Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

Playing on Archimedes was an absolute pleasure. I've never been through such an exciting elimination tournament. The semi's between the 1 and the 5 alliance were exceptional to watch, and it was a privilege to play those finals with and against so many friends. To walk on the field afterwards, in victory and defeat, and shake hands was a great feeling. They were the most exciting and memorable matches in my FIRST career.

To our new friends on 2826, it was almost depressing how many balls you could score in the last 30 seconds. When I first saw your robot this season, I was shocked and amazed by the similarities. I'm glad we could inspire each other and learn each others success's and failures.

To 67, we had high hopes to play with you this weekend. Your machine was phenomenal. It is a unique and highly effective design, and I'm shocked you didn't get a Championship Technical award.

To 4334, you have taken the first steps towards becoming a hugely successful team. You were calm and collected through out the tournament, and your performance under pressure should be commended. I'm sorry we couldn't have finished off under better circumstances, but that's a story for a different post. We will be nominating you in our application for IRI. You deserve to be there as much as anyone.

To the Canadian teams that joined us on Archimedes in the elimination rounds to cheer on "The Eh Team", Thank You. Seeing those hundreds, if not thousands of fans cheering and waving Canadian flags was hugely inspiring. You gave us confidence, even when facing elimination from the phenomenal #1 alliance.

To our family on 1114, this one was a long time coming. Seeing you win the Chairman's award brought me to tears. Winning the division together was like a dream. I can only imagine what would have been had things played out differently on Einstein.

I encourage everyone to think of the great times had on Archimedes and not to dwell too much on the events that occurred on Einstein. We can only hope that some good will come of those events, and improvements will be made to benefit all teams going forward.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

4143 posted a few of our last matches to youtube.
Here is our last non-balance....
http://www.youtu.be/ABTTuwNsu6A

Our team greatly appreciates Wave and Hot for almost leading us to Einstein as a rookie team. I plan on posting about the experience from a rookie team's perspective soon.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

After a rough start we we excited to get back into the groove with shooting and balancing and then to be selected to be a part of the number 5 alliance.

It was great to play alongside 3481 and 359 in some very close matches. Some went our way, some did not! :D

Congrats to the runner up alliance of 2826 and 67 and 4143 and to the division champs 2056 1114 and 4334.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

We recorded every match in very high quality with a midfield camera, we'll spend all day uploading to youtube and share links when they're up.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

Ouch...I thought it hurt before. Being able to see it over and over is even worse.

Atleast I can see that we were clearly beat in F2, and would not have won even if we didn't land on that ball. So that's comforting to know that triple balancing was basically the only option in F3.

Those three robots were just not compatible with triple balancing.

Thanks for posting the videos.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

Watching the finals matches was one of the most exciting moments I've had in my years with FIRST. The 103-106 back and forth battle, to the ups and downs (literally) of the last attempted triple. We couldn't stay in our seats each match as time wound down. Congrat's to a great season to all the finalists.


I think 67's machine tops my list for all time favorite robots. An ingenious idea, multiple functions of one mechanism. Absolutely amazing to watch.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

The Archimedes Final might be 3 of the best matches of the finals. That is how Einstein should have ended.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

Being part of an alliance with you guys as well as 1114 was Utterly amazing and i will remember it for the rest of my life.

Both of you inspired our team to push and reach for heights we initially believed unattainable

a salute and toast to our brief stint together as the Eh Team i am deeply honoured to have met all of you and of course to have played with you through both the good and the bad.

2056's nomination of us for IRI means a lot and is greatly appreciated hopefully we will get the chance to attend and see you all there. :) (Eh Team Unite ;)

I send the same message to the Archimedes alliance #1 seriously what a match proud to have played with you all :)

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

What an intense division. The finals matches between our alliance and the "Lake Michigan" alliance were of the charts when it comes to the intensity level. The drama of F-3 is completely unparalleled.

It was an honour to play against our dear friends from Team 67 once again. This marks the 4th time in 6 years that 1114 and 67 have battled at the Championship event. Fitting that the series is now tied up at two a piece. Hopefully one of these years we'll finally get to play together at the big show.

As for Team 2826, they are the next emerging powerhouse team in FIRST. Expect to see them on Einstein in the near future, it's just a matter of time. It was great getting to know you guys, I definitely see a lot of similarities in our teams.

To Team 4334, congratulations on having the smartest simple design of the season. It's mind boggling to me that more teams didn't realize the value of a super small robot that could fetch balls. Our alliance had some of the fastest and smoothest triple balances of the season, and this simply would not have been possible without your robot. I look forward to seeing even more impressive things out of your team next year in Calgary!

To our friends on Team 2056, what's left to say. I thought that this was finally going to be our elusive chance to win Champs together. Alas, maybe it wasn't meant to be. Regardless, there's no one else we would have rather been paired with. Thank you for picking us and getting the band back together; we always put on a good show together. Can't wait until the next tour.

It was such a thrill being on this division. The crowd at our field for the finals was so huge, it seemed like everyone appeared out of nowhere. Thanks to all the volunteers who kept things running smoothly, it was an amazing crew.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

You've got that right.

