2009 Finger Lakes Regional!!!! [Archive]

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Justin Montois

20-10-2008, 19:07

DATES: 3/5/2009 - 3/7/2009

Team 340 & 424 will be there and are already looking forward to the 5th Finger Lakes Regional Competition. It's always a family atmosphere with all the Rochester teams and over the years we've been happy to have a wide variety of teams from Canada, Connecticut, Michigan, Delaware, NYC, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Maryland.

It's always a great event and I can't wait until the competition.

So as every year, Who's coming and Who's pumped!?!! :cool:

kajeevan

20-10-2008, 20:32

Expect to see the force from the north team 188 there!!! This is gonna be my first Finger Lakes regional experience. We've been working hard over the summer to get ready for this years competition.

Good luck to all teams!!!

Jeff Rodriguez

27-10-2008, 08:35

173 will be at our first Finger Lakes regional. It'll be a blast!

Koko Ed

27-10-2008, 09:13

173 will be at our first Finger Lakes regional. It'll be a blast!

Jeff did you talk to the Bouchers about their Finger lakes experience?
They had some interesting opinions about Rochester. Particularly the lovely weather. ;)

Mr MOE

27-10-2008, 11:56

Unfortunately, MOE 365 will not be snowboarding up north for the Finger Lakes regional this season. We will miss seeing all of the local friends we made there over the past two years. Instead, we have chosen to support the new Washington DC regional this season.

FLR is one of our favorite regionals! Good luck to all teams attending. We will see you all sometime soon!

cmirags

29-10-2008, 15:46

Team 1126 SparX will be attending FLR!!! as always its going to be another great regional i feel whatever the game maybe because Rochester (and visiting teams) rock!
:yikes: :D :)

commodoredl

29-10-2008, 23:14

Team 578 Blue Lightning is looking to make an impact this year at FLR!
Glad to see a lot more Canadian teams heading back down this year.

GoSparx

29-10-2008, 23:48

Mmmmmmm, I love me some FLR.

Steve W

30-10-2008, 22:10

This should prove to be a great regional. Interesting fact that almost 25% of the teams are from Canada. Look out Rochester, we will be bringing our A game and a huge amount of enthusiasm.

Justin Montois

31-10-2008, 03:51

yodameister

31-10-2008, 07:23

Don't forget the rookie team from Latham, NY. You will be pleasantly surprised.:D

Tetraman

31-10-2008, 08:24

I guess I will attend. :rolleyes:

Koko Ed

31-10-2008, 09:08

This should prove to be a great regional. Interesting fact that almost 25% of the teams are from Canada. Look out Rochester, we will be bringing our A game and a huge amount of enthusiasm.

Well that would explain why there are so few teams in Waterloo right now.
That one week gap between that regional and GTR is really hurting it.

carbuff

30-01-2009, 13:19

cougartech 2228 will be there in force

DarkFlame145

30-01-2009, 15:03

Sadly, I will not be at FLR, but TR-x 145 will be. I wish you all have another great and energetic regional.

Shelbo

30-01-2009, 16:19

Team 316 is coming to FLR!!! I am so excited!!! =D

thelittlesister

10-02-2009, 16:35

Any information about the team social? It's always a great one!

theshortkid229

11-02-2009, 20:11

639!!!
Reppin it, we gonna be there

kevin.li.rit

11-02-2009, 21:00

Of course, 596 will be there.

Gaurav27

11-02-2009, 21:30

Team 1241 THEORY6 Will Be @ FLR! (Watch Out for the Canadians!) Good Luck To All Teams Attending!

Koko Ed

17-02-2009, 18:45

So who's up for laser tag on Thursday night?

Josh Goodman

17-02-2009, 19:07

Depends on the time and if I have a ride.

AMY!!

17-02-2009, 22:03

2053 will be back this year!!! We are hoping to have an amazing time just like we did last year!!! Good Luck everyone!:)

Vince lau

17-02-2009, 23:47

I'll be there with FRC 2624

Jeff Rodriguez

17-02-2009, 23:48

How about Watchmen Friday night? Is there an IMAX theater nearby? What's the closest regular theater?

Alex Cormier

17-02-2009, 23:50

How about Watchmen Friday night? Is there an IMAX theater nearby? What's the closest regular theater?

The closest regular theater is a quick drive from the venue. The only IMAX theater around is a bit farther, about 15 minutes from the venue.

GoSparx

17-02-2009, 23:52

I'll say it again

MMMM I CAN'T WAIT FOR SOME FLR!!!!!!!!!!!!

KevinReid

18-02-2009, 07:09

Team 2609 will be there, pumped about visiting FLR! 1st timers for that regional.

kellyerin91

20-02-2009, 14:16

team 3044 - the Robonators are wicked excited!! its our rookie year so this should be awesome!! :D

Tetraman

20-02-2009, 19:33

I can't wait for FLR. Again I'll be volunteering and I'm excited.

I'm not to excited that FLR cuts into RIT's one week of winter-to-spring break vacation....haha

Gaurav27

20-02-2009, 23:30

Less than 2 Weeks to Go! I'll say it again as well: Can't Wait Till FLR! :D

carbuff

21-02-2009, 16:24

2228 will be there cant wait for another exciting regional

Hiteak

23-02-2009, 03:18

Team 2999 Unit-T will be there!

I will be volunteering there too. Its only a 6 minute walk from my dorm room. Also, if anyone volunteering or planing to come and watch needs a place to stay, I have a couch and a bean bag open. Just send me a message.

Look forward to seeing everyone again!

Tetraman

23-02-2009, 09:05

Its only a 6 minute walk from my dorm room.

It's a 20 minute walk from my house. My number is bigger. :P

Josh Goodman

23-02-2009, 11:28

It's a 30 minute ride on the bus. That's right. Bus.

Tetraman

23-02-2009, 11:30

It's a 30 minute ride on the bus. That's right. Bus.

That's weak. Trudge though the Rochester snow and wind!

Josh Goodman

23-02-2009, 11:39

That's weak. Trudge though the Rochester snow and wind!

Yup. I do. On a bus.

rees2001

23-02-2009, 12:03

That's weak. Trudge though the Rochester snow and wind!

Spoken like a true college student.

Cynette

23-02-2009, 16:26

Trudge though the Rochester snow and wind!And let's hope that those attending FLR do not have to experience this, as they did last year. What did we have, 18 inches of snow on that weekend? :ahh: The weather definitely took down public participation a notch!

carbuff

23-02-2009, 16:38

only ten days away i cant wait

Koko Ed

23-02-2009, 16:40

And let's hope that those attending FLR do not have to experience this, as they did last year. What did we have, 18 inches of snow on that weekend? :ahh: The weather definitely took down public participation a notch!

Made going to Orlando the next day feel great!

DarkFlame145

23-02-2009, 16:44

Ed are you coming to FL for the Regional?

odin123

23-02-2009, 17:13

Expect Rookie Team 3044; The Robonators; to be there! we're pumped for the competition and can't wait to get in on the action!

Kush

23-02-2009, 18:43

team 772 will be @ FLR and we are super pumped!!!! the great white north is taking over this year!!!

Koko Ed

23-02-2009, 18:46

Ed are you coming to FL for the Regional?

Yes. I am staying at Wendy's house.
Maybe she'll let me attend another Exploding Bacon meeting then (though there probably won't be another night time shuttle launch afterwards :( ).
It was cool showing (and scaring them with) the Psyche cheer.

DarkFlame145

23-02-2009, 20:10

It would be awesome to see ya at a meeting. I hope 191 has a great time at FLR, I know I always did. But I'm still cheering for 145 =P

Ellery

24-02-2009, 22:50

computerboi1503

24-02-2009, 22:55

I must say, although Week one is this week, FLR is... JUST NEXT WEEK!

A little scary to me, one of our mentors thought Week one was next week!

Maybe this year we won't have knee-high snow and pelting ice for the drive home.:rolleyes:

Anyways, 1503 is excited for this years FLR, and hopes to hang with our good Rochester friends.....

Hey 1507, maybe we could work some magic this year, we were so close in GTR last year! If you need any help, just come find us, the whole 2 second walk it is between our pits. I'm sure we'd be glad to help you out! :)

-Nick

Tetraman

25-02-2009, 02:45

Justin Montois

25-02-2009, 02:56

Hey Folks - any of you guys that have been around for this-- Do you remember the origin of the FLR trophy that the local teams have made to pass around since the inaugural year? I just want to make sure I rember the original history and intent. Let me know.. Jason Reese... Ring a bell at all?

I think I know what trophy that is, but I'm not sure if it's what your talking about. Back before FLR, and most of the Rochester teams went to Buckeye, there was a trophy that was passed around to a different Rochester area team each year that did the best at Buckeye. The catch was, over the course of the year, the winning team would have to add something to the trophy before it could be presented to the next team the following year.

I know as of the end of 2004, we had the trophy because I remember adding one of the side plates of our Tri-wheels from Roxanne to the trophy. I remember Matt Starke and I planning to give it to a team at FLR to try and keep this tradition going. Unfortunately, I can't remember what team, if any, we eventually gave it too.

Anyway, that's what I thought of when I read your post Ellery, I'm not sure if that's the trophy your talking about but there's some history anyway :)

I'm sure Rees will chime in soon enough:cool:

rees2001

25-02-2009, 02:57

Alex Cormier

25-02-2009, 07:53

Cynette

25-02-2009, 10:34

We finally got a chance last night to really pay attention to who all was coming to FLR, since we were preoccupied with taking the connectors off our batteries and then putting them back on. :rolleyes:

And we are excited!!!

We see lots of FLR perennial favorites on the list!

We will get to play with 1547 Waldo for the first time since our Rookie Year in 2005! :D

We get to welcome "first time to FLR" Canadian teams: 771, 610, 1241 and 1246! The last time our teams played together at was at GTR in 2005!

Canada's 2008 Rookie All Star teams 2624 and 2609 are heading across the border!

We also have some East Coasters heading to FLR for the first time - 173 and 809 from CT, 522 from Staten Island and 1626 from NJ!

To the long distance travelers and teams coming across the border - if we can bring you anything from our shop to make your trip easier and packing lighter, please let us know!

Starke

25-02-2009, 11:19

I know as of the end of 2004, we had the trophy because I remember adding one of the side plates of our Tri-wheels from Roxanne to the trophy. I remember Matt Starke and I planning to give it to a team at FLR to try and keep this tradition going. Unfortunately, I can't remember what team, if any, we eventually gave it too.

It started in 2003, came to us in 2004, & last I knew we presented it to 229 at Championship in 2005 because we didn't go to Buckeye that year. Once we started FLR the cup lost it's purpose. I would think it is still kicking around Clarkson somewhere. It would be a cool addition to your HOF stuff.

Justin, this is exactly what I remember happening. We added the tri-wheel plate and brought it to Atlanta with us to give to 229. Anyways, I am so exited for FLR! I can not wait to see some old friends, and make some new ones. It will be a great exciting regional!

Vince lau

25-02-2009, 12:15

I've always heard that FLR is a fun and exciting regional, can't wait to attend my first US regional. And I'll see some of you at GTR

Ellery

25-02-2009, 21:08

It was started by 578 in 2003. It was the NY BR cup. It was supposed to be passed out to the best NY team at the buckeye regional. In 2005 when we started with FLR, it started to be come the best NY team at FLR. Every year once a team wins it, they add a piece to the trophy and pass it on the next year. If i recall correctly, it is sitting in the X-Cats shop...

Yes Alex, it is sitting on a table being worked on for our contribution to the Trophy. I just wanted to make sure we had the story straight on how it worked that's why I asked.

Thanks all for the refresher. Let's keep it going since it is a fun and unusual tradition we should keep alive. Unfortunately it's getting pretty big so we are going to expand it a bit so it doesn't get too tall.

My guess at the History then:
2003 578-> 2004 340->2005 229-> 2006 1126? -> 2007 1450 ?-> 2008 191

I look forward to seeing all the old and now new teams at a regional that was originally capped at 45 teams Max.

I'm hoping we can get the Regional webcasted for the first time or at least have it broadcasted over Time Warner Cable.

Alex Cormier

25-02-2009, 21:20

Yes Alex, it is sitting on a table being worked on for our contribution to the Trophy. I just wanted to make sure we had the story straight on how it worked that's why I asked.

Thanks all for the refresher. Let's keep it going since it is a fun and unusual tradition we should keep alive. Unfortunately it's getting pretty big so we are going to expand it a bit so it doesn't get too tall.

