partners at the Championship.

I couldn't believe it! So I talked to her and found out she just moved here. The odds are already tough enough, to move from one FIRST school to another FIRST school, but to land with your alliance partner is truly off the hook.

Anyway, needless to say that was the easiest recruiting I have ever done.

She will be back at Nationals, this time wearing "Daisies" instead of bright yellow.

Good luck to everyone at Nationals and in the off-season!!

[The Lucas]

OK!

So in September, I am standing around the cafeteria on lunch duty and a girl walks by in a Buzz Team 175 shirt. Our school is in Ambler,PA and Buzz is from CT.

What is it with these Buzz kids invading our area? Last year I was walking down Main Street in Newark, DE with some friends (ironically 2 were MOE alumni and we were all wearing various FIRST shirts) to go get some chicken from Cluck U, when we saw a guy in a Buzz shirt with a couple other guys. It was an old school shirt, probally from 2000 or earlier. We were going to him that "Delaware is MOE territory and you can't wear that" :) , but they went into some store and we were hungry so we just went into Cluck U.

[BandChick]

I have to drag this back up from the depths...

The other day I walked into a SWE (Society of Women Engineers) meeting. I'm sitting there talking to the Treasurer and her friend comes over and says one word to me. "FIRST?" Of course, my head jumps up and I ask how she knows of FIRST. Turns out, she wasn't a FIRSTer, but her roomate was and got her interested. There was also a team at her high school!

Just the other day I met one of my older fraternity Brothers who went to North Brunswick High School the year team 25 was started.

Oh, and turns out, my RA (resident assistant) last year went to the high school that's home of the Techno Ticks.

[Allison K]

As long as it's back up from the depths...

I was walking around Epcot this summer, and an employee recognized my 226 shirt, and said they enjyed watching the cometition. Not a FIRST person, but somebody who remembered a t-shirt for two years, so that was pretty cool.

Later this summer I was in Houghton, MI. and somebody walked by me wearing a FIRST shirt. I didn't get a chance to talk to them though.

At the Woodward Dream Cruise this fall I saw somebody walking around completely decked out in HOT gear (t-shirt, jacket, and hat).

And I ran into somebody from 902 at one of my little brother's DI competitions.

[Aignam]

I had PSAT classes in early October and I sat next to a girl who (as I overheard) was from Scotch Plains. This struck my interest, as I was due to join Scotch Plains's team in about a month or so, but I didn't bother to ask if she was on the robotics team.

Come Brunswick Eruption, I walked through the pits looking to introduce myself to 1257, and who do I see other than the PSAT girl.

PSAT Girl: "Do I know you?"
Me: "Err...I think so."
PSAT Girl: "Oh, right! From the PSAT thing."
Me: "Yeah, that's right. So what team are you on?"
PSAT GIRL: "1257. You?"
Me: "Errr....1257."

[Arefin Bari]

The ironic thing is both person that i ran into are from 267 (demosquad)... i ran in Randy who is now at Cornell at the Boca Town Center mall. and i run into Tom (their mentor) at FAU (Florida Atlantic University), when i take classes there randomly... :)

[Tom Bottiglieri]

My band was playing a show at the Webster theatre in Hartford CT. I was walking around in the crowd and i saw this one kid with a 782 (Killowatts) shirt. I talked to him for a while. It was cool.

[Alex Golec]

I've met about 4 or so CheifDelphiers while doing community service for Building with Books, because my school (International Acad.) and Pontiac Central are supervised by the same office. I also found someone from team 830 working as a ref at one of the paintball places i went to. I can't remember anyone else specifically right now.

_Alex

[Wetzel]

I see quite a few FIRSTers around campus. But that really isn't odd at all considering that VCU has been hosting a regional for 5 years now.

Wetzel

[Erin Rapacki]

[small world syndrome]

On the afternoon of Thursday 11/5 I had taken a bus from Boston to Manchester, NH. The plan was for my Grandpa to pick me up from the station at 5:05 pm so I may sleep at his house that night. I was scheduled to present at FIRST HQ for the WIST forum the next morning.

I managed to take an earlier bus, I've arrived in Manchester and the time was 4:30pm. I had half an hour to kill so I decide to take a walk.

Another girl exits the bus station and looks out across the street, she appears lost, I ask her where she's going...

340 Commercial St.

DEKA!

I walk that girl over to DEKA because she had a meeting with Dean, we talked on the way... she's in charge of girls program and wants to know of ways to incorporate her program and FIRST somehow. We exchanged information.

Lately I've had a "things happen for a reason" mentality, and this happened for a reason. This could possibly be my next big project, sounds like something I'd enjoy helping out with.

In addition, something presenters emphasized at the WIST forum:
"if something seems like a good opportunity, don't let it pass you by... you never know what might happen"


ByE

erin

[musicaly145]

This isn't exactly meeting FIRST people...but anyways..

There were about 6 students with 2 advisors in our van and we were going home after the rest of our team left on the bus from the Philadelphia Regional..
We stopped at one of those gas station/rest stop/McDonald's places. And there was a baseball team there. Coincidently that team was from one of the high schools (Can't remember the name cuz I have a terrible memory) that we had been spending the entire weekend with. Anyways..one of the baseball players was on FIRST but was unable to attend the competition so we got to talk to him about FIRST stuff...

It was pretty coooooooool :cool:

[Charley]

Yea, I was visitng a college last weekend, and when the tour guide mentioned their robotics program this girl asked if it had to do with US FIRST robotics. Needless to say I started a conversation with her.

Last year was actually our rookie year, and we had quite a few people that were going to school at Brown U. seek our team out and offer to help because they had a team at their highschool.

