2012 MSC
 

So who's excited for MSC this year. I know I am especially after witnessing Troy.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The things that are going to happen at this tournament...definitely worth taking a break from college for :D .

I really hope there are multiple teams with flawless coop records here to make it really interesting. I know that's what Troy was!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

It'll be a Coopertition competition more than anything else. :cool:

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Atleast the first two days...

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I think it is more like an "Avoid not being able to balance on Coopertition bridge" during qualifying rounds. When most teams can balance on coopertition bridge, it will not be a deciding factor towards the seeding. It will be back to WLT.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Unless you are on on the field when it goes bad. Then you instantly drop relative to the rest of the field.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I hope you're correct when it comes to win/loss records. Can't say I'm a fan of seeing undefeated teams in 10th place.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

With co-op happening more, and it swinging back closer to WLT I see some interesting things happening.

I see it shifting more towards the lesser scorers on the alliance doing co-op, in an effort to win the match, possibly resulting in less reliable co-op robots and a failure to do so, hurting everyone on the field.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I was thinking of this same thing. There will definitely be a lot of hard thinking about who should handle the bridge.

As far as undefeated teams being ranked 10th, I don't inherently have a problem with it. Going undefeated and being ranked 10th tells me there is a strategy issue (qualification strategy, that is). I'm sure there are plenty of teams that would have fewer losses if they valued winning above the co-op bridge.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

A wild card at MSC should be alliance bridge capability. I expect to see a *lot* of "6 bridge" matches...

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I refer to these affectionately as Triple Doubles and i wish that was an actual term in the manual even if it gave no bonus

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Our team is officially excited! It's going to be a long 1.5 (and counting) days of work...

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Personally, I see the better scoring machines doing the coop.

I can't see a team like HOT leaving it up to another team to balance the coop bridge, when it is so important to ranking. Also I do not see a team like HOT agreeing to balance with a less capable shooting machine while 469 cleans up in the last 30 seconds.

I do think that the average time to balance on the coop bridge to be more around the 30 second mark rather then the 45+ at previous district events.

-Clinton-

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The politics surrounding the bridge at MSC shall be very interesting.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The coop bridge at MSC will be very similar to Troy I believe.

"My stats say that you are the best balancer on your alliance...we want you to balance with us."

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Lightning Robotics is excited to be a part of this awesome event!

Few of our students made this promo video for our pit display: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbxK3oM1LT0

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The NC Gears are just happy that our check finally cleared at FIRST HQ and now we actually show up on the roster of teams!

Every team at MSC should be capable of tipping the bridge and balancing. I foresee a lot of triple doubles, with basket scoring once again determining matches. Hybrid will be huge. Be flexible on your setup, movements, and timing to avoid clashing with your partners. I expect defense will be a much bigger factor than it was at district events, where the non-scorers were often also non-bridge crossers and therefore unable to play defense. Creatively driven, wide defense bots that have good hybrid and don't collect fouls will valuable picks for elims.

Its going to be fun to watch and an honor to participate.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Completely agree. Teams that prefer shooting two feet from the hoop are at high risk.

Watch the robot on the Coopertition bridge play defense on 548.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Not to derail, but what were all those penalties for?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Probably for transitory contact with the key. If the two blue robots were touching each other and one was touching the key, both are considered to be protected.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Which is why we (FRC 862) chose to build our fender bot with a "sideways" shooter. So we can use the drivetrain to push back and get into position. Worked pretty well at Livonia when there was some tough defense played on us in elims. See the video from post #16 for some highlights.