My guess at the History then:
2003 578-> 2004 340->2005 229-> 2006 1126? -> 2007 1450 ?-> 2008 191

I look forward to seeing all the old and now new teams at a regional that was originally capped at 45 teams Max.

I'm hoping we can get the Regional webcasted for the first time or at least have it broadcasted over Time Warner Cable.

578 started it in 2003, but gave it to 1126 at Buckeye 2003 to start off the journey. mmmm i remember the m&m's in the old style rotation light. :)

maybe we should put the team number and year on it?

carbuff

28-02-2009, 20:56

only 4 days 16 hours 3 min till it all begins

Vince lau

01-03-2009, 22:41

Is Steve announcing this year?

Alex Cormier

01-03-2009, 22:43

Is Steve announcing this year?

Steve is unable to attend this year. There will be another Canadian influence in as MC though. ;)

Kims Robot

01-03-2009, 22:45

Is Steve announcing this year?

Unfortunately I think Steve cant make it to be with us this year. Rumor has it that John Darr will be back to Announce, and I think from what I know Karthik is going to take Steve's place as MC at the regional (only reason I know is Steve suggested Eric, but I think the FLRPC was able to get Karthik so Eric was asked as backup).

Josh Goodman

01-03-2009, 22:52

Yeah...John Darr and Karthik would make an epic combo. I have yet to see him MC live. That would be a treat. :)

Alex Cormier

01-03-2009, 23:01

Yeah...John Darr and Karthik would make an epic combo. I have yet to see him MC live. That would be a treat. :)

Not if you have to be next to him the entire regional. :p

Tetraman

01-03-2009, 23:39

Not if you have to be next to him the entire regional. :p

*realizes* :eek:

Karthik

02-03-2009, 00:01

Not if you have to be next to him the entire regional. :p

Hold up, I have to be next to you for the entire regional? This was definitely not part of the deal...

I'm looking forward to being the MC for the 5th annual Finger Lakes Regional. I've attended the event in the past as a spectator and have always been impressed by the level of spirit in the building. I hoping I can kick the intensity up to a new level, and help continue the local traditions of the event. See you all in a few days.

Alex Cormier

02-03-2009, 00:08

Hold up, I have to be next to you for the entire regional? This was definitely not part of the deal...

I'm looking forward to being the MC for the 5th annual Finger Lakes Regional. I've attended the event in the past as a spectator and have always been impressed by the level of spirit in the building. I hoping I can kick the intensity up to a new level, and help continue the local traditions of the event. See you all in a few days.

:) He fills Steve's shoes to the full extent! Oh, I am getting so excited. :P

Koko Ed

02-03-2009, 01:07

Hold up, I have to be next to you for the entire regional? This was definitely not part of the deal...

A rolled up newspaper (or a clipboard) across the nose is an effective method of control for Alex.
Or just get Liz. I'm sure he's still paying for what he did to her at Ruckus so I bet he wants to cross her as little as possible.

rees2001

02-03-2009, 10:07

I think from what I know Karthik is going to take Steve's place as MC at the regional (only reason I know is Steve suggested Eric, but I think the FLRPC was able to get Karthik so Eric was asked as backup).

I seconded Steve's recommendation for Eric to the FLRPC. It will be sweet having Karthik down there though. It just doesn’t sound right without that crazy Canadian accent. Eh.

Josh Goodman

02-03-2009, 11:15

I seconded Steve's recommendation for Eric to the FLRPC. It will be sweet having Karthik down there though. It just doesn’t sound right without that crazy Canadian accent. Eh.

His cracking canadian accent by elims. :P

But seriously. Great Announcer/MC.

Koko Ed

02-03-2009, 11:18

Anyone heard if there's going to be a team social this year?

jagman2882

02-03-2009, 21:50

i believe that the NY BR trophy went to 378 in 2006

SammyKay

03-03-2009, 10:47

Anyone heard if there's going to be a team social this year?

One of our mentors got an email from one of the teams up there and it said that they weren't going to be holding a team social. :( All of our team are sad about that. We always had the most fun at the team social.

Ellery

03-03-2009, 23:53

Well there's no official FLR Webcast this year again due to lack of resources but I'll definitley be archiving the stuff or if I can find some alternatives I will try.

So the NY BR Trophy history:
Created by 578 in 2003 :1126 2003 -> 340 2004 -> 229 2005 -> 378 2006 -> 1450 2007 -> 191 2008 -> ??? 2009

Alex Cormier

04-03-2009, 00:04

Pat Arnold

04-03-2009, 12:25

Well there's no official FLR Webcast this year again due to lack of resources but I'll definitley be archiving the stuff or if I can find some alternatives I will try.

I was really hoping FLR would be webcast this year. :(

Good luck to everyone, especially our friends on MAK 211. Wish it was possible to package & send some Florida sunshine your way; hopefully the weather is better this year than it was for 2008.

Jeff Rodriguez

04-03-2009, 12:33

rees2001

04-03-2009, 12:57

Dylan Gramlich

04-03-2009, 13:29

My dad has a t-shirt and sweatshirt from the X-Cats innaugural year haha. He probably won't be wearing either though...being on SparX and all :rolleyes:

Justin Montois

04-03-2009, 13:43

^^ Dylan that was your 340th post! That's gotta be a sign.... ;) See ya tomorrow.

Josh Goodman

04-03-2009, 13:46

I don't know if my shirt still fits from my rookie year! I'm going to try and dig through to find any 2005 (team rookie year) shirts. I'll try and remember. ;)

Koko Ed

04-03-2009, 14:37

My dad has a t-shirt and sweatshirt from the X-Cats innaugural year haha. He probably won't be wearing either though...being on SparX and all :rolleyes:Ron, our team leader (y'know the one everyone keeps mistaking for me) wears his all the time. Looks good as new. Not sure if he'll wear it or not.

colin340

04-03-2009, 14:54

i would wear my 05 shirt but it's really ugly and i have to wear my black shirt

chaoticprout

04-03-2009, 15:09

Considering it's a 2 minute walk from my Dorm to the Field House this is being held, I will most definitely be there. First event as a spectator! (decided to take my first year at college off from FIRST, so it'll be interesting) Looking forward to it.

kevin.li.rit

04-03-2009, 17:19

DarkFlame145

04-03-2009, 17:36

Is there going to be a webcast?

chaoticprout

04-03-2009, 19:32

You must be walking quite quickly.

Powerwalk! hahaha

Josh Goodman

04-03-2009, 20:30

Is there going to be a webcast?

Believe me....I tried. Not this year. Not enough staff or resources.

Jay Trzaskos

04-03-2009, 21:03

Is there any lack of volunteers? If so somebody PM me, or find me tomorow at the venue anytime after 5pm

DarkFlame145

04-03-2009, 21:10

Believe me....I tried. Not this year. Not enough staff or resources.

Dang, I wanted to be able to watch it, FLR was always fun and I wanted to see how my old team is going to do. woot woot 145/1902 pride =P

Koko Ed

04-03-2009, 21:18

Since there is no team social Laser Tag has been moved to Friday night.

Tetraman

04-03-2009, 21:22

Since there is no team social Laser Tag has been moved to Friday night.

Make sure Dan lets me know when you guys are leaving so I can join up. I'll need a ride.

Vince lau

04-03-2009, 22:22

What are some good places for a team to eat dinner around RIT or the RIT inn where we are staying

Kims Robot

04-03-2009, 22:51

MOE's!!! If you like ginormous burritos! Actually there is are a ton of restaurants around there, depending on what you want, Red Robin has great burgers, Olive Garden is right there, Buffalo Wild Wings is down the street a bit... McGreggors is great for the adult crowd (more of a bar atmosphere, though, so I wouldnt really bring the team there). There are also all the new places that just opened up in the RIT/Barnes and Noble walk area... stop by 1511's pits if you need some tips :)

Ellery

04-03-2009, 22:52

What are some good places for a team to eat dinner around RIT or the RIT inn where we are staying

Vince - RIT is in the middle of a shopping area so there's a mall and probably every chain restaurant but you may want to call ahead to see if they need reservations. Alot will depend on how many people.

Here's a list of places:
Macgregors (Bar & grill)
Buffalo Wild Wings
Pizzeria Uno
Ruby Tuesdays
Olive Garden (Italian)
Applebees
Wendy's
McDonalds
5 Brothers Burgers
Distillery (Bar & Grill)
MarketPlace mall Food Court
Red Lobster
Wegmans Food
Bill Gray's Burgers (Pretty Big for larger teams)
Tully's (Sports bar atmosphere)
Amiels' (subs)
DiBella's (subs)

These are all along Jefferson Road which RIT is on so there's alot of choices.

If you need any other assistance Vince please feel free to stop by the 191 pits tomorrow.

Kims Robot

04-03-2009, 22:53

I'm not sure what everyone's team rules about t-shirts are but...

Tomorrow is Throwback Thursday!
Wear the oldest shirt from your respective teams that you have.
They'll be some of us on RAGE doing it. It'd be neat to see the evolution of the team t-shirts over the years.
Who has the oldest shirt? We'll have to see!

Does it have to be from your current team?? Obviously 1511 wont be the oldest... but I think I have my Aces High shirts (then Raiders)... and I can bring the first 229 shirt ever :)

And..
I was really hoping FLR would be webcast this year. :(
Contact the FLRPC (http://www.firstrochester.org/contact.html) to let them know that there is interest. I believe the idea was tabled this year because they didnt really know how to set one up, but we have offered up setup, I think they might just need to know there is interest. I think if they get more requests than just from the local teams, they might see it as more valuable and find dedicated resources.

Hiteak

04-03-2009, 22:57

Ellery

04-03-2009, 23:01

I recommend Jays Diner at 2612 West Henrietta Road, Rochester NY, 14623. They do have free wifi. Food wise they basically have a bit of everything. Also, while in Rochester, I recommend to try and have a Garbage Plate, its a Rochester delicacy.

Yeah Team 191 will be at Jay's Tomorrow, Friday and Saturday bright and early! We're lucky this year the weather is going to be pretty nice in the high 40- 50F. Just want to make sure the sun comes out.

Vince lau

04-03-2009, 23:02

thanks for the suggestions everybody, I'll talk to the team tomorrow

Jay Trzaskos

04-03-2009, 23:40

I HIGHLY suggest The Distillery, it's one of my personnel Rochester favorites, along with Tully's. and if you're looking for something a little quicker, hit up bill Gray's and make sure to get an Abbott's Cone before you head out.

If you have some time to spend and are feeling the need for some good BBQ, Dinosaur is great but you can't beat Sticky Lips. These are a good 20-30 minutes away though, but well worth the drive

Koko Ed

05-03-2009, 03:21

Make sure Dan lets me know when you guys are leaving so I can join up. I'll need a ride.
Dan is the one who suggested we do it Friday.

dcbrown

05-03-2009, 14:26

And..

Contact the FLRPC (http://www.firstrochester.org/contact.html) to let them know that there is interest. I believe the idea was tabled this year because they didnt really know how to set one up, but we have offered up setup, I think they might just need to know there is interest. I think if they get more requests than just from the local teams, they might see it as more valuable and find dedicated resources.

I offered, just too late in connecting up for the webcast this year. I did the GSR webcast and learned a lot. I need to justify the cost of the equipment by doing more events though ;) . So... next year for sure. I'm planning on contacting the FLR regional committee in the fall to start the process. I might even do a third if I can find a venue that I like. I visit RIT 3-4 times a year so I might even get to do a random dry run attempt at some point way before the event which would take some of the time/resource pressure off at the event itself. You can't buy time, but you can come real close with proper planning!

All I need is a reasonably reliable net drop, I've got the rest of the equipment. The RIT firewall adds a small wrinkle to overcome, but that just needs time to coordinate. Maybe next year I'll get to use the SloMo capabilities of the vid mixer I'm using! :D See ya'll next year.

Bud

EricVanWyk

05-03-2009, 20:38

Greetings all. I won't be able to make FLR, and there are some awesome rookies who need some labVIEW help. Any volunteers? :)

Tetraman

05-03-2009, 20:40

Well that was a very tiresome day...Took forever to get everyone though the WPE table, but we did it.

kevin.li.rit

05-03-2009, 20:40

Did anyone see how 1405 pretty much built their robot today?

dmoody92

05-03-2009, 21:23

Tetraman

06-03-2009, 06:27

Yea, that was way more intense than I thought it would be, especially for a practice day...I guess I can assume tomorrow will be insane? I loved how everyone was shocked that we used an inner tube on our robot :D :D

It's one of those things that makes other teams rethink their own robot building strategies. It's a very good idea and no a lot of other teams thought of it. I was shocked myself and did a double take.

