Inaugural 2011 Texas Robot Round-up! [Archive]

jessjank.

22-04-2011, 11:19

Announcing the Inaugural 2011 Texas Robot Round-up (FRC Off-Season Competition)

Sponsored by FIRST in Texas and National Instruments, planned and organized by Alamo FIRST, the ausTIN CANs - team 2158, and Austin area teams and volunteers!

When:
July 29-30, 2011 (July 29th is an optional practice day. An agenda will be released soon)

Where:
Anderson High School, 8403 Mesa Drive, Austin, Texas
(Home of FIRST Team 2158 - ausTIN CANs)

Cost:
$200 for early registration (must be received by May 15, 2011)
$250 for regular registration (must be received by June 15, 2011)

Capacity: 30 teams

Why:
This is an opportunity for FRC teams (Veteran & Rookie) to come together one more time to share experiences, learn from each other, build new friendships, practice and compete with their robots and have a fun time. This is also an opportunity to bring new team members or sponsors up to speed on what FIRST is really all about.

Team Registration: https://spreadsheets0.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEdyX1Y3WnpWNVFsS3pSRXNQWmJOd2c6M Q

Volunteer Registration: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHYwT2dyb2lfMHN0TjV6V2FNZ2RBZnc6M Q

Please contact Patrick Felty (pfelty@USFIRST.org) or Jess Jankowitsch (jessjank@gmail.com) with any questions.

Andrew Schuetze

22-04-2011, 12:18

Greg Needel

22-04-2011, 14:22

Already input my volunteer prefs and would like to know more about the online system you are using as I think it will help manage multiple other FIRST events as Texas is still under rapid expansion and can really tweak and improve our management efforts and organization.

It is just a google form....it saves the output as a google doc. You can configure the front end through a wysiwyg editor.

StashZabriski

22-04-2011, 17:14

I've signed up to help at the event. Let me know if you need help with the planning side of things Jess.

~Stash~

lynca

23-04-2011, 11:56

MattC9

23-04-2011, 14:08

Really excited about off-season in Texas ! We have a huge number of Texas teams that really need an extra event to help them prepare and become FIRST quality. Austin is the place to visit if you have never been to Texas !

Anyword on who's coming so far ?
An event with the Texas Powerhouses should be fun ( 57, 118, 148, 418, 624, 1429, and 1477)

How many teams outside of Texas are interested in registering ?

Will there be an official game field at the event ?

Hey to answer a few of your questions, Andymark is sending an official game field down!

Heres the link to the Facebook event, https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=204992072868726

I know almost all of the Austin team will be there, but I don't know about other teams outside of ATX.

Will the Discobots be there?

Pjohn1959

23-04-2011, 17:49

Team 1429 is trying to attend. If there isn't any scheduling problems with the students at that time, we will be there.

Andy Baker

02-05-2011, 12:12

Hey to answer a few of your questions, Andymark is sending an official game field down!

Yes, an official FIRST field for Logo Motion will be hauled down to Austin from Indiana by AndyMark personnel. Most likely, we will have two FTAs, Mark Koors and Jerry Budd, on site for the event. We are excited to be a part of this event, and more AndyMark personnel may also attend and help.

Sincerely,
Andy Baker

Koko Ed

02-05-2011, 14:56

I'll most likely be down there to do team queing per Jess' request.

Pavan Dave

02-05-2011, 18:05

I haven't been on CD in a while, but I thought I would post for this one.

As someone who tried to get an off season in Texas going a few years back, it is good to see one that is backed by a big name like NI.

Kudos, and I hope it turns out well!

Pavan

Kevin Sevcik

03-05-2011, 00:09

Anyword on who's coming so far ?
An event with the Texas Powerhouses should be fun ( 57, 118, 148, 418, 624, 1429, and 1477)
False modesty isn't becoming of you Andrew, I think all those teams will admit that if Disco isn't a powerhouse of Texas, they're fast becoming one.

At any rate, I'm hearing that 57 will likely attend, hopefully with an actually functioning minibot system.* Possibly with new drivers, since our two drivers this year are graduating. Which means the deployment system has a chance of surviving the event!**

To add to your questions, what's been lined out as far as volunteers? Are inspectors or other volunteers needed?

Also, are there any plans to add more value to this event for younger teams? I think a mini FIRST Conference with some seminars by those powerhouse teams could go a long way to spreading the success around in Texas.

*BTW, we owe you a minibot. Your original took an unfortunate leap off the tower when I attempted to save it from smoking its motors. But fear not, we've made a heck of a lot of improvements since then.

**Our first version of the deployment failed the Bryant test at Champs. We've gifted him the remains for his coat of arms and as a warning to any team foolhardy enough to put him behind the stick of a questionably robust robot.

Pjohn1959

03-05-2011, 08:14

This was sent out yesterday (should be to any interested teams) :

Hello Texas Teams!

I'm writing to invite you to participate in and provide you information about the Inaugural 2011 Texas Robot Round-up (FRC Off-Season Competition) - sponsored by FIRST in Texas and National Instruments, planned and organized by Alamo FIRST, the ausTIN CANs - team 2158, and Austin area teams and volunteers!

When:
July 29-30, 2011 (July 29th is an optional practice day. An agenda will be released soon)

Where:
Anderson High School, 8403 Mesa Drive, Austin, Texas (Home of FIRST Team 2158 - ausTIN CANs)

Cost:
$200 for early registration (must be received by May 15, 2011)
$250 for regular registration (must be received by June 15, 2011)

Capacity: 30 teams

Why:
This is an opportunity for FRC teams (Veteran & Rookie) to come together one more time to share experiences, learn from each other, build new friendships, practice and compete with their robots and have a fun time. This is also an opportunity to bring new team members or sponsors up to speed on what FIRST is really all about. The event will have an official FIRST field for Logo Motion, supported and staffed by AndyMark representatives.

Team Registration: https://spreadsheets0.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEdyX1Y3WnpWNVFsS3pSRXNQWmJOd2c6M Q

Volunteer Registration: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHYwT2dyb2lfMHN0TjV6V2FNZ2RBZnc6M Q

Please contact Patrick Felty (pfelty@USFIRST.org) or Jess Jankowitsch (jessjank@gmail.com) with any questions.

We hope to see you there!

Jess Jankowitsch
Assistant Regional Director & Volunteer Coordinator
Alamo Regional, FIRST Robotics Competition

jessjank@gmail.com

James Tonthat

03-05-2011, 09:20

I haven't talked to my team yet, but it looks like we'll be going.

I'd love to see a mentor match at around lunch Saturday. :)

A skills challenge would also be nice to see.

SGS

03-05-2011, 09:49

3103 is planning on coming! We hope to bring up some new members too, get them excited for the year!

jessjank.

03-05-2011, 18:34

Anyword on who's coming so far ?
An event with the Texas Powerhouses should be fun ( 57, 118, 148, 418, 624, 1429, and 1477)

How many teams outside of Texas are interested in registering ?

We have 9 teams who have completed registration and word from between 15 to 20 teams who have expressed interest! Make sure you get your teams registered as soon as possible so that you don't miss your chance to take part in the 2011 Texas Robot Round-up!

Hopefully, we'll have some interested non-Texas teams too!

