2008 New York City Regional

[Scott Carpman]

New year, new game, new teams! Who's psyched for the Jam at the Javits?

[Libby K]

I am! 1923 won't be competing there, but I try to make it up to the NYC regional, as it's only about 45 minutes from me by train.

It's a great regional, especially since the venue change. Anyone who's close enough, I recommend you go see it!

[Rich Wong]

I will definitely be there as a volunteer!
This will be the 2nd year at the Javits Center site.

The NYC/NJ Planning Committee is already planning new stuff to fill the the huge space at the Javits Center.
:)

[Athleticgirl389]

I am! 1923 won't be competing there, but I try to make it up to the NYC regional, as it's only about 45 minutes from me by train.

It's a great regional, especially since the venue change. Anyone who's close enough, I recommend you go see it!

Wanna be travel buddies (again) libby!? :D Haha

I plan on going myself as it's almost the same distance as it is for Libby - cannot wait!!

[Richard Wallace]

I just noticed (https://my.usfirst.org/myarea/index.lasso?page=teamlist&menu=false&event=NY) that a certain VA team (whose number is divisible by 29) has registered for NYC. For their sake, it would be very nice if a specific variety of toroidal confection is available nearby. ;)

Seriously, I hope someone will webcast this event so those of us in the hinterlands can enjoy the spectacle. :)

[Pirate_Nelly354]

Oh, I can't wait!!!
It's going to be awesome =D

[Scott Carpman]

I just noticed (https://my.usfirst.org/myarea/index.lasso?page=teamlist&menu=false&event=NY) a specific variety of toroidal confection is available nearby. ;)

If they want Krispy Kreme, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Most of the stores vanished over the summer from NYC. Dunkin Donuts on the other hand....

[Richard Wallace]

If they want Krispy Kreme, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Most of the stores vanished over the summer from NYC. Dunkin Donuts on the other hand....Uh, I think I've been mis-quoted. Anyway, it appears that an alternate source of special (read: KK) toroidal goodies will have to be arranged for Dave. DD won't ddo for DDave, only KK is KK.

[DanDon]

Uh, I think I've been mis-quoted. Anyway, it appears that an alternate source of special (read: KK) toroidal goodies will have to be arranged for Dave. DD won't ddo for DDave, only KK is KK.

Penn Station. :D

[Liz Smith]

Penn Station. :D

Hmm.. If I end up commuting to the regional from my house in NJ, maybe I'll take some orders. ;)

[Waynep]

I'm rolling in with 348 from MA for the NYC Regional and looking forward to it. This is like coming back to play on home turf for me. It will be good to see a lot of friendlly faces from the past and meet new ones. '08 needs to hurry up and get here, let's get this party started.....

[Rich Wong]

I just noticed (https://my.usfirst.org/myarea/index.lasso?page=teamlist&menu=false&event=NY) that a certain VA team (whose number is divisible by 29) has registered for NYC. For their sake, it would be very nice if a specific variety of toroidal confection is available nearby. ;)

Seriously, I hope someone will webcast this event so those of us in the hinterlands can enjoy the spectacle. :)

Oh, we have plenty of good places for bagels and bialys!
;)

(NYC Webcast- they are working on it!)

[George A.]

Hmm.. If I end up commuting to the regional from my house in NJ, maybe I'll take some orders. ;)

Careful Liz, do you really think offering to pick up doughnuts for robotics people is a good idea? You'd need a pack mule just to sustain the weight of the sugary goodness.

[jwfoss]

229 will be there...

[losedemnoodles]

Whoaaa!! Boy I'm excited... TEAM 2070 will be there once again!!! :cool: :rolleyes: ;) :) YAY I'm SO EXCITED!!!

[Denman]

I have no idea if 759 are going. Can't get ahold of anyone there atm ...
Anyway, good luck to all in arguably the best regional (being the only one i've been to it must be :P)
Anyone up for paying for me to fly out ?:P

[BandChick]

I'll definitely be there again!
I don't think I'd be allowed to miss it frankly...

[przdj918]

I can't wait!!!! Team 2344 is going!

[Zultraranger]

Javitz convention center is dirty. MLG New York Playoffs were there.

[Akash Rastogi]

Not really. Its actually a really nice and clean venue. But hey, I'm comparing it to other places like my high school :p

[NickJames]

Yeah. This year's going to be a lot of fun!
I can't wait.

[Rich Wong]

Heads up for teams attending NYC Regional-
We are planning a Team Social for Friday evening (4PM - 7PM) so check your social calendar!

There will be pizza and games.
More details soon!
:)

[jax1488]

Javitz convention center is dirty. MLG New York Playoffs were there.

just because other events at the javitz center were dirty does not mean this was...

ive been to several javitz events and not a single one of them were dirty.. (ive been there like.. 20 times? lost count)

i dont know what kinda little boat MLG runs.. but here at FIRST.. we run a yacht =D

[Rich Wong]

Javitz convention center is dirty. MLG New York Playoffs were there.

We'll make sure we keep the place and the fun clean!
:)

[arhajder]

hey im from team 640 and we are looking to make it one of the best ever.

For those who want to see it but cant theres a website that posts up all the matches. Once i get it ill be sure to post it up ans i also plan on recording some matches so they will be up!

[jayjaywalker3]

Will there be a large area in the back to play epic games of ultimate in? That place was awesome. There is too much time between the NJ regional and this one. I'm looking forward to this year because I will actually be participating instead of just being an extra guy.

[Scott Carpman]

hey im from team 640 and we are looking to make it one of the best ever.

For those who want to see it but cant theres a website that posts up all the matches. Once i get it ill be sure to post it up ans i also plan on recording some matches so they will be up!

640 will simulcast the event for SOAP and TBA? Awesome.

[mtaman02]

You know the more I read this thread the more I regret planning my vacation during this week :(.

I made a promise to myself to never miss the regional but I guess I have to break that promise.

The real question is; is do we know for sure if this Regional will be webcasted? cause I would like to watch it while I'm away.

[DudeWithAMood]

Don't worry they will be there. 694 is taking 759 out on the town like we always do. Still haven't finalized any plans yet.

I didn't know your school had a 2 year turnover rate. That is crazy. Must be incredibly hard to build up the team every year.

I have no idea if 759 are going. Can't get ahold of anyone there atm ...
Anyway, good luck to all in arguably the best regional (being the only one i've been to it must be :P)
Anyone up for paying for me to fly out ?:P

[Rich Wong]

You know the more I read this thread the more I regret planning my vacation during this week :(.

I made a promise to myself to never miss the regional but I guess I have to break that promise.

The real question is; is do we know for sure if this Regional will be webcasted? cause I would like to watch it while I'm away.

Oh no, how can you miss the NYC Regional?
But you can watch us on the webcast! This year we may try the roving camera in the pits so watch your backs, there maybe a camera behind you.

And yes, there is room for Utimate in the Javits.

Presently we are planning for DDR competition and maybe Guitar Hero during the Friday Social.

We are also asking all teams attending the NYC Regional to create Team Posters to decorate the venue. The theme "This is Our Story...."
There will be a judging for the best "Story."
More details will be sent to the teams.

There is also a Tri-State FLL Competition on Sunday morning, volunteers are still needed. We need experience FLL people!!!!
:)

[Danny McC]

If I can find a way to get up there to New York I will deffinately be there. Me and Dustin(thefro) might come up for either Friday or Saturday. But best of luck to all teams that will be there participating.

[arhajder]

You can watch the matches on thebluealliance.net if the regional made any videos. Jersey was pretty good but alot of other regionals could have had more videos!

[Rich Wong]

For the NYC Regional on Week 6:

The best place to view the link will be here since it will also list an archive of the matches and is the smallest url to remember.
http://www.soap108.com/

An alternative is
http://robotics.arc.nasa.gov/events/2008_frcwebcasts.php#webcasts
The links will be available Saturday morning.

:]

[dipmeinaluminum]

since we are the only regional for week 6, all eyes on us... no pressure :p

[MissInformation]

FYI... team 116's "Dave" button this year is this:

http://gmu.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=34337908&l=f35d4&id=68124869

We'll have only about 100 of them to give out...

Heidi

[Rich Wong]

FYI... team 116's "Dave" button this year is this:
http://gmu.facebook.com/photo.php?pi...d4&id=68124869
We'll have only about 100 of them to give out...
Heidi


ONLY 100!
I'll trade you a couple of trackballs and a couple of NYC teams?
We have lots of NYC Teams for you to take home: There will be 64 FRC teams, 60 FTC teams, and 60 FLL teams under the same Javits roof!
:)

Oh, forgetaboutit!
The fake "Disco Dave" buttons with show up at the Canal St. stores by the end of the today.
They'll be right next to the real ROLEX watches for $10.
;)

[soap108]

It will be webcast and archived.
I'll be there in person too.
Thanks,
KA-108 :cool:

[Akash Rastogi]

LOL, I just realized that me and my FTC team will be there!:D Too bad its only for 1 day...but still:D

[jax1488]

one question.. is there going to be 2 fields, considering there is so many teams going?

i remember GTR in 06 had 70 teams and it had 2 fields..

made things run faster and smoother

[Rich Wong]

REMINDER......
Greetings New York City Regional Teams:

FIRST is pleased to pilot a potential new award at the 2008 New York
City Regional. It has been noted that teams have built some very
creative means of transporting their robots to and from the playing
field.

To celebrate this, we invite the teams participating at the New York
City Regional to vote for their favorite robot cart. In the spirit
of gracious professionalism, each team will be allowed one vote, and
we ask that you do not vote for your own team.

Ballots will be handed out with the team registration package and
must be returned to Pit Admin by no later than noon on Saturday. The
award will be presented to the winning team during the closing
ceremony on Saturday afternoon.

We will leave it to you to determine how your team will judge the
best cart using the criteria provided. If you would like this award
to become part of the awards given at FRC events each year, you must
show your support by voting.

The Cart Award:
This award recognizes a team's outstanding effort as demonstrated by
their unique cart.
The cart is unique and different.
The team demonstrates that they planned and built a cart that
provides safe transportation as well as incorporated a unique
item(s) that benefit the team.
The cart performs well.
Go Teams!
--
FIRST Robotics Competition
(more to come.....)

[Rich Wong]

one question.. is there going to be 2 fields, considering there is so many teams going?

i remember GTR in 06 had 70 teams and it had 2 fields..

made things run faster and smoother

Only one FRC field this year.
There are plans for 2 fields in the future if the team count increases.

There will be a FTC field and FLL field plus Career fair and College Expo.
Over 20 colleges will have booths with information and representatives.

[Akash Rastogi]

Only one FRC field this year.
There are plans for 2 fields in the future if the team count increases.