Should be a great competition. Can't wait!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I don't believe there's any such thing as transitory contact. It appeared to be [G27]s on 548. Deliberate or damaging contact inside the frame perimeter.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Don't worry about us, we've made massive shooting changes if there's a defender anywhere close. Also I am extremely excited for MSC, I don't see one team on the list that isn't scary in some aspect!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Yes Jack is right. The offensive robot got the penalties (three technicals) for damaging contact inside the bumper perimeter. It was one of the most ridiculous calls I have seen at a FIRST event. And yes, we let the head referee know how we felt at the time. Since the outcome would not have changed due to the penalties, we decided to not bring out the rule book. I will definitely have some questions for the ref crew at MSC during the driver's meeting.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

So, is there any video footage of the good West Michigan teams in action? I haven't seen good West Michigan robot action since the videos of 1918 and 85 in week 1. Granted I haven't looked very hard. But I'd love some to watch some videos of 85, 107, 141, 1918, 2054, 2474, 2767, 3234, 3357, 4003, and all the other West Michigan teams!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Similar to what I did in previous years, I ran through 200 simulated qualification match schedules (with 12 matches per team, using the FIRST match generator). I used each team's highest adjusted opr at any event for their contribution to a match, based on Ed Law's data. I calculated the results for each of the 200 simulated qualification schedules, and then looked at some statistics from the aggregate results.

Since the standings are much more complicated this year, I did not try to calculate the standings. This is only the contribution of w-l-t to the qualification score (eg 2 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, no points for a loss).

Everyone should attend Karthik's presentation where he covers "Why 'OPR' is a flawed indicator in Rebound Rumble".

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Our mentor with the shiny SLR camera has HQ footage of West Michigan. It focuses on BOB though so you don't see as much of the other robots.

3546 has some footage of their alliance in the finals match 2 and 3.

Team 3546 channel containing Final Match 2 & 3
http://www.youtube.com/user/GHteam3546

Team 85 Playlist of West Michigan Videos
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...2&feature=plcp

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Field appears to be set.

Variations from Ed's list of 64 qualifiers:
No 3357
No 703
Add 2586
Add 904

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Just a heads up to everyone attending MSC!

There will be a Non-Engineering Mentors Organization (NEMO) Gathering after Opening Ceremonies on Saturday!
This gathering is for any mentors who handle any of the Non-Engineering tasks that are needed to manage FIRST teams.
This can be anything that does not have to do with robot design and build: like Awards submissions, business plans, sponsorship and fundraising, chaperoning, planning trips, organizing food and calendars...etc.

We will network and share information to help improve our teams as well as FiM and FIRST overall.

If your team is attending MSC, please send a representative to this meeting. It will be a great way to find out about non-Engineering resources from each other.

My goal is to have everyone leave with at least 3 new contacts/friends!

(I will not be passing out fliers to advertise this :eek: , so please spread the news by word of mouth!)

Re: 2012 MSC
 

What if our team is not attending MSC but we will be there as spectators? Can we still attend? Just out of curiosity.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The two best scorers.

Yup.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Absolutely!
I encourage any mentor to attend this that is interested (or parent that deals with any non-engineering tasks!)

I'd also like to extend the invitation to those out-of-staters who will be joining us.

It's going to be extremely informal. More of a meet and greet with a bit of structured conversation.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I've heard a lot of rumors that the eliminations of the event will be shown on Public Television. Anyone know where I should look to find specifics regarding the broadcasting?
Thanks!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Why? There are plenty of robots that can balance just as well as the top scorers at MSC. Why not let them balance?

That's like saying, "We want to balance with YOU, not your perfectly capable alliance partners, because since we are going to be unable to score in the last 30 seconds we want nobody on your alliance scoring either."

Alliances will have to weigh the benefits and disadvantages of choosing to co-op with their top scorer.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Benefits:

Ensure both sides get an equal and fair opportunity to win the match on hybrid/teleop points through the first 1:45 or so of the match.

Ensure the 2 best teams go to the bridge to get the critical 2 CP.

Disadvantages:

????