Yes, an official FIRST field for Logo Motion will be hauled down to Austin from Indiana by AndyMark personnel. Most likely, we will have two FTAs, Mark Koors and Jerry Budd, on site for the event. We are excited to be a part of this event, and more AndyMark personnel may also attend and help.

We're thrilled to have AndyMark's support! Thanks so very much, Andy!

To add to your questions, what's been lined out as far as volunteers? Are inspectors or other volunteers needed?

As the volunteer coordinator of the Alamo Regional, I've taken on the role of also coordinating volunteers for this event. If you go to the volunteer registration (see my original post above, or simply click here: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHYwT2dyb2lfMHN0TjV6V2FNZ2RBZnc6M Q) you will see a variety of volunteer positions we're looking to fill. This may change with time as we determine needs specific to the event.

We will be having inspectors, though the exact process has not been determined yet (it obviously will not be as stringent as a regional event). I'm certain those of you who have served as inspectors would be able to provide valuable input. We will also be looking to models utilized by other off-season events.

Also, are there any plans to add more value to this event for younger teams? I think a mini FIRST Conference with some seminars by those powerhouse teams could go a long way to spreading the success around in Texas.

This is in the works! We don't have an agenda firmly squared away yet, however, we are anticipating having seminars available and will let everyone know when we are prepared to take submissions for conference and workshop topics!

This was sent out yesterday (should be to any interested teams) :

ALL teams are absolutely invited, hence the post here on CD first. We're still determining what other means of communication are best to spread word of the event to all teams (we're not authorized to send a mass email out to all 2000+ FRC teams). Assuming that most teams will come from Texas and we would like to ensure that all Texas teams have an opportunity to compete, we made sure to send this out to all TX teams yesterday (timed so that it would be received after Championships). We certainly hope that non-Texas teams are interested and will be able to join us!

I'd love to see a mentor match at around lunch Saturday. :)

A skills challenge would also be nice to see.

We're taking these in to consideration as we solidify the event agenda. Once an agenda is finalized, we'll be sure to make it available!

Thanks so very much for all the excitement and support of the event! We hope that many of you will join us with your teams and/or as volunteers. Please do not hesitate to ask more questions or provide additional suggestions and feedback!

Kevin Sevcik

03-05-2011, 18:35

I haven't talked to my team yet, but it looks like we'll be going.

I'd love to see a mentor match at around lunch Saturday. :)

A skills challenge would also be nice to see.
It's not enough that I helped design and engineer the robot? You want me to learn how to drive an Octanum too? And/or figure out how to work our pivot/telescope arm to best advantage. Either way, manual dexterity really isn't my thing....

Adrienne E.

03-05-2011, 19:31

148 is now signed up!

We are excited to be coming down to Austin and seeing all our Texas friends this summer :)

Bertman

03-05-2011, 19:44

418 will be there

Kevin Sevcik

03-05-2011, 21:33

Just an aside, but is there a reason we're not using RobotEvents for registration and all that? It's free, and I think it even handles the money for you.

JaneYoung

03-05-2011, 22:52

418 will be there

*jumping up and down, going nuts in Austin!*

Wheeeeeeeeeeee!

JohnSchneider

05-05-2011, 08:09

3310 will be there. I believe we're only sending freshman to this event...gotta get them all some experience before next year ;)

Kevin Sevcik

05-05-2011, 18:48

3310 will be there. I believe we're only sending freshman to this event...gotta get them all some experience before next year ;)I don't know if I ascribe to this philosophy. Throwing people into the deep end without any support may teach them to swim, or atleast not drown, but it's probably also going to make them terrified of the water. I'd think it might be better to have some more experienced students there to hold their hands a bit. And then make sure the older students know they're supposed to be completely hands off the robot, etc.

JohnSchneider

05-05-2011, 19:39

I don't know if I ascribe to this philosophy. Throwing people into the deep end without any support may teach them to swim, or atleast not drown, but it's probably also going to make them terrified of the water. I'd think it might be better to have some more experienced students there to hold their hands a bit. And then make sure the older students know they're supposed to be completely hands off the robot, etc.

Not incoming freshman, this years freshman. We also have some problem with our team being 75% seniors, and the date somewhat conflicts with college things. :(
Our mentors will be going to help them out, but our underclassmen are some truly talented individuals.

bcharbonneau

06-05-2011, 15:33

Team 1296 sent in their entry fee yesterday. We look forward to seeing all of you there.

JohnSchneider

07-05-2011, 10:46

Team 1296 sent in their entry fee yesterday. We look forward to seeing all of you there.

I-30 Alliance this time? :)

KleinKid

08-05-2011, 01:41

Team 3735 will be going and hopefully for both days. Most of the team is seniors so we are going to go with the new team members to give them an idea of how a first competition works.

Minibot deployment will be having an overhaul this summer though.

jessjank.

12-05-2011, 15:32

Our current list of registered teams:

57, Booker T Washington/HSEP Leopards - Houston, TX
118, The Robonauts - League City, TX
148, Robowranglers - Greenville, TX
418, LASA - Austin, TX
1296, Full Metal Jackets - Rockwall, TX
1477, Texas Torque - The Woodlands, TX
2158, ausTIN CANs - Austin, TX
2881, Lady Cans - Austin, TX
2952 - Brackenbots, San Antonio, TX
2969, Hurricane Robotics - San Antonio
3310, Team Black Hawk - Heath, TX
3335, Cypress Ranch Robotics Team - Cypress, TX
3481, Brandeis Bronc Botz - San Antonio, TX
3735, Klein Bots - Klein, TX

There are a lot of teams who have expressed interest, but have not yet registered! Make sure you get your teams registered soon! https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dEdyX1Y3WnpWNVFsS3pSRXNQWmJOd2c6MQ#gid=0
We also welcome out of state teams, if you're looking for some summer travel, to join in the fun!

As always, please let me (jessjank@gmail.com) or the Alamo Regional Director Patrick Felty (pfelty@usfirst.org) know if you have any questions.

RoboCat2005

12-05-2011, 15:53

jessjank.

12-05-2011, 17:16

Has anything been announced as to what the inspection is going to consist of? I know the students on our team is working on a potential drive train to experiment with and are considering putting on this year's bot to try out in Austin. The only thing with it is by adding it to the bot as a test platform it is about 10 lbs. overweight.

We're still discussing this aspect of the event. There likely will not be an official inspection process, due to time, however we still expect most FIRST robot rules to be followed with some flexibility for things like weight and size. I'll be able to provide more concrete details about this, as well as an agenda for the event, soon!

Pjohn1959

13-05-2011, 16:44

OK, FRC team 1429 is registered!

Now if we can only find a way to get the robot to Austin.....

Kevin Sevcik

15-05-2011, 01:00

OK, FRC team 1429 is registered!

Now if we can only find a way to get the robot to Austin.....
Surely you could just drive it there.....

You'd only need several dozen charged batteries and an extra week to make the trip.

Pjohn1959

15-05-2011, 14:44

Surely you could just drive it there.....

You'd only need several dozen charged batteries and an extra week to make the trip.

No truck, no trailer. Maybe Greyhound bus, of if I can get FedEx to re-route it to Austin instead.

And you don't have to call me Shirley.....

JaneYoung

15-05-2011, 15:23

No truck, no trailer.

