Battle O' Baltimore-August 11

[RoboMom]

The Baltimore Area Alliance is pleased to announce the first annual:

Battle O' Baltimore

When: Sat. August 11, 2007-one day competition

Location: Western School of Technology (near RT 95 and RT 695) Baltimore, Maryland

Cost: $200 by June 30. $250 after.

Registration: details coming soon.

More details: coming soon!

Sponsors: The Community College of Baltimore County and TIME Center

[Lil' Lavery]

I'll talk to 116 about it at tomorrow's meeting (and at our ice cream social tonight probably too... :rolleyes: ). Sounds like a blast, August 2006 seemed empty without either the Maryland State Fair or Capital Clash competitions!

[sporno]

ill bring it up to team 540 today! ... thats really really close to us!

[JesseK]

I'll bring it up to the rest of the mentors at dinner tonight. That's right at the start of the school year and is a GREAT way to regain interest from returning students so they aren't so bored and burnt out during workshops.

[Elgin Clock]

ROAD TRIP!!!!!!!! lol - (287 mi about 5 hours 0 mins) (not too bad I guess.. )
(And volunteering maybe?)

August is usually such a boring month for me.

Maybe this is a chance to stir things up round then. :yikes:

Is the venue anywhere near the Inner Harbor?
That's the only place I've ever been to in MD/Baltimore area.

[Bruneau1727]

Depending on traffic it is a 10-15 minute drive to the inner harbour

[Athleticgirl389]

I shall mention it to my Gearheads and see what we can pull off :cool:

[Storcky]

I hope GaCo can make it. Sounds like fun!:D

[mrmummert]

Hi..

This must be the competition our lead teacher mentioned....this and maybe the state fair in Richmond in late sept-early oct. were two we have talked about...But this one is cool with me...I'm a Baltimore native and my mom and brothers still live there (I went to Towson high and one of my brothers went to Parkville which has a robotics team (another is a grad of Reisterstown)

Hope to be there

[RoboMom]

The Baltimore Area Alliance is pleased to announce the first annual:

Battle O' Baltimore

When: Sat. August 11, 2007-one day competition

Location: Western School of Technology (near RT 95 and RT 695) Baltimore, Maryland

Cost: $200 by June 30. $250 after.

Registration: details coming soon.

More details: coming soon!

Sponsors: The Community College of Baltimore County and TIME Center

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN:
Download the PDF at http://www.firstbaa.com/

24 teams max

[Lil' Lavery]

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN:
Download the PDF at http://www.firstbaa.com/

24 teams max

Is that 24 teams counting BAA members or not counting them?

[Athleticgirl389]

And maybe I missed it on there... but is there a spot for volunteering? If so, I'd be more than happy to help :)

[RoboMom]

For now, if you would like to volunteer, send me an email to jbeatty@usfirst.org and I will pass on to the volunteer committee (I don't want to post their emails)
Put your name, email, phone, experience and which positions you would like to volunteer for. I've already heard from a few people.

[RoboMom]

Is that 24 teams counting BAA members or not counting them?

24 teams total. Not all the BAA teams will be participating.

[ida_noeman]

And maybe I missed it on there... but is there a spot for volunteering? If so, I'd be more than happy to help :)

Hey you can definitely volunteer to help with the Battle of Baltimore! What did you have in mind? There are lots of spots open as we are just getting our volunteer roster going - do you think you could help with set up or strike? What roles have you already helped with at FIRST events?

Julie McDill (Via Paul Hobbs login - Team 1719 "Umbrella Corporation")
Volunteer Coordinator for the Battle of Baltimore

[Athleticgirl389]

Hey you can definitely volunteer to help with the Battle of Baltimore! What did you have in mind? There are lots of spots open as we are just getting our volunteer roster going - do you think you could help with set up or strike? What roles have you already helped with at FIRST events?

Julie McDill (Via Paul Hobbs login - Team 1719 "Umbrella Corporation")
Volunteer Coordinator for the Battle of Baltimore

I love to volunteer =]
As long as I don't have to work that, I'll be down and ready to help!!! I won't be able to help set-up [too early haha... 3 hours drive down lol] But I have done field re-set as well as 2 rounds of MCing at the 07 Monty Madness [Wayne and I can split it cause he's kool like that lol]
I'll send an email right now :) Cannot wait!!