My biggest shock was The Grapes of Wrath team 1551's robot smells like a grape.

oddjob

06-03-2009, 08:35

Dang it, I only now looked to see if the event is Webcast and it isn't :(

Danny McC

06-03-2009, 18:33

Good job today everyone. I am sure all of the matches were great even though it wasnt webcast. Sure teams rose above the rest to be where they are.

I just wanted to say Congratulations 316 and my bff Ally(little loser and sister) on their winning the Judges' Award. See you all at Philly and good luck with competition tomorrow. You guys(and girls) deserve the award you won.

Andrew_Toye

06-03-2009, 18:39

A member of Crescent School's robotics team lost his video camera today. It is a black Sony HD camera. If found could you please contact Oleg Baranov at either 647 893 9249 or olegbaranov@crescentschool.org.

Thanks,

Toye Ojo

kcreager

06-03-2009, 20:12

What teams do you think scored the best.(Not just based on their rank)
My List:
188
191
1126
1507
1511
2053
3015

purduephotog

06-03-2009, 20:51

http://ComePhotograph.Us/First/Panos/2009_Fingerlakes_Regional_sm2x.jpg

The other side will be tomorrow when I have more time...

Since the Regional Committee decided to suspend all press passes to non-credentialed media (which I find humorous as the folks I see *with* press passes do not have 'press' cameras) I won't be able to offer action photos to teams for free again this year. If you managed to find one from previous years and want it let me know and I'll send you the raw/processed photo.

-Images are still free, I'm just not allowed on the field to take them.

Tetraman

06-03-2009, 22:34

Dang it, I only now looked to see if the event is Webcast and it isn't :(

One of the volunteers is apparently downloading and saving the regional. If I can get a hold of him I'll let everyone know if we can share it or upload it all somewhere.

Nawaid Ladak

06-03-2009, 22:43

Dang it, I only now looked to see if the event is Webcast and it isn't :(

hmmm

if my memory serves me correctly, this regional is being broadcasted on Time Warner Cable Rochester Channel 4.

Would anyone be willing to do a stream of the channel from their PC while their at the regional?

ie: if you have a PC with a TV tuner

when you go to ustream, your able to select which video input you would like to use, set up your tuner on Channel 4. and just let it broadcast through ustream.

would anyone be able to pull this off

thanks

Ellery

06-03-2009, 23:03

Actually - I already had a Ustream event scheduled I'll give it a shot at home.

Brilliant!

Ellery

06-03-2009, 23:54

Actually - I already had a Ustream event scheduled I'll give it a shot at home.

Brilliant!

Ok Folks give this a try for Saturday's 2009 FLR Competition! I hope it works... no promises. Worst comes to worst you'll have to wait for the archive video I have.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/2009-finger-lakes-regional

If you log on to it now you should be see SUNY Brockport ads.

Unfortunately I'll be waking up early to get breakfast so I won't be able to access the web to do anything to adjust anything.

Also I can't get the audio to work for some strange reason but it's late and after standing all day I'm out.

Ellery

Josh Goodman

07-03-2009, 00:17

Ok Folks give this a try for Saturday's 2009 FLR Competition! I hope it works... no promises. Worst comes to worst you'll have to wait for the archive video I have.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/2009-finger-lakes-regional

If you log on to it now you should be see SUNY Brockport ads.

Unfortunately I'll be waking up early to get breakfast so I won't be able to access the web to do anything to adjust anything.

Ellery

Ellery, you're my hero! Thanks for trying this! Also, if you have a way to get me the FLR footage that you've been recording, I can snip up the matches real quick at school and upload it to TBA. Unless you were planning on doing that.

GREAT JOB TODAY TEAMS! FLR IS STILL THE MOST GRACIOUS/SPIRITED REGIONAL OUT THERE!

Ellery

07-03-2009, 00:23

Josh,

I'll get you the footage if you have a HUGE memory stick or Laptop with a HDD- it'll be roughly 5 GB per day (2 files). I know longer have time to split the clips now anyways so this will work out great if you can parse all the matches out. FYI you'll need something to edit MP4 since I am using the Pinnacle Video Transfer device at "Better" quality setting.

Josh Goodman

07-03-2009, 00:49

holt.justin173

07-03-2009, 02:08

I suppose I'll toss my hat in the ring on the whole streaming issue. A mentor from my from my team put me up to the challenge to see if I could get a stream up.

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/finger-lakes-regional---saturday

Figured I'd post mine just in case one goes down...and I've been working on it since about 8...dang older hauppauge card.

Hopefully everyone enjoys these!
Justin

Steve W

07-03-2009, 11:25

Thank you!!!
Thank You!!!!
THANK YOU!!!!!

Jonathan Norris

07-03-2009, 11:32

Thanks a million for the webcast!

Travis Hoffman

07-03-2009, 11:50

So.....I'm guessing 610 thought 424 would pick 340? So close....yet so far.

Steve W

07-03-2009, 11:53

Their out of it now. Questionable call.

Tim Delles

07-03-2009, 11:55

Alliance Pairings:

1: 1507, 188, 174
2: 191, 1503, 173
3: 1765, 1728, 211
4: 1241, 229, 1626
5: 424, 1126, 2228
6: 809, 250, 378
7: 340, 1511, 316
8: 3015, 3003, 2053

Jonathan Norris

07-03-2009, 12:07

It was certainly a gamble... I don't know enough about the teams or how they performed to tell if it was a good call. I think 610 will still be the backup robot.

Tim Delles

07-03-2009, 12:12

It was certainly a gamble... I don't know enough about the teams or how they performed to tell if it was a good call. I think 610 will still be the backup robot.

Can't be a back up robot if you decline.

Steve W

07-03-2009, 12:13

If you decline you go to the bottom of the list so Tim is right. 610 is out.

Tim Delles

07-03-2009, 12:22

Just something fun i do... Picking the winners. (kinda got march madness on my mind anyways lol)

1 v 8
2 v 7
3 v 6
4 v 5

1 v 4
2 v 6

1 v 2

Alliance 2 wins it all

*These picks are based on what I have seen today (and in my opinion the Saturday morning rounds tell a very large portion of the story)

Chris Sturrock

07-03-2009, 12:25

I like following your picks each year Tim, you are often right, or really close.

I personally really like this pick :D
possibly cause you have my team taking the regional... which would just be amazing!

Jonathan Norris

07-03-2009, 12:26

If you decline you go to the bottom of the list so Tim is right. 610 is out.

There isn't anything in the rules that says that, as far as I am hearing they are the backup bot.

edit: now I hear they are not... I am confused/frustrated, and need a lawyer to explain to me why they aren't the backup bot.

Jonathan Norris

07-03-2009, 12:34

here are the rules:

9.4.1: "If the TEAM declines, that TEAM is not eligible to be picked again and the ALLIANCE CAPTAIN
extends another invitation to a different TEAM.
• If an invitation from a top eight ALLIANCE to another Alliance Lead is declined, the
declining TEAM may still invite teams to join their ALLIANCE, however, it cannot accept
invitations from other ALLIANCES.
The process continues until Alliance Eight makes a successful invitation.
Round 2: The same method is used for each ALLIANCE CAPTAIN'S second choice except the
selection order is reversed, with Alliance Eight picking first and Alliance One picking last. This
process will lead to eight ALLIANCES of three TEAMS."

9.4.2: "Of the remaining eligible TEAMS, the highest seeded TEAMS (up to eight) shall remain on standby
and be ready to play as a BACKUP TEAM. If a ROBOT from any TEAM in an elimination match
becomes inoperable the ALLIANCE CAPTAIN may have the highest seeded BACKUP TEAM join
the ALLIANCE. The resulting ALLIANCE would then be composed of four TEAMS, but only three
TEAMS will be permitted to continue with tournament play. The inoperable TEAM remains part of
the ALLIANCE for awards but can not play, even if their ROBOT is repaired.
The original three-team ALLIANCE shall only have one opportunity to draw from the BACKUP
TEAMS. If a second ROBOT from the ALLIANCE becomes inoperable, then the ALLIANCE must
play the following matches with only two (or even one) ROBOTS. It is in the best interest of all
teams to construct their ROBOTS to be as robust as possible to prevent this situation.
• Example: Three TEAMS, A, B and C, form an ALLIANCE going into the elimination matches.
The highest seeded team NOT on one of the eight ALLIANCES is Team D. During one of the
elimination matches, Team C’s ROBOT becomes inoperable. The ALLIANCE CAPTAIN
decides to bring up Team D to replace Team C. Team C and their ROBOT may not play in
any subsequent elimination matches.

In the case where a BACKUP TEAM is called up onto the winning ALLIANCE, there will be a four-
TEAM Champion Alliance."

Steve W

07-03-2009, 13:01

I think that the word eligible is the key word

Jay Trzaskos

07-03-2009, 15:11

229 1241 and 1626 take out 1126 2228 and 424 in 4 matches including a replayed 2nd match after a field error

PatrickN

07-03-2009, 16:57

congratulations 1507,188 and 174!

J Flex 188

07-03-2009, 17:00

I would just like to say a huge huge congratulations to all of the teams that participated in the 2009 Finger Lakes Regional! I always love traveling to this event, it has a small town feel with a few big city names.

Congratulations especially to 1507, 188 and 174 for your amazing performance today. The strategies and execution of all three teams were finely tuned and responsive to the changing scenarios of each match. To 188 especially, you really deserve it. The students, knowing them for the past 4 or 5 years since I've graduated, this year's group is one of the smartest, most intelligent and committed groups I've had the privilege of knowing.

Shawn, Kaj and the rest of the drive crew, congratulations on starting and building on a new legacy.

Enjoy it guys, enjoy it, I look forward to seeing the team again in a couple of weeks time.

dmoody92

07-03-2009, 19:20

Koko Ed

07-03-2009, 19:45

This year was competition was amazing, as a roookie team we had no idea what this was going to be like and it was much larger than I thought. We were very proud of our team for ranking 11th in our first year and winning the rookie inspiration award. Naturally, we were a bit disappointed to not win the Rookie All Star Award to go to Atlanta but the team that did win it deserved it much more than we did. Congratulations to all teams in the event!

That first quarterfinal match where you guys trapped 188 in the corner and you guys descended on them and filled them up in the last seconds to steal the match was amazing. You guys showed alot of veteran savvy then. I think you guys will be a force to be recond with for years to come!

Tetraman

07-03-2009, 19:50

It's usually said that FLR is incredible. This year was EXPLOSIVE!

I want to thank all of those team members who thanked all of us volunteers. Many of you shown us some FIRST love and we all thank you for it. Plus thanks for everyone for keeping calm and cool during the field problems.

I want to give my congrats to 340, 1511 and 316 for the truly hard-fought fight they put up. You deserve the champs just as equally as any other.

Congrats to 1507 for their amazing robot, 188 for ther determination and 174 for their second FLR win in a row!

A special congrats to 340 for their second Regional Chairmans award. I hope this year you can take it to Atlanta and bring it home to rochester for all of us other FLR teams!

High Fives all around for 2791 and their Rookie Allstar award. The moment you walked in I knew there was something big for you at the end of this weekend.

I have to say that it was an honor to sit next to the one and only Karthik and watch him pull off his MC magic. One day I want to be an MC and have the energy he can put into it all.

Congrats to all the teams and students for their own personal victories and good luck in your other regionals. I'll see you all next year.

Starke

07-03-2009, 20:20

A special congrats to 340 for their second Regional Chairmans award. I hope this year you can take it to Atlanta and bring it home to rochester for all of us other FLR teams!

This is actually their fourth time getting the Regional Chairman's Award at the Finger Lakes Regional (2005, 2006, 2008, and 2009)! What an accomplishment by such an excellent team!

lilBcos

07-03-2009, 21:11

Congratulations 1507, 188, 174 for an amazing win
340 for a 4th regional chairman's award

Josh Goodman

07-03-2009, 21:16

Congrats to 340 and 1547 for their amazing inspiration and FIRST involvement. Good luck and see you in Atlanta!

Also, congrats to team 188, 1507, and 174. Probably the best playing and robots I saw out there today. With that last finals match, you must have gotten the highest score of week 2.