I don't wear my shirt around alot, but I did carry pictures of my robot with me for the vast majority of the summer : )

[KelliV]

I coach a cheerleading squad and when we went to nationals in disney last year i wore my wildstang shirt and some lady came up to me and started asking me about our robot... little did i know she was a coordinator for a FIRST regional ... good thing i only have great things to say about FIRST. That would be the wierdest place to ever see someone, who knew FIRST people have kids who are cheerleaders?

I also see people at Woodfield mall wandering around in team shirts. That is all the time though so it really isn't that awkward.

[shamuwong]

Let's see...

I met a guy from Team 830 refing at Futureball Outdoor paintball park.

At the local grocery store I work at, two of my co-workers are on Team 1.

I met somebody working at Bass Pro Shop's Outdoor World on Team 47.

My next door neighbor used to mentor a FIRST team.

I'm always trying to meet FIRST people outside of FIRST. I wear my shirts everywhere, not only because they're the only shirts I have, but I'm always trying to flag fellow robotics people.

[Specialagentjim]

I always wear mine to airports. Ive found all sorts of people that way, Stang engineers, random people who've heard of it, sponsors. Cuts out weirdness when people can relate to you.

[jgannon]

I saw a guy wearing a team 22 shirt at Carnegie Mellon pre-college this summer. Also spotted a guy in a team 175 shirt at the airport in Atlanta when we were leaving from the championship. The assistant director of admissions at WPI (who e-mailed me because my counselor left some stuff out of my application... grr) was apparently involved with team 190 a couple of years ago.

[Ryan Albright]

Well i know this is a pretty old thread but i had met some FIRST people in a odd place last night. I was working and i just gotten back to citywalk dock when one of the other captains told me that i should go talk to these girls they do robotics and wanted to know who i participated with. It turns out they are with team 190, so we chatted a few minutes and then they had to leave for there hotel. Hope to see them in nats

[some young guy]

i work with a guy on happague

walking through downtown new york city i saw a man wearing a first robotics shirt. i said hi and we talked for a lil about the new game....forgot his name and where he was from...i think it was chris

in a bathroom at my local bowling ally ;)

[finni]

I was at a Marching Band leadership camp about 4 years ago now and I was wearing my t-shirt and this kid came up and commented on my shirt that he recognized the first logo and we got to talking about first and how great of a program it is and all. I can’t remember were he was from now or even his name but I just thought that it was cool that first has the power to bring total strangers together at completely unrelated events.

[Jeff Waegelin]

Wow... it's been a while since I started this thread ;)

Anyways, I just thought I'd add that I've run into a few FIRSTers again this year. One was a student on the dining hall staff at my dorm; she was on a team from Fenton... I don't recall which. The other lives on my floor, and was a member of Team 74.

[Simon Strauss]

my cousin is on team 1257 but that doesn't really count.

[BandChick]

I met some kid in my dining hall, but I might have posted about that already. He was on 381, another team that competes at Jersey. :)

[Weightmn]

We just caught up with the member of another local team at music lessons. Another was shopping at the mall- he was on our team from about 5 years back and STILL wearing his team shirt- WAY cool!
:yikes:

[Alex Pelan]

Funny this thread resurfaces now...I just got back from my haircut, and I saw a FIRST parent there. I was wearing my shirt, and i sat down and someone told me that his son and daughter had both been on the team. Coincidence that this thread comes up at the same time as this event...or conspiracy :D ?

[Meredith343MiM]

I was getting on a roller coaster once at Six Flags over Georgia this past summer. I wore my team shirt that day for no apparant reason... but all of a sudden I heard this girl who was still in line scream "Metal In Motion!, I know you guys!"... :ahh: turns out she was from team 1002, the CircuitRunners. I thought that was cool.

What is it with Marching Band and robot dorks? I notice this becoming a common trend... (I'm a band geek too :D )

[Kris Verdeyen]

While it might not be in the same spirit as the rest of the thread, I found out that my cousin was on his HS team in Fort Wayne (1022). I thought it was neat that we had both settled upon this independently.

[BandChick]

What is it with Marching Band and robot dorks? I notice this becoming a common trend... (I'm a band geek too :D )

Ahaha, I have noticed that myself! There is a girl in my marching band who is an alum of 87! The only reason I found out was because she wore her team shirt one of the days of rehearsal. Turned out, she knew who I was already XD

[Chris Fultz]

I was at a church youth camp (Greensburg), about an hour away from home (Indianapolis), and had to run to a local grocery store for some evening snacks. I had my 234 t-shirt on, and ran into a girl from team 1020 (Muncie)who lived in the area and was there shopping.

[Dave Campbell]

I am training for a triathlon to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's "Team-in-Training" and met a former mentor from a Colorado team who is also doing the same tri.

[dubious elise]

I'm not too sure if this counts, but I met Neha Batra of 1345 three years ago at a summer camp at Northwestern University, before either of us were involved in FIRST, and we got started talking again just recently via the forums

[JIN]

So, I'm down here at the University of Michigan for Band Week, and already, in just the Trumpet section, I've met three former FIRST people. One was from 226, one from 240, and one all the way from 374 in Anchorage, Alaska. Apparently, there are quite a few FIRSTers in the Michigan Marching Band that I haven't met, also. This got me thinking about something. Where have you met FIRST people in odd places? By odd places, I mean anywhere that you wouldn't consider a FIRST-related activity. So, what are your stories? They don't have to be much, but I think it would be cool to get an idea of where FIRSTers are in the "outside world."

Hey! a Huron guy! I'm from pioneer HS. Maybe I saw you in Ypsi.

neways, I've met a couple people who sponsor a team in Texas (they didn't know the team name nor number) at my barber shop (Arm and Anvil). It was pretty cool to meet someone involved with FIRST.