I'd hate to be a higher seed putting the acquisition of 2 CP in the hands of others, no matter how capable you think they may be at balancing up to that point. If lower seeded bots are "perfectly capable" of balancing, they are also perfectly capable of going to the alliance bridge to be a part of the ubiquitous "triple doubles" you expect to see at the competition.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I predict at least 2 double triples.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Yes, if you don't go for the coop bridge, you are putting the acquisition of 2 CP in the hands of others. But if you do go for the coop bridge and the outcome of the match has not been decided yet, you are putting the acquisition of 2 QP (winning) in the hands of others. And if you win you don't share those QP with your opponents.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

And if you lose, you risk getting zilch out of the match. Quite tough coming back after taking that kind of hit.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

That is true. I guess you just have to believe in yourself. Believe you have the power to sway the match! :D Call me crazy, but I think a very good scorer can probably categorize matches into 3 different categories: Easy matches where you can get the 4 points (from win and coop) all by yourself, hard matches where the maximum QP you can get is 2 (from coop), and, my favorite, matches that require TEAMWORK with lesser scorers on your alliance to achieve 4 points (from win and coop). In the first two cases, you should go for the coop bridge. In the last case you should do whatever it takes to win and hope that your partner coops successfully.

Of course, the statistics are mostly against me. 3161 ranked first at GTRW because they cooped in every match. 4161 seeded first at San Diego by just focusing on the coop bridge in qualifications. 67 tries to coop every match in order to maximize their QP and seeded first in all three events they attended.

As a counterexample, my team (3322) seeded first with 20 Coopertition points at Livonia, balancing 7 times out of 7 attempts. Some of those balances were on the alliance bridge. We were conscious enough about our standing to coop in our last match, barely pulling it off with 4390 in the last couple seconds. But a lot of the time we trusted our alliance mates to balance the Coopertition bridge, and it ended up working out for us.

By the way, what I say on this board has nothing to do with what 3322 will do at MSC. We might end up attempting a coop balance in every match; who knows? And we would love to coop with 67 in a match in order to show them how good we are at balancing! :p

Re: 2012 MSC
 

schedule is out http://www2.usfirst.org/2012comp/eve...eduleQual.html

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Match 19 is perhaps the scariest thing ever. And Match 45 will be intense as well!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

There are quite a few OMG matches! In a field of 64, how 469 gets to play with 67 once and against 67 twice. Scheduling gods are ROTFLTAO... :-)

Match 112 is pretty stacked, too.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I ran through the actual qualification match schedules (as posted on the FIRST website). I used each team's highest adjusted opr at any event for their contribution to a match, based on Ed Law's data. I calculated the results for each of the matches.

Since the standings are much more complicated this year, I did not try to calculate the standings. This is only the contribution of w-l-t to the qualification score (eg 2 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, no points for a loss).

Everyone should attend Karthik's presentation where he covers "Why 'OPR' is a flawed indicator in Rebound Rumble".

Matches:
W-L-T:
Highest Alliance Scores:
Highest Combined Scores:
Highest Scoring Close Matches:

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Is there a webcast for MSC? Not finding it on NASA or MadStream.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Code red robotics has a page up for the cast here, though it appears down now.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

It appears to be up now...But with no sound and an obnoxious ticker banner across the top. I hope that gets fixed for tomorrow.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

As predicted, 19 was an excellent match. 86-62, all bridges balanced.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

3 as of match 19

It is happening..but won't be broadcasted until May.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

No it hasnt.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Read it wrong... 3 triple doubles...

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Fed's with zero points after three matches is insane!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Actually they have 112 :-p

Yes, I know you mean QP.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

All webcasts should be like this (double pane, one for the production feed and one of a full field camera). Kudos to Code Red Robotics.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Is there a youtube playlist for these matches, or any kind of video archive?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Yes... FIRSTinMichgian

Re: 2012 MSC
 

It's been an amazing competition so far. It's pretty tough to put up 61 and 72 points in consecutive qualifying matches and lose them both, but that's the way it is at a championship event. Tomorrow is going to be intense.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Alliance selections:

1 469 67 830
2 2054 548 245
3 3098 33 2137
4 573 1918 70
5 4294 2474 3234
6 2337 1023 1684
7 51 217 2851
8 862 1718 3322

no refusals by anyone involved

Re: 2012 MSC
 

So close to a double triple! And they made it a couple matches later!