Finally, and most importantly, thank you to 340 and 316, our dedicated alliance partners. Many thought we couldn't make it past qualifications, but that goes to show you how strategy is a huge part of this game. I have to honestly say, out of the 3 years I have coached this team, those eliminations were the most fun I have ever had in my life. You guys are AWESOME!

See all you teams at Chesapeake and Annapolis!

jack.j.191

07-03-2009, 23:00

First off, I would like to give my deepest thanks to 1503 and 173. You were great alliance partners and it was truly a pleasure to work with the both of you.

Second, congratulations to 188, 1507, and 174. Simply put, an amazing alliance. Good luck with all of your future competitions and I hope to see you guys in Atlanta.

Finally, Congrats to 1507 for earning the B-NY Cup and the Industrial Design award.

computerboi1503

07-03-2009, 23:24

Hey,

Congratulations to ALL the teams that competed, you were ALL fantastic, regardless of how you placed. Take a while to reflect on how you went about this tournament, think about how it makes you feel. Do you feel like you played your hearts out? Do you feel you, as a person contributed everything you could to your team? Think about this, but give yourselves a pat on the back, because you made it. You built a robot, competed with the best in the area and held your own. Again, congratulations.

And now, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to 191, and 173 for being such awesome alliance partners and being such great sports about our misfortunes. We love you guys, and we hope to work with you guys real soon.

-Nick

Garii

08-03-2009, 00:21

peaking of the video cast

does anyone here know where I can get ahold of Videos of the regional?

Josh Goodman

08-03-2009, 00:28

peaking of the video cast

does anyone here know where I can get ahold of Videos of the regional?

Ellery has the full video of the event. We didn't have enough time to transfer it onto my drive before he had to go so he'll be giving it to me in a bit and I'll be parsing it and uploading it to soap/TBA.

What I'll probably do is just do from 3-2-1 Go until the end of the match for TBA and for soap keep the team introductions and the opening/award ceremonies. Just so that people who want to watch the whole thing can, but those just interested in scouting don't have to waste their time.

So, yes. I will. Just not yet.:)

Ellery

08-03-2009, 07:06

Congratulations to 1507,188,174 for the Regional Win, you guys had an awesome alliance and is well deserved.

To 340 for Winning the Regional Chairman's Award - your team is an inspiration and makes the Rochester FIRST community proud.

Thanks to our Alliance partners 1503, 173 - I think we would have gone farther if we were not succumbed to the intermittent field issue. This issue was not acknowledged till the final match and the root cause, as I was told by the field crew, was an "intermittent Emergency Stop Switch" at the Red Center Driver Station and NOT a "cRIO Powercycling failure on your robot or static causing communication drops" as 639, 211, 1503 were told initially. I hope they documented this issue and junked the part that was replaced. This was probably a continuation of the issues seen at BAE in week #1. I'd hate to see what happened here repeat once more for the remainder of the competition season where outcomes may have been different because of this.

Thanks to all the teams for making FLR such an exciting event this year. I had my doubts about this game being audience friendly but it was great.

FLR has always been a great regional, kinda like an annual reunion. Great to see everyone again!

Josh - If you want I can probably burn you a few DVDs today if you'd like to pick it up. Give me call.

Tetraman

08-03-2009, 09:49

This issue was not acknowledged till the final match and the root cause, as I was told by the field crew, was an "intermittent Emergency Stop Switch" at the Red Center Driver Station and NOT a "cRIO Powercycling failure on your robot or static causing communication drops" as 639, 211, 1503 were told initially. I hope they documented this issue and junked the part that was replaced.

We did have some problems with some of the e-stops all weekend. In fact they were the only 'field' problem there was other then the strange stop of play during the Elims.

Each time we had a problem with an e-stop they were removed and fixed by one of our very experienced FTA's. I do not know if they become documented but I can assure you that the higher ups have done a lot to make sure the next regional gets the most information they can on these issues.

EDIT: I also want to add that at the start of each day plus before the elims, I sprayed an anti-static spray on the carpet part of the field to reduce the static. And it did work. On Thursday, before we started to get serious about that spray, I swifted the field I felt so much static from the swifter broom. After that spray was put on the field, there was no trouble with static. We also covered the Air Lock in tape to prevent any possible static from jumping from the metal to any robots that hit it.

Rich Kressly

08-03-2009, 09:53

Congrats 340 for your excellence on and off of the field! Once again showing why you're such a great model to emulate.

namaste.

Mr. Lim

08-03-2009, 10:39

That first quarterfinal match where you guys trapped 188 in the corner and you guys descended on them and filled them up in the last seconds to steal the match was amazing. You guys showed alot of veteran savvy then. I think you guys will be a force to be recond with for years to come!

This was a brilliant move. We simply got baited into an extremely vulnerable position, and paid for it dearly. It was a perfectly executed reversal, and cost us the match.

I made the call to try and score on 3015 as they were stationary at their own airlock delivering an empty cell to their payload specialist. Normally you'd think this is a good opportunity to strike a stationary target...

We thought so too, and it ended up costing us the match.

Great work 3015, 2053 and 3003! We learned a lot that match, and that sometimes the best shots in Lunacy are the ones you DON'T take :P .

Justin Montois

08-03-2009, 10:54

Congrats 340 for your excellence on and off of the field! Once again showing why you're such a great model to emulate.

namaste.

Thanks Rich, it means a lot.

This year at FLR was amazing. There are a ton of people to thank.

The planning committee and all of the volunteers worked so hard and made the 5th regional event the best yet

A truly special thanks to Team 1511 and Team 316 for making our elimination matches one of my most memorable times I've ever experienced in FIRST. It was amazing to have been able to work with you guys to bring the 7th seeded alliance all the way to the finals. I knew once we all joined up we could go far and we played our strategy to perfection. It was really awesome.
Good luck to 1511 in Chesapeake and to 316 in Philly.

Congrats to 188, 1507 and 174 for winning the FLR Championship. Losing to your alliance was easier to take because we know we got beat by the best. You guys really deserved the win and I wish you all the best of luck in your future events.

Congrats to 1547 for their deserved Engineering Inspiration award. We knew your team was bringing a strong program down form the north and I was happy to see you were rewarded for you efforts

To team 1126, Your Gracious Professionalism award was truly deserved. Your team never hesitates to help anyone in need, even if it means driving to Webster to grab your old bumpers and fit them to a robot to help them out this year. That's what makes FIRST awesome and I think your guys were an easy choice for this award. I love you guys!!!!

John Darr and Karthik, you guys were a great team and you really got the house excited for match after match. Thanks for giving us your time this weekend and I hope you can come back next year.

To all the other award winners and competitors, congrats and thanks for making the 5th Annual Finger Lakes Regional the best yet! :)

Josh Goodman

08-03-2009, 16:40

By the way, does anyone from 340 or 316 have that awesome picture of our alliance teams at the end? If so, could you email me one/them? Thanks a bunch!

1t5h1e1o

08-03-2009, 16:48

Yeah that was a pretty epic alliance. Who would have thought that 7 meets 1 in the finals. :D

I have to say that 340's PS was pretty awesome with last-minute super cells. Much of our strategy depended on that and he didn't disappoint.

I hope that we get another chance to work with both 316 and 340 next year at FLR if not later this year at the championship!

Thanks for making my first event as a driver (operator last year) an unforgettable one!:)

Shelbo

08-03-2009, 17:19

AndrewMorrison

08-03-2009, 17:24

This year was a big turn around for team 229.
On behalf of our team I would like to thank 1241 and 1626 for being amazing alliance partners. We would love to run with you guys again in the future, we had a blast.

Now this thread is full of congratulations and thank you's, so I feel bad having to lodge the first complaint, but I feel it is necessary.
This entire weekend it seemed like the only thing that mattered to the referees, FTA, and scoring table was staying on time.
They refused (until the very end) to believe that there could be anything wrong with the field. They refused to let 1241 link with the field in one match, and in the same match when the field stopped working with 2-3 seconds left they still almost said that the scores would stand(even though human players kept going because the buzzer never went off). We actually took the rule book to them, and showed them the rule about replaying the match whenever there was a field error. It still took them a 10 minute conference and the stands to start chanting "re-do, re-do" before they finally agreed.
We all know what happened in week one, and all the field errors that went on then, but they completely disregarded that this could even be a possibility. Now I can understand that some problems were because of a jostled wire or some code issue, but they blamed absolutely everything on the teams. It wasn't until the finals when they started to truly acknowledge field problems. After quite a bit of complaints.

Now this is all after the competition has ended, but who knows how many problems actually happened during qualifications? the rankings could have changed, and the outcome could have been completely different. (absolutely no disrespect to the winning alliance, you had a phenomenal alliance).
Speaking for my team, we were all very disappointed in how the field was ran.

Gaurav27

08-03-2009, 17:50

This year was a big turn around for team 229.
On behalf of our team I would like to thank 1241 and 1626 for being amazing alliance partners. We would love to run with you guys again in the future, we had a blast.

This entire weekend it seemed like the only thing that mattered to the referees, FTA, and scoring table was staying on time.
They refused (until the very end) to believe that there could be anything wrong with the field. They refused to let 1241 link with the field in one match, and in the same match when the field stopped working with 2-3 seconds left they still almost said that the scores would stand(even though human players kept going because the buzzer never went off). We actually took the rule book to them, and showed them the rule about replaying the match whenever there was a field error. It still took them a 10 minute conference and the stands to start chanting "re-do, re-do" before they finally agreed.
We all know what happened in week one, and all the field errors that went on then, but they completely disregarded that this could even be a possibility. Now I can understand that some problems were because of a jostled wire or some code issue, but they blamed absolutely everything on the teams. It wasn't until the finals when they started to truly acknowledge field problems. After quite a bit of complaints.

Now this is all after the competition has ended, but who knows how many problems actually happened during qualifications? the rankings could have changed, and the outcome could have been completely different. (absolutely no disrespect to the winning alliance, you had a phenomenal alliance).
Speaking for my team, we were all very disappointed in how the field was ran.

I definitely agree with Andrew Morrison on the points he has made.
I hope these issues are solved as soon as possible.

On behalf of Theory6, Team 1241, i would also :P like to thank team 229 (division by zero) and team 1626 (falcon robotics) for being our alliance partners and becoming semi finalists! We would love to work with you in the future. Good Luck to both teams at Chesapeake!

At the same time, I would like to thank all volunteers and organizers who made this regional amazing! John Darr and Karthik were a truely amazing team that kept this regional thrilling all weekend!

Congratulations to Teams 188, 1507 and 174 on their regional win! The semi finals between ours and your alliance were intense and very competitive!

I would also like to thank the programmers from Team 1511 Rolling Thunder for helping us with LabView problems we were facing. Congratulations to team 1511 on the Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers Entrepreneurship and Regional Finalist Awards!

Teams Attending the Greater Toronto Regional, See you there!

Zuhaib Ali

08-03-2009, 17:56

Team 188 had not won a regional since 2003, and that finally changed yesterday after earning the title of the 2009 Finger Lakes Regional Champions. Thank you to our alliance partners 1507, and 174 for their great attitude and performance on and off the field.

1507: from the start, you were one of the teams we wanted to be with. You guys had amazing match strategies which really impressed us. When we were asked to join your alliance, we were more than thrilled. You guys had an awesome robot and definetly showed it especially when you won a 3 on 2 match. We knew we could count on you! Good luck at philadelphia and perhaps atlanta!

174: we were not dissappointed to have you on the alliance. We loved your willingness to go out there and do what you were told. Your team did an awesome job and contributed greatly to our alliances success. No regrets at all! Good luck an hope to see you at atlanta!

340: A little while back, i stumbled upon your website and went through alot of the content. Just by looking at your previous chariman's submissions, i said to myself that your actions definetly can't go unrewarded, and they didn't. Your team deserved the chairman's award and you guys set a marvelous example!

Another group of people who we can't thank enough for their contributions are the team 188 alumni. As i mentioned above, team 188 has not won a regional since 2003 and our alumni, despite little success on the field have been around for a while. Alumni truly understand that FIRST is not about robots and winning, its so much more which can't be simply explained! We thank you for playing an important role and using your experience to prevent us from making the same mistakes twice. Thank you greatly for your underground support! ;)

Finally, i'd like to thank everybody who made the finger lakes regional possible. This was by far the most fun i've had at a regional and i owe that to you guys!

rjmah

08-03-2009, 18:43

It was 1246's first time at FLR. It is such an well run event. Field problems aside, everything from lunch catering, pit admin, queuing and pit area just went smoothly. It was a pleasure to attend.