[Jill1022]

I was at one of my regular local band concerts and there was a band from Michigan, One for the books, performing that night. Well I was stuck working Merch table for my friends' band and our stuff was next to One for the Books (OFTB). Well eventually they saw my "Thunderchickens" pin and were like, "are you in robotics?" and I was like, Yeah...

Turns out they were in robotics in high school too! Crazy...

Here we are:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y15/rdhotjillypepper2/Catatonic%20Show%205-7-05/100_1779.jpg

[plutonium83]

I met Moshin from 772 while playing Yahoo Euchre, the 2 nights before champs.

[Jaine Perotti]

This was quite a while ago, but I just remembered it for some reason.

I was in New York City at the same time as the NYC Regional (I feel horrible that I couldn't go!) visiting my aunt and uncle. After visiting their new apartment (they had ust bought a new one) we went to see the art show "Ashes and Snow" at the Nomadic Museam. As we were waiting in line to get in, all of a sudden I heard a bunch of people behind me talking about the regional. I turned around and told them that I was also a FIRSTer. I then asked them what their connection to FIRST was. Apparently it was a family... the daughter was on team 555, and they had come to NYC to see her team compete. It was cool to meet people who you have things in common with, that you would never relate to otherwise. FIRST has a funny way of connecting people... I like it.

-- Jaine

[JackN]

I was at the mall wearing my killer bees hat when someone asked me if i was part of that team. We talked for a while about robotics. It was interesting.

[Lisa Perez]

I've met two Thunderchickens at church and another FIRSTer from our Championships division at an awards ceremony, that was cool

[Barry Bonzack]

Disney Grad was last Friday. After the park let out, my group of friends got on the ferry to get over to the bus parking lot. it was about 3:30ish AM and I was pretty out of it. A girl noticed my collared shirt with the FIRST logo on it and asked if I was on a team. After getting over the shock that 1. a female came over to talk to me and 2. she wanted to talk about robots... we had a short conversation. She was from team 116, which was also somewhat peculiar because I couldn't figure out a group from New Hampshire was doing in Florida, but hey the night was a blast. Good times, Good times.

[Kate00]

Today at a war canoe regatta in Mississauga, I saw a guy wearing a GTR shirt from this year. I didn't go up and talk to him, however, because by the time I screwed up my courage to do it, I couldn't find him, and I was in too many races/cheering for our varsity team. (I was on Junior Varsity, and helped out the Cawthra Varsity)

[Joe Matt]

Disney Grad was last Friday. After the park let out, my group of friends got on the ferry to get over to the bus parking lot. it was about 3:30ish AM and I was pretty out of it. A girl noticed my collared shirt with the FIRST logo on it and asked if I was on a team. After getting over the shock that 1. a female came over to talk to me and 2. she wanted to talk about robots... we had a short conversation. She was from team 116, which was also somewhat peculiar because I couldn't figure out a group from New Hampshire was doing in Florida, but hey the night was a blast. Good times, Good times.

116 is from northern VA. I saw a guy from Kilroy at my church once....

[MConte05]

I was working at Six Flags St. Louis the other week, ride operations on The Boss, and I saw a kid wearing a simple FIRST shirt, didn't manage to ask him what team or where he was from.....

[KORN_lover_2007]

I met some people on a team in the town close to us at a hair salon that my mom goes to. It was cool because I was bored wating for my mom to get her hair cut, so I talked to them for a while. They were getting free tanning passes to raffle off for their team.

[Nica F.]

i was at my stepfather's friend's party, and i started talking to someone around my age and when i asked him what he did the weekend before he said he was at San Diego for a robotics scrimage, which was awkward because i was there too..lol

[Vince lau]

i met a member from team 180 on a PSP forum

[kborer22]

i was at 6 flags geat adventure for our physics final waiting to go on the new roller coaster, kingda-ka, which by the way was well worth the 3 hour wait, but i met a few kids from the pi-oneers(1676) A few of us were wearing out "I <3 autonomous mode" shirts." But we got alot of comments just from ppl who saw out shirts, they want to know what we are all about

[Jeff Waegelin]

My dad was renting a powerwasher at a Home Depot in Shelby Twp. a couple weekends ago, and the guy working the tool rental section was a Lawrence Tech student who was on a FIRST team in high school. I don't remember exactly which team he was from, but I think it was 217.

[StephLee]

On the Thursday of the Chesapeake Regional this year, my team went to the Annapolis Mall for dinner. The drive team decided to go looking for new joysticks since the drivers weren't happy with ours(never got to RadioShack, though), and while we were eating ice cream by one of those backlit maps, some guys from another team started looking at the map, looking for RadioShack. I seem to recall hearing one of them saying something about new joysticks... :yikes: We didn't get a chance to talk to them, so I have no idea what team they were from. Lots of teams were there that night, though.

I didn't really meet this guy because he's in FIRST, but...I just found out a friend of mine who lives pretty far away from me and I've known for years is on a team. He's never mentioned it before, and this is my first year on a team.

[ArmoredFairy698]

My dad works with 2 former FIRST-ers, and they are my friends now. I work with 2 former FIRST-ers as well (one from my team, who also happens to be my boyfriend, and a guy from another team). Very cool. I love how FIRST has made it's way into everything!

In fact, it's part of my job ;) My company sponsors the AZ Regional Event, as well as my team. :)

[Billfred]

I've had two run-ins since the last post in this thread. (Which means, naturally, that I have to revive it.)

One of them I happened to start IMing when she joined the Preston forums. She was on a team in Atlanta--can't remember the number.