[aaeamdar]

More news is coming soon about the Battle O' Baltimore, and I know you're all excited. Because of issues of national security (hehe), I'm afraid I can't make an official announcement at this time as to the persons who may or may not be involved, but I can promise some familiar faces!

As Jenny Beatty has already mentioned, interested people can go to www.firstbaa.com to register (it's under the heading "Battle O' Baltimore", see "Registration Form (PDF Download)"). If you need more information, you can of course feel free to PM me, though I don't have nearly as much information as Brian Bruneau or Jenny Beatty, who will also be happy to help. Please do communicate your interest ASAP so we can get a better sense of who's coming.

Thanks!
Paul Dennis
1719

[zim2411]

http://firstbaa.com/components/4.jpg
http://firstbaa.com/components/5.jpg


It's official! The Battle o' Baltimore organizing committee is pleased to announce Wayne Penn as MC of our inaugural event!

Wayne is a dynamic individual, capable of exciting an entire stadium of even the most lethargic group possible! (Not that FIRST competitors are lethargic, we are quite the opposite.)

We are looking forward to what Wayne can bring to this event, that is already shaping up to be a killer first year!

[aaeamdar]

I can also announce at this time that the Battle O' Baltimore will be cool. It will be cooler than cool. It will be positively frigid. So cold you could store a steak in it, or maybe even some ice cream. Nippy, glacial, wintry....

That's right, there will be AIR CONDITIONING!

-Paul

[Julia Magoolia]

Hmm... Looks like I'm not working that Friday.... What a great way to spend my last weekend before leaving for college!
Anyone in the NH area wanna make a road trip out of it?

[gblake]

That's right, there will be AIR CONDITIONING!Paul - Unless this was an inside joke, it's a little bit scary that there was a possiblity that there wouldn't be air conditioning! - Is there anything else we shouldn't take for granted (Inside plumbing? Electrical outlets?) :) :)

Blake

[Athleticgirl389]

Paul - Unless this was an inside joke, it's a little bit scary that there was a possiblity that there wouldn't be air conditioning! - Is there anything else we shouldn't take for granted (Inside plumbing? Electrical outlets?) :) :)

Blake

Haha very good point Blake... like, will we be using outhouses? drinking water from a well? :p It would make for a very interesting/fun trip!

[RoboMom]

Paul - Unless this was an inside joke, it's a little bit scary that there was a possiblity that there wouldn't be air conditioning! - Is there anything else we shouldn't take for granted (Inside plumbing? Electrical outlets?) :) :)

Blake

Actually one of the best off-season events ever took place in a incredibly hot, humid, leaky (sometime a deluge) tent for 3 days. 2002 & 2003. The Maryland State Fair. Many many stories and fond memories.

The possibilities for the off-season are endless...AC is optional.;)

[karpiron]

August, in Maryland? - Yeah, it BETTER be air-conditioned!

I must have looked at a dozen venues before finding one that was air-conditioned.
Western School of Technology, 100 Kenwood Road, Catonsville, MD.

http://home.comcast.net/~karpiron/WST_Gym.jpg

[KathieK]

A/C??? We don't have A/C up here for our off-seasons, it's what makes us tough!
(We don't have A/C up here in a lot of places, including many of the offices where I work... and we have a lot of high-humidity, high-temperature days in the summer...)

[zim2411]

http://battleobaltimore.com/crab-ringer.jpg

Crabs are invading the playing field!

Maryland crabs have crawled up from the depths of the bay, and all the way to the Battle o' Baltimore!

They want to see successful autonmous scoring, and when they see it, they will gladly hang themselves on the rack to score extra points for the alliance!

Now is your chance to show off your autonomous scoring skills, and make it a stronger part of Rack 'N' Roll! If you think you've got what it takes, sign up for the Battle O' Baltimore!

[zim2411]

Just a quick update on registered teams:

1719 - Park High School - Baltimore - Umbrella Corporation
1727 - Dulaney High School - Baltimore - REX
1629 - Southern/Northern High - Garrett County - Garrett Coalition
587 - Orange and Cedar Ridge High Schools - Hillsborough NC - Hedgehogs
339 - Commonwealth Governor School - Stafford VA - Kilroy

Also the following teams are going to register 888, 768, 1748, 2199

[gblake]

Also the following teams are going to register 888, 768, 1748, 2199You can add 1885 to this list. The check is (literally) in the mail.