There will be a FTC field and FLL field plus Career fair and College Expo.
Over 20 colleges will have booths with information and representatives.

Cool, could you post a list of the colleges please? That would be awesome to check out again this year in my free time and I think only a few were there last year.

[Rich Wong]

Welcome to the NYC FIRST Regional!

This year we are inviting all the attending FRC teams to participate in the
NYC FIRST Team Poster Contest.

This project is named “Our FIRST Story," and it entails teams
creating a poster describing their FIRST experiences/story in only one week.
Their creations will be judged by their own peers.

FRC Teams are invited to create posters of there FIRST experience,
their achievements, their team event or their school participation in FIRST.

The poster will be displayed at the NYC regional venue and will be judged by their peers.
-------------------------------
“Our FIRST Story” Poster Entry information and rules:

The Theme: “Our FIRST Story…”

The Guidelines/ Restrictions-
• The content will be your team’s imagination so give us your best stories.
• The entry not be offensive to other.
• It will be reviewed by a committee volunteers before mounting.
• There are no other restrictions.

The Poster format:
• Each entry should be 30 inches by 40 inches or smaller.
• The orientation can be portrait or landscape.
• Each poster must have their team number clearly visible.

The Poster material:
• We are recommending foam boards or poster (cardboard) boards.
• You can design and attach anything or any topic your team would like but remember it needs to be attached and mounted on a wall so allow some space on the edge for mount holes (about 1 inch) and the your attachments must be securely glued.
• Be concerned about the weight of the objects and the whole poster.

Team Entry Limits:
• Since we have 64 teams at our NYC Regional, we have room for 64 posters.
• Not all the teams are participating so we will ask teams to bring up to a maximum of TWO posters. If there are extra space the second poster will be added.

Contest Judging:
• The poster will be judged by other FRC teams at the NYC Regional.
• One vote per team will be allowed but the team voting can not vote for themselves.
Voting sheets will be given to all teams with the rules and categories
The votes must be submitted by a team coach or mentor.

Thank you all for participating in this fun team project.

FAQ:
1. All Team Posters will be returned to their owners on Sunday.
2. Voting is on Friday evening, votes will be counted on Saturday.
3. The three top teams will be announced during closing ceremony on Saturday.
4. Team may submit their posters at the registration table on Friday or later at the PIT Admin Desk.


Remember, you only have a week until the NYC Regional! :]

[mtaman02]

since we are the only regional for week 6, all eyes on us... no pressure :p

Way to relieve the stress Mike....

lol :D

Lets get past this weekend first! :)

[Rich Wong]

Cool, could you post a list of the colleges please? That would be awesome to check out again this year in my free time and I think only a few were there last year.

Sure, at the Career & College Expo:

Universities:
Adelphi University
Bucknell University
The City College of New York
Clarkson University
Columbia University
Drexel University
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Hofstra University
Molloy College
The New School for Liberal Arts / Eugene Lang College
Pace University / Seidenberg School of Computer Science and IS
Pennsylvania College of Technology
Polytechnic University
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rochester Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology
University of Delaware
University of Maryland / A. James Clark School of Engineering
University of Massachusetts Lowell
University of Rochester
Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Companies:
Bloomberg
Con Edison
Credit Suisse
DATA Inc
Goldman Sachs
IBM
Intelitek / LJ Create
Johnson & Johnson
Make Magazine
Milgo/Bufkin
NYC Transit Authority
Popular Mechanics
Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

Organizations / Other:
American Society of Mechanical Engineers - ASME
Princeton Autonomous Vehicle Engineering
New Jersey Technology Education Association - NJTEA
Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers - SHPE
L & J Promotion Products - FIRST Apparel
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
PSEG
*********************
Everyone is WELCOME!!! :)

[Akash Rastogi]

Sure, at the Career & College Expo:


Everyone is WELCOME!!! :)

Thank you:)

Since I won't be able to focus on what I'm doing at the FTC competition, I'll drop by the pits on Saturday. 522, 1302, and 2070...see you guys there:)

[Rich Wong]

NYC Regional Friday evening is:

Team DDR and Guitar Hero!

BE THERE.
:cool:

[George A.]

NYC Regional Friday evening is:

Team DDR and Guitar Hero!

BE THERE.


Well what about those us of that aren't on a team Rich? You gonna kick us out of the arena? :cool:

[Danny McC]

Me and dustin will most likely be at New York and we might even bring some friends along. Looks like it will be a pretty interesting regional with so many teams. If I am there any teams willing to adpot me for the day or two? ^_^

[Scott Carpman]

Me and dustin will most likely be at New York and we might even bring some friends along. Looks like it will be a pretty interesting regional with so many teams. If I am there any teams willing to adpot me for the day or two? ^_^

1155 would love to have you guys for the weekend :D

[FTCmisfit]

Me and the 2 other kids on my FTC team (were lilstogis BIG brother team) are looking forward to a great competition! And hope all the other FTC FLL and FRC teams have as much fun as we will!

-Misfit:cool:

[Rick TYler]

Welcome to the NYC FIRST Regional!

This year we are inviting all the attending FRC teams to participate in the
NYC FIRST Team Poster Contest.

It's a great idea, but why are you excluding FTC teams?

[Josh Fox]

Just curious because I have no idea: Is NYC the only week 6 regional because that's just the way that scheduling worked out?

[George A.]

Just curious because I have no idea: Is NYC the only week 6 regional because that's just the way that scheduling worked out?

I'm not on the planning comittee so I can't give a definitive answer, but It's probably because that's the earliest weekend within the regional competition window that the Javits centre was available.

Also it's Fri-Sun because that's how Javits books their conventions. The first day a group is able to book is Friday, so NYC will have all the eyes of the FIRST world on it this weekend.

[Rich Wong]

Well what about those us of that aren't on a team Rich? You gonna kick us out of the arena? :cool:

Never!
You are already in the Mentor Team! ;)

Or if you are a chicken like me, volunteer and be the Social Emcee!!!
:cool:

[Rich Wong]

It's a great idea, but why are you excluding FTC teams?

Sorry, you are right. FTC should be included.
This is the first year we are trying the Team Poster Contest so we will start with FRC since they are arriving on Friday. I am hoping it will become an annual project for the FIRST teams.

FTC should be included next year! (I just can think that fast!)
;)

[Rich Wong]

REMINDER:

LIVE FROM NEW YORK!
IT'S.......... WEEK 6!
For the NYC Regional on Week 6:

The best place to view the link will be here since it will also list an archive of the matches and is the smallest url to remember.
http://www.soap108.com/

An alternative is
http://robotics.arc.nasa.gov/events/2008_frcwebcasts.php#webcasts
The links will be available Saturday morning.

:]
Should be a lot of fun!:]

[mtaman02]

Will it be webcasted on Fri. as well?

[BandChick]

Will it be webcasted on Fri. as well?

Based on New Jersey, I would say MAYBE Friday afternoon, but I wouldn't bet on anything.

[Alex Cormier]

REMINDER:

LIVE FROM NEW YORK!
IT'S.......... WEEK 6!

Should be a lot of fun!:]

Yes! I am very excited to be volunteering at this event, it should be a great one and I am looking forward to it.

[mtaman02]

Based on New Jersey, I would say MAYBE Friday afternoon, but I wouldn't bet on anything.

Oouch not helpful :(

I kinda need to get a def. answer that way I can record the event onto my laptop and watch it later.

[arhajder]

I heard there was no internet out there. So how are you going to web cast?

[Roberto08]

Does anyone know what loading dock situation is for team equipment? We have essentially a smaller crate on wheels for our pit and want to make sure we will be able to unload it from a trailer and get it to the pits. Thanks!

[BandChick]

There is internet available, but it's something like $15/day if I remember correctly.

http://www.javitscenter.com/whileat/wicontent.asp

[Rich Wong]

Does anyone know what loading dock situation is for team equipment? We have essentially a smaller crate on wheels for our pit and want to make sure we will be able to unload it from a trailer and get it to the pits. Thanks!

There is a huge loading dock in the back of the Javits Center. If you have large amount of equipment to off-load from a truck, it can be done. You can actually drive a truck directly into the arena.
The entrance is front the back, on 12 Ave or West Street. you have to pass the security and go up the ramps.

PM me and I will get more information and connect you with the right person.

[Elgin Clock]

How do I get from Grand Central station to the Javits center?

On foot, or is there a connecting subway line from Grand Central to maybe Penn Station which is closer?
I know there is one to the line that used to take me up north to Riverbank up along the shore, but forgot what number/letter line that is.

Any help would be appreciated!

Walking is always an option, as it looks kinda close-ish..
(20 minute walk or so)?

Just wondering the best way to get from Grand Central to the competition.
(This would only be on Sunday mid-morning (9-10am or so) btw)

[Rich Wong]

How do I get from Grand Central station to the Javits center?
On foot, or is there a connecting subway line from Grand Central to maybe Penn Station which is closer?
I know there is one to the line that used to take me up north to Riverbank up along the shore, but forgot what number/letter line that is.
Any help would be appreciated!
Walking is always an option, as it looks kinda close-ish..
(20 minute walk or so)?
Just wondering the best way to get from Grand Central to the competition.
(This would only be on Sunday mid-morning (9-10am or so) btw)

Hey Elgin,
From Grand Central Station (42nd St. and Park Ave.):
Option 1. You can take the #7 train to 8 Ave. at 42nd (Port Authority Bus Terminal). Javits (North end) is a quick 15 minutes walk west to 11th Ave.

Option 2. Take the M42 bus (cross town on 42 St.) going west. Last stop on the bus is Javits Center.

Penn Station is south on 8th Ave. and 34th St.
From Penn Station it is a quick walk or take the M34 bus west which also has it's last stop at javits Center.

Hope to see everyone!

[BandChick]

Elgin, you can take the M42 Bus: It runs east/west on 42nd street. Stops directly outside the Javits Center and at Grand Central Station.

There's some more directions information located here:
http://nycnjfirst.org/nyc_frc_ptrans.html

[KathieK]

Jack in the Hat and Freddy Schurr will be your emcees on the FTC fields on Saturday, woot!

I will also be there volunteering on Saturday for FTC - and seeing how the double divisions will work in preparation for Atlanta! Looking forward to it!

[Rick TYler]

How do I get from Grand Central station to the Javits center?

I would like to have said, "practice" but you picked Javits instead of Carnegie Hall -- thereby ruining a perfectly good joke.

I would get there by getting into a cab and saying, "Javits Center, please."