It is indeed a rare year when you don't see the Thunder Chickens in St. Louis.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Sf 1-2 Field Fault - all six robots dropped com at same time

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I've been following it off and on all day in between house hold chores :D

That is pretty crazy there Chris to score that many and still lose a match.


On the Code Red Robotics live stream there was just a mention of waiting on the replay camera for the ABC special. Does anyone know of that? When and where will it be broadcast?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

So why wasn't [G25] applied to 67 when there was a blue robot touching them while balancing?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Presumably because the robot falling onto them is covered by [G44]

Re: 2012 MSC
 

That's an interesting usage of it. Has some very interesting connotations in the future if that holds true through championships.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I wouldn't really say it affected the balancing... if anything, it helped the blue alliance because otherwise the falling robot is probably on its side.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I agree with the way it was called, but I can see an argument for calling G35 on 67 because their presence prevented 548 from driving off the end of the bridge, preventing a double balance. That's sketchy at best, and I think the refs did the right thing. Another interesting observation is that after 67 died, 469 (I believe accidentally) pushed them closer to the blue bridge. If anyone wants to rewatch it it's uploaded here.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Because 67 never touched the bridge directly. (At best, you could say 67 interfered with the bridge because the other robot fell on it, but then [G44] would apply and negate the foul.)

As for [G28], I don't know the circumstances of what happened with 67. If they E-stopped in that position (understanding the implications), there might be an argument to be made that the resulting contact was purposeful (and it was obviously consequential). On the other hand, sitting immobile isn't a very good indicator of purpose. I'd say the call on the field was a good one: one foul.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I disagree...

Well if the robot was on it side, the blue alliance would have won.

There were no bridge points in the final match (F 1-2). This was because the robot 67 was contacting (preventing from tipping) was still in contact with the bridge. Had the robot not been in contact with the bridge, the blue alliance would have received 20 bridge points.

The final score was Red (469, 67, 830) 60 - Blue (2054, 548, 245) 49.
With blue getting those 20 BP, the final score would have been Red 60 - Blue 69.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Congratulations to 469, 67, and 830 for winning the MSC; which is no small feat!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

And Blue should have (and would have) lost had it gone to a rubber match...67 was not moving nearly the entire match.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

And what if 67 had died for the last half of that rubber match and blue won? I think it still should have gone to a 3rd match

Re: 2012 MSC
 

A bad call at the end of a match doesn't warrant a new match, it warrants a review of the call, and adjustment of the score as necessary.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I was not saying it would have changed the tournament outcome.

Losing comms, or whatever the issue was, happens. That was not the first time 67 had sat still for a good portion of the match during eliminations.

I am glad that Red won! I am very inspired by 469 and 67 machines. I can't wait to get an in person look at the robots in St. Louis!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

And if the call had been changed blue would have won. Which, to me, would seem logical to warrant another match.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I disagree. At most, you can call a Tech Foul per [G28] which would still have given Red the win. I can't possibly see how a non-moving robot in the position 67 was in would not be [G44] protected from any potential [G25] call.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Why would it be G44 protected? No opponent put 67 where they were.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Because they weren't touching the bridge, hence no possible way to incur [G25] by themselves, if they were to be moved into contact with the bridge it would have had to have been by the opposing alliance.

Note: I am suggesting that the appropriate call for hitting the overhanging edge of a robot on the bridge, per the rules as written, is a Tech foul [G28] even if that contact unbalances a balanced bridge or otherwise interferes with balancing. The "If the act...." section of G25 is written as part of the "Violation" section which means that it is used to stipulate the penalty for violating the rule which requires a violation of the rule itself to begin with (touching the bridge).