The other one, as it just so happens, sits two seats down in SOCY 101. :D

[jacob07]

So, I'm down here at the University of Michigan for Band Week, and already, in just the Trumpet section, I've met three former FIRST people. One was from 226, one from 240, and one all the way from 374 in Anchorage, Alaska. Apparently, there are quite a few FIRSTers in the Michigan Marching Band that I haven't met, also. This got me thinking about something. Where have you met FIRST people in odd places? By odd places, I mean anywhere that you wouldn't consider a FIRST-related activity. So, what are your stories? They don't have to be much, but I think it would be cool to get an idea of where FIRSTers are in the "outside world."

Firsters as you said are popping up all over the place. Especially in the places you would never expect to see them.

[robotrob]

I drove 1300 miles from Nashua NH, to New Orleans over the fourth of July for an secr.org event. Met a girl who was in FIRST at another school during high school. Monday was 3 months together.

[ahecht]

I just had a job interview with W.L.Gore where the interviewer saw that I had FIRST on my resume, and got very excited because he had been a student on one of the 1992 teams. We spent the first half of the interview just talking about FIRST.

[Ashley Weed]

I have ran into a few after I moved down here to State College. Once in a while I will be at a bus stop and notice someone with a FIRST shirt on, and we will chat. In my complex alone, I believe there are 5 of us. I stick out like a sore thumb on the Segway, and FIRSTer's usually approach me.

[XtremeEagle04]

I was at a local comic shop and ran into the mentor from TnT. He was there playing a trading card game with his son.

[Wolf103FM]

So, I'm down here at the University of Michigan for Band Week, and already, in just the Trumpet section, I've met three former FIRST people. One was from 226, one from 240, and one all the way from 374 in Anchorage, Alaska. Apparently, there are quite a few FIRSTers in the Michigan Marching Band that I haven't met, also. This got me thinking about something. Where have you met FIRST people in odd places? By odd places, I mean anywhere that you wouldn't consider a FIRST-related activity. So, what are your stories? They don't have to be much, but I think it would be cool to get an idea of where FIRSTers are in the "outside world."
I saw someone from team 534 (or wearing their shirt atleast) while at a yard sale up around Fayetteville TN, either last year or the year before

[Team1726Nerds]

I met parents of one of the Rhode Warriors (from rhode island) all the way out here in southern arizona at an art festival

[Daniel Morse]

While I was at St. Paul's Advanced Studies Program this summer (A summer program for talented NH students) I met 5 or 6 people who were in FIRST. Plus, my teacher for the summer was the coach of St. Pauls FIRST Team. I know it is academic related, but it is outside FIRST, so I suppose it counts.

[Kim Masi]

I found out at a family reunion that my cousin in NH is involved on the Keene FIRST team...and while I was at a girl scout gold award meeting, I met a girl from team 176 who was also going for her gold! what a small world

edit: and I didnt realize that the person above me is on his team! it really is a small world!

[hallk]

I was wearing a team shirt while camping in Yellowstone. I was at a "ranger lesson" and saw some other robogeeks from michigan. The ranger was wondering why we were all sticking around so late and we it explained it. Turns out the ranger was in FIRST in high school, too!

[Adam Richards]

I was working at Six Flags St. Louis the other week, ride operations on The Boss, and I saw a kid wearing a simple FIRST shirt, didn't manage to ask him what team or where he was from.....I think you were the guy I saw back in July when I was up staying at my brother's house... I was wearing a yellow Mayhem @ The Museum t-shirt.

Small world.

[Arkorobotics]

Met one at a bowl alley at a really late time once.

[LightWaves1636]

not yet for me though but I'm hoping, it's kinda hard since my team is the only FIRST team in my school district and I don't get out of the county much.

[dubious elise]

Well, I'm not sure if this counts, but it sure comes close...

My parents were at a wedding this weekend and brought home a 'program' of sorts from the wedding that had little blurbs about the wedding party. As I glanced through it, one name popped out:Emily Pease (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/member.php?u=5365) described as a robot builder from Boston! I gasped and immediately went on ChiefDelphi and sure enough, I found an awfully similar gal that my mom had indeed remembered meeting at the wedding.

[lukevanoort]

Jamaica. We were on a cruise, and while wandering around a Margaritaville restaurant, a woman noticed my Dad's 587 shirt and asked us about it, if I remember correctly she was thinking about getting involved. My memory isn't the best in the world, she might have already been involved and wondering about us. I also saw someone in a FIRST volunteer shirt at Watercountry, USA in Virginia, but I never talked to them.

[irishninja]

I was wearing my team shirt at a music session hosted at a church. This guy walked up to me and he has been on of the teams at the NY Regionals the previous day.

[Koko Ed]

I have a pair of ex-FIRST members in my class. One is an ex-X-Cat from last year Sakath our scout mistress in our theater production seminar(we're doing a comedia play "the Servant of Two Masters" she is part of the mask making team, I'm on props. For some reason the professor is making a big deal about a six-week production schedule. ;) ) and in my Wednesday class I have a past member of Rush robotics Zachary Wheeler who was on the team back in '97. He beamed with much pride when I informed him that his old team had won a regional Chairman's award. There was another kid in my class who knew an awful lot about FIRST. I'll have to grill him further on what team he was affilaited with.
I just remembered he was from 116 and says he was in the A&E special. I'll have to look closely now.

I also recently spotted a kid (hard to really call him a kid since he had a full beard) shopping at the Wegamns in Henrietta in a 1403 shirt (probably not all that surprising since RIT kids shop that Wegmans alot and alot of FIRSTers end up at RIT).

[orelinde]

now keep in mind i am an adult parent.

While at the meat market I was stanidng in the checkout line and someone taps me on the sholder and says "I got spirit yes I do, I got spirit how bout you!" knowing this standard greeting in our area I turned around and without thinking scream out at top of my lungs the return greeting. Everyone in the store turned to stare at me. I left rather quickly after that. Turns out I had more spirit :D or at least much louder lungs

[Koko Ed]

now keep in mind i am an adult parent.