[zim2411]

Team 1086 - Deep Run High School - Glen Allen VA - “Pirates of the Black Pearl”

[bobdahaxor]

I'm glad to see such an interest in the BOB! Since I am the vice president of Dulaney Robotics I am very happy to see such an interest in the event!

[Bruneau1727]

There is now a website for the Battle O' Baltimore. It is www.battleobaltimore.com ...Please check it out for updates, team lists and useful and useless information.

[zim2411]

Please check it out for updates, team lists and useful and useless information.

Useless information? That hurts :p

[George A.]

If we submitted our name for volunteering, when will we find out if we got the job, or any job for that matter?

I sent my info to Mrs. Beatty

[Alex Cormier]

I must admit, that the city and surrounding area is beautiful and if your a water baby you'll also like the harbor and downtown. I visited the national aquarium last weekend the with needel family and i loved it! I'm going to see if i am available to come down for this event.

[Elgin Clock]

Looks like I won't be able to make the Battle O' Baltimore this year. :(
Family party calls my name, and I certainly can't deny a party. lol

Hope everyone has a great time!

[zim2411]

Registration recieved for:

Team 1885 Battlefield High School Haymarket VA RoboCats
Team 2199 Liberty High Eldersburg, MD RoboLions

[Deacon Blues]

Woo 2199.

We're starting summer meetings to prepare for this soon. We should have a decent representation down there. Hopefully this will get the BAA more attention and open up opportunities for similar activities.

[burkey_turkey]

im trying to talk my team into coming to this one. we liv ein richmond VA, so its not too far. one day of competition only? how many matches can we expect?

[Athleticgirl389]

It does not look like my team will be able to make it :( But I will be there =D I cannot wait!!! It appears this even is going to be quite fun :)

[mrmummert]

Has anyone heard from 1610 as far as registration goes? Our lead teacher said she was going to register us for this...but so far I haven't heard anything
(and I have folks up that way, a cheap place to stay).

If not I guess I'll be making a phone call.

[Libby K]

1923 doesn't have enough people in town over the summer to make this trip, but as far as I know, I'll be there! Looking forward to volunteering, this sounds like a really great event!

[Athleticgirl389]

1923 doesn't have enough people in town over the summer to make this trip, but as far as I know, I'll be there! Looking forward to volunteering, this sounds like a really great event!

Libby, let's join forces! Together, you and I can get enough people from our teams to get us BOTH down there =] Gracious Professionalism right there :cool:

[joshsmithers]

With about a month to go and only 11/24 teams registered(that i know of), I starting to wonder what will happen if there aren't enough teams. Will this event still take place regardless of the number of teams attending? Are there enough teams currently registered to do this?

[Bruneau1727]

We have 12 teams registered with 3 more that have checks in the mail! There is strong interest from 4 or 5 more teams that want to come! there have also been inquiries from 4 or 5 more teams! I believe we will have almost a full house for our first off-season event.

The event will definitely be a go even if we only have the 12 teams registered to this point. We have the financing guaranteed, the location locked in, the playing field reserved and everything ready for your enjoyment. If you are intrerested please contact me at: bbruneau@bcps.org.

We plan on running 24 qualification matches and if we have 24 registered teams we should each get 6 qualification matches and then the finals in the afternoon. We have also decided to open the field for practice in the evening on friday the 10th. If you are planning on staying in a hotel on friday night prior to the Battle and would like assistance please contact me as well and I will forward your info to our accomodations volunteer!

[zim2411]

Registration received for:

Team 384 - Tucker High School - Powhatan, VA - “Sparky”

Welcome to the Battle. :D

[gblake]

As each new team registers, is it easy to post a complete list of the teams rather than just the latest one(s)? I would enjoy seeing a complete list (with names/locatioins to go along with the team numbers).

[Bruneau1727]

The teams attending the Battle O' Baltimore are listed at www.battleobaltimore.com. We have 13 registered so far, team 384 is the most recent and will be listed on the website shortly!