[Elgin Clock]

I would like to have said, "practice" but you picked Javits instead of Carnegie Hall -- thereby ruining a perfectly good joke.
Well it is April Fool's Day after all, so that could have worked. (And I would have gotten the joke, maybe...) lol


I would get there by getting into a cab and saying, "Javits Center, please."

Not sure exactly how many people will be traveling with me. So far it's only 2, but I invited about 15 or so & haven't heard back from about 10 yet.
A cab may work as the number of folks going drops, but I don't want to deal with the hassle of multiple cabs.
Thanks for the suggestion!

[Scott Carpman]

Every Team Should Do This (http://www.durst.org/iinthesky/aboutI.php)

The Durst Organization is giving away free space on their Times Square billboard, first come first serve. The SciBorgs went down to the building to see if it was real, and sure enough it is. We promptly created a message and got it shown on the screen to publicize the NYC Regional.

That's right, the 2008 New York City Regional is being advertised on a billboard in Times Square.

I would love to see every single team grasp this amazing opportunity and complete Dean's Homework if they haven't already.

The billboard is located on the corner of Broadway and 42nd Street...that's as high traffic a location as it gets. The viewing range extends from Broadway all the way down to 10th Avenue (half a mile).

All you need to do is go to the photo booth on 44th between Broadway and 6th (around the corner from 1155 Sixth Avenue). We will be going back again Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to further publicize the event and we invite any and all FIRSTers to do the same.

[mom1155]

Scott-
Great idea to get all the teams involved. Did you need to sign any photo release forms to do this? Was there a long line?

[Rich Wong]

It is official, NYC Regional is the biggest 2008 Regional!

65 FRC Teams, 59 FTC Teams, 50 FLL Teams.

[Rick TYler]

It is official, NYC Regional is the biggest 2008 Regional!

65 FRC Teams, 59 FTC Teams, 50 FLL Teams.

I love the fact that you combined all three programs in a single event. That takes a LOT of dedicated volunteers -- good for you!

[Akash Rastogi]

Thought everyone might like to see a FOX Business article about the NYC regional (http://www.foxbusiness.com/article/robotics-competition-new-york-city-regional-fuels-science-technology_544896_1.html)

Enjoy:) See you all Saturday.

[Scott Carpman]

Scott-
Great idea to get all the teams involved. Did you need to sign any photo release forms to do this? Was there a long line?
There is a photo release form, you must be 18 years old or have adult consent. There was no line at all, we were in and out in 5 minutes.

Anybody interested in doing this should stop by the pits at Javits so we can better organize our efforts.

[jayjaywalker3]

Anybody interested in doing this should stop by the pits at Javits so we can better organize our efforts.

Any day in particular you want to do this or every day?


Also in other news. Anybody taking the Staten Island Ferry on Friday morning to Javits?

This week has been a hell of anxiety and lack of sleep. I am ridiculously excited for Friday.

[Rich Wong]

To all the out-of-towners,
Have a safe trip and see you all on Friday morning!

The weather is a little wet but mild.
The committee have arranged for coat check on the lower level.

******************
Please note:
A minor change to the Friday Social- there will be no pizza for the teams but snacks and drinks will be provided. Sorry for any inconvenience.

DDR and Guitar Hero is still ON.
The systems will be setup all day on Friday. You will be asked for team# before using the systems.
The Team contests will start at 4PM and will end at 7:30PM.

Best Wishes to all!
Look for me at the registration desk on Friday and at the FLL Games on Sunday. :]

[BandChick]

Rich has no doubt answered almost all of your questions, but if you're still looking for more information, visit the official regional page:

http://www.nycnjfirst.org/nyc_frc.html

And remember, you can catch the webcast on http://www.soap108.com !!

[dipmeinaluminum]

Rich has no doubt answered almost all of your questions, but if you're still looking for more information, visit the official regional page:

http://www.nycnjfirst.org/nyc_frc.html

And remember, you can catch the webcast on http://www.soap108.com !!

Since Rich is answering everyones question, Rich whats the meaning of life? you can tell me tommrow when i see you :P

[Rich Wong]

Since Rich is answering everyones question, Rich whats the meaning of life? you can tell me tommrow when i see you :P

Simple-
First you have Life, then you learn life with FIRST, now you will alway be first in the line of life.

(read it from a fortune cookie down in Chinatown)

[Elgin Clock]

So, how's the competition going.
Any highlights anyione can spot yet?

Can't wait to (maybe) make it down to NYC this weekend.

[Rohith Surampudi]

So, how's the competition going.
Any highlights anyione can spot yet?

Can't wait to (maybe) make it down to NYC this weekend.


Elgin, i love you to death, so i feel its my responsibility to inform you NYC is a Friday, Saturday, Sunday regional :p so if anythings going on yet... there may be some issues...

-RS

[George A.]

So, how's the competition going.
Any highlights anyione can spot yet?

Can't wait to (maybe) make it down to NYC this weekend.

Elgin,

Competition doesn't start til tomorrow.

Today is just field setup.

[Rich Wong]

So, how's the competition going.
Any highlights anyione can spot yet?

Can't wait to (maybe) make it down to NYC this weekend.

Competition is going really well!
Here are the highlights:
The union guys and the volunteers just had a field box race. Some penalties were given.

Crates are all in place and hide-n-seek game is scheduled for later.

Grandstand A is going up faster then Grandstand B. It will be a tough call!

;)
Practice day is Friday!

[Elgin Clock]

Ughh... Ya know, I posted that, and had a feeling I was going to regret it for some reason... (Don't ask) And was surprised no one had reported anything, but went with it.

I DID know that NYC was a Fri, Sat, Sun. event, or I wouldnt have planned on going Sunday like I am.

It's just one of those things you do (kinda like stopping at a green light because it's always red when you drive by it - I can't tell you how many times I've done that.)

My bad! And Rich, thanks for answering my question (albeit not quite the answer I was looking for. :yikes:)

So, tomorrow I will check in here for some highlights. :p
I guess I just jumped the gun on this one. Oops. :rolleyes:

[popnbrown]

Can't sleep. Too excited for tomorrow.

[Rich Wong]

For those who are still awake, a "Trading Post" table will be setup in the back part of the PITS (next to the EMT guy) for trading team pins.

Hopefully it will be in place by noon time.

BTW- everyone will enjoy the extra space in front of their pits this year.
:]

Reminder and recommendations-
McDonalds is open on 34th St. and 10 Ave. and many, many delis, pizza restaurants, food stores on 34th St. from 11 Ave. to 8th Ave.
They are all open and are still reasonable (by NYC standards).
Food is ALLOWED in the NYC Regional. Again we have a team Cafe area setup for everyone.
Please keep the place clean, only left behind robot tracks.
And remember do not feed the pigeons, inside Javits or outside Javits. (You will see; but don't see with your mouth open) ;)

[BandChick]

Oouch not helpful :(

I kinda need to get a def. answer that way I can record the event onto my laptop and watch it later.

Not sure if you've left for vacation or not, but according to SOAPs site, only Saturday and Sunday will be webcasted. =)

[mtaman02]

Not sure if you've left for vacation or not, but according to SOAPs site, only Saturday and Sunday will be webcasted. =)

actually i've been on vacation lol hence why I need to know that way I can set it up to record both days. if its sat & sun i'll try and set my laptop up. i will not be going through this next year lol i WILL finish volunteering at local events before leaving the coast :D

[George A.]

So for those of us that are uninitiated Jersians (or any travelers)

How far is the 33rd St Path Station/Ferry from Javits?

Seeing as how parking in the City will cost you more than all the G22's given out at a regional, I was thinking of taking another way in.

Any advice?

[Racer26]

It is official, NYC Regional is the biggest 2008 Regional!

65 FRC Teams, 59 FTC Teams, 50 FLL Teams.

I hate to burst your bubble, but Greater Toronto had 66 FRC teams, making it the biggest FRC event, besides Atlanta.

[Madison]

I hate to burst your bubble, but Greater Toronto had 66 FRC teams, making it the biggest FRC event, besides Atlanta.

It did not, however, have FTC or FLL tournaments happening simultaneously; so, as far as the "regional" title goes, this is the largest.

[Dad1279]

So for those of us that are uninitiated Jersians (or any travelers)

How far is the 33rd St Path Station/Ferry from Javits?

Seeing as how parking in the City will cost you more than all the G22's given out at a regional, I was thinking of taking another way in.

Any advice?
Park in Hoboken or JC, and take the ferry. Drops you off behind Javitts. Then a short 2-3 block walk.

[Freddy Schurr]

My friends and I are about to leave for NYC. See everyone tomorrow.

[dipmeinaluminum]

what happened everyone?
no chatting about todays 1st day, with 69 teams in attendance?
everyone must be as tired as i am. :P

[Scott Carpman]

So for those of us that are uninitiated Jersians (or any travelers)

How far is the 33rd St Path Station/Ferry from Javits?

Seeing as how parking in the City will cost you more than all the G22's given out at a regional, I was thinking of taking another way in.

Any advice?

It's a brisk half mile downhill from the PATH...shouldn't take you more than 10 minutes. Take the the train instead of the Ferry, unless you like throwing away cash.

[George A.]

It's a brisk half mile downhill from the PATH...shouldn't take you more than 10 minutes. Take the the train instead of the Ferry, unless you like throwing away cash.


Yeah, I think we're taking either the PATH train, or apparently my hotel offers a shuttle to the city that I might take advantage of.

If you don't hear from me by tomorrows opening ceremonies, look for me in the Hudson, cause I probably decided to swim.

[arhajder]

Today was a long rough day. I dont even know what i am still doing up. Well Good Night!

[blaxbb]

did anyone else think the matches were kind of aggressive for practice rounds, or is that just week six setting in?

[Akash Rastogi]

Just curious, but how many (and which) teams had a good autonomous in practice rounds and what was the autonomous strategy? Thanks

[Josh Drake]

First impressions from this morning: Team 375 is there to win. Good looking bot:yikes:

[MasterChief 573]

First impressions from this morning: Team 375 is there to win. Good looking bot:yikes:

They came REALLY close at Pittsburgh, I expect to see good stuff out of them.

[xcentrix]

ok so the webcast just went down. Did Godzilla eat NY?:ahh:

[riskkeeper205]

hey so who are the teams to watch out for in this regional?

[Elgin Clock]

What's the webcast link?

[riskkeeper205]

http://robotics.nasa.gov/events/2008_frcwebcasts.php

then scroll down and click "webcast" for the new york regional

[Elgin Clock]

http://robotics.nasa.gov/events/2008_frcwebcasts.php

then scroll down and click "webcast" for the new york regional

Thanks! Just in time to see our Millennium team in action! (1237)

[riskkeeper205]

No problem

[Rich Wong]

OMG!