Congrats to team 188, 1507, and 174. After seeing 188 on their practice field before shipping, it felt like they had a winner.

Karthik did his usual great energetic job. I really liked the way John never let there be any dead air time. Whether it was pointing out people in the audience, highlighting robot features or providing visitors with a better understanding of the game, he kept everything interesting.

Great Job!

Karthik

08-03-2009, 19:19

The 2009 Finger Lakes Regional was definitely a great time. Special thanks to all the volunteers who worked so hard to put this event together and keep it running smoothly. I met a lot of new people who each impressed me with their dedication to FIRST. They've definitely got something good going on in Rochester. Working with JonDarr was an absolute blast. He's definitely one of the best announcers in FIRST, and I'd love to hear him announcing a division in Atlanta.

I said it a few times during the event, but 340 deserves a lot of recognition for everything they've done in the Rochester community. After talking with their team, and hearing about their efforts I think they're on the short list of contenders for a Championship Chairman's Award. To me it's not a matter of if, rather a matter of when.

There were lots of amazing teams on the field, but none impressed me more than 1507 and 188. 1507 played well and more importantly played smart all weekend long. They'll be a force in Atlanta. As for 188, they're one of the top 3 robots that I've seen all season long. A ridiculously fast turreted shooter, which rarely missed. Shooters like 1114 and 217 had a lot of problems with accuracy in Week 1, but 188's drive team were stone cold marksmen, rarely missing shots despite not using active camera tracking. They'll be one of the favorites come mid-April in the Georgia Dome. Congratulations to all the amazing students and mentors who put that robot together.

A special congratulations to Team 1547 on a well deserved Engineering Inspiration Award. They were gracious enough to take me in as a guest this weekend, and remind me what FIRST is all about. It was a pleasure and honor to travel with the team. They're a team who really does "get it".

Justin Montois

08-03-2009, 19:25

Thanks guys!!!
It was wonderful being able to work with 340 and 1511. :D

~I have a few pictures of the drive teams...I can check with the rest of the team because i'm sure someone has the picture of everyone.

Congratulations to all teams!!!

When you get a hold of one, please post it on CD-Media! Thanks!

It was awesome playing with you guys.

Karthik: Thanks for the kind words in your post above and throughout the competition. It means a lot and we will have to see what happens at Championship but hearing people like you say that about our team means more then any award could. Thanks again.

Vince lau

08-03-2009, 20:11

Congratulations to all teams that attended FLR, you all have amazing robots and gracious professionalism throughout the whole event.

1507,188,174 - you guys played amazing during the elimination rounds, congrats on the regional win.

1547 - from your start in 2005 your team has shown that you really "Get it", from your 2005 Championship Rookie Inspiration Award, 2006 NH Engineering Inspiration Award, 2007 NJ Imagery, 2008 ON Regional Chairman's Award and 2009 FLR Engineering Inspiration Award. I know your first regional win will come soon good luck at GTR.

610, 1511, 340, and all the other teams that help get our robot running thanks for your help.

340 - Congratulations on the Chairmans award

and to my team 2624 - you girls never gave up all weekend and kept working hard, it was a pleasure mentoring a group of such talented girls

Tetraman

08-03-2009, 22:30

Now this is all after the competition has ended, but who knows how many problems actually happened during qualifications? the rankings could have changed, and the outcome could have been completely different. (absolutely no disrespect to the winning alliance, you had a phenomenal alliance).
Speaking for my team, we were all very disappointed in how the field was ran.

This is something that should be discussed. Why do we always have to be happy and show smiles when there were some obvious issues?

18 problems during qualifications, actually. I was recording them. And yes, the rankings would be different if there wasn't a single problem. 18 problems is almost 1/3rd the matches.

I was working one of the computers that shows what is working or not working with both the field and the robots. The robots weren't connecting to the system because of something that was wrong with the robots, not the field. If there was a problem with the field being unable to link to the robots, we would have seen that it was the field that was in error.

Most all the robots that started with problems kept having those problems. It wasn't random. If it was a field problem then why would the same robots have trouble getting into the system?

1241 had their problem for that one elimination match. After it was called the match would be replayed, the FTA's took the robot and fixed their robot. It took about 4 minutes but we got it fixed. The robot worked for the replay. Robot problem, not field problem.

The field problem that match was different. First off...remember the official time is the time on the field clocks, which what I was told did hit 0. Meaning that the match was over and would have counted. The official time is not kept by buzzers or the clock on the scoring screen, but the clock on the field. I can't speak too much about this because I didn't see the field clock, but I can say that the reason why there was such a long conference was to determine the reason why the field went nuts.

The field crew did everything they could. None of us just tossed over teams and said 'whatever'. We were up to what was happening and if we could end up fixing it we halted gameplay and solved the issue.

Just as much as you can say that the entire regional would have changed if we didn't have those problems, the regional would have been much different with more problems or fewer. There would be different results if it was week one or week 5. And there would be different results if the field was swapped out with new regolith after each match. We can't solve everything but if we can solve it we will do it.

Kims Robot

08-03-2009, 23:07

What an amazingly fun event. I love the Rochester teams, how well we know eachother and how much everyone loves to help everyone out. To me, Rochester teams define GP :)

I will add a few more thanks/congrats to the list...

Congratulations to 2999, our favorite Rookie team for making it out there and putting on a great show!! We are so happy your kids had so much fun, and it was truly an honor to work side by side with your team this year. It was inspirational to our students to see a team that was so green, and see the excitement as everything was so new!!

An incredible heart-felt thank you to 191, for the card that showed so much amazing support to our team that it brought tears to all of our eyes. And to 340 and 316 for wearing our armbands in support as well.

HUGE thank you to all of the volunteers and staff that really made this regional run so well. Liz - you are an awesome FTA!! Pete, thanks for coming up and for all the help & great conversation! Dante - thanks for doing the tough job!! John Darr - thanks for visiting us once again, we are so happy you had a great time (& thanks for lunch!!).

Big thanks to 340 for selecting us and 316 for being great alliance partners!! It was so much fun to go through the event with such great partners, all working so hard, but all having such positive and amazing attitudes!! It was so exciting!!

And as a mentor, I would like to congratulate our drive team: Josh, Theo, Brenton & Shauna for an amazing performance and thank our AMAZING scouting team for all the hard work they did pouring over all the data!!

And I have to thank/congratulate our amazing programming mentors: Larry, Eric & Jeff were called on all weekend to help numerous teams all over the event with everything from Labview issues, to field control issues, to reprogramming relay code and more. We rarely saw any of the three of them in our pits as they were always being dragged off somewhere to help, and seemed to have a blast doing it!!

And last, thanks to all the teams that came and made FLR so much fun this year, it was great to have such broad competition, and we are so honored to be a part of the Rochester community. Thanks for a great event!!

esquared

08-03-2009, 23:20

Thanks to our Alliance partners 1503, 173 - I think we would have gone farther if we were not succumbed to the intermittent field issue. This issue was not acknowledged till the final match and the root cause, as I was told by the field crew, was an "intermittent Emergency Stop Switch" at the Red Center Driver Station and NOT a "cRIO Powercycling failure on your robot or static causing communication drops" as 639, 211, 1503 were told initially. I hope they documented this issue and junked the part that was replaced. This was probably a continuation of the issues seen at BAE in week #1. I'd hate to see what happened here repeat once more for the remainder of the competition season where outcomes may have been different because of this.

1503's Robot Signal light would go fully out, then blink fast, then come solid again. Once they began to try driving again, the RSL would go out, blink fast, then solid again over a period of roughly 30-45 seconds. While they were located at what was eventually found to be a faulty console location, the robot symptoms they experienced are not possible if the robot was being E-Stopped intermittently. If that was occurring, their RSL would be solid, then go to a slow blink, then solid. If it was an intermittent radio communication issue, the RSL would have gone into a fast-blink mode if the bridge lost contact, then come back solid once regained. I spoke with 1503 immediately following that match, and their drivers agreed that the RSL was doing precisely as I explained above. We then powered up their robot, and showed them the process the RSL light goes through after a reboot. While the robot was on, I showed them what would happen if the radio modem power/ethernet was pulled loose/plugged back in, and the process was also as described above. They seemed satisfied that the symptoms of their robot out on the field matched a poweroff/poweron rather than an E-Stop.

To the robot, the E-Stop button is a disable/enable condition no different than using the dongle normally attached to the competition port. This was evident from the match in finals where the faulty E-Stop was diagnosed. Team 188's robot would sit with their RSL light slowly blinking. This indicates a successful link with the Driver Station, either through the field or when tethered. If the E-Stop was rapidly toggled/intermittent, 1503's robot would have been going in/out of enable mode, thus the RSL would be solid/slow blinking.

I regret not having the chance to follow up with 1503 to determine exactly what their situation was once they were in the pits. If anyone from 1503 could contact me/post if you found anything specifically wrong with your robot following that finals match it would be appreciated. I can add your situation to a list of common robot 'gotchas' being compiled.

Jeremytice

08-03-2009, 23:46

This year was a big turn around for team 229.

Now this thread is full of congratulations and thank you's, so I feel bad having to lodge the first complaint, but I feel it is necessary.
This entire weekend it seemed like the only thing that mattered to the referees, FTA, and scoring table was staying on time.
They refused (until the very end) to believe that there could be anything wrong with the field. They refused to let 1241 link with the field in one match, and in the same match when the field stopped working with 2-3 seconds left they still almost said that the scores would stand(even though human players kept going because the buzzer never went off). We actually took the rule book to them, and showed them the rule about replaying the match whenever there was a field error. It still took them a 10 minute conference and the stands to start chanting "re-do, re-do" before they finally agreed.
We all know what happened in week one, and all the field errors that went on then, but they completely disregarded that this could even be a possibility. Now I can understand that some problems were because of a jostled wire or some code issue, but they blamed absolutely everything on the teams. It wasn't until the finals when they started to truly acknowledge field problems. After quite a bit of complaints.

Now this is all after the competition has ended, but who knows how many problems actually happened during qualifications? the rankings could have changed, and the outcome could have been completely different. (absolutely no disrespect to the winning alliance, you had a phenomenal alliance).
Speaking for my team, we were all very disappointed in how the field was ran.

Hey guys! Thanks again for all teams for coming to FLR and congrats to all the teams. You all did a fantastic job. I would also like to comment on some of the issues that were mentioned.

Whenever there was a problem with the robot jumping in and out we would always go back to the FTAA computer and scoring table and check it out. With the FMS software that we are using we are always able to monitor the status of a robot. We are able to determine if it is a robot issue or a field issue. The software is very helpful and we had 2 certified FTA there as well as others that were trained on how the system ran. Second of all you should always go to the FTA if you have a question. Whenever you talk to someone on the field that is not an FTA or Head Ref...usually you get unreliable information that is incorrect which leads to more problems. Whenever there was an issue FTA checked it out and told the teams the issue. FTA is not just a random person...they are trained by FIRST on how to take care of the field and how to run the event. We never assumed it was a robot issue right away. We would always check it out first and communicated over the radios what was wrong and then would communicate with the teams.

Some things that I saw throughout the week was bad ports in the Driver Stations, bad wireless gaming adapters (light turned to orange meaning you can try resetting it to factory default settings and go through all the settings and set them again, and if that doesn't work it means it is a bad wireless gaming adapter), power issues (Robot not turning on or power issue of getting power to the wireless gaming adapter), and low batteries. Also please please plug in your wireless gaming adapters back into your CRio and make sure it's in the correct port. I can't tell you how many times this happened and once the field closes in qualification matches you are not allowed back out to fix that problem (You will see this change throughout the regionals depending on how the Ref calls that).

Alright now the issue about rushing teams. I do agree with you Andrew that we may have been rushing teams a little bit too fast. I will definitely bring that up in a follow up call this Monday and take care of that for you man and make sure that it's addressed. On Friday tho, regardless I really think the event ran very smoothly and we didn't have any field problems at all. Thank you teams for listening when to plug in and when to turn your robots on. This made it much easier to get the matches started.