While at the meat market I was stanidng in the checkout line and someone taps me on the sholder and says "I got spirit yes I do, I got spirit how bout you!" knowing this standard greeting in our area I turned around and without thinking scream out at top of my lungs the return greeting. Everyone in the store turned to stare at me. I left rather quickly after that. Turns out I had more spirit :D or at least much louder lungs
Ah yes. Us FIRSTers must remember that outside of the season we must remember to send our inner child to the corner for a timeout. :D

[santosh]

A couple of friends and I were buying gift card for our mentor at BEST BUY and the cashier was from the Kell robotics team.

One of the students on our team has an uncle who is a mentor on 832. She never told us this...

We gave a presentation to the "The Top 40 Business Leaders of Cobb County" and it turned out one of the businessmen had a daughter at our school.

[Jeff Waegelin]

A friend of mine from my old high school team (201), is doing a NASA internship this summer in Maryland. The girl she's rooming with there is a former student from team 859 from Morgantown, WV, with whom my team won the Buckeye Regional in 2002. I thought that was pretty neat...

[=Martin=Taylor=]

FIRST ought to have a secret handshake like the Masons.

That would make it easier to identify people... :D

[Daisy]

FIRST ought to have a secret handshake like the Masons.

That would make it easier to identify people... :D

Like spelling "geek" in sign language?

It was after the Philly regional, and my dad and I were seeing the Liberty Bell, I turned around and there was a 157 mentor. The funny thing was that he was the programmer we worked with in our alliance.

[RoboticsPhyre]

Jim Thorpe, PA. Paintballing. Odd eh? My boyfriend on 25 had invited me to go camping, white water rafting, and paintballing with them and I got the ok from my mom. When we got there (all 17 of us), we got about 5 others added onto our team. During the second game, I was paired up with two guys to cover an area.

After that, we (me, my bf, and the two boys) kept pairing up to cover areas. In the second to last match, I got injured so had to sit out and one of the two boys was also injured, so we walked to the side and began talking. For some odd reason, I mentioned FIRST and he said that he was on team 1230, as was the other guy. One is a senior, the other a college frosshie. After the last match, my boyfriend came back and so did the other guy.

We had managed to find the only two other FIRST geeks in the town of Jim Thorpe, PA. 25, 1089, and 1230 were the teams at this meeting.. We all started exchanging CD names and AIM and BAM! a nice friendship and possibly a nice paintball team ensued...

[Aaron D.]

I met jimmy and Dan from 484 at a boy scouts leadership camp

[StephLee]

I wasn't there when this happened, but some of my team members told me that someone from 007 was at our hotdog stand fundraiser outside of Wal-Mart...apparently he was on vacation.

[aztech75]

heres a good 1,

i met the driver from 1685 2 day when we were put in the same room for SAT testing. thats about as random as it gets

[Addy]

I went to my little sister's orchestra concert to find myself seated next to Ian MacKenzie (UFH, and Team 1114, among other things). Turns out his parents are in the same orchestra as my sister. It was especially great to have a FIRST conversation because I go to an engineering school (just finished freshman year), and I'd just gotten home for the summer and was missing my nerdy college life. Talking about FIRST certainly made me feel better!

Adelaide.
(Team 1275 grad, Team 97 mentor)

[Eric Scheuing]

I was walking out of Home Depot once, and I saw a guy with a FIRST shirt on walking to his car as well.

Technically I didn't meet him, but I saw him.

[Greg Marra]

I was at my Senior Outing, and I saw a girl in a TechnoTics shirt. I shouted "Yay TechnoTics!" and she just said "Yea...." and kept walking.

[eatnumber1]

Jim Thorpe, PA. Paintballing. Odd eh? My boyfriend on 25 had invited me to go camping, white water rafting, and paintballing with them and I got the ok from my mom. When we got there (all 17 of us), we got about 5 others added onto our team. During the second game, I was paired up with two guys to cover an area.

After that, we (me, my bf, and the two boys) kept pairing up to cover areas. In the second to last match, I got injured so had to sit out and one of the two boys was also injured, so we walked to the side and began talking. For some odd reason, I mentioned FIRST and he said that he was on team 1230, as was the other guy. One is a senior, the other a college frosshie. After the last match, my boyfriend came back and so did the other guy.

We had managed to find the only two other FIRST geeks in the town of Jim Thorpe, PA. 25, 1089, and 1230 were the teams at this meeting.. We all started exchanging CD names and AIM and BAM! a nice friendship and possibly a nice paintball team ensued...

um... yea, that was me, so ditto on that story

[RoboticsPhyre]

um... yea, that was me, so ditto on that story

He's one of the two boys.. and such pains they are too.. ;) *hides*

[Michael Corsetto]

I have a pretty good one. I met a team member from team 1351 of Mitty High. Not too special, since were both Bay Area teams, right? Well, not really, since we were on a campus tour of MIT, clear across the country. :p

That's my random FIRSTee encounter.

Mike C.

[Beth Sweet]

I still like the "Meeting Odd People in FIRST Places" thread...

I actually had a guy in my dorm who wore a number of FIRST shirts. I used to see him often in the cafeteria, but was never able to catch him in time while chasing him. So if there is a guy who lived in Shaw hall last year at MSU and often saw a loud, blonde girl following you, really, it was just to talk about robots, promise!