[RoboMom]

Honoring Mike Wade

The Baltimore Area Alliance dedicates the Battle O’ Baltimore to the memory of Mike Wade, whose passing was a huge loss to the FIRST community. Mike was instrumental in creating the Chesapeake Regional, supporting FIRST Robotics Competition teams, assisting off-season events and supervising the NASA mobile machine shop at regional FRC events across the country. He touched the lives of thousands of students and mentors in FIRST.

Mike produced the Mid-Atlantic off-season FRC competition at the Maryland State Fair, and it was his wish to establish another in central Maryland. Many of the organizers of this event were trained by Mike, and worked with the FRC teams that Mike supported. We are grateful to Mike’s family for sharing his time with us for the past 10 years, and hope that Mike would be proud of the way we are continuing his legacy of dedication to the students of Maryland.

Mike’s family has established a fund for scholarships for students in 4-H and in FIRST. Donations made out to the "Mike Wade Memorial Fund" may be sent to:

Westminster Union Bank
attn: Marty Harrison
117 East Main Street
P.O.Box 29
Westminster, MD 21158

[RoboMom]

Teams 25 and 365 are the most recent teams joining the muster for the Battle O’Baltimore!

Only in Baltimore:

1. Do you find FIRSTers on the cobblestone streets in historic Fells Point, at 6am, ready to sing, if asked, with robots, on local TV (Channel 13 on Monday August 6)
2. Do you have goody bags at an event which include a dictionary of Bawlamerese native language. As the natives say, "Welcome to Bawlamer, 'Hon!'"
3. Where you can combine the themes of crabs, http://www.travellady.com/Issues/Issue71/71H-Crab-Bliss-Biltmore.htm, the Battle of Baltimore, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Baltimore, and Hairspray. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hairspray_(film)

[joshsmithers]

Teams 25 and 365 are the most recent teams joining the muster for the Battle O’Baltimore!


NICE! This will actually be my first time seeing these beastly robots and teams up close this year. I predict that these teams will go pretty far at BoB.

[RoboMom]

Team 1089-Team Mercury from Hightstown NJ has joined the ranks. Something about Team 25 convincing them...;)

[Libby K]

Team 1923 might be able to go! We're trying to rally together at least a drive team, our biggest problem for the moment is getting the school to let us take money out of our account during the summer...

If anything, we'll probably come down just to watch/volunteer, but we'd love to be able to compete.

[zim2411]

Just 5 spots left!

Current team list
(I don't know how to do tables in vbulletin so here it is as an image)

http://battleobaltimore.com/team-list.png

[Greg Needel]

Team 1089-Team Mercury from Hightstown NJ has joined the ranks. Something about Team 25 convincing them...;)

ok so where is team 75. They have to defend the Chesapeake regional win in the offseason

[karpiron]

Libby K - Team 1823

Don't let the payment issue be an obstacle to attendance.
Have team mentor contact the event coordinator.
We can work that issue out.

[nuggetsyl]

NICE! This will actually be my first time seeing these beastly robots and teams up close this year. I predict that these teams will go pretty far at BoB.

We are going to have fun and work with any teams that would like our help. Right now our biggest obstacle is finding a we to get our drive team down there. I am sure it will all work our.

[Mr MOE]

NICE! This will actually be my first time seeing these beastly robots and teams up close this year. I predict that these teams will go pretty far at BoB.

Thanks. We are glad to use this event as our first to begin training new drivers. We are also trying to gather any of our students, who isn't off at camp, on vacation, or has a real job, to spend the day in Baltimore!

We will work it out, but might not have a very large contingent. It should be fun, though!

Thanks for all the people, who are working feverishly to pull this inaugural event off!

[gblake]

If there is a team out there in cyberspace that is ready and willing to attend the B-O-B; but is coming up short on the registration fees, or is having a hard time pulling together enough students to cover all of a team's tournament duties.... Definitely contact Karpiron (or me).

Resources exist that can put you over "the hump".

Blake

[Athleticgirl389]

It's not that my team is having money issue... and its kinda the finding members (seeing how i'm not considered a mentor on the team and they wont let me drive *tear*) It's the school allowing us to go down (possibly without the advisor) I have considered taking the robot with me (since I will be there)... but lack of team makes it hard =(

BUT... I will still be there and I am overly excxited!!!!