With everything that is happening in TX these days, a trailer is a real benefit for team travel. I hope this off season event is here to stay and that there will be more pop up in the next few years. Though challenging in some ways, the new opportunities are so exciting in others.

Can't wait to see you guys!

Jane

MattC9

15-05-2011, 16:49

No truck, no trailer. Maybe Greyhound bus, of if I can get FedEx to re-route it to Austin instead.

And you don't have to call me Shirley.....

Minivans with the back seats down and the middle seats take out work great. We stuffed 2 '09 robots in 1 mini-van.

Pjohn1959

15-05-2011, 21:18

Minivans with the back seats down and the middle seats take out work great. We stuffed 2 '09 robots in 1 mini-van.

I could do that. I guess I could make the students hang on to the roof rack during the trip. Ü

James Tonthat

15-05-2011, 23:05

I could do that. I guess I could make the students hang on to the roof rack during the trip. Ü

I'll see if I can work something out with our team to at least get your robot out there.

I'd love to see some conferences here.

Elizabeth Waters

17-05-2011, 20:15

624 is registered. We look forward to seeing everyone in Austin!

jessjank.

19-05-2011, 20:54

Up-to-date list of Registered Teams - 22 teams registered, 8 spots officially left!

57 - The Leopards - Houston, TX
118 - The Robonauts - League City, TX
148 - Robowranglers - Greenville, TX
418 - LASA - Austin, TX
457 - Grease Monkeys - San Antonio, TX
624 - CRyptonite - Katy, TX
1296 - Full Metal Jackets - Rockwall, TX
1429 - Team KAOS - Galena Park, TX
1477 - Texas Torque - The Woodlands, TX
2158 - ausTIN CANs - Austin, TX
2587 - The DiscoBots - Houston, TX
2789 - TechXsplosion - Manor, TX
2881 - Lady Cans - Austin, TX
2936 - Gatorzillas - Dickinson, TX
2952 - Brackenbots - San Antonio, TX
2969 - Hurricane Robotics - San Antonio, TX
3310 - Team Black Hawk - Heath, TX
3320 - Miracles & Machines - Austin, TX
3335 - Cypress Ranch Robotics Team - Cypress, TX
3355 - Summit International Prep - Arlington, Texas
3481 - Brandeis Bronc Botz - San Antonio, TX
3735 - Klein Bots - Klein, TX

There are still a lot of teams who have expressed interest, but have not yet registered! Make sure you get your teams registered as soon as possible! Register here! (https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dEdyX1Y3WnpWNVFsS3pSRXNQWmJOd2c6MQ#gid=0)

Right now, the teams attending are coming from all over Texas. We also welcome out of state (and country) teams to join in the fun!

As always, please let me (jessjank@gmail.com) or the Alamo Regional Director Patrick Felty (pfelty@usfirst.org) know if you have any questions.

jessjank.

19-05-2011, 21:01

TENTATIVE AGENDA FOR 2011 TEXAS ROBOT ROUND-UP:

Friday, July 29, 2011
12:00 PM - Doors Open
1:00 PM - Practice Matches Begin
4:00 PM - Practice Matches End
4:30 PM - Tentative: Mentor Tournament
6:30 PM - Pits close
7:00 PM - Team Activity TBA

Saturday, July 30, 2011
8:00 AM - Doors Open
9:00 AM - Opening Ceremonies
9:30 AM - Matches Begin
12:00 PM - Lunch Break
12:00 PM - Tentative: Skills Challenge
1:00 PM - Matches Resume
3:00 PM - Matches End
3:00 PM - Alliance Selection
3:30 PM - Eliminations Begin
5:00 PM - Eliminations End
5:15 PM - Awards
6:30 PM - Pits Close
7:00 PM - Team Activity TBA

This schedule is subject to change. We will provide updates as they become available.

There will be a series of meetings, presentations, workshops, etc. held throughout the day on Saturday the 30th. Proposal submission forms will be available shortly!

Pjohn1959

19-05-2011, 22:12

Thanks for the update!

I would like to see some of the teams from Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana come down. This would be a great opportunity to play with them as well.

jessjank.

20-05-2011, 15:47

For your convenience, we have a 2011 Texas Robot Round-up webpage (http://www.alamo-first.org/component/content/article/1/112-2011-texas-robot-round-up-frc-off-season-competition.html) set up on the Alamo Region website where you can check in for additional information as it becomes available. However, I will continue to post all information to this thread on Chief Delphi, facebook (https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=204992072868726), and through emails.

jessjank.

20-05-2011, 15:51

JaneYoung

20-05-2011, 16:55

Presentation/Workshop/Meeting Proposal Submissions

If you have an idea for a presentation, workshop, or meeting you would like to host at the 2011 Texas Robot Round-up, please complete this form (https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dHFVcld2emdONnNIOTMwXzQwUW1qaWc6MQ#gid=0). These will be held throughout the day on Saturday, July 30th.

Submitting a proposal does not necessarily mean your proposal will be accepted, however we may ask you to revise and resubmit. You may also be asked to collaborate should we receive similar proposals that are of high-quality. You can send any questions to me at jessjank@gmail.com.

Jess, thank you for this opportunity. I just submitted forms for some presentations that I think are valuable. A collaborative effort in any of the topics would be very exciting and fun, I think.

I'd love to encourage anyone who is planning on attending, to submit a proposal for a presentation, workshop, or meeting that you think would be valuable to the members of the FIRST teams and are interested in leading. This is a fantastic opportunity and the form was very easy to fill out and submit.

Thanks again, Jess!
Jane

GaryVoshol

20-05-2011, 18:49

3:30 PM - Eliminations Begin
5:00 PM - Eliminations End

Is this for 8 alliances, or just 4? You're never going to get elims with 8 alliances done in 1.5 hours - 2.5 hours is doing really good.

JaneYoung

21-05-2011, 10:25

I hope someone will consider doing a NEMO meeting. We've got some "tools" to help. Let me know if I can help - long distance.

Your post makes me smile, Jenny. You should hop a plane and come down here and meet some of our amazing NEMs like Susan Rich, Janice Trinidad, and Linda McMahon. You would be inspired. I'm looking forward to seeing what the meetings, workshops, and presentations will be. The facility should be a good one for this aspect of the Round-Up. Thanks, Anderson High School!

Jane

RoboMom

21-05-2011, 10:34

Your post makes me smile, Jenny. You should hop a plane and come down here and meet some of our amazing NEMs like Susan Rich, Janice Trinidad, and Linda McMahon. You would be inspired. I'm looking forward to seeing what the meetings, workshops, and presentations will be. The facility should be a good one for this aspect of the Round-Up. Thanks, Anderson High School!

Jane

I'm so glad and look forward to hearing all about it and best practices we all can share!

treffk

22-05-2011, 19:24

Team 1802 from Kansas City is currently planning on CowTown Throwdown for this year, but will be taking about registering in future years as a bit of a reward for the kids. This year though we may see about bringing some down to volunteer or observe. Would be a great experience for our incoming freshmen.

jessjank.

26-05-2011, 19:24

Up-to-date list of Registered Teams - 24 teams registered, 6 spots officially left!