Wayne Penn won the Woodie Flower at NYC.

WHOO HOO!!!!!!

[Rich Kressly]

OMG!

Wayne Penn won the Woodie Flower at NYC.

WHOO HOO!!!!!!

You beat me Rich, darn!!! :)
Congratulations Wayne!

[JaneYoung]

Congratulations Wayne!
New York must be rockin'!

Jane

[Rich Wong]

ALL CD'ER AT THE NYC REGIONAL-

I'm calling for a CD HUG with Wayne Penn right after the Final Alliance picks. (Anyone can join)

We'll meet on the field for a CD Hug and a photo shot to congratulate Wayne on winning the Regional Woodie's Flowers nomination.

(If not the field, we'll be next to the field!)

Everyone with me? :)

[RoboMom]

[B]

Everyone with me? :)

In spirit:)

[Graham Donaldson]

ALL CD'ER AT THE NYC REGIONAL-

I'm calling for a CD HUG with Wayne Penn right after the Final Alliance picks. (Anyone can join)

We'll meet on the field for a CD Hug and a photo shot to congratulate Wayne on winning the Regional Woodie's Flowers nomination.

(If not the field, we'll be next to the field!)

Everyone with me? :)

I'm coming in tomorrow with the team (1676) to help out- I think we're touring VIP's (or at least we were today). Provided I'm not working, I'll be there!

Congrats Wayne!

[jester357mom]

OMG!

Wayne Penn won the Woodie Flower at NYC.

WHOO HOO!!!!!!

Hey Wayne........way to go........Congratulations from team 357......&
Adam, Dina, Mike, Megan, Joe, Chris, Jules & Beth.......

[arhajder]

The thing thats been bugging me is that a lot of teams are consisted of students and mentors but no students are working. Ive seen teams where the students haven't even changed the battery.I mean common how much more, or should i say less, can you do.lol



[From Moderator: Please bring this up in the appropriate thread when it is reopened on Monday, any further discussion here will be removed.]

[EricH]

The thing thats been bugging me is that a lot of teams are consisted of students and mentors but no students are working. Ive seen teams where the students haven't even changed the battery.I mean common how much more, or should i say less, can you do.lolPlease take this to the appropriate thread when it is unlocked.

[galewind]

I'll be there tomorrow. CONGRATULATIONS, WAYNE!!!!

[Wayne C.]

Wayne has a Woodie!!!

Congratulations


WC :cool:

[jparkteach]

Congratulations Team 2070 for winning the Autodesk Visualization Award. I know how hard you guys worked on that Animation!!

Also, Congratulations to all of the Friday Award Winners!
And last, but certainly not least, Congratulations Wayne Penn (WFF) and Gary Israel (OVA)!!

[ChristinaR]

A modest amount of photos I took during the first two days can be found here (http://www.flickr.com/photos/17957598@N05/sets/72157604400563510/).
No pictures from the award ceremonies, unfortunately, as I had left early to rest (silly back problem).

And a huge, massive, spectacular, fantabulous congrats to Wayne! I've been only saying forever that you deserve some shiny new (WFA) hardware. :D

[Freddy Schurr]

Congrats go out to my friend Wayne. He deserves it!

[Mr MOE]

Wayne:

From all of us on MOE 365, a huge CONGRATULATIONS on your Woodie Flowers award. Absolutely well deserved. This one should have happened years ago!

Way to go! We greatly appreciate all that you do!

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Congratulations Wayne! I knew you were going to be recognized sooner or later. Very cool!

[RoboMadi]

CONGRATS WAYNE!
You totally deserved it!

Imad

[Bharat Nain]

Wayne Penn, You are THE MAN!

I am so incredibly happy that you won. You definitely deserve this especially in the NYC area for all that you have done. After moving to Boston, you certainly did not stop. Any area that has you is definitely blessed with a lot of help. Great going buddy. Enjoy this time.

[fredliu168]

Anyone know FTC results for new york?

[Scott Carpman]

Congrats Wayne, good luck at Champs!

[Alexa Stott]

Congrats to Waynep! :D

I don't think I can really add much to what everyone else above me has already said.

[kborer22]

So i came down from boston today see my brother compete in the FTC comp. I must say i was rather disappointed at what i saw today, from a set-up side of things. I got there at about 11 am today, they were supposed to start at 9 or so today, not so much. When i got there i found out that they were 2 HOURS behind! I was blown away! And when it was finally time for a match it seemed like it took FOREVER to get it started, they were out there upwards of 5 min just waiting to being the match.

One of the fields had what looked like a 12"x12" high spot, which cost some teams matches! It 232's match with team 74 (who has won 3 regionals already) got stuck on that raised portion, from what i have heard it may have been their only loss all season. This situation repeated it's self in the #8 vs. #1 seed match, the number 1 seed was dominant, but one of the teams on the #8 alliance got stuck.

And for some reason they had very nice flat screen tv's set up all over the place, but coudl not get them working!! They just ended up printing out seedings after every couple matches.

That whole event was run very un professionally, and none of the team members, parents, or spectators seemed to enjoy this very much.

FRC also seemed to be in a state of disarray, there were 2 MC's and 2 play by play announcers. Blair and Shenqua both on the same field while cool, seemed a bit.....much. While talking to some of the volunteers, they were also not enjoying them selves.

I applaud the Regional committee for attempting to do "everything", but it ended up half assed in my opinion.

congrats wayne

[fredliu168]

So who won FTC?

[Karthik]

So who won FTC?

I know that Sir Winston Churchill SS from St. Catharines, Ontario was on the winning alliance.

[Protronie]

ok so the webcast just went down. Did Godzilla eat NY?:ahh:

We could only be so lucky! :yikes:

[Matt_Kaplan1902]

Congrats Wayne on winning the WFA!!!

Should be fun to watch the eliminations tomorrow.

[galewind]

FRC also seemed to be in a state of disarray, there were 2 MC's and 2 play by play announcers. Blair and Shenqua both on the same field while cool, seemed a bit.....much. While talking to some of the volunteers, they were also not enjoying them selves.


As far as game announcing and Emceeing goes, rather than rotate, I believe Blair and Chiniqua (sp?) thought it might help speed things up to just "hand off" rather than run to the other end of the field to save a wee bit of time on the late-running event.

With game announcing, George A. has been kind enough to share the mic with me because I'm a "GA in-Training". There's no miscommunication or "disarray" there.

There are a few contributing factors to why we're running behind there, and they include:

1) Teams taking too long to get their robots on and off the field
2) Refs deliberating for a long time about penalties (and I will qualify that by giving ridiculous props to the head ref who has been busting his tail this entire regional).
3) Technical issues, largely due to teams slamming into driver station walls. I witnessed at least 5 times on Saturday where controller boards fell off the driver station. That's being conservative.

To be critical, the biggest issue for me at the NY regional is the sound. When I'm on the field, I'm fighting over being able to hear the Emcees and being blasted over by the FTC area and FRC pit area. I'm not sure if its the same in the stands, but it really makes my job harder when I hear the field error sound to realize it's on FTC and not FRC.

[Akash Rastogi]

So who won FTC?

211,74. and i forget the other.

My team came home with the Motivate Award, so I'm happy:)
We were the 8th alliance captain and had to face 74 and 211 first match of elims....so didn't make it past that lol. I really didn't like the fact that alliance selection wasn't serpentine, it actually pissed me off a little.

[Kyler]

Just something interesting. I have a calculated the offensive power rankings (How many points, on average, a single robot will contribute to their alliance) for all the qualification matches in this regional. These are the results:



395 38.4891364
1155 35.5251438
348 33.04449142
41 31.29882513
1230 26.85228513
116 26.40951771
555 26.08956609
1594 23.99147056
637 23.12104022
694 22.23110222
2344 21.81882451
2265 21.50090264
1517 20.56921234
1302 19.1274372
375 18.62587658
640 17.44148956
229 17.41492436
2524 17.04776962
335 16.27841305
1403 15.09832319
1989 15.08266872
56 14.9413567
2579 14.79807069
2070 14.02320447
522 13.78677732
271 13.41446747
1626 12.79051312
2601 12.74924334
369 12.16566401
2577 12.04255347
550 11.76549201
759 10.60351972
806 10.47557395
371 10.21050408
354 9.166549794
1660 8.68374128
1396 8.217961374
1880 8.2170015
1929 8.073327296
334 7.991109979
571 7.281499659
421 6.444425795
1237 5.972497328
1602 5.629371479
2274 5.576584669
333 5.512163389
1600 5.44599415
2205 5.391945564
1520 5.263514975
2596 4.548671482
1807 4.115648906
1340 3.941146931
2554 2.876732727
2573 2.81133275
2681 2.4286572
1635 1.76995512
2458 1.364548185
2203 0.314692307
1211 0.240418428
1698 -1.620704757
1862 -2.797630107
743 -4.820514551
1796 -7.09985313
380 -12.96740887




Based on that, the average scores should be roughly:



Alliance 1: 41 555 1989 72.47105994
Alliance 2: 348 375 637 74.79140822
Alliance 3: 694 2344 1403 59.14824992
Alliance 4: 229 395 271 69.31852823
Alliance 5: 759 116 1302 56.14047463
Alliance 6: 2265 56 571 43.723759
Alliance 7: 1594 369 1517 56.72634691
Alliance 8: 1880 1155 1230 70.59443043




Just something interesting.

[Josh Drake]

Hats off to rookie team 2344. Impressive design. I don't know why I like it so much?:rolleyes:

[kborer22]

211,74. and i forget the other.

My team came home with the Motivate Award, so I'm happy:)
We were the 8th alliance captain and had to face 74 and 211 first match of elims....so didn't make it past that lol. I really didn't like the fact that alliance selection wasn't serpentine, it actually pissed me off a little.

i agree that it was weird that they went back to old school FRC for the alliance selections, but in the rules is says that the order that the teams pick will be repeated for the second alliance partner, while not quite understanding it, they did it right, and apparently other regionals have done it wrong.....


i will agree that was another frustrating thing that NONE of the FTC teams could hear when they were up. Granted it was not too hard to go up and just as what match they were on, but i think something needed to be worked out...

[thatguy]

i agree that it was weird that they went back to
i will agree that was another frustrating thing that NONE of the FTC teams could hear when they were up. Granted it was not too hard to go up and just as what match they were on, but i think something needed to be worked out...

Well it was hard to hear due to all the noise coming from the FRC competition. I was frantic with my FTC team (123) trying to get our bot in queue two matches in advance.

I really hope next year, they put the FTC competition in the other hallway, like what the guy at opening ceremonies said they might do.

[Rick TYler]

not quite understanding it, they did it right, and apparently other regionals have done it wrong...