[Deacon Blues]

So 2199's team captain started up a facebook event thing for BoB. If anyone feel likes joining up, the link is: http://hs.facebook.com/event.php?eid=6131300033&ref=nf

Also 2199 is slowly trying to get more team interest. We have the core group all ready to come, but we're trying to bring some of our interested incoming members along with us. Hopefully it will be a good introduction into the FIRST program.

Edit: Is there an official BAA logo or anything? I upped the banner from www.firstbaa.com, but I'd like to put up something more official if there is something.

[zim2411]

Teams 768, 1719 and 1727 were recently featured on the streets of Baltimore promoting the Battle O' Baltimore on WJZ!


For more info, and to see the video, head on over to our website and go to the media section!


http://battleobaltimore.com/wjz-thumb.jpg

www.battleobaltimore.com

[zim2411]

Edit: Is there an official BAA logo or anything? I upped the banner from www.firstbaa.com (http://www.firstbaa.com), but I'd like to put up something more official if there is something.

There is, but I believe it is being redone. I only have the old logo, but I will upload it to the group when I get it.

[Deacon Blues]

Awesome, thank you.

Also, awesome that people started signing up so quick.

[zim2411]

Awesome, thank you.

Also, awesome that people started signing up so quick.

I invited everyone from my team + Wayne Penn + a few other people.

[KathieK]

Teams 768, 1719 and 1727 were recently featured on the streets of Baltimore promoting the Battle O' Baltimore on WJZ!Terrific news coverage! I hope it brings out a lot of the public to watch and be inspired! Wish I could be there!

[Deacon Blues]

So I drove down to Western today, taking route 40 and getting onto Maiden's Choice, and it would appear the entrance to Kenwood Avenue is unmarked at least from Maiden's Choice. So I spent an hour driving around, enduring basically the Rashomon of highway directions, until I finally end up driving down an unmarked road. There was Western. So. Anyone coming in from Maiden's Choice and using mapquest, be on the lookout.

Edit: This refers to driving without hitting the beltway. So if you're just taking 695, disregard.

[Jane n Mike]

Directions to Western School of Technology for Battle O' Baltimore:

The Western School of Technology is located in Catonsville just inside the Baltimore Beltway (I-695) on the southwest corner of the city. Whether you are coming from the North on the outer loop or the south/east on the inner loop, you will take exit 12, Wilkens Avenue. The only trick is that the most direct route to the school is an access road that is shared by the ramp to the freeway. Coming from the North on the outer loop, take the sign for Exit 12 BC and turn right onto Wilkens Avenue, looping back under I-695. Immediately after the underpass, turn left at the sign indicating the entrance to I-695 North, but instead of turning left to get on the highway, continue straight on the access road. Western is about a half-mile on the left. Coming from the south and east on the inner loop, exit onto the second exit 12 (Wilkens Avenue West). At the end of the ramp, turn left onto the access road and proceed about a half-mile to the school.

[Libby K]

Looks like 1923's gonna be able to make it!

So excited!

[Athleticgirl389]

awesome to see 1923 getting in!
only 2 days away til B.O.B. cannot wait!!! Ohhhh the 4am drive for me... it's sooo exciting =)
anyone wanna supply some energy drinks?? =P lol

[joshsmithers]

Wow. I just saw the news video (http://www.battleobaltimore.com/media.php) of the three teams promoting BoB. The students did a very good job presenting the robots and telling about the event. The news reporter was really estatic. Hope to see a crowd of people there, maybe? :yikes:

[DanDon]

Updates anyone??

Two alliances that I know of are:

365, 384, 1111
and
1629, 1727, 1820

EDIT 1:::
Finals:
1629, 1727, 1820
vs
25, 888, 1893

Mucho thanks to Steph Lee for the updates!!

EDIT 2:::
The 25, 888, 1893 alliance won the first match (Thanks Kristian).

EDIT 3:::
Congratulations to the winners of the Battle o' Baltimore.....teams 25, 888, and 1893.

Big congrats also to the finalists, 1629, 1727, and 1820.

[Alex Cormier]

It was a exciting elmination matches and entire day! I'll try to return next year, and congrats all the teams who played today.

[Athleticgirl389]

Yes B.O.B. was awesome!!! The 3am wake up and the 3 hour drive was TOTALLY worth it!!!! =)

If anyone wants to see some photos I took...
Battle O' Baltimore Photos (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffgordonfan389/sets/72157601376139580)
Feel free to take and share... i don't care.