Alright the issue with 1241. They had a issue with getting power to their wireless gaming adapter for one of the matches I believe. During that match was when the audience screen stayed at 1 sec. After that happened, FTA got together with the scoring table and we talked it over. We first talked about what could have happened to have that image freeze on the screen. Then FTA took it into their hands and talked to the refs to see if they had looked at the official clocks on the field to see if those had gone to 0. I remember that team 229 was told we might not replay that match but it was not told by FTA (as I remember). We then got the two alliance captains together to explain the problem. After talking to them we all agreed on replaying the match. Now what took so long after that was we had to determine what happened to the system and make sure that it would not happen again. We called FIRST and they told us to back up the system and restart the FMS software. After that we had to go through all our checks and make sure that they all worked. After making sure it was all up and running we got all the teams ready to go. ( I am sorry that it took so long but we wanted to make sure that we were taking the right steps to ensure this would not happen again). At that time we allowed teams to put new batteries in their robots.

Alright last issue that happened on the field. On the Red alliances side station #2 we did have a bad e-stop switch. Any matches before that were not effected by that though. In matches before that robots were working fine and any issues were to do with robots having power issues or code problems. We determined it was a bad e-stop switch since the robot was in autonomous mode but showed being disabled. After confirming this we changed it out and tested the field to make sure this was working correctly. After that we had no more problems and the event ran smoothly till the end!

I would like to thank all the teams for being patient throughout all of this. I just wanted to clear up some of the stuff as some people got relayed the wrong information. I also want to thank Ellery and Andrew for bringing this stuff up. When you guys give us feedback on the event and any issues you had, we like to make sure that other regional's are told about this so that their events run smoother.

I would like to thank both of our FTA's (Pete and Liz), and especially Liz Smith as this was her first year being FTA. I think she did a fantastic job at running the event regardless of some issues. I would also like to thank all the volunteers that were helping out. They make it possible for the FLR to run! Also I would like to thank John Darr and Karthik for doing an amazing job! We want you guys back for next year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Again thank you teams and congrats on all the award winners and regional winners and finalists. Thanks team 340 for all your support and Great job winning the Chairman's regional award. You guys deserve it!

Good Luck to all teams for the rest of season!

lenny8

09-03-2009, 00:06

Congrats to everyone at FLR it was a great regional to watch ( i only saw Saturday). also thanks Karthik for the updates and small chit chats on ustream.

Doc Wu

09-03-2009, 00:20

On behalf of Team 1507, the Warlocks, I'd like to say thanks so much for giving us the opportunity to represent the Fingerlakes Regional as a champion. We are in truly elite company.

Our alliance mates, Team 188 and Team 174 were awesome and a pleasure to work with. We couldn't have asked for better teammates.

All the teams in the finals were close in skill and quality. We would have been proud to have teamed up with any of them, unfortunately, each alliance can only have three teams!

We’ve really gotten to know so many excellent teams and to be honored in winning the regional championship among them is not only an honor, it’s humbling as well. To think our little team from Lockport can rank among so many great teams we’ve looked up to, is mind-boggling.

Thanks for a great time. We'll see you all at other regionals, or next year.

rees2001

09-03-2009, 11:33

We had a great time at FLR. There were some issues with the system but everyone worked to make sure everything was FAIR. THe ref's were great, Liz was an amazing FTA, & Pete was an awesome addition to the feild team. Thanks to all of the volunteers who worked to make sure all teams were able to compete. It was unfortunate that the field caused some losses. It is part of the game.

On behalf of 340, thank you to 1511 & 316 on being such great alliance partners, good luck at your next Regionals.

On behalf of 424 thank you to 1126 & 2228 on also being such great alliance partners. That was a tough loss & you all handled it with class. You should be proud.

1547, congrats on your IE. 1511 congrats on your CP&B Award, Good luck at your next 2 regionals. I know you will rock!

1507, 188, & 174 - Congrats on the Regional victory. You guys were amazing! Good luck at your future events.

OScubed

09-03-2009, 11:40

2009 Regional photo gallery: http://rollingthunder.smugmug.com/gallery/7526663_6QcJT#486420135_VbijZ

2009 Regional video gallery: http://rollingthunder.smugmug.com/gallery/7552307_DCVmk#487958214_NB6Sr

Courtesy of Team 1511, Rolling Thunder!

Kricu

09-03-2009, 11:54

This was a brilliant move. We simply got baited into an extremely vulnerable position, and paid for it dearly. It was a perfectly executed reversal, and cost us the match.

I made the call to try and score on 3015 as they were stationary at their own airlock delivering an empty cell to their payload specialist. Normally you'd think this is a good opportunity to strike a stationary target...

We thought so too, and it ended up costing us the match.

Great work 3015, 2053 and 3003! We learned a lot that match, and that sometimes the best shots in Lunacy are the ones you DON'T take :P .

I'm not going to lie you guys were a great alliance. You definitely deserved to win it all. I did cry a little bit when 174 changed their autonomous so it turned in the beginning so we couldn't pin them from the start. I'm glad we taught you not to get stuck in the corners and to make sure you didn't get pinned during the autonomous so I could score 15+ shots on 174. Anyways nice job winning it.

Pat Fairbank

09-03-2009, 11:54

1503's Robot Signal light would go fully out, then blink fast, then come solid again. Once they began to try driving again, the RSL would go out, blink fast, then solid again over a period of roughly 30-45 seconds. While they were located at what was eventually found to be a faulty console location, the robot symptoms they experienced are not possible if the robot was being E-Stopped intermittently. If that was occurring, their RSL would be solid, then go to a slow blink, then solid. If it was an intermittent radio communication issue, the RSL would have gone into a fast-blink mode if the bridge lost contact, then come back solid once regained. I spoke with 1503 immediately following that match, and their drivers agreed that the RSL was doing precisely as I explained above. We then powered up their robot, and showed them the process the RSL light goes through after a reboot. While the robot was on, I showed them what would happen if the radio modem power/ethernet was pulled loose/plugged back in, and the process was also as described above. They seemed satisfied that the symptoms of their robot out on the field matched a poweroff/poweron rather than an E-Stop.

To the robot, the E-Stop button is a disable/enable condition no different than using the dongle normally attached to the competition port. This was evident from the match in finals where the faulty E-Stop was diagnosed. Team 188's robot would sit with their RSL light slowly blinking. This indicates a successful link with the Driver Station, either through the field or when tethered. If the E-Stop was rapidly toggled/intermittent, 1503's robot would have been going in/out of enable mode, thus the RSL would be solid/slow blinking.

I regret not having the chance to follow up with 1503 to determine exactly what their situation was once they were in the pits. If anyone from 1503 could contact me/post if you found anything specifically wrong with your robot following that finals match it would be appreciated. I can add your situation to a list of common robot 'gotchas' being compiled.
I'm afraid we found nothing. We checked every terminal and every wire from the battery all the way to the cRIO. We then tethered up and drove the robot around (with the same battery); it worked fine. We rammed it repeatedly into a wall to see if there were any loose connections to dislodge; nothing. We always run electrical checks between matches, and we always zip-tie our battery connectors, and we didn't experience a single electrical problem at FLR up to that point. I guess I don't believe in coincidences...

esquared

09-03-2009, 12:27

I'm afraid we found nothing. We checked every terminal and every wire from the battery all the way to the cRIO. We then tethered up and drove the robot around (with the same battery); it worked fine. We rammed it repeatedly into a wall to see if there were any loose connections to dislodge; nothing. We always run electrical checks between matches, and we always zip-tie our battery connectors, and we didn't experience a single electrical problem at FLR up to that point. I guess I don't believe in coincidences...
Pat,
Thanks for the followup. I will add your issue to the list of things to try and reproduce given what we saw on the field with regards to the RSL and the eventual situation with the center console's E-Stop.

If you were able to watch the robot's operation from your position in the audience/driver station, do you agree the Robot Signal Light was behaving as specified in my post? I'd like to have everyone on the same page regarding robot symptoms to ensure that NI/FIRST have accurate information regarding what happened.

While I'm not privy to the design details of the cRIO or the DS (I'm just another mentor), the only way I know of to remotely restart a cRIO is to issue a 'reboot' command on a console connection to the RIO, given your confidence level in the power system and ability to ram your robot into the wall (understandable after what happened).

While I don't normally believe in coincidences, your bots behavior matched a brownout or reset condition on the cRIO. I did go over the robot's power and data connections with your drive team immediately after the match to try and identify if there was anything loose, possibly anything that was wrong with your bot on the field was fixed when checking the connections. That's a pretty farfetched theory however, as while they were doing that I did not see any sketchy connections :confused:

kevin.li.rit

09-03-2009, 13:13

Everything seemed ok... The only think I'm scratching my head about is the one time our autonomous did not go off.

esquared

09-03-2009, 13:24

Everything seemed ok... The only think I'm scratching my head about is the one time our autonomous did not go off.

Depending on whether all DS's are detected during the initial match setup (before robots are out on the field for the next match), the FMS seems to briefly toggle through Auto-Disable, Auto-Enable, then Auto-Disable as it sets up. This caused a number of teams using both WindRiver and Labview who did not take special precautions to ensure that enabling and disabling in autonomous mode would fully reset their code each time to malfunction.

Specifically in WindRiver, if you do not override StartCompetition() and extend RobotBase instead of SimpleRobot for your main class, it is possible to begin executing code in your Autonomous() function somewhere in the middle, or to be caught in the "while (IsAutonomous() && !IsDisabled()) Wait(.01);" line in StartCompetition. This occurred with both 211 and 229 in the same match, and after they updated their code to cover this case did not experience a problem again.

Teams can test this in the pit by having the DS in Auto-Dis, turn their bot on, then toggle to Auto-En, quickly back to Auto-Dis, then back to Auto-En and verify their program works as expected. Also, teams should verify that after this occurs they correctly enter teleop code after going to Auto-Dis, Teleop-Dis, then Teleop-En. When reproducing this in the pits, 211 malfunctioned exactly the same way as they did in the field. Once updated they drove correctly in auto and teleop.

Bongle

09-03-2009, 13:52

If you were able to watch the robot's operation from your position in the audience/driver station, do you agree the Robot Signal Light was behaving as specified in my post? I'd like to have everyone on the same page regarding robot symptoms to ensure that NI/FIRST have accurate information regarding what happened.

Which match did this problem occur in? I wasn't able to watch the finals, but someone else on 2702 managed to go down and take some HD footage of some of the quarterfinals. I might be able to pass along some footage if I can find this problem occurring in what I have.

esquared

09-03-2009, 13:56

Which match did this problem occur in? I wasn't able to watch the finals, but someone else on 2702 managed to go down at take some HD footage of some of the quarterfinals. I might be able to pass along some footage if I can find this problem occurring in what I have.

QF3 Match 2

Tetraman

09-03-2009, 14:03

I'm not going to lie you guys were a great alliance. You definitely deserved to win it all. I did cry a little bit when 174 changed their autonomous so it turned in the beginning so we couldn't pin them from the start. I'm glad we taught you not to get stuck in the corners and to make sure you didn't get pinned during the autonomous so I could score 15+ shots on 174. Anyways nice job winning it.

That match was the highlight of the entire regional, and probably the entire week 2. It was just as incredible as watching 71 and 1114 getting defeated. You three teams deserve so much more credit for that tactic then you are given and I tip my hat to you for the accomplishment. As much as I love my old team 174, I was so excited to see you win that one match and I did root for you the other matches.

It will be one of the many great moments of this regional that will be talked about for years.

petek

09-03-2009, 14:22

Depending on whether all DS's are detected during the initial match setup (before robots are out on the field for the next match), the FMS seems to briefly toggle through Auto-Disable, Auto-Enable, then Auto-Disable as it sets up. According to FIRST this is not the case. Rather, what is probably happening is:
1. The robot is powered up before the driver station acquires a DSlink (which occurs within a few seconds of plugging in), e.g. before plugging in;
2. The driver station's Auton/Teleop switch is set to Auton;
3. The driver station is plugged in, immediately links to the already powered-up robot and sets Auton-Enable;
4. The driver station acquires a DSlink from the FMS and sets Auton-Disable.

This could be prevented by ensuring that the driver station has a DSlink (it will show FMSMode on the display when it gets it) before powering up the robot. Setting the driver station Auton/Teleop switch to Teleop before plugging in should prevent jumping, but the robot might still get a brief Teleop-Enable if it was powered up before the driver station linked.

Bongle

09-03-2009, 14:32

QF3 Match 2

I have it, but I only have a stable shot of 1503 and their RSL for 5-10 seconds total throughout the match. The camera man was concentrating on the moving robots, and would only glance at 1503 periodically when they were not moving. If you think it'd be useful, I could edit the 1503 portions tonight.

esquared

09-03-2009, 14:36

According to FIRST this is not the case.