[SirLancelot]

Mine would have to be when a bunch of 1502 people went out to the premire of The DaVinci Code (in team shirts, after a day of presenting to 8th graders) and came across some people from from 1015--pioneer high school. It was a little strange, because they just came up to us and started talking. Pretty cool, though.
And another--I was judging Robofest at the community college and it turns out one of the fellow volunteers had been on a team in the very early years (of tethers and yellow tee-shirts). Now he's a fully fledged grownup.
~Anna

[StephLee]

heres a good 1,

i met the driver from 1685 2 day when we were put in the same room for SAT testing. thats about as random as it gets

Haha, that reminds me...one of my teammates was in my SAT testing room, in 7th grade when we both took it as part of an advanced placement program thing. This was before our area HAD a team, so two years later I couldn't figure out where I had met him before. Until my mom pointed it out.

That's sort of meeting a FIRSTie...he was on the FLL team, so he was already one, I just wasn't yet.

[Qbranch]

I met one in a don Pablo's..... but then again you meet all kinds of people in a Mexican restaurant :D

-Q

[Sam Lipscomb]

I was at my Senior Picnic at Holiday Hill in Prospect, CT (farish from Shelton, farther from north CT) when someone came up and said hi to me...I couldn't figure out how I knew him until he said he was from Tolland and I realized I had spent most of the Championships this year hanging out with RAGE. Sorry Trevor! :o

[Dylan]

Mine would have to be when a bunch of 1502 people went out to the premire of The DaVinci Code (in team shirts, after a day of presenting to 8th graders) and came across some people from from 1015--pioneer high school. It was a little strange, because they just came up to us and started talking. Pretty cool, though.
And another--I was judging Robofest at the community college and it turns out one of the fellow volunteers had been on a team in the very early years (of tethers and yellow tee-shirts). Now he's a fully fledged grownup.
~Anna
I sometimes see her ^ at WCC. Haven't seen her since Nats though, probably 'cause there aren't as many students taking classes here in the spring/summer.

[mjbrauck]

I meet a first person from 007 who happend to be sitting next to me at aquire the fire a christan concert.

[amos229]

I have been working at mcdonalds almost a year now and the other day a spetacular thing happened when i was off duty. I had on my team shirt and was eating and suddenly and older gentleman comes up and starts talking about his days in FIRST. then i found out that he was on the original team started back in 97 I believ. simply incredible.

[GaryVoshol]

I have been working at mcdonalds almost a year now and the other day a spetacular thing happened when i was off duty. I had on my team shirt and was eating and suddenly and older gentleman comes up and starts talking about his days in FIRST. then i found out that he was on the original team started back in 97 I believ. simply incredible.
Aww, geez, I hope he was a mentor. If someone on a 1997 team is an "older gentleman" I'd hate to think what that makes me!

[Libby K]

well, i didn't actuallly MEET him, but my dad and i were driving through princeton, and i saw a student walking down the street.....wearing a FIRST shirt. i couldn't catch the number, we were driving by too fast.

technically, i guess this could go into the "overdosed on FIRST" thread because as soon as i saw it, i thought "OMG! I SHUOLD PUT THIS ON THAT CD THREAD!"

....oops.

[Cactus_Robotics]

Btw, all of you people who live outside of California and don't have In-N-Out are soooo deprived.

We have them in Az now too thank god for In-N-Out!

[Cactus_Robotics]

I saw head referee Ian Lao at a claim jumper in AZ a week before the championship

[DevilChild]

A little while ago, I was at the library, when I saw a guy wearing our team hat. So I snuck up behind him and proceeded with "GIVE ME A D!!" He gave me a D, alright, and we almost got kicked out of the library. But we ended up in the library cafe discussing team goings-on for like an hour. It was awesome to meet an alum who was back in the area.

[Specialagentjim]

I found a bunch of FloridaFirst people at a local community pool recently...


Oh wait, that was the Mayhem Day 1 Field. Oh, and I propose we rename the field archimedes in honors of the water displaced!

[amos229]

Aww, geez, I hope he was a mentor. If someone on a 1997 team is an "older gentleman" I'd hate to think what that makes me!

he was a professor at clarkson whoms department supported the team, sorry but he looked to be 50 or 60

[Mark Rozitis]

Was talking to a senior producer at the TV station in Toronto that I shoot for and was mentioning FIRST as a possible story/series idea etc etc, turns out his wife was in FIRST when she was in school, she is 29 now so she was I guess a FIRST FIRSTer? . It is a very small world.

mark

[rachal]

I see tons of FIRSTers at math circles/competitions/programs, but I guess that's not too odd... :rolleyes:

[Dancin103]

Ok...This is a little weird if you ask me...but, I was in (I think) North Carolina, coming home to PA from our vacation in Florida. And I had my chairman's award jaket on, and I was washing my hands when some woman comes up to me and says, I have been meaning to e-mail your team to congratulate you on you teams success this year, and I was thinking to my self ...Who is this woman and how does she know FIRST and where did she come from???...lol Apparently, she was with a Michigan team or at least she used to be!!!lol
So, that is my story of meeting FIRST people in odd places!!!lol

[Electr0k1dd]

I go to a summer camp called SYMS for music geeks basically and I wore my First shirt and like 14 people came over and started talking about their ideas for next years game.
I guess First attracts band kids there are 10 musicians on or team and 7 of them are in our high school band

[StephLee]

Our driver from last year works at a dock on the lake with a business that rents jet skiis and boats. A few weeks ago he was talking to a customer from Annapolis and mentioned that he competes with a team there every year, and that we did pretty well this year (didn't say anything about the team being a robotics team). She asked if he was on a robotics team, and how well exactly they did this year. When he told her we won, she said, "I knew I recognized you!" Apparently, we were on the cover of the Baltimore Sun and this woman was a parent of someone at Dulaney High School, 1727's school.