Not every other FTC regional... they did it right in Washington.

There was a small problem in Washington, though. Last year we only had a dozen or so robots in the tournament, so there weren't enough teams to make eight alliances of three each for the Eliminations. The solution was to just pick 2-team alliances for Eliminations. Most of the last-year's teams were not prepared to pick a third alliance partner because of this (failing to read and remember the manual, I suppose), and were surprised that there were three 'bots per alliance. Another item for my mentor's checklist: Remind the team to completely re-read the rules about two weeks before an event, just to make sure.

[Akash Rastogi]

My Regional Winner Prediction-

41, 555, and 1989.

Really hope 555 can have this win, they've been working really hard all season long. 41 as well. I don't know of 1989 though (never met them)

Finalists will be 375's alliance..I will keep this updated.
__________________________________________________ ___________________

UPDATE: wow, 694 just put on an awesome show against 375 and won 72-44 due to two penalties on 375. 694 would have won anyway. That was a sweet match. They are now 1-1 and moving onto a third match.

UPDATE: Holy cr@p, 694's alliance took Semi finals to a third round and busted out a hurdle at the buzzer. Moving onto the Finals is 375, 348, and 637 due to penalties on 1403 and 694. If not for penalties, 694 would have won with a score of 72-66. Awesome job from 2344, 1403, and 694 though. It was intense to watch.

UPDATE: Finals match 1- Due to what appeared to be a shooter malfunction, 375 wasn't able to hurdle near the end of the match which cost them dearly. 375 also had a penalty for impeding a hurdle. 555 put up awesome hurdles and won the #1 alliance the match. 555's alliance wins 74-58 74-68 was pre-penalty).

UPDATE: Congratulations to teams 41, 555, and 1989 called the "New Jersey Sweep" for winning the NYC Regional with a clear victory of 96-54!!!!

Awesome job by 348,375, and 2234. Predictions were right and I will try to keep you all posted on awards as well.

[Josh Drake]

:ahh: :ahh: :ahh: 375 must have had a problem with their shooter. They were in the home zone 3X with the ball, and no shot taken. I hope they can recover.

[Freddy Schurr]

Congrats to the NJ Alliance of 41,555,and 1989

[Tottanka]

:ahh: :ahh: :ahh: 375 must have had a problem with their shooter. They were in the home zone 3X with the ball, and no shot taken. I hope they can recover.
i think they ran out of air

[Akash Rastogi]

Awards- Sunday

Outstanding Volunteer of the Year- Firooz Mirbaha
GM Industrial Design Award- 395, 2Train Robotics:cool:
Motorola Quality Award- 1517, P4
J&J Gracious Professionalism Award- 334, Techengineers
Chrysler Team Spirit Award- 230, Lehman Lionics
Judge's Award "For Spreading the FIRST Fever"- 1660. Harlem Knights
Rookie Inspiration Award- 2596, Ferrous Bulldog Innovations
Rookie All-Star Award- 2344, Saunders Droid Factory
Highest Rookie Seed- 2344, Saunders Droid Factory
UL Industrial Safety Award- 571, Team Paragon
Regional Finalists- 348 Norwell Robotics, 375 Robotic Plague:cool: 637 Mr. T
Regional Champions- 41 Robo Warriors, 555 Montclair Robotics:cool: , 1989 Viking Robotics ftw!!!

Engineering Inspiration Award- 694, StuyPulse ftw!!!
Regional Chairman's Award- 116, Epsilon Delta

Congratulations to all teams and see some of you in Atlanta!

[DonRotolo]

HUGE Congrats to 1989 for the win in their second year. 555 and 41 are awesome (scary awesome) teams to be allied with, and you guys deserve it all the way.

See you in Atlanta!

Don

[Romino90]

yeah i had fun @ new york it was my favorite regonal nd i honestly did wanna go this weekend but after going i was glad i went..it was so big and engery packed...yeah u couldnt hear the mcs cause of those green shirt 1403 children buts that alright that why i love my freshmen haha..it was good matches and lot s of fun ...i hoped 1403 will go next year

[arhajder]

Unfortunately we were ranked 11 and for some odd reason no one selected us. This year we won nothing. As a matter of fact i don't think a single NEW YORK team won anything except for Saunders(2344 gratz). They got rookie of the regional and probably will win the National rookie team. My school will probably be losing the team after 8 long years. I bet many teams will drop out simply because they cant produce. If we accomplish Dean Kamens hw assignment(double amount of NY teams) I want to make it a NY only regional.

[popnbrown]

Congrats to every1, especially to our alliance members 694 for Engineering Inspiration, and 2234 for being the greatest rookie that we've played it. Someone please send me a link to that really sick 3sec hurdle that 2234 got in?
I think our match was the most intensest(if thats a word) but then again...i'm biased since it was our team.
I'm glad our team followed my lead with spirit...if some did'nt notice we went around chanting "We got spirit! Yes we do! we got spirit! How bout you?" and all the hailing to the different teams. Lots and Lots of funnn..especially when ourr aliiance joined with the cheering and what not, since 2234 was on the other side, we were yelling our alliance color, surround sound style (almost)
But nonetheless great job to 348, 375 and 637, we know you guys had a tough time beating us (;
Congrats to the winners great job
congrats to the spirit team, we almost were at your level
and grats to 116 for chairmans

we'll see you all soon.

O and sign up for Monty Madness at www.montymadness.org, theres not many spots left

[Chris Fultz]

i agree that it was weird that they went back to old school FRC for the alliance selections, but in the rules is says that the order that the teams pick will be repeated for the second alliance partner, while not quite understanding it, they did it right, and apparently other regionals have done it wrong.....



The rules state that the process will be repeated except that it will be in reverse order.
From the Tournament Book, page 6 of 11

9.4.1

Round 2: The same method is used for each ALLIANCE CAPTAIN'S second choice except the selection order is recersed, with Alliance Eight picking first and Alliance One picking last.

[alfredo guzman]

We (2344) made it to the semi-finals and lost , yet managed to walk away with the Rookie All-Star Award and Highest Rookie Seed and Firooz Mirbaha was a mentor of ours =P....... anyways yea.... we may have not won the competition in itself... but we've also won the hearts of others (meaning new friends of course) and all I can really say is that we hope 2 do the same in Georgia. Which reminds me... I heard a rumor that we won 2 more awards, don't take my word for it because I'm not 100% sure on that. I'll find that out at school tomorrow. And I'd personally like to thank every team that we have been paired up with so THANKS FOR HELPING US OUT. And sorry for writing so much and wasting your time :D

[The Lucas]

The rules state that the process will be repeated except that it will be in reverse order.
From the Tournament Book, page 6 of 11

Chris, they are talking about the FTC tournament. FTC has always been 1-8 for both rounds not serpentine. Refer to 3.5.1 of the FTC manual (http://www.usfirst.org/uploadedFiles/Community/02FVC/FVC_Documents_and_Updates/2007_Quad_Quandary/2007_FTC_QQ_Manual_Section_3A.pdf).

The interesting thing about the tournament is that with 2 divisions every team made elims (even though 2 teams had to switch division)

[Chris Fultz]

Thanks for the clarification.

When I look back, the thread jumps between FTC and FRC and i though the draft was talking about FRC.

[Libby K]

Thank you to the NYC Planning Committee for putting together a fantastic event. I was a referee for the FTC tournament on Saturday, and I was lucky enough to be able to MC the FLL event today. NYC was really fun for everyone I talked to. I can't believe next year will be the big 1-0 for this regional!

Congratulations to all the teams that competed-
FRC: The few matches I saw were awesome. Congrats to the JERSEY ALLIANCE (woo! represent) of 41, 555, and 1989 for being the champions, to 348, 375, and 637 for putting up a great fight in the finals, and also to team 116 for a well-deserved Chairman's win. To quote the infamous Dave Lavery, "It only took 14 freakin' years!!!". Great job, everyone.
FTC: Even through the delay, the competition was fantastic. Good teams, good volunteers, just all-around great. Thanks for making my job as a ref fun.
FLL: I always love seeing FLL competitions. As an NJ FLL mentor, I love to see other states' tournaments. Inspiration has no borders, and it was very clear to see in today's tournament. Thanks to Rich Wong for giving me the chance to be "The Girl in the Tie Dye".

Overall review: Pretty freakin' sweet.
Thumbs up from me!
:)

[millerm277]

Wow, thanks everyone, and props to our alliance partners of 555 and 1989 for helping our alliance win. I'm still in shock...from dead last last year to this. Also, congrats to the winners of the awards.

[Ashley Christine]

I just want to say congrats to all the teams, you all did a great job!

I want to say a special congrats to a good friend of mine - Wayne- for winning the Woodie Flowers Award. I am really happy for you and you deserve it!

As always congrats to the winning alliance and chairmans award winner!

Thank you to team 395 and 271, we really enjoyed working with you as an alliance and we put up a good fight! We couldn't have asked for much more.

Other than that - hopefully I can make it to Atlanta and see some more of you in action!

:)

[andrew348]

Congrats to Wayne.

He has worked very hard in FIRST and I could think of no one else who deserved it more.

Here is the essay submitted for his WFA

“The fundamental responsibility of a mentor or leader is to inspire others to step up to the plate, take responsibility, and become new leaders.” This is the role of a mentor defined by Wayne Penn. He has lived his life by the quote, and has affected the lives of those around him dramatically.
Wayne Penn started his involvement in FIRST on Team 217, The Thunder Chickens, in the 2001 season as a junior in High School. In 2002, Wayne broke out of his shell and became Driver and CEO of his team.
When Wayne moved onto college at Columbia, he did not stop his involvement in FIRST. In New York, Wayne became involved in Team 395, 2Train Robotics. On 2Train, Wayne was the lead student mentor from his University. He was involved in mentoring efforts and strategy. He helped 2Train win five Regionals in four years and a Regional Chairman’s Award. Team 395 comes from an inner city neighborhood with very low high school graduation rates. Instead of working with the teams that have major sponsors, Wayne chose to help these students. Wayne has said that one of his favorite memories is when a student told him that when he entered high school, he did not expect to graduate. FIRST gave him a reason to stay motivated. He is now an engineering student in college.
One of Wayne’s greatest accomplishments in New York was his involvement in the Region 2 Robotics Initiative. He spearheaded the creation of several FLL team in a Bronx Neighborhood. They held bi-monthly workshops with student and teachers. The borough’s FLL teams grew to 45, the largest numbers for a neighborhood in New York City.
Wayne has been involved in FLL and FRC. He has worked with many FLL teams. He has brought one team to the World Festival three times. In addition, Wayne was awarded the National Invitational Adult Mentor of the Year Award in 2002. In FRC program, he has been involved in the NYC and Boston Regional Planning Committees. Wayne was awarded Chief Delphi’s Unsung FIRST Hero award. He has also emceed numerous competitions. All of this was outside of helping out numerous teams each year.
In the fall of 2006, Wayne entered graduate school at Boston University. Yet again, he still stayed involved. Our team had met Wayne many times before at the New York City Regional. When he told us in 2006 that he was planning on attending BU, we said that he would always be welcome on our team. A few months later, he called and said he would take us up on that offer.
Wayne has helped our team tremendously by providing our team with new aspects of engineering and outlook on the FIRST program. Wayne has been an unbelievable role model for the students of our team. He works well with the students and gets them motivated, no matter what the situation is.
Above all, Wayne thinks about himself last. Bharat Nain of Team 25 says, “The best trait about Wayne is his selfless dedication to FIRST. The last person he thinks of is himself, always making sure to serve his teams and others in need.” Wayne comes down almost every night from school or work and work tirelessly. Last year, we would be dropping Wayne off at the train at midnight. Then the next day, he would be there, working ever hard then the day before.
I remember when a rookie team asked if he was helping out our team for college credits. With out dropping a beat, he responded, “Nope, just for fun.”