Re: 2012 MSC
 

G25 doesn't say you must contact the bridge for the violation to be incurred. It implies that there are ways to interfere with balancing that don't involve contacting the bridge. The balance attempt was clearly interfered with by 67, by definition of interfere. Though that doesn't mean it changed the outcome, its certainly enough to make a case for G25.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

It's true that [G25] doesn't require actual contact for interference.¹ However, if the interference was directly caused by an opponent's action (even if there were other direct causes), [G44] is triggered and [G25] is waived. It doesn't matter that 548 didn't intend to fall on 67; only that they did, that the bridge was interfered with, and that 548 was a direct cause of the interference.

¹ Thought experiment: a robot has an earthquake machine and directs it at the floor to unseat the opponents' bridge. [G25] would seem to be appropriate.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Well now you're in G45 territory for using G44 to waive G25.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Wanted to thank 2054 and 245 for being great alliance partners and getting us all the way to the finals.
Congrats to 67, 469, and 830. Very scary alliance and a well deserved victory!

Hope to see all of you at St. Louis and hope to meet again behind the same glass in eliminations there!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

What a great, high stakes competiton! Always great to see HOT win (and to give them a run for their money in quarters 1 match 2). I have a lot to say about the many great teams at the event. but unfortunately I have other things on my mind.

I lost a blue and gray checkered (kind of) hoodie that contains my car keys at the competition. It was on the table in our pit after our last quarterfinals match, and then disappeared. I looked everywhere I had been including the stands and the pit, and my team searched through all our stuff and couldn't find it. We talked to pit admin and to the event coordinator and they weren't able to help me.

Nobody moved it, so barring someone walking into our pit and just taking it, we think what most likely happened is it got bumped into the pit behind us belonging to Team Excel, 2474. They packed up very quickly and were gone the next time anyone from our team was in the pit. 2474, it would really help me if you could check to see if you have my hoodie and keys.

I know what I have to do now that my keys are gone; I am just wondering if anyone has seen the hoodie or has any idea where I could find it. What do they do with the lost and found items after the competition?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Who won Chairmans, EI and RAS?

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I am pretty sure all lost and found gets sent to FIRST Headquarters. I am not 100% though.

Hope you find your hoodie and keys!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Chairmans: 27, 33, 503
EI: 1718
RAS: I dont remember.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

4130 Blue Devils won RAS

Re: 2012 MSC
 

That was particularly sweet for us - they are a rookie team we started this year and build in our build space. We're in the process of helping them with funding for the trip to St. Louis, and possibly getting them a ride down there.

Go Blue Devils!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Build them a Crate! Fast! :ahh: That's what Team 1511 did for our Regional's Rookie All Star team. Actually we made it in advance and presented it to the winner after they won.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Great match, congrats to the winnings alliance! The wave from the stands :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjep3...ture=mh_l olz

Re: 2012 MSC
 

How many of them are there? We may have room on our bus.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The wave :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjep3WMjm3Y

Re: 2012 MSC
 

OK...what an interesting way to win the Michigan State Championship. Obviously "dead" in the blue protected area, possibly in the way of a double or triple balance is not the way we would have wanted to finish out an incredible FiM Season.

I'd like to thank all the people that made this event possible...all the volunteers, refs, judges, FTAs, teams, etc...just another awesome run event all around.

- To 469, thank you for allowing us to play with you guys one more time this season. Both your team and your ro bot are incredible. For anyone that hasn't noticed, 469 has the best robot in Michigan and probably all of FIRST. Just an incredible performance all weekend long. Thanks for carrying the load for the alliance and our failing robot. I don't think we have seen the full power an alliance of 469+67 could have, yet this season. I will keep my fingers crossed that we will get one more chance to show it in St. Louis. On a different note, it has been incredible how close our teams have gotten over this season. At Waterford we were feeling each other out. At Troy we were working together. At MSC we were messing around and joking with each other. We have gone from fellow localteams and rivals...to teammates...to friends, its amazing.