[Sam Lipscomb]

Last night I went to a graduation party with my friend, not really knowing anyone who was there, including the person the party was for. As it turns out, the kid's older sister is dating someone who graduated from Platt Tech and was on team 905 for two years. When one of the adults asked me about my wristband and I started talking about first, he turned around and got right into the conversation, talking about how he'd watched his old team at competitions. and asking what I thought of this year's game. It made the party that much better!

[anna~marie]

[ yes! a whole five day revival! ]

I saw someone wearing a Juggernauts shirt at Pirates of the Caribbean tonight at Emagine in Novi!!!

[RoboMom]

I was in Seaside OR a couple of weeks ago, while on a vacation road trip with my family throughout Oregon and Washington. One of my sons said 'Mom, you're slipping. Someone with a FIRST shirt just went into that hotel. I think it was a 300 number."

I did not follow them. Otherwise I would be posting in the "been in FIRST too long" thread...

[Jill1022]

I was on a flight Wednesday July 12 from San Francisco to Dallas and I saw someone ahead of me with a shirt that said Robotics on it.

I was going to ask if he was on a FIRST team but he was with his family and a fwe seats ahead of me.

[Rohith Surampudi]

OO i was taking chem at Rutgers Prepatory School, and i spotted 2 people wearing 25 shirts,

[anna~marie]

hehe
I was at LABC this week for camp and I spied this kid:
http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/1451/1020948vi1.jpg
I ran up and asked for a picture of his shirt for proof... poor kid was terrified. Turns out his friend gave him the shirt.

[Pirate_Nelly354]

One day I was at the guitar center playing piano and there was another kid that came over cause he was playing too. Starting talking, turns out he was on team 1211!

[LordTalps]

Met a FIRST robotics person over the internet, through a mutual friend. More interesting is I didn't learn he was FIRST until three years later :D

[thegathering]

I met some of my old schoolmates from Miami Florida at the World Championship event in Atlanta. I moved from Miami, Florida to Gainesville Virginia about 4 years ago and I hadn't seen any of my friends from Miami since I left.

It was a real treat hanging out with them again in the Atlanta Dome. :)

It's amazing how much different people can look after 4 years

I guess you could say that's flipped... meeting odd people in FIRST places :p

[sciencenerd]

I had a couple unlikely FIRST encounters over my summer vacation this year.

The first was at a pageant in upstate NY that my church puts on each year that my family was involved with. There was a cast of more than 600, so I obviously didn't know everyone there. As I was standing in the lunch line one day, I noticed that a kid in front of me had a FIRST shirt on - some 500s number I think. I talked to him for a little bit, it was pretty cool.

The second one was possibly even less likely. I was at an activity with my boy scout troop at a remote cabin in the mountains of Idaho that one of our leaders owns. The uncle and cousin of a different one of my leaders just happened to live in the area, and came up for shooting and motorcycling a couple of days. Turns out the cousin was a member of team 1839. I probably saw him at some point in Portland, but I didn't recognize him.

[AdamHeard]

I saw a mentor for team 330 (he was wearing his shirt) walking out of the Dollar Tree (a local thrift shop) and into VONS about 2 weeks ago, but he was gone before I even was done parking so I couldn't said hi....

[Nica F.]

i was at Six Flags Magic Mountain,and i saw a robotics shirt in line for Scream waaay ahead of me, just to make sure, i ran up and read the shirt more closely, tapped the girl on the back, and was like," WOW youre on a FIRST team too?!?!?!" and she was like, " uh my brother is" oh well.

haha.


& i was at my design summer program, when this girl asked for my myspace, she walked into class the next day and said," WE'RE BOTH IN ROBOTICS, that is SOO COOL" .i thought it was pretty funny

[Alexa Stott]

I was at iD Tech Camp last week, taking the Programming v2.0 course for programming in C++ and/or Java. There was a kid in my class from 293. His name was Chris, I believe.

I was a bit surprised I didn't meet some more people from FIRST there, but it really opens yours eyes to how many high schools there are that still don't have teams.

[KelliV]

OK so maybe it isn't really a FIRST person but it is kinda like one. My Science Professor at Columbia has a grey ponytail. Of course he is nothing like Woodie (my teacher kinda scares me and my fellow classmates) but anyone with a grey ponytail is awesome in my eyes.

[dubious elise]

Well, I've been at ND well over one month now and, just last night, I found out that one of the girls who is on the novice rowing team with me was also in FIRST in high school - she was from team 141, the Wobots from Holland, MI. From then on, we spent the rest of dinner reliving old robotics memories :)

[lallamavolador]

met a guy while camping at hart springs, whose brother had been the team captain for a miami team (not sure of number)


there are only 2 miami teams.... 59 and 10-something, if its 59 I know m,ost of the recent team captains

[lallamavolador]

I was on a plane to london and i saw some kid with a FIRST shirt on, turns out he had the seat next to me on the plane....when i asked him about his team it was awkward because he told me "this is my brothers shirt" lol but it was still cool we talked about robotics for about 2 hours into the flight before it began awkward conversations so i started watching a movie...i forgot the team tho

[Billfred]

there are only 2 miami teams.... 59 and 10-something, if its 59 I know m,ost of the recent team captains
Add to that the former 212 (http://www.usfirst.org/frc/map/index.lasso?page=teaminfo&team=212).

[Éowyn]

Well, this is summer, my family went to a water park near us, and the ticket-taker was from team 1625! He immediatly recognized my brother and I from the milwakee regional, and we had a short little chat. A little reminder that January can't come fast enough!

[taggartbg]

i knew this guy via email and a forum, i'd had multiple conversations with him, i'd beta tested a firefox extension with him...then one day i mentioned FIRST, and turns out he'd been involved during highschool.