Hope everyone had fun. And thanks to everyone who helped put on an awesome event!!! Very well done =)

[gblake]

I would like to thank the folks of 1983 for graciously letting 1885 share the fun with them.

The Alliance Captain, Team 25, made a wise choice. Ben's defensive driving was simply superb all day (and 888 were no slouches either!).

Thank you everyone for a fun day.

Blake

[BlondeNerd]

B.O.B. was awesome! It was well organized and a lot of fun! Thanks to all the volunteers who helped make my summer that much more exciting.

[Athleticgirl389]

I would like to thank the folks of 1983 for graciously letting 1885 share the fun with them.

I'd also like to thank 1983 adn 1885 for allowing me to help give input and coach.

That's what made B.O.B. so awesome... all those people willing to help!

[Deacon Blues]

Awesome event. Despite 2199 having an awful showing, we all really enjoyed it. Totally worth coming to. Met some cool people and yeah. I hope it happens again.

[Morgan Gillespie]

The event was absolutely amazing! Got to play with teams I would rarely every see otherwise. Granted competing at an event with only two students from your team is not the easiest of feats, especially when things go wrong, we had a really great time.
Thanks to teams 1983 and 888 for being perfect alliance partners and for all teams that attended BOB for making for some intense matches.
Also thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make the even run smoothly, all the refs, crew and everyone who helped the event in some way; thank you all.

One thing I was wondering about, someone had a video camera setup next to the scoring table. Will those matches be available for download? Who should I contact? If you need someone to splice up the matches, I would be more than willing to do so.

[Tottanka]

Are there any videos from this event?

[Carol]

I agree, the event was terrific. It was well organized and a lot of fun. Winner or loser ont he field, everyone was a winner, whether it was the seniors at their last robot competition (as a student - come back as mentors!), the students driving for the first time, or anyone there to cheer, dance, and mingle with old friends.

It was great seeing the entire Needel family there, including Grandma.

In a bittersweet moment, the Wade family was there as well and were given a special trophy in memory of Mike.

Greg and Wayne did a wonderful job as the voices of the event, and Ron Karpinski was everywhere keeping the field running smoothly.

The special crustacean tubes added a new dimension to the game. How did the rest of you like the addition?

I did have one disappointing moment. I was given one of the crustacean tubes at the end to take home. I put it on my team's robot which was going to be wheeled out to the van shortly. As they were loading I noticed that the tube was gone. Another team took the tube off our robot and replaced it with a spoiler. I won't say who, but you know who you are. You were seen. I hope if you stay in FIRST you learn the meaning of gracious professionalism better than you behavior indicates.

[BandChick]

Thank you Baltimore for a wonderful event! I will admit, at first I was terribly confused with alliance selections, but I'm really impressed at how fair they really ended up.

Thank you to 423 and 587 for being great alliance partners, and to everyone else who competed for putting up a good fight.

Dan -
Some alliances that I know of:
#1 25, 888, 1893
#2 1089, 587, 423
#3 365, 358
#4 ____, ____
#5 1086, ____
#6 ___, _____
#7 1629, 1727, 1820
#8 ___, 1923 ____

3-6 then compressed into 3-team alliances after quarterfinals, but that's the best I remember from regular alliance selections. Hopefully someone else can fill in the blanks for you.

[Deacon Blues]

For that alliance list, I'm pretty sure our alliance was 339, 1923 and 2199.

[karpiron]

BOB's 20 team, 8 seed elimination draw:

Seed 1 - 25 picked 888, draw 1893
2 - 1089 picked 587, draw 423
3 - 365 picked 384
4 - 449 picked 1086
5 - 1894 picked 1719
6 - 768 picked 1111
7 - 1629 picked 1727, draw 1820
8 - 339 picked 1923, draw 2199

Seeds 1-8 picked 1st partner from outside top 8.
Seeds 1, 2, 7 & 8 random draw from 4 remaining teams for 2nd partner.
Seeds 3, 4, 5 & 6 played QF (2v2), winners randon draw from 4 losing teams for 2nd partner.
QF (2v2) winner seed 3 random draw 1111; QF (2v2) winner seed 4 random draw 768.
SF and Finals were 3v3 format as normal.