57 - Booker T Washington/HSEP Leopards - Houston, TX
118 - The Robonauts - League City, TX
148 - Robowranglers - Greenville, TX
418 - LASA - Austin, TX
457 - Grease Monkeys - San Antonio, TX
624 - CRyptonite - Katy, TX
1296 - Full Metal Jackets - Rockwall, TX
1429 - Team KAOS - Galena Park, TX
1477 - Texas Torque - The Woodlands, TX
2158 - ausTIN CANs - Austin, TX
2468 - Team Appreciate - Austin, TX
2587 - The DiscoBots - Houston, TX
2789 - TechXsplosion/Manor New Tech - Manor, TX
2881 - Lady Cans - Austin, TX
2936 - Gatorzillas - Dickinson, TX
2952 - Brackenbots - San Antonio, TX
2969 - Hurricane Robotics - San Antonio, TX
3103 - Iron Plaid - Houston, TX
3310 - Team Black Hawk - Heath, TX
3320 - Miracles & Machines, Austin, TX
3335 - Cypress Ranch Robotics Team - Cypress, TX
3355 - Summit International Prep - Arlington, Texas
3481 - Brandeis Bronc Botz - San Antonio, TX
3735 - Klein Bots - Klein, TX

Though not officially registered yet, we have one pre-rookie team we expect will be attending. There are still many teams who have expressed interest, but have not yet registered! Make sure you get your teams registered as soon as possible! You can find more information and register here (http://www.alamo-first.org/component/content/article/1/112-2011-texas-robot-round-up-frc-off-season-competition.html).

Right now, the teams attending are coming from all over Texas. We also welcome out of state (and country) teams to join in the fun! Please spread the word!

Please let me (jessjank@gmail.com) or the Alamo Regional Director Patrick Felty (pfelty@usfirst.org) know if you have any questions.

JVN

09-06-2011, 12:19

Sooooo... any chance we can see some of the same rule changes as IRI?
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1065183#post1065183

Please?
-John

jessjank.

09-06-2011, 12:39

Sooooo... any chance we can see some of the same rule changes as IRI?
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1065183#post1065183

Please?
-John

It's a possibility. Not a guarantee that we will introduce any rule changes, but we'll absolutely discuss it.

I plan to send general information to all registered teams on the 16th. This will include both event information as well as information on Austin (hotels, food, attractions, etc).

Team registration (https://spreadsheets1.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&formkey=dEdyX1Y3WnpWNVFsS3pSRXNQWmJOd2c6MQ#gid=0) is still open (slated to close on the 15th), so if your team is interested please make sure to register soon! I'll update the attendance list on the 16th as well. If you have registered and not sent your registration fee check, please do so ASAP.

Please also consider registering to volunteer (https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dHYwT2dyb2lfMHN0TjV6V2FNZ2RBZnc6MQ#gid=0) or submitting a proposal (https://spreadsheets0.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?hl=en_US&key=tqUrWvzgN6sH930_40Qmjig&hl=en_US#gid=0) for a presentation, workshop, and/or meeting.

I unfortunately had to take a break planning things due to a death in my family, so I'm a little behind on where I want to be presently... trying to catch up on life! Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions. Thanks!

TINCAN foodgas

09-06-2011, 16:01

FIRST FRC #2881 The Lady Cans would like to invite the Texas Robot Round Up teams to a social event on Friday July 29th.

If you will be coming into Austin for the Friday practices please respond.

schrich@swbell.net

jessjank.

17-06-2011, 12:04

I plan to send general information to all registered teams on the 16th. This will include both event information as well as information on Austin (hotels, food, attractions, etc).
I'll update the attendance list on the 16th as well. If you have registered and not sent your registration fee check, please do so ASAP.

We're delayed in getting out this info due to trying to confirm attendance with a few teams. I'll be sure to post and send out more information ASAP! Thank you for your patience!

JaneYoung

20-06-2011, 11:58

We're delayed in getting out this info due to trying to confirm attendance with a few teams. I'll be sure to post and send out more information ASAP! Thank you for your patience!

Any further updates from you or Patrick, Jess?

Have you decided on the presentations and workshops yet?

Jane

2789_B_Garcia

22-06-2011, 12:20

Our team is using this event as an opportunity to train some recruits we've picked up, and we've created a scouting database to organize data we collect before and during the Round-Up. This will be the second time we use this scouting system, the first time we used it was at the Chesapeake Regional this year, and we put in hundreds of data points. If you would like to check it out and give us feedback on it, we'd greatly appreciate it as it is a work in progress, and if you see anything for your team that needs to be corrected or updated, please let us know, thanks!

https://sites.google.com/site/2011robotroundup/

TINCAN foodgas

30-06-2011, 09:39

Hotels, Restaurants, Shopping & Gas Stations within 3 miles of Anderson High School. Yell if you have any more questions. Looking forward to a fun weekend. Susie Rich schrich@swbell.net

Anderson High School 8403 Mesa Drive Austin TX 78759

Hotels, Shops & Restaurants within 1.5 miles of Anderson High School

Hotels-
Holiday Inn –Executive Park/Mopac (less than a mile)

Stores
Randalls –Mesa Drive(Starbucks)
HEB – Farwest Drive
Walgreens- Mesa Drive
CVS – Farwest Drive
UPS Copy & Mail Center- Mesa Drive
Post Office – Farwest Drive
Valero-Mesa Drive
Chevron – Farwest Drive
Shell – North Hills
Farwest Hardware- Farwest Drive
Radio Shack - Farwest Drive

Restaurants
Dominos Pizza – Mesa Drive
Snow House Yogurt- Farwest
Wally Burgers – Mesa Drive
Wendy’s – Farwest Dr
Molcas Mexican Food –Mesa Drive
El Arroyo Mexican – Farwest
Brookly Pie – Mesa Drive
Gattis Pizza – Farwest Dr
Subway – Mesa Drive
Quiznos –Farwest Dr
Mesa Ranch – Mesa Drive
Boulevard Grill- Farwest Dr
Mangia’s Pizza – Mesa Drive
Indian Palace – Farwest Dr
Torchy’s Taco- Spicewood Springs Rd
La Salsa – Farwest Dr
Taco Shack – Spicewood Springs Rd
Wendy’s – Farwest Dr
Triumph Café – Spicewood Springs Rd
Starbucks – Farwest Dr
China Café – Spicewood Springs Rd
China Sea – Farwest Dr.
Super Donuts – Farwest Dr
Neworld Café – Farwest Dr

Hotels, Shops & Restaurants within 3 miles of Anderson in the Gateway or Arborwalk shopping areas

Hampton Inn,
Spring Hill Suites by Marriott,
Courtyard by Marriott,
Residence Inn by Marriott
Staybridge Suites
Embassy Suites
Homewood Suites by Hilton

Arbor Walk Shops & Restaurants
http://www.simon.com/mall/?id=1224

Gateway Shops & Restaurants
http://www.simon.com/mall/?id=856

Arboretum Shops & Restaurants
http://www.simon.com/mall/?id=384

jessjank.

08-07-2011, 15:15

Hi All! I was finally able to get an email out to teams today. Thank you so much for your patience. I'm going to post all relevant pieces below grouped by topic. We're really looking forward to Texas Robot Round-up and hope you are too!