It's not IRl...but it was close enough

[lallamavolador]

Add to that the former 212 (http://www.usfirst.org/frc/map/index.lasso?page=teaminfo&team=212).


true ....our mentor used to be the mentor of team 212

[Arefin Bari]

there are only 2 miami teams.... 59 and 10-something, if its 59 I know m,ost of the recent team captains

The other team is 1029 - Wolvcats.

[Saru29]

I was working at a boycout camp over the summer and i discovered that one of the fellow staff members was from 1089. I was quite surprised! I had also met a kid from 303 while attending another camp in pennsylvania.

[sporno]

actually for me .. i awalys see people from my youth group in FIRST... at the VCU regional I saw like 3 people and was like OH my g-d!

[robbekid]

Ahhhh this was funny, once I came back from the LI regional and was playing Tribes a first person shooter for those who dont know the game, turns out i mentioned the competition and the driver from the team we were up against in the semi finals, also played and we talked about the game. it was weird cause I had known him for 2-3 years..

[The Revolver]

I was at Cedar Point and I saw someone with a first logo on their shirt, I think they were from team 1501... maybe:confused:

[Nica F.]

Maybe this isnt too odd of a place. but the fact that it was someone from another team, is pretty random.

We had a LAN party at our school thats open to the public, and i saw this kid with a FIRST shirt on and it happened to be the little brother of a guy on team Duct Tape.

oh and my Godfather's nephew was sitting next to me, and after about 2 hours of talking about none sense, i found out that he was on a robotics team too

[Pavan Dave]

Ahhhh this was funny, once I came back from the LI regional and was playing Tribes a first person shooter for those who dont know the game, turns out i mentioned the competition and the driver from the team we were up against in the semi finals, also played and we talked about the game. it was weird cause I had known him for 2-3 years..

Something similar happened to me actually. I played a game called RuneScape and I was in a clan and I said "Hey guys, long time no see, robotics has been keeping me busy," and so one of the guys on there says, "You in FIRST robotics?" and I said, "Yeah, team 118," and he was like "Dude that is awesome." Apparently him and his two friends who had been my three online buddies that I had known for 2 years were all in robotics and met up at championships last year which was kind of awkward but cool at the same time.

Pavan.

[Jaime65]

our team (65) was doing a fundraising event at one of our local battle of the band competition that is help annually while there working the concession stands i met 3 FIRST Judges

also at kick off this year i remit one of my old friends i had no idea that he was interested in robotics he's not of team Hot (67) he moved freshman year and i haven't seen/spoken to him since

another experience i had was meeting 2 of my team mates through a science fair competition - we had no idea that 4 years later we would be on the same robotics team

[Bill_Hancoc]

At my old job i bagged groceries for the Coach of team 27 a few times...never really got a chance to talk tho...but i recognized her in the team shirt

[Nawaid Ladak]

im trying to get the NYR web cast at my gift shop here in Orlando, and all of a sudden, two mentors rom Heatwave(312) al in and buy postcards, we talk FIRST for a while, looks like they were here for some Motocross race.

[technoL]

I happened to see a local FIRST team with their robot at the Plantation Relay for Life this weekend. Unfortunately, when I went over to ask about their robot and team, the whole team boo'd me as soon as they found out that I was from 108. Quite a shocker...:eek: :(

No L

[Otaku]

I've seen FIRSTers in strange places.

In the stands, yelling at a robot (and some roboticists) and/or singing/dancing/etc.


=D

(You have to admit, Regionals are pretty strange places, albiet cool).

[Dan Petrovic]

My sister had a job interview at Comcast yesterday.

The guy interviewing her was from the Northeastern University team.

That's 125, NU-TRONS, correct?

[Stvn]

I found out that my Boy Scout Order of the Arrow Representative knew about FIRST.

[DarthXar]

I met a mentor and a team member from team BAD ROBOT at a summer camp I attended. I had no idea who they were, until in one of the last days, they did a presentation of sorts of FIRST. It was cool. I'm still keeping in touch with them sometimes.

I saw both of them again in Pittsburgh this year.

[BuddyB309]

I saw hella's angles (team 650) shirt walking around. I walked up to him to greet him and he wasn't very open as i was to strangers. I should have thought about what to say before hand. basicly our conversation went like this.

Me: "Oh Hey! Your from Hella's angles?! Im from team 1625, Winnovation. We played you in St. Louis!"

Team 650 kid: "Oh yeah.....uh, who are you?"

"Oh im sorry, Names Peter, and you are?"

"(forgot name), so.....uh..what do you want?"

"Um, just to say hi i guess........" (realiseing my mistake)

"Oh...uh...hi i guess." (completly uninterested in me)

"Uh.....see you around i guess..." (walk away in defeat)

"yeah, later."

[Andrew Lawrence]

A few months ago I realized I share a dentist with Mark Leon, California accouncer. I just happened to have my team shirt on, and as I walked in, he walked out, and we just stared for a moment. Then we talked about FIRST, and then left. Best day of my life (almost).

[Ekcrbe]

A couple students from our team and our mentor ran into a couple students from 2337 at the U of M Flint Math Field Day last week. We got a little chance to talk since they were sitting right behind us at the awards ceremony.

[nitneylion452]

One of the people I work with is a FIRSTer. He came in one day wearing a FIRST hat and we had a good 10 minute conversation about it until I had to help some customers.

[Karibou]

I never knew this thread existed. I like it.

A few months ago I realized I share a dentist with Mark Leon, California accouncer. I just happened to have my team shirt on, and as I walked in, he walked out, and we just stared for a moment. Then we talked about FIRST, and then left. Best day of my life (almost).

That's awesome beyond words.

[Basel A]

A couple students from our team and our mentor ran into a couple students from 2337 at the U of M Flint Math Field Day last week. We got a little chance to talk since they were sitting right behind us at the awards ceremony.

Hahah, that was me (and a friend)!