I would like to Thank Team 217 and Team 25 (Wayne Cokeley, Alexa Scott, Shaun McNulty & Bharat Nain) for their support in this essay.

Good luck to Wayne at Championship and hope that he wins WFA for the year!

[Kim Masi]

Congrats Wayne, to a well deserved recognition :)

[Dancin103]

I was at the NYC regional on sunday, and let me just say this, it was a great regional, and just fun to watch. I had a great time.

Congrats to teams 41, 555, and 1989 for winning the regional, and 348, 375, and 2234 for being finalists. Both alliances put up a though fight and in my mind both should have won, but sadly there has to be a winner.

Also a big congrats to team 116 for winning chairman's, it is a tremendous honor and well deserved. And a big congrats to 694 for winning Engineering Inspiration.

And congrats to Wayne for winning WFA! (That was one of the greatest WFA entries I have ever read. I wish I could have written one that good.)

All in all it was a great regional and there were great teams with great talent. I had tons of fun cheering and watching! Good luck to everyone going to championships, and I can't wait to see everyone in Atlanta (next week already)!

[ChrisR_522]

New York City was nothing but problems for The Robo Wizards, probably the worst experience we have ever encountered since our inception in 2001. The high spots (or patches) on the sides of the center median on the playing field were substantially higher than the other 2 regionals we attended, Pittsburgh and Long Island and it was killing us. The high spots were bending our front pneumatic piston with its ball transfer system which allowed our treaded robot to lift itself at the front and pivot from the rear drive wheels, allowing us to turn. We tried to work around it and we made some drastic changes to our drivetrain in an attempt to surpass the obstacles on the field, and it did not work as well as we anticipated. This was also our first regional in which we were not picked to play in the elimination rounds. Overall the New York City Regional was a fun event. :D

[Libby K]

I cannot BELIEVE I forgot to mention Wayne's WFA! I'm so sorry, please forgive me, Wayne! I must have been completely tired out from NYC.

I have known Wayne for just about a year now- and I can say that he absolutely and completely deserved it. He's a great mentor, and has done a lot for FIRST. I definitely look up to him, and I'm glad to call him my friend. If you ever get the chance- talk to him. He's got a lot of great things to say.

[JaneYoung]

If you ever get the chance- talk to him. He's got a lot of great things to say.

He also pays attention and listens very well. Another sign of a great mentor.
:)
Jane

[jayjaywalker3]

Congrats to every1, especially to our alliance members 694 for Engineering Inspiration, and 2234 for being the greatest rookie that we've played it. Someone please send me a link to that really sick 3sec hurdle that 2234 got in?
I think our match was the most intensest(if thats a word) but then again...i'm biased since it was our team.
I'm glad our team followed my lead with spirit...if some did'nt notice we went around chanting "We got spirit! Yes we do! we got spirit! How bout you?" and all the hailing to the different teams. Lots and Lots of funnn..especially when ourr aliiance joined with the cheering and what not, since 2234 was on the other side, we were yelling our alliance color, surround sound style (almost)
But nonetheless great job to 348, 375 and 637, we know you guys had a tough time beating us (;
Congrats to the winners great job
congrats to the spirit team, we almost were at your level
and grats to 116 for chairmans

we'll see you all soon.

O and sign up for Monty Madness at www.montymadness.org, theres not many spots left

I agree that our matches were very intense. I was amazed by your teams spirit and I have already sent an email to my team talking about your team's spirit in hoping we can emulate it. I have a question about Monty Madness. How do we get our robot over there? I know you guys are able to go to Nationals because I was at Trenton also but I hear you guys may not be going. Why not? If you were then our entire alliance would be there even without winning it all because 2344 got rookie all star and my team got EI.

I'd personally like to thank every team that we have been paired up with so THANKS FOR HELPING US OUT. And sorry for writing so much and wasting your time :D
I just want to say you could have been paired up with teams that caused you to lose every match and I still would have chosen your team to join our alliance.

New York City was nothing but problems for The Robo Wizards, probably the worst experience we have ever encountered since our inception in 2001. The high spots (or patches) on the sides of the center median on the playing field were substantially higher than the other 2 regionals we attended, Pittsburgh and Long Island and it was killing us. The high spots were bending our front pneumatic piston with its ball transfer system which allowed our treaded robot to lift itself at the front and pivot from the rear drive wheels, allowing us to turn. We tried to work around it and we made some drastic changes to our drivetrain in an attempt to surpass the obstacles on the field, and it did not work as well as we anticipated. This was also our first regional in which we were not picked to play in the elimination rounds. Overall the New York City Regional was a fun event. :D
I want to thank your team for the additional scouting information.

He also pays attention and listens very well. Another sign of a great mentor.
:)
Jane
I just want to say that discussing strategy with Wayne for our qualifier match was amazing. I didn't even realize it was him at first until after we finished talking. I was thinking that guy looks a lot like Wayne Penn. When I talked to him again I was blown away at the compliments he gave my team and our robot for this year saying that he knew we worked hard and did not let our mentors build our robot. He left me feeling excellent. I just did not appreciate it when I told him that his first choice for his team's alliance in new york was not working (according to that team's head coach) and we were going to find out, he had a private discussion with a mentor from that team while I waited and never got back to me. I understand that mentor might have told him that I was lying or trying to slander that team (which I wasn't) but he could have at least told me what happened instead of ignoring me.

[Akash Rastogi]

Unfortunately we were ranked 11 and for some odd reason no one selected us. This year we won nothing. As a matter of fact i don't think a single NEW YORK team won anything except for Saunders(2344 gratz). They got rookie of the regional and probably will win the National rookie team. My school will probably be losing the team after 8 long years. I bet many teams will drop out simply because they cant produce. If we accomplish Dean Kamens hw assignment(double amount of NY teams) I want to make it a NY only regional.

694 won EI award which is a huge deal and they are a NY team. and that sucks when you're a high seed an dont get picked. I know that ppl may say like "keep your chin up" and stuff...but yea, i understand what that feels like. There's almost nothing that someone can say to cheer you up. But hey, if you need help in getting support, funding, or mentors, just hit up anyone on Chief Delphi.:)

[arhajder]

694 won EI award which is a huge deal and they are a NY team. and that sucks when you're a high seed an dont get picked. I know that ppl may say like "keep your chin up" and stuff...but yea, i understand what that feels like. There's almost nothing that someone can say to cheer you up. But hey, if you need help in getting support, funding, or mentors, just hit up anyone on Chief Delphi.:)

You know what makes it worse. We played with 41 and 555 and came up with an awesome strategy and blew the other alliance out. WE got along well. When the finals were going on the guy came up to us and said sorry he completely overlooked us. So close and yet so far.:( I didn't even go to school im so depressed...sigh

[dlavery]

I would like to add in a special "thank you" and recognition to the entire referee team, and in particular to Mark Sharfshteyn, the Head Referee. I thought that they did an exceptionally good job at the NYC regional. During the matches I observed, the penalty calls that were made were appropriate and reasonable, and I don't recall any obvious missed calls. As has been previously mentioned, the best officiated games are the ones where you don't really even notice that the referees are there, where the officiating is appropriate for the play and does not artificially affect the game. The referee team in New York certainly fit this definition. In particular, I was impressed by Mark's open communication with the teams. In virtually every instance that I saw, whenever a team had a question about a call or ruling Mark took as much time as was necessary to explain the ruling and make sure that the team understood exactly why something was called the way it was. They may not have liked the ruling, but Mark was always careful to explain in as much detail as they wanted why a ruling had been made and where it was backed up by the official rules. When they had something to say, he listened. His ability to do this in a respectful and informative manner set a great example.

-dave



.

[galewind]

Yes, I will say that from my side of the table as backup game announcer, I really felt the refs did a great job of keeping us informed as to what was happening. Mark was a fantastic head ref, and was always clear, professional, and polite, even when a dufus like me was trying to announce his calls. He definitely deserves a lot of credit, as I know it's often a very unappreciated job.

[danman2991]

Wow, thanks everyone, and props to our alliance partners of 555 and 1989 for helping our alliance win. I'm still in shock...from dead last last year to this. Also, congrats to the winners of the awards.

I think most of us are still in shock from the whole thing, it was a great experience, being a 2nd year team and already having a regional under our belt, couldn't have done it without your guys and team 555 with us. Hopefully we can get an alliance together in Atlanta and pull a repeat :) Hope to see you guys there

[Scott Carpman]

Congratulations to everyone involved, from the teams to the volunteers to the judges and refs.

116 truly earned it, I'm shocked that this was your first Chairman's in 14 years of FRC. Good luck at Champs!

I've had the honor of working with 694 on and off the field and StuyPulse deserves EI. Have fun in Atlanta.

Saunders...you're my personal favorite to win Rookie All-Star at Champs. Keep up the enthusiasm and learn from the Hall of Famers, you guys have the potential to be one of them some day.

Oh, and congrats to 41, 555, and 1989 for winning NYC and 348, 375, and 637 for being Finalists.

[Rich Wong]

To all the FRC, FTC, FLL attendees at the NYC Regional,
We want your feedback, good or bad, we want your feedback!

This is the best way for us to improve for next year and make it bigger & better.
You can post your opinions or PM me or email it to me.
Thank you all!
:]

[jayjaywalker3]

The promised frisbee playing space was not there. Although this year I wasn't really able to play much. Other than that everything was absolutely perfect from the MC's to the pits to everything else. I can only speak for myself though and I am only speaking about the FRC part of the event.