As always, please feel free to contact myself (jessjank@gmail.com) or our Alamo Regional Director, Patrick Felty (pfelty@usfirst.org) if you have any questions. We're looking forward to seeing you all at the inaugural Texas Robot Round-up!

jessjank.

08-07-2011, 15:18

LOCATION & SITE INFO:

Anderson High School
8403 Mesa Drive
Austin, Texas 78759

The field and stands will be in the large gym of Anderson High School. Pits will be in the cafeteria. Teams will have 10ft x 10ft pits.

Concessions will be available on site and will serve as fundraising for the host team (2158). There are also a variety of grocery stores and restaurants close to the event.

An email with parking and unloading instructions, campus layout map, and more will be sent closer to the date of the event.

UPDATED EVENT SCHEDULE:

This schedule is subject to change as necessary. We will also be holding workshops, presentations, and meetings throughout the event.**

Friday, July 29, 2011 (OPTIONAL DAY)
12:00 PM - Doors Open
1:00 PM - Practice Matches Begin
4:00 PM - Practice Matches End
4:30 PM - Mentor Tournament**
6:30 PM - Pits close
7:00 PM - Team Social**

Saturday, July 30, 2011
8:00 AM - Doors Open
9:00 AM - Opening Ceremonies
9:30 AM - Matches Begin
12:00 PM - Lunch Break
12:00 PM - Skills Challenge**
1:00 PM - Matches Resume
3:00 PM - Matches End
3:00 PM - Alliance Selection
3:30 PM - Eliminations Begin
6:00 PM - Eliminations End
6:00 PM - Awards**
6:30 PM - Pits Close
7:00 PM - Team Activity TBA

** See below

jessjank.

08-07-2011, 15:19

TEAMS IN ATTENDANCE:

We have 29 teams registered. We have the capacity for a few more teams so this might change. Please let me know if you have any corrections to your team's information.

57 - Leopards, Booker T Washington/HSEP - Houston, TX
118 - The Robonauts, Clear Creek ISD - League City, TX
148 - Robowranglers, Greenville HS - Greenville, TX
418 - Purple Haze, LASA - Austin, TX
457 - Grease Monkeys, South San Antonio HS - San Antonio, TX
624 - CRyptonite, Cinco Ranch HS - Katy, TX
647 - Cyberwolves, Robert M. Shoemaker HS STEM Academy - Killeen, TX
653 - NOSIDE, Edison HS - San Antonio, TX
1296 - Full Metal Jackets, Rockwall HS - Rockwall, TX
1429 - Team KAOS, Galena Park HS - Galena Park, TX
1477 - Texas Torque, The Woodlands College Park HS - The Woodlands, TX
2158 - ausTIN CANs, Anderson HS - Austin, TX
2468 - Team Appreciate, Westlake HS - Austin, TX
2583 - Westwood Robotics, Westwood HS - Austin, TX
2587 - The DiscoBots, Lamar HS - Houston, TX
2789 - TechXsplosion, Manor New Tech HS - Manor, TX
2881 - Lady Cans, Girl Scouts of Central Texas - Austin, TX
2936 - Gatorzillas, Dickinson HS - Dickinson, TX
2952 - Brackenbots, Brackenridge HS - San Antonio, TX
2969 - Hurricane Robotics, Sam Houston HS - San Antonio, TX
3103 - Iron Plaid, Duchesne Academy - Houston, TX
3310 - Team Black Hawk, Rockwall-Heath HS - Heath, TX
3320 - Miracles & Machines, Eastside Memorial HS - Austin, TX
3335 - Cypress Ranch Robotics Team, Cypress Ranch HS - Cypress, TX
3355 - Summit International Prep, Summit International Preparatory - Arlington, TX
3481 - Brandeis Bronc Botz, Brandeis HS - San Antonio, TX
3735 - Klein Bots, Klein HS - Klein, TX
XXXX(pre-rookie) - Shadetree Mechanics - Killeen, TX
XXXX(pre-rookie) - Screaming Chickens - San Antonio, TX

jessjank.

08-07-2011, 15:19

GAME FIELD & RULES:

Teams will play a modified version of Logo Motion on an official FIRST field supplied and staffed by AndyMark.

There will be some changes put into place at Texas Robot Round-Up (similar to those being used at IRI this year for those who are familiar with that event) that will hopefully help improve game play and make things better for teams. We will make sure to notify you of any additional changes prior to the event.

Scoring:
- Ubertubes can be scored in teleop. Ubertubes scored during don't count for points, but they are still counted as doublers.
- Scoring on the highest row is 3 points per tube, middle and bottom rows are 2 points per tube
- Minibot Races: 1st and 2nd place: 20 points, 3rd and 4th place: 10 points

Penalties:
<G23> The original rule calls for a penalty and a Red Card for any contact with the opponent's tower. This is changed to just a penalty for incidental contact, and a red card for intentional contact.
<G33> The original rule calls for a penalty for breaking the plane of the opponents' lane. This is changed to a penalty when a robot drives into the opponents' lane or any breaking of the plane that would interfere with or impede an opposing robot would be a penalty regardless of duration. Teams will not be penalized for momentary incidental crossing of the line into the lane.

**MENTOR TOURNAMENT:

A Mentor Tournament is planned for Friday, July 29th at 4:30 PM. The above rules will apply. Alliances of 3 teams will play in finals type matches (no qualifications). Depending on the number of interested teams, we may start at Semi Finals. The alliance with the highest summed score at the end of two matches will move on to the next round (ie we will not be playing the traditional best 2 out of 3).

Drivers and Human Players must have graduated high school in 2010 or earlier - they do not necessarily have to be mentors on your team (they can be parents, teachers, sponsors, etc) and if necessary you may pull people from another team. Coaches may be either high school students or adults.

The order of alliance selections will be determined by the number of cans your team brings for the Canned Food Drive** (See below).

If your teams is interested in participating in the mentor tournament, please send an email to jessjank@gmail.com with the subject "TTR Mentor Tournament - Team ####". Please include the contact information of at least one member of the Mentor Drive Team in your email.

**SKILLS CHALLENGE:

A Skills Challenge is planned for Saturday, July 30th at noon. Each interested team will have one opportunity to score as many points as possible during a match consisting of 15 seconds of autonomous and 1 minute (60 seconds) of teleop. Two teams will compete on the field during a match, however, teams will not be allowed to cross the the midfield line (There should be absolutely NO contact between robots). Crossing the midfield line will result in a disqualification from the Skills Tournament. The team's human player will be on the same side of the field as their team, supplying the field with tubes. Teams will have access to 6 of each Logo piece and 3 Ubertubes. The team who scores the most points overall will be the Skills Challenge Champion.

Your team can sign up for the Skills Challenge when you check in at the event, or can send an email to jessjank@gmail.com with the subject "TRR Skills Tournament - Team ####".

jessjank.

08-07-2011, 15:21

**WORKSHOPS & MEETINGS:

There will be a series of meetings and workshops available for teams to participate in during the event. You will be able to sign up to attend these A full list of the meetings, details, and schedule will be provided closer to the date. A sampling of what will/may occur includes LabView Training provided by National Instruments, a NEMO (Non-Engineering Mentors Organization) Meeting, Business Plan workshop, a Central Texas Robotics Alliance meeting, and more. There will also be an interest meeting for those looking to get involved with planning next years off-season, which we hope to grow to even bigger, better proportions.