Thanks for the update here Pete. Anyone reading this thread should be aware of this and ensure your auto and teleop mode code can handle this occurring and not flip out!

I have it, but I only have a stable shot of 1503 and their RSL for 5-10 seconds total throughout the match. The camera man was concentrating on the moving robots, and would only glance at 1503 periodically when they were not moving. If you think it'd be useful, I could edit the 1503 portions tonight.

It would absolutely be useful, thank you!

carbuff

09-03-2009, 15:42

thanks alot 1126 and 424 you were great alliance partners sorry our robot broke down

Bongle

09-03-2009, 15:56

It would absolutely be useful, thank you!

Can you PM me with an email? I'll send it once I've got it edited.

Pat Fairbank

09-03-2009, 16:41

While I don't normally believe in coincidences, your bots behavior matched a brownout or reset condition on the cRIO. I did go over the robot's power and data connections with your drive team immediately after the match to try and identify if there was anything loose, possibly anything that was wrong with your bot on the field was fixed when checking the connections. That's a pretty farfetched theory however, as while they were doing that I did not see any sketchy connections :confused:Thanks for investigating this. I did see that the RSL was out completely when the robot wasn't moving, but I wasn't paying enough attention to see whether it was blinking slow or fast at the other times. The alliance station light was blinking too while the robot wasn't moving, but I suppose that's just an indication of everything not working right.

AndrewL1626

09-03-2009, 16:47

Flyin' Axe

09-03-2009, 18:21

I would like to say thanks to all the teams who showed up to the Finger Lakes Regional this year. I hope everyone had amazing experiences. The FLR would have been even more incredible if there were no field problems, no doubt about that. Although I wasn't there to see my team along with 1507 and 174 win the regional, I was following the regional via the webcast just wishing that I was there.

1507 and 174, you guys were amazing alliance partners with great robots. Good luck at the future regionals and at the World championships.

Bongle

09-03-2009, 19:27

I did the video editing, and despite the high resolution, it simply isn't possible to tell if 1503's RSL is blinking, not blinking, etc because the camera moves too much and the field lights are too bright.

viney22

09-03-2009, 20:52

i would just like to thank 173 and 191 it was amazing working with you and hope to c u in the future:D

computerboi1503

09-03-2009, 23:03

Josh Goodman

09-03-2009, 23:28

The picture that many wanted:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/33341

Shankar M

10-03-2009, 09:28

I apologise for the lateness of this post, but I had to do a little bit of studying for a couple of midterms I had over the past couple of days. Now that all of that has been taken care of, I can get to the important stuff.

I have been to the Finger Lakes Regional twice now, and each time I have left blown away. In 2006, as with this year, the energy in the building was incredible. The smaller environment made for a homely feeling, but the many teams kept things extremely competitive. This is definitely a regional that I hope Team 188 continues to attend in the future.

The run that Team 340 has had with the Chairman's Award in recent years is ridiculous. When we decided as a team to submit our RCA at the Finger Lakes Regional, we knew we would be going up against one of the very best. This past weekend I got a chance to look at some of the stuff your team has done personally, and I must say that it is simply astounding; it was a very well deserved win again this year. Good luck in Atlanta, the big prize surely cannot be too far off for you now.

Team 1547's runs with FIRST's biggest awards have also been incredible. Year after year, your team manages to deliver. Last year's Chairman's win at GTR was long due and this year's EI was no different. Teams like yours not only serve as an inspiration for the rest of us, but also push us to do more year after year. Congratulations on your win and see you at GTR. (Also, thank you for lending us your easel for our Chairman's presentation!)

To the eighth alliance, Teams 3015, 3003, and 2053: you definitely left us with our hearts in our mouths after that first match. Visions of 71, 1114, and 1000 being downed in the quarters at Midwest were looming and so many on our team were left stunned. You deserve a ton of credit for your spectacular strategic manoeuvre you pulled off. All three of your teams have great potential for the future, and I wish you the very best of luck.

We knew we were up against one of the strongest alliances when we took on 1241, 229, and 1626. A killer human player, some ridiculous driving skills, and solid defensive capabilities made for a frightening team. Your alliance certainly gave us a run for our money. Had you not ended up on our side of the draw, I am sure our match-up would have made for a heck of a final.

The seventh alliance of 340, 1511, and 316 did not make things easy for us in the finals. Thank you for pushing us until the very end. Team 1511 did nothing but improve from Friday afternoon until the end of the eliminations, while 340 and 316 kept at it all weekend.

I felt that a couple of teams at the regional definitely deserved better finishes. The picking mishap for 610 was extremely unfortunate. Your team had one of the better robots at the regional and should most definitely have been in the eliminations. I know you guys will only be better at GTR and look forward to seeing you there. Team 1503 had one of the top three robots at Finger Lakes and had it not been for some rather puzzling happenings in the quarterfinals, could have definitely taken the second alliance deep into the eliminations. I know you will only come back hungrier than ever at GTR.

On a bit of a personal note, Team 2609 again impressed me this weekend. After a stellar rookie year, it looks like you have only gotten better. I am looking for great things from your robot at Waterloo and I have no doubts that you will deliver.

To all the other teams we will be seeing at GTR: 771, 772, 1246, and 1126, we are expecting the very best from you and look forward to yet another awesome Greater Toronto Regional.

Finally, to our alliance partners, 1507 and 174: THANK YOU! It has been five long years since 188 last won a regional and we very much appreciate your help in ending that drought.

Team 1507 undoubtedly had one of the best robots at Finger Lakes. The power dumping ability, combined with seamless empty cell deliveries made your team a treat to watch. In the eliminations, you were one of the most open alliance captains I have ever worked with, never afraid to hear our team out on strategy and decisions about how to play out our matches. Thank you for making us your first pick. I look forward to seeing you in Atlanta, where your team will be quite a force to be reckoned with.

Team 174 was willing to do whatever it took, and that was exactly what they did. From delivering empty cells, to scoring balls, to playing hard defence, you did it all. We could not have asked any more of our second pick and were extremely lucky to end up with a team like you from where we were picking!

Congratulations on a job well done to everyone on Team 188! You did many things well over the course of this season and this weekend your efforts were rewarded.

The scouting team kept on top of things at all times and ensured that we had a great pick list to share with our alliance captain. (Thanks also to Adam, Jeff, Tristan, and Tyler for your invaluable advice over the course of the weekend, particularly Friday night.) The pit crew had less to do than ever before with our robot staying fully functional throughout the regional. Despite this, between matches, the crew were always running system checks and making sure all was well with the robot. The drive team definitely got things right. I had the opportunity to work with you during the season when you were practicing and it clearly paid off. You learned so much, but more importantly your knowledge to use. Shawn (Mr. Lim to some of you), you adapted so well to all the curveballs that were thrown your way and you made coaching a very tough game look easy. Congratulations on a job well done to everyone on the team!

Thank you once again to everyone at the Finger Lakes Regional. It was a blast!

rachakate

10-03-2009, 10:37

Man - what a week! I'm so proud of all the volunteers that make this event run so smoothly! Saturday I was able to sit and watch 340 and 424 compete. The headset was quiet - well at least channel 1. The field headset was a different story. These events only work when the volunteers are putting in their A game. Great job to each and every volunteer at FLR. :) Thank you for your help and dedication

esquared

10-03-2009, 10:43

The only thing that not many else have noticed that I did during that match was, our robot was completely powered through the match, indicated by the victors and the radio. I would love to see that video to confirm this, as I am not 100% positive.

It is quite possible that I beat our operator to powering things up, as for that match I did power the robot up in a hurry. I cannot recall a thumbs-up from our operator at the start of that match. So, although there was nothing we could find wrong with our robot, human error on our side of things could have played a role. The RSL is still confusing me though. For sure I am hoping to implement a monitoring system, so our team can review every match the robot's functions and happenings.

-Nick

I'm glad to hear another 1503 team member see what myself, the FTA, and others noted. I have a lot more confidence that there was a power/reboot issue with your robot at that time with the number of other people that have noticed it. I will still follow up regarding any possible field-initiated method of resetting robots, particularly with regarding to intermittent E-Stops.

Once Josh Goodman finishes cutting up the 'official' footage captured at FLR for the blue alliance, perhaps we'll see something in there to confirm.

Jeff Rodriguez

10-03-2009, 11:07

Huge thanks to 191 and 1503! It was super exciting to be selected for our alliance. We had a great time working with you guys and look forward to doing it again in the future.
RAGE had a great time at Rochester. Thanks to all the volunteers and staff that put on this great event.
Karthik and JonDarr you guys are one of the best combos ever! I hope to see you at many other events.

rachakate

10-03-2009, 11:27

Karthik and JonDarr you guys are one of the best combos ever!

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

Tetraman

10-03-2009, 11:58

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

YES! That is very exciting news. He will soon truly be the voice of FIRST. I hope they put him on an exciting Division - like Arch or Gali. or Einstein.

Team 174 was willing to do whatever it took, and that was exactly what they did. From delivering empty cells, to scoring balls, to playing hard defence, you did it all. We could not have asked any more of our second pick and were extremely lucky to end up with a team like you from where we were picking!

That's why I always love my old team: they give it their all for no matter what or how they are needed. I think I'm the only person from 174 who visits this site, so I'll let the team know about this.

Josh Goodman

10-03-2009, 12:51

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

MADE MY DAY! :D :D :D

matt.clark191

10-03-2009, 13:17

esquared

10-03-2009, 14:07

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that the field crew wouldn't let us plug in until the robots were powered on.

I'm pretty sure you had to plug in your driver stations before your robots were on the field. We worked that system out on Thursday which sped things up enormously through Fri and Sat. The field crew can then make sure your DS is seen by the FMS while the field is being cleared, and it gives them another minute or two to work out any issues with your DS <-> FMS connection. The robots also 'seem' to link up more repeatably when the DS is up first, then the robot comes up.

If your robot link wasn't OK at the start of the match, the field wouldn't have gotten a green light. 1503 also seemed to move ok at first in auto mode, then died in the middle of the field :(

AndrewMorrison

10-03-2009, 17:06

I'm pretty sure you had to plug in your driver stations before your robots were on the field.

Towards Finals, we were told to turn the robot on the instant it hit the field.
That meant that if our student who was plugging in the controls wasn't quick to do so, the robot could have been turned on before the controls were plugged in.
It could have very easily been a problem for some teams.
Thankfully, this did not effect us, but could have effected our partners...

mtaman02

10-03-2009, 18:37

I'm pretty sure you had to plug in your driver stations before your robots were on the field. We worked that system out on Thursday which sped things up enormously through Fri and Sat. The field crew can then make sure your DS is seen by the FMS while the field is being cleared, and it gives them another minute or two to work out any issues with your DS <-> FMS connection. The robots also 'seem' to link up more repeatably when the DS is up first, then the robot comes up.

If your robot link wasn't OK at the start of the match, the field wouldn't have gotten a green light. 1503 also seemed to move ok at first in auto mode, then died in the middle of the field :(

Nope, The robots didn't matter.... The score table needs to pre-start each match before it can successfully link to the DS. That being said the DS was the ONLY thing that needs to wait to be powered on. Our score table sent us 3 types of signals that we followed to ensure Pre-Start was complete. One was his verbal voice over the mic, the second was the announcer instructing the teams to do so and last but not least the score table wrote on a white board which instructed us to do so just in case no one was listening. Once the DS powers on it takes a lot less time to search for the robot b/c the robot has already been on for a minute and searching for the DS.

And if I'm not mistaken 1503's issue on the field was either the radio wasn't plugged in the way OR it wasn't jacked in all the way on the cRio... I say this only b/c I wasn't the one to do field checks during that match BUT I do recall something coming over the radio to which was either those 2 cases. Someone from FTA should've have came over and explained why the robot wasn't moving. I don't also recall if it was a field issue b/c we did start getting those in elims. BUT I doubt it since the robot did have Auto., The robot could have also shut down due to a Watchdog error which we were getting / seeing from lots of teams via software installed OR the battery could've been low but once again someone from FTA should've said something. There was alot going on so the message may have gotten lost in either those cases...

Jeremytice

10-03-2009, 19:00

Alright so some key notes after our scorekeeper follow-up call this week.