- To 830, thanks for being great alliance partners. Awesome defense and smart play. You guys were willing to do whatever we asked you to do and did it very well. We could not have won without you guys.

- Congratulations to 548, 2054, and 245. This was not how we wanted to win on a debatable call. You guys were awesome competitors and great sports about the entire situation.

- To 548, you guys are awesome. Winners at Northville with us, Finalists at Troy and MSC against us. Constant improvement all season long. We know how much you guys have worked this year, especially seeing you in the shop after what must have been 2-3 all nighters this season. You are a budding powerhouse Michigan team.

- Congrats to 27, 33, and 503 on your MSC Chairman's awards and 1718 on the Engineering Inspiration Award. Also, congrats to Debbie May, from 1023, on her WFFA.

- Congrats to all the teams that qualified for the Championship in St. Louis. But, I am extremely sad that our good friends the Thunderchickens did not qualify... such a great team, it will just be really weird when they aren't there.

- Thanks to all the great people that come from a long way to see this event live (Andy Baker, Meridith and John Novak, Koko Ed...). Also, it was cool to have Dean witness the awesomeness of MSC...and have Bill Miller sitting courtside watching the Eliminations.

Now on to the last match. I am still not 100% sure what the issue was. I would assume there are some small metal chips inside the cRIO or the Digital side car....or what I was told we found was that the radio was bumped from Bridge to Auto. Either way, we would lose communication from the Drivers station to the robot. I believe the FTAs could see it drop communications, but robot appeared to be live (all light on cRIO/Radio) when we checked it out on the field. We dropped for about 11sec in the middle of the match, regained control for about 15sec, then dropped again chasing a ball over in the blue protected area. We were not going over there to interfere with any blue balancing. 469 did come over and bump us, in hopes of us coming back alive, but there was no intention to move us closer to the blue bridge. The hope was that their bump was what helped us come alive the first time, so maybe it would work again. It wasn't planned or even strategic (more of reactionary by the driver), since it would have been better for them to just go and double or single balance for the win.

I can't say definitively one way or the other if the right call was made by the refs....since the overlap of rules in this years game confuse the heck out of me. I am happy with the call they made...but mostly because we benefitted most from it. Although I would have loved to play strong all the way through the entire match and ended on another awesome double triple balance for the win, just so we could have put on a better show for the TV special (and be heading into St. Louis with as much confidence as possible).

Hopefully we can help bring another Championship trophy back to Michigan, where they belong, again!

-Adam

Re: 2012 MSC
 

The special is supposed to broadcast on a Detroit PBS station, but will simultaneously go live online (so I am told). Look for this later in May.

************************************************** *

I would like to start with a congratulations to Debbie of team 1023 on her WFFA. 1023 has an exemplary program on and off the field, and I know she has had a huge impact on her students.

Congratulations to the event winners 469, 67, and 830. I was impressed with the versatillity you guys showed through the tournament. Congratulations to the Finalists 2054, 548, and 245. The film crew loved 548's arm and was rooting for you guys. Also, everyone wants to know what kind of Zip-ties 2054 has ;) .

Congratulations to 503 and 27 on well deserved Chairman's awards. I am continuously in awe of all that you guys do, and humbled to be in your company. To 1718, I don't know that there is a more appropriate EI winner. I know that I am inpired byt the work you guys do year in and out please keep it going.

3098, thank you for picking us, an 2137, thank you for playing with us. It was a fun run. I am sorry we were not more robust.

A huge thank you to the volunteers that make the event run so smoothly. I saw a lot of great mentors in volunteers shirts playing double duty during the weekend. Thank you to all of the inspectors for ensuring everyone made it out on the field in fair fashion.