If you have an idea of a workshop, meeting, or presentation you would like to provide to teams during the event, please fill out the following form: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dHFVcld2emdONnNIOTMwXzQwUW1qaWc6MQ#gid=0

**AWARDS:

The event will not have Judges, however, teams will help decide who will receive what awards. Upon check in, your team will receive an Awards Ballot on which they will be able to nominate other teams for specific awards (you may not nominate your own team). In order to be eligible for an award, you must submit an Awards Ballot (signed by both a mentor and a student) to Pit Administration before finals on Saturday. You will be asked to include the team number and a brief reasoning as to why you think the team should receive the award. We will provide more detailed instructions on how these awards prior to the event.

Team Judged Awards will include:
- Gracious Professionalism
- Team Spirit
- Play of the Day
- Technical Award 1 (TBA)
- Technical Award 2 (TBA)

Non-Judged Awards will include:
- Champions
- Finalists
- Mentor Tournament Champions
- Skills Challenge Champion
- Most Canned Food Donated

**TEAM SOCIAL:

The Team Social is being hosted by the Lady Cans, team 2881. This will be held on Friday, July 29th from 7pm to 11pm across the street from the high school at St. Matthews. The event may include food, games, music, prizes, and more! Please contact Susie Rich at schrich@swbell.net if your team plans to attend!

Any events on Saturday night are still TBA.

**CANNED FOOD DRIVE:

The Texas Robot Round-up host team - the ausTIN CANs, team 2158 - will be holding a canned food drive during the event to donate to our local food bank. Team team who donates the most cans will receive an award. Canned food donations will also determine the order of alliance selections for the Mentor Tournament. Please turn in your canned goods when you sign in on Friday or Saturday.

Pjohn1959

09-07-2011, 11:30

Thanks for all the updates Jess. I like the scoring and rules changes. This will be a fun event. I can't wait to be there!

JaneYoung

24-07-2011, 12:46

JaneYoung

24-07-2011, 14:25

Back again. :) The Central Texas Robotics Alliance will have a meeting on Friday at 3:00 p.m. in Anderson High School. It is scheduled for an hour and is an opportunity for the members to touch base and prepare to welcome our visiting teams. Signs will be posted at the event with the classroom number where the meeting will be held.

Jane

Michael Blake

26-07-2011, 14:09

WELL... here it comes in 3 DAYS!!

We're excited... our first off-season scrimmage... AND we'll _finally_ have a working arm/gripper... can you imagine that... ;-)

ANYONE else _excited_?!

See you there...

jessjank.

26-07-2011, 17:36

Team Leaders, make sure you check your email for updates! Here are the contents of my email to teams today:

PLEASE RESPOND (jessjank@gmail.com) IF INTERESTED IN ANY OF THESE OPPORTUNITIES:
1. If any of your team members would like to sing the National Anthem on Saturday.
2. If your team is interested in participating in Friday's Mentor Tournament* (See Below).
3. If you have an extra 2011 robot available and can bring it to the event.
4. If anyone from your team will be in Austin/available on Thursday night and/or Friday morning to help with set-up.
5. How many people involved with your team will attend Intermediate/Advanced LabView Training provided by National Instruments (no computers needed) at 10:30am on Saturday.

ADDRESS & PARKING:
Anderson High School
8403 Mesa Drive
Austin, TX 78759

Anderson High School is on the corner of Steck and Mesa in North Austin, near MoPac (Loop 1).
The main entrance for the event is off of Steck Avenue. ONLY park in the student parking areas, DO NOT park in the street. There will be signs indicating where to enter.

TEAM LOAD-IN:
Parking spaces by the main entrance to the event will be reserved for temporary drop off of robots and supplies. When you arrive, you can begin unloading your vehicles, but please first send in a representative to pick up your registration packet and find your pit location. If necessary, at checkin you can request to drive your vehicle closer to the entrance and will receive a pass to do so. There is not a limit to the amount of equipment you bring in to the facility, however please be mindful to respect the space of others and keep your things within your pit space (10' x 10'). Pits will be in the cafeteria.

TEAM CHECK-IN:
Teams coming in on Friday can checkin starting at noon. On Saturday morning, doors will open at 8:00am. Teams who did not checkin on Friday will need to make sure to do so then. Opening ceremonies are scheduled to start promptly at 9:00am. At checkin, your team will receive a packet which will include information about the event, driver passes, awards ballot**, etc. Match schedules will be placed on your table in the pits on Saturday morning.

UPDATED SCHEDULE:
Friday, July 29, 2011 (OPTIONAL DAY)
11:00 AM - Volunteer Check-in (for those not assisting in morning set-up)
12:00 PM - Doors Open
1:00 PM - Practice Matches Begin
3:00 PM - Central Texas Robotics Alliance Meeting
4:00 PM - Practice Matches End
4:30 PM - Mentor Tournament*
6:30 PM - Pits close
7:00 PM - Team Social

Saturday, July 30, 2011
7:00 AM - Volunteer Check-In
8:00 AM - Doors Open for Teams
9:00 AM - Opening Ceremonies
9:30 AM - Matches Begin
10:30 AM - NI LabView Training
12:00 PM - Lunch Break
12:00 PM - Skills Challenge
1:00 PM - Matches Resume
1:00 PM - Non-Engineering Mentors Organization (NEMO) Meeting
3:00 PM - Matches End
3:00 PM - Alliance Selection
3:30 PM - Eliminations Begin
6:00 PM - Eliminations End
6:00 PM - Awards**
7:00 PM - Pits Close

NOTE: Please remember that there are a few important rules changes that we feel will benefit teams. See my previous email/posts for more details.

*MENTOR TOURNAMENT:
If your team is interested in participating in the mentor tournament, please make sure to respond ASAP! We need to make sure all interested teams are accounted for. Reminder, we will be holding a CANNED FOOD DRIVE at the event. Alliance selection order will be based on the number of canned goods your team donates. Please turn in your canned goods when you checkin on Friday (or Saturday).

**AWARDS:
Reminder: the event will not have Judges, however, teams will help decide who will be recognized. Upon check-in, your team will receive an Awards Ballot on which they will be able to nominate other teams for specific awards (you may not nominate your own team). In order to be eligible for an award, you must submit an Awards Ballot (signed by both a mentor and a student) to Pit Administration before finals on Saturday. You will be asked to include the team number and a brief reasoning as to why you think the team should receive the award. Full details of the awards will be provided with the ballot.

Team Judged Awards will include:
- Gracious Professionalism - Recognizes outstanding sportsmanship and gracious professionalism in the heat of competition, both on and off the playing ﬁeld.
- Team Spirit - Recognizes extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit, and exceptional teamwork.
- Play of the Day - Recognize a team that did something really exciting on the field during the competition. (This is an "old-school" FIRST award that we were interested in bringing back.)
- Creativity in Design - Recognizes a team who thought outside the box when developing their robot, creating a component or overall design that is really cool, unique, etc.