[thatguy]

Well the staffing was perfect, they were extremely nice and patient when we had crystal troubles in FTC. I believe noise was the biggest issue there. It would be really nice if you could put FTC in another hallway like what was said in the opening ceremonies.

--Of course this was from an FTC point of view. Too be honest, it was nice that I could visit FRC whenever I wanted to. The other problem was with how hard it was to get food, go to the bathroom etc. Everything was across the convention center, so it would take an annoying jog to get to where we wanted and back in time for the round. I still am not sure what caused FTC to start late though.

[Lil' Lavery]

What was good:
Volunteers-They were great, especially the MCs and refs.
Range of Events- FRC, FTC, and FLL all at once is pretty cool.

What wasn't:
Seating- the bleachers were uncomfortable, especially for the members who sat there for prolonged periods of time (ie scouts)
Lunch on Saturday- the lunch break is an critical time for alliance's to begin preparation for the elimination rounds, and moving it was a HUGE MISTAKE. It made preparing strategy and robots for the elimination rounds very difficult. I understand that a delay had to be produced to allow the mayor to arrive, but I would have much rather seen the qualification rounds end and alliance selections happen first, then having the mayor speak at the end of lunch right before the eliminations began.
FTC Timing- The FTC event running so late caused our FTC to have to miss the awards because they had to leave with the FRC team (who had already been waiting for some time). It made dinner plans very difficult.


Side note: bigger doesn't equate to better. Even though the venue has room for plenty more teams, doesn't mean the event needs them. The mid-60s is as big as a regional should get. Once you go beyond that it starts to become very difficult to get enough matches, proper scouting, and it loses the sense of community conferred by the smaller, "friendlier" events.

[nlknauss]

Congrats to Wayne P on your Regional Woodie Flowers award. You really deserve it and truly represent FIRST well where ever you appear.

FTC Teams - Excellent job competing! I was happy to see everyone working well together throughout the tournament and representing FTC. Thank you for participating at the first ever NYC FTC event. You all were awesome!

[neoshaakti]

I'd like to thank 694 for being such an awesome mentoring team

Moreover, Id like to thank every team that helped us! Props to Bronx Science for helping us with our mysterious drive train issue!

Id also like to thank Spare Parts! You guys were awesome and very patient with us

I hope the team who lent us an orange rubber mallet found from pit admin!

thank you all for making my first regional an awesome experience!

-Neel 2554

[Akash Rastogi]

I'd like to thank 694 for being such an awesome mentoring team

Moreover, Id like to thank every team that helped us! Props to Brooklyn Science for helping us with our mysterious drive train issue!

Id also like to thank Spare Parts! You guys were awesome and very patient with us

I hope the team who lent us an orange rubber mallet found from pit admin!

thank you all for making my first regional an awesome experience!

-Neel 2554

I stopped by your pit and your team members seem pretty cool. I liked that you have a good sized team in your rookie year and I know that FIRST can expect great things from your team in the future.

[millerm277]

Good:

Pit Layout-We never had to even ask anyone to move out of the way, plenty of room to get robots out to the field. After the 2nd entrance/exit from the pits was opened, getting from the pit to stands was easy as well.

Pit announcements-We always heard our matches being called and everything else that needed to be announced.

Judging/Officials-Everyone we dealt with was nice, and helpful/interested.

Inspection-No lines.

Volume-Could hear everything properly, both when in the stands and pits, without going deaf.

Not so good:

Food-Javits (from my understanding), allows food to be brought in, so the rule (although I didn't seem many obeying it), of not allowing food/beverages to be brought in, even to the stands was very annoying, especially since the food Javits had to offer was barely edible (in my opinion).

Power-Javits employees wouldn't let us run any sort of power to the stands, would be nice if something was available, to allow us to use laptops and such to scout with.

Pit Size-While I know the pits were at least FIRST regulation size, if not larger, there seemed to be plenty of room, an extra foot or two would be nice.

Overall though, it was a great, and well-run event.

[NickJames]

Those three days were some of the most exciting days of my life!
I still can't believe we won!

I would also like to say nice work to all that competed. You all did great!
:]

[blaxbb]

Wow, these past 4 days have been insane; it's all just a blur. Just competing in what was the most awesome regional setup I've seen is great enough. Then being picked for eliminations at all was enough for us to call success, but getting picked by 41 and 555 is..."wow."
Getting to help two amazing hurdlers do what they do best..."extra wow."
Getting to the final round..."wait what just happened."
Winning the finals..."that did not just happen."

Then coming into school today with the principal announcing the win got a lot of teachers and students seriously interested in FIRST.

Big thanks to teams 41 and 555 for picking us.

Congrats to 348, 375, and 637 for being finalists, you were great competitors.

More congrats to Wayne Penn for the WFA win. After you were announced I saw you and your team interact, and you seemed to be the definition of an inspirational mentor.

[jayjaywalker3]

Pit Layout-We never had to even ask anyone to move out of the way, plenty of room to get robots out to the field. After the 2nd entrance/exit from the pits was opened, getting from the pit to stands was easy as well.


The disorganized pit layout was really crazy but not to the extent where it made me angry or anything. I didnt even remember when you asked.

To 1989:
Did you guys get to deliver the ball in your elimination matches? I only watched the Finals and I was really out of it when i did.

[blaxbb]

To 1989:
Did you guys get to deliver the ball in your elimination matches? I only watched the Finals and I was really out of it when i did.

We did to a small extent when we were closest to the ball, mostly after hybrid mode. We also tried to bounce the other alliances ball just a little to delay them.

[jayjaywalker3]

We did to a small extent when we were closest to the ball, mostly after hybrid mode. We also tried to bounce the other alliances ball just a little to delay them.

Heh. Well luckily for your team that strategy did not work out in our teams' first qual match together or else you would have never made it down to the first alliance and you might not have become champions. Congrats though. You guys truly deserve it.

[millerm277]

The disorganized pit layout was really crazy but not to the extent where it made me angry or anything. I didnt even remember when you asked.

I had it listed as a pro, because the aisles were wide enough that unlike in NJ, there weren't crowds of people and bottlenecks to have to force your way through. The way the team #'s didn't go in order was odd, but didn't bother me, so I hadn't factored it in.

[Rich Wong]

I had it listed as a pro, because the aisles were wide enough that unlike in NJ, there weren't crowds of people and bottlenecks to have to force your way through. The way the team #'s didn't go in order was odd, but didn't bother me, so I hadn't factored it in.

The oddness of the pit # were done on purpose.

A compliant from last year was that the veteran teams were all on one end of the pit and the rookies were on the opposite end of the pits. They asked that the rookies and the veteran teams, be place next to each other; like big brother little brother (or sisters).

Team and mentors also suggest that rookies be place close to the pit admin so they can hear all the announcement and not be isolated.

That is the reason for the strange numbering system.

[jayjaywalker3]

I had it listed as a pro, because the aisles were wide enough that unlike in NJ, there weren't crowds of people and bottlenecks to have to force your way through. The way the team #'s didn't go in order was odd, but didn't bother me, so I hadn't factored it in.

Yeah I was definitely almost run over at least a couple of times in NJ. In NY i was able to run in the pits safely(relatively that is).

The oddness of the pit # were done on purpose.

A compliant from last year was that the veteran teams were all on one end of the pit and the rookies were on the opposite end of the pits. They asked that the rookies and the veteran teams, be place next to each other; like big brother little brother (or sisters).

Team and mentors also suggest that rookies be place close to the pit admin so they can hear all the announcement and not be isolated.

That is the reason for the strange numbering system.
Yeah I was told about this. How were the teams assigned though? It was just terrible for me as strategy to find a certain random team at a certain time to talk about an elimination match.

[neoshaakti]

The oddness of the pit # were done on purpose.

A compliant from last year was that the veteran teams were all on one end of the pit and the rookies were on the opposite end of the pits. They asked that the rookies and the veteran teams, be place next to each other; like big brother little brother (or sisters).

Team and mentors also suggest that rookies be place close to the pit admin so they can hear all the announcement and not be isolated.

That is the reason for the strange numbering system.

Yeah having veteran teams and pit administration around our pit really helped

[Rich Wong]

Yeah I was told about this. How were the teams assigned though? It was just terrible for me as strategy to find a certain random team at a certain time to talk about an elimination match.

The pit map given out at the pit admin table gave both the physical layout of the pit stations and a cross reference of team number-team name- pit station.

Rookies got priority in the front, veterans that are already mentoring rookies get the next assignments, veteran that are known to be helpful are the next layer then everyone else.

Next year I want to name all the aisles, like Broadway, Wall St., Lenox Ave., Queens Blvd, Coney Island Ave. etc......

[jayjaywalker3]

That idea sounds awesome. I just wish the teams on the list telling you their pit number was organized by number not by name.

[popnbrown]

I agree that our matches were very intense. I was amazed by your teams spirit and I have already sent an email to my team talking about your team's spirit in hoping we can emulate it. I have a question about Monty Madness. How do we get our robot over there? I know you guys are able to go to Nationals because I was at Trenton also but I hear you guys may not be going. Why not? If you were then our entire alliance would be there even without winning it all because 2344 got rookie all star and my team got EI.

Well, we're not going to ATL because of security reasons according to our school's administration, plus we spent a lot of money going to Florida but it would be crazy to re-create our alliance.
Haha, I think the spirit was an alliance effort. After all 2344 wanted to be the loudest alliance ever, I think we pretty much achieved that. Other than that, this year the freshmen that have joined the team have brought in a lot of spirit with them, and I'm happy to say that I'm proud of them.

About Monty Madness, usually teams just bring their robots with them. For example, when we went to Brunswick Eruption, we just piled our '07 robot and all our tools in the back of our bus and headed out to North Brunswick High School. If you have a lot of people on your bus, you can just put it in someone's van but it would be awesome if you guys could come.
If you do bring an extra 694 shirt would ya?


See you soon,
Sravan

[dipmeinaluminum]

Dear Rich Wong,

I want screens in the pit displaying the matches that are played!!! I missed lots of matches cause I was helping with repairs :(

project it way up high for all to see!!!

Love,
Michael Vilarelle :)

[Syphorce]

Well, we're not going to ATL because of security reasons according to our school's administration, plus we spent a lot of money going to Florida but it would be crazy to re-create our alliance.
Haha, I think the spirit was an alliance effort. After all 2344 wanted to be the loudest alliance ever, I think we pretty much achieved that. Other than that, this year the freshmen that have joined the team have brought in a lot of spirit with them, and I'm happy to say that I'm proud of them.