I feel I need to make a special callout. They say actions speak louder than words, but I think some words are needed in this case. There was a team at MSC that didn't have a Chairman's booth, wasn't bragging about their efforts, but in my opinion embodied the true spirit of being a role model team. This team was exemplary on the field while donating the large percentage of their mentors to run the event from technical field assistance to former students leading in inspection and mentor roles of other teams (these people are Dean's List quality before there was a Dean's List award). They have mentors taking pictures for all to enjoy. They had mentors assisting the film crew to ensure that the others will see what a great "sport of the mind" we participate in. Marjie, thank you for running such a great event. Gail, thank you for for your leadership in all that you do. Las Guerillas, thank you for the impact your organization has had on how FIRST is done in Michigan.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

862 had an amazing time at the Michigan State Championship, and were incredibly honored to be an alliance captain at this amazing event!

A huge thank you to our alliance partners 1718 The Fighting Pi, and 3322 Eagle Imperium you both were amazing partners! To be able to hold that number 1 alliance to only a 7 point lead is an incredible accomplishment. When that score is 97-90 its even more impressive! Getting that triple balance was one of the greatest experiences of the weekend!

Good luck to both of you in St. Louis!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Does anyone know where the list is of the teams that qualified for St. Louis? I was curious so I was looking for it, but I couldn't find it anywhere.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

It's in the updated results and rankings spreadsheet on the FiM website:
http://firstinmichigan.org/FRC_2012/...12_season.html

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Look on the FiM website this evening. Under FRC Events - 2012 Season. There should be an updated spreadsheet for Results and Rankings.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Here are the results:
http://www.firstinmichigan.org/FRC_2...12_Results.xls

Re: 2012 MSC
 

A tear is shed for 217.

Re: 2012 MSC
 

Longest post I've ever written for CD.

As a first time Volunteer Coordinator I want to start out by thanking all of our wonderful volunteers that we had this weekend. Every time that I saw a volunteer, they were working hard with smiles on their faces. This was an amazing event, but it was only that way because of the effort from our volunteers.

I want to especially shout out to a few volunteers who almost never get publicly recognized:

Cheryl and the other wonderful people managing our four safety glasses station:
I worked that job at Waterford for a bit, and I know how boring it can be to sit there all day, but every time I saw you and asked “How’s it going?” you smiled and said, “Great!” You did an efficient and great job making sure our tables were manned all the time, and I want you to know how extremely grateful I am that you donated your time this weekend to help us out there. In my opinion, that is the most under-appreciated but important volunteer roles in FIRST. On Saturday we had hundreds of visitors who had never seen a FIRST event before, but you helped them feel welcome in the pit areas, and that is how we can really spread the message of FIRST. Thank you!

My ladies that worked the volunteer table:
This is another job that takes you away from the field and your team all weekend long, but you ladies always had a smile for me when I went up to our room to get something or grab a coffee. I definitely could not have done my job without you helping to check people in and help volunteers find where they needed to be. You were an enormous help to me personally, and I know that the other volunteers were always grateful to see your smiling faces as they came in the room for meals. Dana, you rocked at helping out wherever I needed you this weekend! I appreciate you taking care of things for me on Wednesday! It was nice to know that I didn’t have to worry about anything that day so I didn’t have to miss class.

The gentlemen at the practice field, especially Andrew!
I was so nervous to have five ramps set up there with 64 teams wanting to use them, but I never once had to worry about it! You were amazing! Andrew, I can’t even imagine how exhausted you had to be Thursday. You stayed there all day long and helped queue the endless line of teams and make sure everyone was safely using the ramps. We didn’t have any problems at the practice field. The teams were patient with each other, and our practice field attendants were the best!

Queuers!
Cindy, we always can count on you! Thank you for taking the lead here! Koko Ed and Kevin, it was awesome to have some out-of-staters working with us! I hope that you enjoyed the FiM spirit and will come back again next year! Every time I was around the field, it was wonderful to see your smiling faces. Ed, I love your stories. I’m still laughing about them now!