Non-Judged Awards will include:
- Champions
- Finalists
- Mentor Tournament Champions
- Skills Challenge Champion
- Most Canned Food Donated

JaneYoung

26-07-2011, 17:54

**TEAM SOCIAL:

The Team Social is being hosted by the Lady Cans, team 2881. This will be held on Friday, July 29th from 7pm to 11pm across the street from the high school at St. Matthews. The event may include food, games, music, prizes, and more! Please contact Susie Rich at schrich@swbell.net if your team plans to attend!

Any events on Saturday night are still TBA.

Jess,

Would you or Susie post the street address of St. Matthews? I'm not not sure which 'across the street' it is. :o

Thank you.

Jane

jessjank.

26-07-2011, 18:00

Jess,

Would you or Susie post the street address of St. Matthews? I'm not not sure which 'across the street' it is. :o

Thank you.

Jane

I'm not involved in planning the Social in any form. Susie can confirm this and any other details, but I believe the address is:
St. Matthew's Episcopal Church
8134 Mesa Dr.
Austin, TX 78759-8615

jessjank.

26-07-2011, 18:02

Hi everybody,

The NEMO (http://www.firstnemo.org/) (Non-Engineering Mentor Organization) meeting has been scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. It is scheduled for an hour but, if folks are interested, we can visit a little longer. Please pass the word to the adults on your teams that fill the non-engineering mentor roles. This could include technical mentors who also fill those roles and feel that you need some help in areas such team organization, fundraising, promotion and marketing, community outreach, team travel - and the list goes on and on.

We'll announce the meeting place at the event and signs will be posted. It will be in one of the classrooms in Anderson High School.

Can't wait to see everyone!

Jane

Back again. :) The Central Texas Robotics Alliance will have a meeting on Friday at 3:00 p.m. in Anderson High School. It is scheduled for an hour and is an opportunity for the members to touch base and prepare to welcome our visiting teams. Signs will be posted at the event with the classroom number where the meeting will be held.

Jane

Jane - Just wanted to also say thank you for your efforts in planning these two awesome meetings that will certainly benefit everyone who attends! We're thrilled to be able to have a NEMO meeting and to continue building our Central Texas Robotics Alliance at TRR. :)

JaneYoung

26-07-2011, 18:20

Jane - Just wanted to also say thank you for your efforts in planning these two awesome meetings that will certainly benefit everyone who attends! We're thrilled to be able to have a NEMO meeting and to continue building our Central Texas Robotics Alliance at TRR. :)

Thanks, Jess. I've gotten a lot of help with each of them from awesome mentors. I plan on thanking all of these mentors after the event but, I'd really like to thank the amazing Jenny Beatty for her help today! Thank you, Jenny!
--
Thanks for the help with the street address - I can get lost in a teacup.

Rock on, Jess Jank.

Jane

familyguyfreak

27-07-2011, 20:00

Just curious, will there be a webcast?

jessjank.

28-07-2011, 11:45

Just curious, will there be a webcast?

Not this year, unfortunately. It simply wasn't a priority with everything else going in to planning this event. If there's an easy way for a team to set this up and run with it, it might still be possible, but for the time being, no.

jessjank.

28-07-2011, 11:46

LOAD-IN UPDATE:

We have some changes for load-in instructions due to potential conflicts of space being utilized by the marching band and for general ease of load-in. On both Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, please send any vehicles carrying your team's robot or heavy supplies to the entrance on Cima Serena Drive. Signs will be posted. Once vehicles are unloaded, you will be asked to move your car to the parking lot on Steck Avenue. Vehicles carrying passengers should still plan to park and enter the building off of Steck Avenue. I've attached a basic map for your convenience (not to scale).

jessjank.

28-07-2011, 11:50

For your convenience, ausTIN CANs mentors prepared a map that includes potential places and businesses (restaurants, fast food, hardwares stores, pharmacies, etc) of interest to your teams that are close to Anderson High School:
2011 Texas Robot Roundup Map (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=201154432174528908751.0004a9108ddc67966380 9&msa=0)

During the event, please feel free to ask any members of ausTIN CANs, and other locals, for directions!

jessjank.

28-07-2011, 11:53

RULE CHANGES:

Attached you will find a document listing all the specific rules and scoring changes, same as the changes utilized at IRI (other than alliance selections). Please make sure to review it!

jessjank.

29-07-2011, 00:07

We're all so excited to see many of you tomorrow and Friday. Basic set-up for the event began tonight with the arrival of AndyMark and the field. We'll be continuing set-up tomorrow morning and expect to have things ready to go when doors open at noon!

I'm attaching a TRR Event Map (teams will receive this in their packet when they check in). This shows the layout of the area in Anderson HS where the event will be taking place, as well as useful things like the queuing pathway and the location of charging stations (we're unfortunately not able to provide power directly to each pit, but hope to find a way to make this happen next year!). If you have a chance, please look over that map to familiarize yourself with the facilities.

See you all soon! :)

lynca

29-07-2011, 01:47

Thanks for all the hardwork everyone has put into setting up this event !

I'm in Austin and ready for Texas Round-Up ! Yeee Hah !

I believe one of members will try to stream the event on ustream, Will post the link friday if it works out !

2789_B_Garcia

30-07-2011, 22:11

Thank you to all the volunteers and teams that made it out! I would say that the Roundup was a HUGE success! Everything ran smoothly for us thanks to all the hard work put in, and next year, you can count on even more volunteers and help from 2789!

There were also some great workshops and meetings during the event, and I've got great feelings about this coming year! Again, thank you very much to everyone who helped organize and participated in the event, don't be strangers until kickoff!

jessjank.

30-07-2011, 22:45

I have sooooo many people to thank, and it's going to take a while to get all my thoughts together considering how frazzled and fried my brain is right now. So a really quick thank you to EVERYONE until I get a real thank you up!

And now what everyone was probably looking forward to - the list of Award Recipients! I've attached the script so that you can read more about who won and why! (Realized this did not work when posted last night... Will attach it when I can get to my computer).

Champions - 118, 1477, 653
Finalists - 624, 148, 3481

Mentors Tournament Champions: 624, 2587, 2789
Skills Challenge Champion - 1477
Austin CAN Award (Most Canned Goods Donated) - 9999 (pre-rookie)

Team Judged Awards:
Gracious Professionalism - 2158
Creativity in Design - 118
Team Spirit - 9999 (pre-rookie)
Play of the Day - 148

CONGRATULATIONS ALL & THANK YOU AGAIN!

rsisk

30-07-2011, 22:53

Hmmm, interested in the pre-rookie that picked up a couple awards. Who are they?

JaneYoung

30-07-2011, 23:11

Hmmm, interested in the pre-rookie that picked up a couple awards. Who are they?

I'd like to take a swing at this one after some rest. They are the amazing Shadetree Mechanics.

(Please note the awesome and amazing pun - shade tree and swing. It will make you smile. And, that is what they do.):)

Ask Jess how the judged awards were judged. It's very cool.

Jane

familyguyfreak

31-07-2011, 01:04

Thanks to everyone for such a great event. It was really fun to get majority of the Texas teams together for some awesome off-season robot fun. I really appreciate all the hard work and time the event staff and volunteers put in to make this even run as smooth as possible and the ensure that everyone got to play. I didn't make it to the seminars but I heard they were all great and helpful.