-To eliminate your robot from moving or twitching....when you plug in your DS make sure that the switch is on Teleop mode, not auto mode. (Peter talked about this in an earlier post)

-Do not plug in your DS until you are told by FTA, one of their assistance, or the announcer

-Robots really should be turned on after the DS is linked to the field, this will prevent any movement from the robot but it is ok if the robot is powered up (Just a safety issue that they will make sure is done for week 3 regionals!)

-We also had trouble with the pit display, when there was a tie it didn't sync up correctly. They are looking into that.

Here are basically the key notes or at least the most important that they told us about. If you have questions about anything else feel free to post and I will look into them along with others. Week 3 regionals should be very smooth!

mtaman02

10-03-2009, 19:21

I forgot you were on here lol :P
Alright so some key notes after our scorekeeper follow-up call this week.

-To eliminate your robot from moving or twitching....when you plug in your DS make sure that the switch is on Teleop mode, not auto mode. (Peter talked about this in an earlier post)

-Do not plug in your DS until you are told by FTA, one of their assistance, or the announcer

-Robots really should be turned on after the DS is linked to the field, this will prevent any movement from the robot

-We also had trouble with the pit display, when there was a tie it didn't sync up correctly. They are looking into that.

Here are basically the key notes or at least the most important that they told us about. If you have questions about anything else feel free to post and I will look into them along with others. Week 3 regionals should be very smooth!

Jeremytice

10-03-2009, 20:48

I forgot you were on here lol :P

Haha yupp!!! Good Luck with the rest of your regionals! :D

Hiteak

11-03-2009, 02:31

Now that I've had a few days of rest and back into a new quarter at RIT I can finally give my congrats.

Major Congrats to all the teams who make FLR really feel like home. Seeing everyone there really felt like a family reunion as always. It was quite different being on the other side of things with volunteering this year. I was able to hear some really amazing stories from different teams.

Congrats to all the rookies that went though their first FIRST competition (especially 2999. It was a great season mentoring you guys!). All of you did great out there and I was very impressed with the double rookie alliance.

Thank you to all the judges for helping out. It was really great meeting and being able to work with you all as the Judges Assistant.

Dont know if I could thank everyone that I could possibly think of, but congrats to all the teams, and the rest of the volunteers. It was truly an amazing regional.

computerboi1503

11-03-2009, 09:14

One other thing,

When the match ended, our robot returned to the "No Comm" state, and did not shut off again.

Still confused, but I guess unless more information comes available I guess we've beat this topic to death.

-Nick

matt.clark191

11-03-2009, 12:12

Towards Finals, we were told to turn the robot on the instant it hit the field.
That meant that if our student who was plugging in the controls wasn't quick to do so, the robot could have been turned on before the controls were plugged in.
It could have very easily been a problem for some teams.
Thankfully, this did not effect us, but could have effected our partners...

We were not allowed to plug our driver stations in until a volunteer told us to do so. At this point the robots were already on the field and turned on in most cases.

Jeremytice

11-03-2009, 14:37

We were not allowed to plug our driver stations in until a volunteer told us to do so. At this point the robots were already on the field and turned on in most cases.

That's correct. It has nothing really to do with connecting to the field. It's ok that you do this the only problem it creates is that the Robot may twitch or move! At the end we allowed teams to put their moon rocks in their robot before they powered up. In week 3 regionals they may not allow you to turn on your robots until the DS is connected to the field. This is just a safety issue i'm guessing if they do that during week3 regionals.

mtaman02

11-03-2009, 14:44

Hmmm, ok Jeremy beat me to it...

Slaps Jeremy :P

Everything is trial and error and from what Jeremy said in his second to last post and this last post it appears procedures have changed again for week 3 so keep your ears and eyes open to volunteer instructions. Procedures are changing quickly.

pitzoid

11-03-2009, 15:03

In week 3 regionals they will probably not allow you to turn on your robots until the DS is connected to the field.

Just a note about FMS communication and robot actions:

You know when the field is aligned for your robot/team when you see your team number on the team sign. Your robot will not be able to sync before this as your bot radio SSID will not be registered in the Field Access Point.

ANYTIME your DS hears an FMS message directed towards it, it will shift into FMS/competition mode, doesn't matter if its link with the bot etc... DS will stay in FMS/competition mode until it is power cycled. If the DS does not shift into FMS mode when connected to the field its one of two things, either its a manufunctioning DS or you are plugged into the wrong team station.

cRio will be disabled till it first talks with DS. NI reps will have to verify if teams can actually override this with errant code, but I know of no way that that can happen.

Jeremytice

11-03-2009, 15:30

Just a note about FMS communication and robot actions:

You know when the field is aligned for your robot/team when you see your team number on the team sign. Your robot will not be able to sync before this as your bot radio SSID will not be registered in the Field Access Point.

ANYTIME your DS hears an FMS message directed towards it, it will shift into FMS/competition mode, doesn't matter if its link with the bot etc... DS will stay in FMS/competition mode until it is power cycled. If the DS does not shift into FMS mode when connected to the field its one of two things, either its a manufunctioning DS or you are plugged into the wrong team station.

cRio will be disabled till it first talks with DS. NI reps will have to verify if teams can actually override this with errant code, but I know of no way that that can happen.

Thanks for clarifying that up Bob. There was a lot of talk about it in the follow-up call this past Monday with Matt and I must have missed that little part about it.

dmoody92

11-03-2009, 17:27

I'm not going to lie you guys were a great alliance. You definitely deserved to win it all. I did cry a little bit when 174 changed their autonomous so it turned in the beginning so we couldn't pin them from the start. I'm glad we taught you not to get stuck in the corners and to make sure you didn't get pinned during the autonomous so I could score 15+ shots on 174. Anyways nice job winning it.

Thank you as well, 2053 for being a great alliance partner. We were definitely against it when we started the playoffs and I'm sure you guys weren't too thrilled by being partnered with two rookies but we should the type meddle we had in that first match. I don't think I've been that excited in my life, the prospect of knocking off the number one seed with a 2/3s rookies alliance was insane. Thanks again FLR, it was amazing!!

Steve W

11-03-2009, 23:39

I saw a couple of pictures with Team 188's student and mentor receiving awards. I can't find them now. Does anyone know were I saw them?

Justin Montois

11-03-2009, 23:46

I saw a couple of pictures with Team 188's student and mentor receiving awards. I can't find them now. Does anyone know were I saw them?

Lots of pics here... http://huthphoto.smugmug.com/gallery/7530955_aiDub/1/486344907_mphcF#487369125_WViob

Not sure if that's what you saw though :)

I hope it helps!

Nick Lawrence

12-03-2009, 00:04

Moonangel1616

12-03-2009, 08:25

My team didn't get into finals at the finger lakes regional but I had a lot of fun. we place 21 out of 50 teams which is better than last year.

Jeremytice

12-03-2009, 15:39

Here's a link to the original thread.

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69655

Steve W

12-03-2009, 22:29

Lots of pics here... http://huthphoto.smugmug.com/gallery/7530955_aiDub/1/486344907_mphcF#487369125_WViob

Not sure if that's what you saw though :)

I hope it helps!

They are the exact pics I was looking for, THANKS!!!!

Josh Goodman

12-03-2009, 22:38

Most of the matches are up now on TBA. Greg said they would all be up by the end of the night. Sorry it took so long guys.

Justin Montois

13-03-2009, 01:09

Most of the matches are up now on TBA. Greg said they would all be up by the end of the night. Sorry it took so long guys.

I appreciate you getting them up. But i just want to let you know that several of the matches freeze up significantly, sometimes for a minute or more. I don't know if it was a product of the upload or something else. Just wanted to let you know. Thanks again for getting them up though.

Tetraman

13-03-2009, 01:42

Most of the matches are up now on TBA. Greg said they would all be up by the end of the night. Sorry it took so long guys.

Thanks a ton!

I'm glad the camera was on 188 and Tigertronics for QF1-1 so we can watch that incredible upset.

Josh Goodman

13-03-2009, 07:34

I appreciate you getting them up. But i just want to let you know that several of the matches freeze up significantly, sometimes for a minute or more. I don't know if it was a product of the upload or something else. Just wanted to let you know. Thanks again for getting them up though.

I'll investigate.

mtaman02

13-03-2009, 07:37

I too had problems w/ the A/V feed Download. Apparently one Capture device sped both Audio and Video up completely while the second Capture device slowed down. The slowed down version came out better though so I guess it was ok.

Nick Lawrence

13-03-2009, 09:46

Thanks for posting this. We will use it to analyze how we went about playing Lunacy and use it for practice before GTR!

Jeremytice

14-03-2009, 01:17

Thank's Josh for posting the match videos on TBA! Good luck to 1511 as you guys attend the Chesapeake Regional! We will be cheering you guys on!

Josh Goodman

14-03-2009, 11:12

Thank's Josh for posting the match videos on TBA! Good luck to 1511 as you guys attend the Chesapeake Regional! We will be cheering you guys on!

No problem and thanks! I already have TBA set to send me match information on 1126 in GTR. Good luck to you guys as well!

Doc Wu

15-03-2009, 16:18

Does anybody have any really good pictures of 1503 at FLR on the field? Our cameramen could not get close enough to the field to get many clear shots of both the robot in action and the drivers. Just wondering :P

-Nick

We posted several hundred photos in our gallery at http://www.warlocks1507.com/2009/Gallery/?level=collection&id=5 we had two photographers, so there's twice the chance of having what you want.

I know I got some photos of the awards presentation (for Steve W)

Steve W

15-03-2009, 16:54

I know I got some photos of the awards presentation (for Steve W)

Thanks for the pics, they are great.

purduephotog

15-03-2009, 22:23

Does anybody have any really good pictures of 1503 at FLR on the field? Our cameramen could not get close enough to the field to get many clear shots of both the robot in action and the drivers. Just wondering :P

-Nick

Yes, sort of-

http://www.ComePhotograph.Us/First/2009/1503/Robot2009_20090307-110930-_MG_9505.jpg

I'm sorry that's all I can offer up- the other is out of focus.

Josh Goodman

16-03-2009, 09:27

I apologize for the delay. The stalling video was a compression problem. I will start fixing it sometime next week. I have to make a chairman's video and a promo video that the news has been wanting for a while. Sorry for the inconvenience. :o

Moonangel1616

24-03-2009, 09:00

yeah my team is heading for toronto but i'm not going cuz i'm too tired from the senior trip to New York city. it was a lot of fum though i did miss my mom and my boyfriend who i've been going out with since the finger lakes regional.

Nick Lawrence

06-07-2009, 01:45

*topic revival*

We finally did figure out what the problem was at FLR, and a good portion of GTR.

We had a bad battery, internally. Either a plate was shifted, cracked, or something, because under short loads, it was fine. All the connections on the robot, and even to the battery were perfect. But once a load was put on it for a longer period of time, it would simply die. We kept using this battery, because it was the best one we had, according to our "short period" tester.

What's ironic about this, is that we named all our batteries after X-Men. It's funny, that this battery was named "Jean Grey."

Jean has been decomissioned.

It wasn't a field problem, it was just coincidental that it was the same driver's station that we were at that had problems. I felt like I needed to give this some closure, because it bit us at GTR too.

-Nick

esquared

10-07-2009, 20:43

Nick,

I'm glad you guys figured out what the deal was. Although FIRST reneged on the whole "Robots can't be temporarily enabled while the FMS/field is connecting to everything" (see Bill's blog for details), your situation was definitely unique among the 3 regionals and championships that we attended.

Hope to see you at Ruckus this year, and hope that a new "Jean Grey" doesn't go "Phoenix". In which case we will be standing by with fire extinguishers and battery kits :rolleyes:

--Eric

Akash Rastogi

10-07-2009, 21:32

Nick Lawrence

10-07-2009, 22:27

Nick, was it one of the old 07 batteries or even 08?

It was a 2009 battery. It may have been dropped, or knocked over during the course of the season. It's unknown what really happened to it, I'm just making an assumption.

Nick,

I'm glad you guys figured out what the deal was. Although FIRST reneged on the whole "Robots can't be temporarily enabled while the FMS/field is connecting to everything" (see Bill's blog for details), your situation was definitely unique among the 3 regionals and championships that we attended.

Hope to see you at Ruckus this year, and hope that a new "Jean Grey" doesn't go "Phoenix". In which case we will be standing by with fire extinguishers and battery kits

--Eric

I know that I will make the effort to attend Ruckus, but I'm not sure our team will be there. I'm thinking of volunteering, myself.