Sravan


Man, that sucks you guys can't go to ATL. It would've been really cool if the 3rd Alliance could get back together and kick some more butt.:D

[David Noll]

Hey everybody, great competition in NYC! My entire team had so much fun that they fell asleep on the bus ride home. I have to say that this year was the most fun out of all of mine (sadly it's my last) and New York was the highlight of the year. Of course, big thumbs up to Watchung Hills and 1989- you guys are the greatest and you know we'll see you soon. Stuyvesant I'm so glad you guys will be down in Atlanta with us. 348, 637 and 375 great matches at the end. The competition was great, the refs made it fun and fair; which meant instead of fixing the robot I got to wander the pits talking to people and helping out. The people at the event were all great and I think it was more fun talking to students and mentors from other teams then actually competing. Everybody there it was great playing with you and I just hope my voice comes back by Atlanta.

Pit ordering- :eek: Killing me guys, I know they switched it up so rookies weren't grouped together and people weren't always next to the same crews; but, some order has to be there. If you do it by team numbers backwards (555 would be...bad example, 2070 would be 702), or first number last number ( 1, 4000, 2, 3999). But the unorganized pit gave me a headache, some order off of team number would be greatly appreciated.

FTC- Great job guys, I only saw a few matches but the program is one I became really impressed with this year. Keep up the good work because the innovation I see in VEX often trumps what the FRC guys come up with (just don't tell them I said that). ;)

[popnbrown]

Apparently they ordered it by name?? Never seen that...it was a good attempt though......

[thatguy]

FTC- Great job guys, I only saw a few matches but the program is one I became really impressed with this year. Keep up the good work because the innovation I see in VEX often trumps what the FRC guys come up with (just don't tell them I said that). ;)

FTC is getting rid of VEX next year and switching to their own platform. From what I hear, all VEX metal can be used, but gears and the microprocessor has to be FTC's. But thanks for the compliment :)

Now I feel lucky that the FTC pits was organized by team number.

[ChristinaR]

This was my first time making an appearance at the NYC Regional, and only second time volunteering at a FIRST event. What a crazy weekend!
So here's what I have to say-
All the key volunteers were very pleasant. Unhappy with my placement at the safety glass station, I was able to transfer over to field reset (thanks Bharat!) within a few hours. That was great! Everyone on field reset, at the scoring table, and all the refs were fun people and a blast to work with. I became quite skilled in the art of ball placement (after several humorous failed attempts to get the balls on the overpass when I first got there).

The pit numbering was a bit funky, but I understand the reasoning behind it. Lots of confused team members came up to me Friday morning asking where their pit was, and I always did my best to point them in the right direction. I second Rich's idea of naming the aisles next year. It would make scouting interesting. "Ohh, 555? They're on Kamen Boulevard."

Having FRC, FTC, and FLL all in the same place was really neat, though the noise sometimes became a problem. From the field, it was easy to hear what was going on at the other events, which drowned out the music at ours. However, the pit announcing was loud and clear.

I know there were some complaints about us getting behind schedule, but shift happens. :rolleyes: We kept having trouble with the field, especially after a few hybrids where the alliance station was hit so hard that it lost power.

I had the pleasure of meeting many amazing people this weekend, and I hope to see all of you in the near future! A shoutout goes out to Jose who was the only person on field crew who was brave enough to dance on the field with me. And a special thanks goes out to Koko Ed for letting me try his popcorn. :D

And thank you everyone who repeatedly asked if I was alright after my incident with the gate. For those who didn't hear, while closing the gate before the start of a match, I got "bit" by the latch. I didn't notice at first, but then realized that I had essentially skinned the knuckle on my right index finger! :ahh: In retrospect, I should have gone to get stitches, but I'm okay now. :)

The robots were strong and competitive, the crowd was enthusiastic, the MCs were vibrant, Dean Kamen and Michael Bloomberg...it all made for an excellent event. One that I hope to be attending next year.

Congratulations to 555, 1989, and 41 for the win! Also, a big congrats to 348, 375, and 637- you guys put up a tough fight. That third semi-final match was a nail biter for sure!
Also congrats to 694 for EI and 116 for a well deserved Chairman's.

I already posted it once, but congrats again to Wayne! Everything he does is the epitome of what an excellent mentor is. The way he cares for his team and always put them ahead of his own needs is truly astounding. It's impossible to name all the reasons why he deserves it, but I believe his actions speak volumes.

I also hope to add more photos to my Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/17957598@N05/sets/72157604400563510/) account sometime this week, so keep an eye out.

Phew, long post. I'm done. :D

[DudeWithAMood]

By chance did anyone find an IR gun at Javits. We had it at the competition, but somehow we seemed to have misplaced it in transit.
It is a remote ziptied to a ~14" pvc pipe. There are 20 IR led's wired to the front, the IR's have a blue-ish tint.

If anyone has seen this please PM me. I think it went missing right after our last semi-finals match.

Thanks

[Rich Wong]

By chance did anyone find an IR gun at Javits. We had it at the competition, but somehow we seemed to have misplaced it in transit.
It is a remote ziptied to a ~14" pvc pipe. There are 20 IR led's wired to the front, the IR's have a blue-ish tint.

If anyone has seen this please PM me. I think it went missing right after our last semi-finals match.

Thanks

By the end of Sunday, no item like that was turned in at the LOST & FOUND (L&F). Hopefully another team pick it up and will contact up.

On the same topic- At the L&F table, there was over 1.5 dozen jackets and coats, really nice ones, they have been turned over to the Javits Center Lost & Found but they are keeping it for 1 week only. Then, probably, it will be donated to the homeless.

We will TRY to get them down to Atlanta but if you are from the NYC area and you lost your valuable jacket or coat, return to Javits and check with L&F.
The L&F is right next to the FEDEX/Kinko station.

[popnbrown]

O yea, one of them is probably mine a dark green and white reebok light jacket. I'm from central NJ...so you can tell them to donate it.

[Scott Carpman]

I know there were some complaints about us getting behind schedule, but shift happens. :rolleyes: We kept having trouble with the field, especially after a few hybrids where the alliance station was hit so hard that it lost power.


I'll apologize on behalf of the team for that one. Our knocker-downer was guilty of destroying the field twice according to the FTA. Each time we hit into the opposing alliance stations with our KDer in the up position, it was perfectly aligned so that it managed to rip out the wiring on the other side. One more errant slam into the wall and we would have been guilty of canceling the entire regional, since they ran out of the spare wires to keep fixing the field with. That also explains to the scouts why we stopped using our knocker-downer in hybrid mode....it was working just a bit too well for our own good.

[Rich Wong]

Hey Folks!
Thanks for the great feedbacks so far, I'm looking for more feedback on:

1. DDR, Guitar Hero, and Halo Games. More or less for next year?
We may consider inviting a gaming company to bring in new games for testing.

2. Team Poster Contest?
Maybe prizes for next year?

3. The "Team Snack Bags" given out on Friday?
Maybe extend this into Saturday and Sunday?

Thanks-a-million.

[millerm277]

3. The "Team Snack Bags" given out on Friday?
Maybe extend this into Saturday and Sunday?

They were quite nice, and much appreciated.

[arhajder]

I'll apologize on behalf of the team for that one. Our knocker-downer was guilty of destroying the field twice according to the FTA. Each time we hit into the opposing alliance stations with our KDer in the up position, it was perfectly aligned so that it managed to rip out the wiring on the other side. One more errant slam into the wall and we would have been guilty of canceling the entire regional, since they ran out of the spare wires to keep fixing the field with. That also explains to the scouts why we stopped using our knocker-downer in hybrid mode....it was working just a bit too well for our own good.

LOL. When you guys slammed into the wall you actually knoced down our controller and broke the right side. We did two laps in reverse with one side running.lol

[arhajder]

Hey Folks!
Thanks for the great feedbacks so far, I'm looking for more feedback on:

1. DDR, Guitar Hero, and Halo Games. More or less for next year?
We may consider inviting a gaming company to bring in new games for testing.

2. Team Poster Contest?
Maybe prizes for next year?

3. The "Team Snack Bags" given out on Friday?
Maybe extend this into Saturday and Sunday?

Thanks-a-million.

The games are a great idea as long as your mentors dont catch you.lol
ALot of teams didnt adhere to the rules for the poster. A bunch of them just said SAfety First. SO it should be made more clear next time.The Snack Bags was an amazing idea. Some teams needed extra bags because of the large teams. Other than that it was an amazing Regional.

[arhajder]

One more thing!

Does anyone know when the videos will be up on thebluealliance.net?

[jblay]

idk about blue alliance but they are archived on www.soap108.com

[David Noll]

As my team's resident fat man I would like to say the snack bags were amazing! I was sitting their, trying to get one of my sophmores to go to starbucks and a kid walks up and hands us a bag of juice and cookies. Very good choice in what to give teenagers that are working for long periods and confronted with arena pricing.

[jayjaywalker3]

Well as my team's resident eater I would like to say when were these snack bags given out and why didn't I receive one?

[Scott Carpman]

Well as my team's resident eater I would like to say when were these snack bags given out and why didn't I receive one?
Seconded. Snack bags?!?!?!

[jayjaywalker3]

Hmm. I just realized that this would be a good place to talk about Dean's special HW for our regional. For those who don't know Dean said that our HW was to double the amount of NYC teams from 41 to 82. I believe that following this HW precisely is a extremely large task and that we should start small. I also think that it would be really cool if we could work together and collaborate instead of having teams strive for the same common goal completely independently of each other. So far there has been very light discussion of this HW amongst my team because we are all focused very heavily on preparing for Nationals but I proposed a question which has yet to be answered. Is it more important to start new teams as per Dean's HW or is it more important to develop existing teams? The second option, although different from his HW may be a more sustainable and a more worthwhile goal. I guess both could be done but which should be done first?

I don't know anything about starting teams. All I have is a desire to help FIRST and follow Dean Kamen mindlessly (JK).

[arhajder]

THe videos are finally up on thebluealliance.net!

[jayjaywalker3]

This video is the best video i have seen on blue alliance. Excellent video, excellent sound and no prolonged shots of drivers. That celebration after the finals is amazing.

Whats with "more disappointing than a dinner at Fridays?"
637's defense was amazing

Does anybody know about the penalty for getting an extension caught in another robot?

Did anyone see any herding in any matches where the herder gave the ball to a hurdler in the home zone?

[mom1155]

Does anyone have pictures of Mayor Bloomberg at NYC Regional? Looking for pictures of Mayor Bloomberg with Teams 1155 & 2265.

[Pirate_Nelly354]

By any chance?
Did a team borrow our [Team 354] jigsaw?
We can't find it =[