[joshsmithers]

Thank you to 423 and 587 for being great alliance partners, and to everyone else who competed for putting up a good fight.

Well, thank you 1089 for picking us. And 423 was a great complement! I agree that we were able to compete against a really good alliance. Every match, especially the finals, were exciting for everyone at BOB.

Thank you to the crew that made this happen.

[Kristian Calhoun]

I'd like to echo what Morgan said - despite having a small crew, we had an amazingly fun time competing against teams from the North Carolina/Virginia/Maryland region. Thanks go out to ALL of our alliance partners throughout the event, especially 888 and 1893, but also to the teams we played against for some hard fought matches - 1629, your autonomous was excellent, but I was surprised not to see any attempts at scoring on the other side of the rack, like at PARC. I had been thinking you would surprise us with it in the finals. Either way, the finals (and the rest of eliminations) were definitely exciting, and I commend you all. :)

The special crustacean tubes added a new dimension to the game. How did the rest of you like the addition?
I was a fan of the crustacean tubes, they rewarded teams that scored in autonomous, but the "wild card" effect they had still made it possible for teams on the opposing alliance to take advantage of them, and thus were not overpowering. Also the decision to place two randomly on the rack if no teams scored in autonomous was a good one, it kept the gameplay fresh.

Finally, I'd like to thank all of the volunteers, the crew, and the refs for a job well done and making the event run efficiently. :]

[Jaminbakk]

Battle O’Baltimore was a wonderful FIRST experience! Thanks so much to my alliance team members, team 25 and team 888. I want to especially thank team 25 for picking team 1983 to be part of the alliance.

We could not have competed with out the help of Alex from Dulaney, Ashley from New Jersey, and Blake and Art Ross. You guys were a great help! Above all, Ron Karpinski made it possible for us to enter the competition. Also, thanks to all the teams and people we borrowed ideas and tools from [I don’t have a good memory, so this is for everyone I may have forgotten ;) ].

All the teams at Battle O’Baltimore were great competitors, and it was an honor to compete along side these teams.

[Joe Matt]

Thank you Baltimore for a wonderful event! I will admit, at first I was terribly confused with alliance selections, but I'm really impressed at how fair they really ended up.

Thank you to 423 and 587 for being great alliance partners, and to everyone else who competed for putting up a good fight.

Dan -
Some alliances that I know of:
#1 25, 888, 1893
#2 1089, 587, 423
#3 365, 358
#4 ____, ____
#5 1086, ____
#6 ___, _____
#7 1629, 1727, 1820
#8 ___, 1923 ____

3-6 then compressed into 3-team alliances after quarterfinals, but that's the best I remember from regular alliance selections. Hopefully someone else can fill in the blanks for you.

BOB's 20 team, 8 seed elimination draw:

Seed 1 - 25 picked 888, draw 1893
2 - 1089 picked 587, draw 423
3 - 365 picked 284
4 - 449 picked 1086
5 - 1894 picked 1719
6 - 768 picked 1111
7 - 1629 picked 1727, draw 1820
8 - 339 picked 1923, draw 2199

Seeds 1-8 picked 1st partner from outside top 8.
Seeds 1, 2, 7 & 8 random draw from 4 remaining teams for 2nd partner.
Seeds 3, 4, 5 & 6 played QF (2v2), winners randon draw from 4 losing teams for 2nd partner.
QF (2v2) winner seed 3 random draw 1111; QF (2v2) winner seed 4 random draw 768.
SF and Finals were 3v3 format as normal.

Are we that unmemorable of a team? 284 (PA team) wasn't there, nor was 358 (NY team), but 384 was, and was picked by our pals MOE (we've always been drawn together, we were pitted next to them 4 years in a row at Champs.)

[karpiron]

Are we that unmemorable of a team? 284 (PA team) wasn't there, nor was 358 (NY team), but 384 was, and was picked by our pals MOE (we've always been drawn together, we were pitted next to them 4 years in a row at Champs.)

My oppologies Sparky fans. Post has been edited.