Our gentle, sweet and hilarious Pit Admin!
A special thank you to the Sweet family. Jane and Russ, you run a flawless pit table, and we are a million times thankful that you could join us this weekend. I didn’t get a chance to give you a hug before you left for the day on Saturday, but next time I see you, you better believe that I’ll have a big one for you! Dan, you too! Between running our replacement parts, giving me crap about anything you could think of :) and helping with crowd control, every time I saw you, I knew that we were in capable hands. Thanks, buddy!

And lastly, a few key people:

Pat, our Scorekeeper:
You are a constant steady rock in the midst of the controlled chaos that is a FIRST event. Nothing phases you as you efficiently take care of things behind the scorer's table. We are lucky to have you on board. Alex, you make me laugh every time that I talk with you. Thanks for helping out with Pat and being on call during elims even though we needed your space at the table. Your positive attitude is inspiring and contagious. Thanks, kid.

Tricia and Alex: thanks for taking care of our judges! They seemed so happy every time that I saw them! You two are awesome. Tricia, thank you for the kind words and vote of confidence on Friday. I know Pam has always appreciated your help over the years, and now I fully understand why: you are amazing.

Jason, our Field Supervisor:
Oh Jay, I don’t even know where to start.
Probably should just go with this: ~~~
Thank you for the constant laughs all weekend and for being our “Jack of all Trades!” Our field crew was great, and it was because of your leadership that we were able to keep things moving along smoothly. The friendship that we’ve created over the past year is awesome, and I always look forward to seeing you at FIRST events. Thanks for the constant jokes over the headset! People probably think that I’m crazy, because I’d be in a room talking with volunteers and would just bust out laughing at something that you said through the mic/headset.

Refs and Inspectors:
As always, we have the classiest crew up here! Thank you for taking care of our teams. Your job is not easy, because it revolves around telling people when they’ve done something wrong.
Zebras: you guys looked great this weekend. I hope that you had fun, and I’m glad that we had every single one of your on board! Alan, thanks for taking the lead here!
Inspectors: one of my favorite moments of the weekend was looking over and seeing a bunch of you sitting on that camera-stand with the sign that said, “Robot Inspector Storage Area.” A few of you took care of other jobs for me over the weekend when you weren’t inspecting: thank you SO much for this! I know that Marjie missed inspecting, but was happy to leave her job in capable Cheri’s hands! Ike, you did an awesome job as lead inspector. Thank you for all of your help with the production crew as well. I hope you realize how respected and appreciated you are in the FiM and FIRST community.

Rob and Eric: It is always a pleasure working with you. You looked sharp in your new FTA shirts! Eric, your endless energy and positivity is contagious. Rob, you are always cool under pressure. These are two guys that I know I can rely on no matter what. As FTAs, they truly live the FIRST Spirit. They care about every single team and robot that is at their events and on their field, and their main goal is to make sure that all of the teams, students, and volunteers have a positive experience.

Tom, Bob and Teams 830 - the Rat Pack and 469 - the Las Guerillas:
What an exhausting weekend, and yet you stayed until 10:30 to help with fields takedown, clean up and other last second jobs to finish off the weekend. We are unbelievably lucky to have such a dedicated crew that takes care of our fields, once again always with a smile on your faces.

Lastly, but not at all least: Marjie Jenkins, our event coordinator.
You did an absolutely amazing job. The event was brilliant! You handled everything flawlessly. Thank you for all of your hard work planning this. I’m having a hard time coming up with words to tell you how impressed I am with how you took care of *everything* this weekend. Thank you for the opportunity to be your Volunteer Coordinator. It was, hands down, the best FIRST experience that I’ve had. You are a wonderful person, and I’m honored to have worked with you this weekend.

What.An.Epic.Weekend.
Thank you!

Re: 2012 MSC
 

I really want to give special thanks to the practice field crew. This was BY FAR the best run practice field that I've ever seen. This should be a model for how all events are run. Thank you very much. It couldn't have been better.