I would really like to point out such awesome gracious professionalism by 2158, 418, and a few other teams I didn't catch the names of that gave parts, tools, a place to work and anything the pre-rookie team needed in order to have a fully functional robot at this event. I'm also glad they got a chance to experience elimination as well. I believe they will be a great team and fully prepared come 2012 season.

It was awesome to play with 624 and 2789 in the mentor tournament. It was fun to be behind the driver station again. We hope to come back and defend our title next year. :)

Congrats to 118, 1477, and 653 on winning the event. This was the 2nd event that 118 and 1477 won together and the 3rd time they've been on the same alliance. (Lone Star, IRI, and Texas Round Up) You guys looked great out there and put on quite a show against 148, 3481 and 624.

Overall, great event, and I can't thank everyone enough for all the hard work. (Awesome looking trophies by the way :D ) Austin is such a nice city if you've never been. Can't wait for next year!! :)

KleinKid

31-07-2011, 01:25

The KleinBots 2011 rookie team would like to say thank you for such a great time. Kleinbots, Team 3735 had a long day of fixing up the practice day and turned around for Saturday to win 6 of their 8 qualifying matches. Ranked 9th in overall we ultimately became the 6th seeded alliance captain. Picking team 2789 and 457 as our alliance for the finals. We lost to the 3rd seeded alliance in the first round of finals but the experience was great.

Our 3 new drivers played every match while our older now graduated members tried to take a step back as we pass on the reigns for the second year of KleinBots awesomeness.

We made a lot of new friends and connections and hope to see them this next season as equals on the field once again.

Adrienne E.

31-07-2011, 16:54

Jess,
Thanks for all your hard work and the hard work of all the other volunteers. We had a great time this weekend!! A quick correction if I may:

Finalists - 624, 148, 2952

Our third partner was 3481, not 2952 :)

jessjank.

31-07-2011, 17:23

Jess,
Thanks for all your hard work and the hard work of all the other volunteers. We had a great time this weekend!!

THANK YOU ADRIENNE! I appreciate it!

A quick correction if I may:
Our third partner was 3481, not 2952 :)

Ooops! My apologies. I blame being exhausted yesterday and not raking down the info before leaving. All corrected!

Michael Blake

31-07-2011, 21:45

Our third partner was 3481, not 2952 :)

THANKS, Adrienne!! GREAT seeing you guys again and competing _together_ again... ;-)

Robowranglers rock!!

Michael Blake

31-07-2011, 21:53

The only 2011 rookie team at TRR...

We FRC ROOKIES too... ;-)

And THANKS to guidance/support from #148 Robowranglers... we had an _awesome_ first year!!

KleinKid

31-07-2011, 23:33

Didn't realize 3400's were rookies also this year. So many new teams joining FIRST every year is exciting. Already going to be in the 4000s this next year then.

Maybe you were so professional you just fooled us. My apologies though should be corrected.

Michael Blake

01-08-2011, 01:02

Didn't realize 3400's were rookies also this year... Maybe you were so professional you just fooled us.

LOL... I don't know about being "so professional"... but, if you saw our pit area at the Alamo Regional you'd have seen that we made quite a bit of progress...

I think our strong points are _keen interest_, leaning-into-the-process, and _strong_ work ethic... maybe this creates a veneer of more seasoned than we really are... ;-)

jessjank.

01-08-2011, 10:53

Here's the Award Script I promised previously, as well as the Awards Ballot we used for the TRR. I've had a bunch of questions from people about the awards process. Rather than having Judges decide which teams would be recognized with awards, we asked teams to nominate their peers and turn their awards ballots in to Pit Admin before eliminations. The winners were decided based on who was nominated most for the specific award and the award script was then based off of the justification teams provided. Overall, I think it was extremely successful and certainly want to consider utilizing this process next year.

JaneYoung

01-08-2011, 11:57

Hmmm, interested in the pre-rookie that picked up a couple awards. Who are they?

This is a newly forming team that will have the experience of veteran mentors and students who were part of another team in the area and they will benefit from it.

Before anyone begins to question their rookie status, it was suggested to the team mentors that they go through proper channels to discuss that status and have an understanding of it. They have followed through with that suggestion.

--
This was a very well-run event and I think any FRC team that could have made it to Texas to compete, would have been proud to have been a part of such an outstanding inaugural event. I also think that they would have had a heck of a good time. It's my hope that TRR will be around for a very long time and will grow a reputation of collaborative excellence and making the impossible, possible - with teams supporting each other on the road to success.

Standing proud,
Jane

Mr. Rip

01-08-2011, 12:10

Team 1477: Texas Torque had a wonderful time at the inaugural Texas Robot Round-Up. I would like to thank Team 118: The Robonauts for choosing us to join their alliance. We have been alliance partners thrice this year and had a blast all three times. I would also like to thank Team 653: NOSIDE for being a great third partner this past weekend. We need to pitch in and get y'all some more batteries.

Teams 624, 148, and 3481 were a strong #1 alliance. Playing against such good teams makes winning that much more special. 148 had some communication or cRIO problems in the second match of the finals. It is especially frustrating to have that happen in the last match when your robot has performed flawlessly the rest of the competition.

Thank you to everyone who helped with the event. We tried to host something similar in the summer of 2009. It takes an incredible amount of effort and many people volunteering their time.

TRR was very well run; I can't think of any changes except more teams. If all of us that were involved this year share our experiences with other teams at the 2012 regionals, I wouldn't be surprised if attendance doubles. You can definitely count us in if there is a second Texas Robot Round-Up next summer.

Scott Rippetoe
Team 1477: Texas Torque

jee7s

02-08-2011, 19:07

As one of the queuers for TRR, I'd like to thank all of the teams for a smooth and respectful ride through qualifications and eliminations. It was a pleasure to work with Koko Ed to get a sound system in place.

We're sorry if we caught any teams off guard with the in-gym queuing for eliminations. I know that didn't happen at Alamo this year, but it was common practice for regionals I had been to in the past (NJ, NYC, Baltimore) and the Championship. We figured it would be the best way to keep eliminations moving.

For anyone who didn't get a chance to talk with Ed, you missed a once-in-a-long-while opportunity to talk with a man I consider one of the best mentors in FIRST. I had come to that conclusion based on reputation and word of mouth. Having worked with him in a stressful situation for a day, I've got to say he lived up to everything people have said about him. It was truly a pleasure.

Here's hoping for an awesome TRR 2 next year.

Pjohn1959

02-08-2011, 20:56

Team 1429 had a great time in Austin this past weekend. Congratulations to all the winners. Team 1477, for the skills challenge, although the Robonauts would have given you guys a run for your money if they had their mini-bot on their robot during their run. Team 624 Kryptonite, for having the number one seed. And teams 118, 1477 and 653 for having a monster alliance that was unstoppable.

I would also like to give thanks to all the volunteers that came and made this a huge success. This includes Patrick F. and Jess J. for all their work that lead up to this event and made it possible for the teams to compete in an offseason event for the first time ever in Texas.

Personally, I would like to thank And Baker for making the trip down to Texas. I know that he brought the field down early and helped set it up for us. He also provided a booth that featured some really neat new items that will be available for us next year. It's always an honor to have a Woodie Flowers winner at your event.

This has been a long time in coming, and we are looking forward to attending again next year.