[Lil' Lavery]

Woodie describes Gracious Professionalism as actions that would make your grandmother proud. Well, last week I met a grandmother named Louise Rooney. While talking to her, I found out that her grandson, Shane, participated in FIRST at Battlefield High School. Funny enough, Battlefield and Herndon (116, my team) were partnered together during the qualification matches at VCU, where we set the regional high scored together. 116 later selected them with the 7th pick as our alliance partner for the elimination rounds. I was looking forward to seeing them at Battle o' Baltimore, as they had registered some time earlier for BoB.
Unfortunately it became clear that they would have to pull out of the competition. So Battlefield, more commonly known on CD by their team number, 1885, decided to use their payment for their slot to help a team that might not have been able to compete otherwise. Their payment and spot was given to team 1923. 1885 then sent members to BoB anyway, and had them help 1893 compete.
The bottom line, I met one proud grandmother. 1885 demonstrated great gracious professionalism, again, this past weekend, a standard I have come to expect from their great team.

[rcflyer620]

OK - So here is the championship rounds based on the official results sheets...

Quarter Finals
Alliance 1 (25, 888, 1893) vs. Alliance 8 (339, 1923, 2199) Alliance 1 wins 2-0
Alliance 4 (449, 1894) vs. Alliance 5 (1086, 1719) Alliance 4 wins 2-0
Alliance 2 (1089, 587, 423) vs. Alliance 7 (1629, 1727, 1820) Alliance 7 wins 2-0
Alliance 3 (365, 384) vs. Alliance 6 (768, 1111) Alliance 3 wins 2-0

Semi-Finals
Allaince 1 (25, 888, 1893) vs. Alliance 4 (449, 1894, 768) Alliance 1 wins 2-0
Alliance 7 (1629, 1727, 1820) vs. Alliance 3 (365, 384, 1111) Alliance 7 wins 2-1

Finals
Alliance 1 (25, 888, 1893) vs. Alliance 7 (1629, 1727, 1820) Alliance 1 wins 2-0

Congratulations to everyone and we hope to see you again next year!:D

[zim2411]

Wow, what a ride!

It was interesting for our team especially. It was basically our first two regionals (Trenton + Chesapeake) rolled into 1 day.

If anyone remembers us from Trenton (unlikely) we ran into every technical problem imaginable. Same here at BoB, we lost our first 5 matches in a row, due to arm troubles or some other random issue.

By the finals we got it together, and started winning just like Chesapeake, and in a similar ending, making it far into the finals but ultimately being bested.

It was a crazy ride for us, but we all enjoyed the excellent competition! I think I speak for everyone when I say we want to see everyone that was there back again for the 2008 competition!

On another note:

Anyone who would like to send me their videos or photos to be posted on the Battle O' Baltimore website, please email me!

zim2411@gmail.com


I should be getting some of the video I took together sometime this week. I got a ton of teams on video, but I haven't had time to capture it yet. (I was not however the camera man by the scoring table, anyone know who he was?)

[Mr MOE]

Are we that unmemorable of a team? 284 (PA team) wasn't there, nor was 358 (NY team), but 384 was, and was picked by our pals MOE (we've always been drawn together, we were pitted next to them 4 years in a row at Champs.)

Joe - MOE will always remember you guys! Sparky has always allowed our pit to "slightly expand" when needed. :D

I wasn't at the BOB, but I got a warm fuzzy feeling when I heard that our teams were partners in eliminations.

Hope your team's experience at BOB was a good one!

[BandChick]

Typo there Joe, sorry!
And I double checked to make sure I had the numbers right too >_>

[RoboMom]

There were two judges trophies awarded at the BOB. These teams were selected by representatives of the TIME Center who sponsored the event. Congratulations to these teams!

Team 587, the Hedgehogs from North Carolina, received the TIME Center Judges' Award for TEAM SPIRIT.

Team 1894, a young Baltimore City team, was awarded the TIME Center Judges' RISING STAR Award.

[Storcky]

Will the Battle O' Baltimore continue this year?

[JesseK]

I was just wondering this myself. I looked at last year's roster, and most of those teams have very well-built bots this year that should make for great competition if they return.

[RoboMom]

Please note that this thread is from last year so the "Aug 11" date will be changing.
The BoB planning committee is nailing down a new venue in Baltimore and a new August date. Look for details soon in an updated thread and on the BoB website http://battleobaltimore.com/
about this fun competition, B-more style!

[Bruneau1727]

For Battle O' Baltimore 2---please see the new thread!