My daughter, who is 7, literally cried watching the web feed of the live event. She still doesn't understand how it can happen. It's interesting trying to convince her that "it's not fair" doesn't really apply. Robots are easier than 7 year olds.

Even more cruel, the stream my parents were watching froze when we were still up (the second time) and they assumed we had won. It was minutes later before it started playing again and they had to piece together what had happened.

Wave and HOT, sincere appreciation from the entire 4143 MARS/WARS team for the trust to select us in your alliance. It certainly was an amazing cap to what was already an extremely memorable rookie year for the students us mentors too. We look forward to many more years of coopertition.

While I'm at it, more sincere thanks to 1736 Robot Casserole and all the other Peoria area FIRST teams that helped us out as rookies this year. Your support made a huge difference.

Now I need to go burn the video tape....

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

On Friday night we realized if we won our Saturday match we would be picking 7th. Because of this we started looking for robots that could help us triple. The first team we thought of was 4334. We had 1 match with them, and by the end of the match we had every ball on our side of the field. Plus because of their size, they were put at the top of our pick list because they would have been a perfect compliment to us. We completely realized the value of a robot like that.

Sitting next to all of you guys down on the field during the finals was very inspiring, and it was awesome seeing an all Canadian alliance making it the Einstein. I just loved all of the energy of everyone who was rooting for Canada.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

I'm copying my post from Youtube here...

At 3:48 what clearly should have been a 6-point shot is only credited with 3... does anyone know if that was corrected at any point in the match? That could have made the difference, as red wouldn't have had to triple...

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

It really doesn't matter. I can tell you that the Red Alliance was going to attempt a triple balance no matter how that ball was scored. The discussion before the match was, if we were ahead by 15pts @ 45sec, then double balance otherwise we would need to triple for the win.

At 50sec, we were tied, at some point after than we scored a few more balls, then called for the triple balance. We had no idea 1114 had died in the corner. It appears that 2056 knew 1114 was dead, assumed we would double as we had been, scored enough to take the lead, then went to double balance. Lots of very strategic play in these matches.

It was extremely close and very emotional for those involved, but in the end we battled two of the best teams and friends in FIRST, as closely as we possibly could. This time the cards fell for them. As Karthik said the series is tied 2-2 with 1114, and now 1-1 with 2056. I look forward to getting a chance to play with and against them more in the future.

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

As the "New Kid on the Block", it's still difficult for me to comprehend how we can not only be playing on the same field as 1114, 2056 and 67, but to actually receive accolades such as you have bestowed is an incredible honor. I wonder if you can imagine the countless hours we spent studying your teams play, skill, demeanor and overall "awesomeness". We learned a lot from you over the years and now to have directly worked with you and got to know you as friends is an irreplaceable experience. For me, working with role models such as all of you is truly what FIRST is all about.

To 2056: You are truly the most intense team I have ever worked with. From the beginning, you could see that everyone on the team had a common goal and that nothing was going to deter them from it. After getting to know Tyler over the weekend for the first time, you could almost physically sense this intensity. There was no anger (though at times I would not have blamed him for showing it), no remorse, just a single minded goal. The amazing thing was that the whole team showed this intensity without an air of "Elitism". Not a single member acted like they were better than anyone else. After letting it sink in that 2056 has never lost a regional, it is easy to see why.

To 4334: I can only echo Karthik's words. You picked one thing and you did it amazingly well. When you were snatched up by the rest of your fellow Canadians, we were a little struck and we immediately knew that we were going to have a tough time indeed. Please keep in contact with you new robotics family, as I know they can guide you onto great things.

To 1114: After watching the chairman's video and seeing the members with tears in their eyes, it almost made me want to cry (almost). All I can say is "Unbelievable". I know we are a few years behind you guys, but I am still trying to imagine the army of students and volunteers we would have to put together to come close to what you have done in a few short years. Not to slight previous HoF teams, but I think you easily epitomize all that FIRST is about. Getting to finally meet Karthik in person was great. Tyler Olds has always had the greatest respect for you and now I share that respect.

To 4143: You put up with a lot of stuff from Adam and I in a very short period of time. Most teams would have told us off or at least have grumbled behind our backs. Instead, you elevated your value immensely by making quick and concise changes to your auto mode and proving on the field that you were a durable and extremely worthy partner. Thanks for your patience and skill.

To 67: I am actually sitting here wondering how to start this and I am actually at a loss for words. Not because there are too few words, but far, far too many.
I guess first, a little history: Our teams first met on Curie during Logomotion. Adam has already admitted that Wave was underestimated and we bit him for for this in Semis last year, effectively ending the run for a three-peat Worlds title. I had a feeling he wouldn't ever let me live this down. Thankfully he is a very forgiving person...
After obtaining #1 seed, 67 was an immediate first choice.
1. The machine: Well crafted and well designed. Its hard to imagine a more recognizable icon of Rebound Rumble. The things this machine was capable of was astonishing. Crossing the bump was child's play, Auto with Coop was easy and bridge balancing was unparalleled.
2. The Pit crew: In QF1-2, 67 was hit pretty hard in their arm by another bot and cracked a critical weld. Within 8 minutes, they had the arm repaired and it was probably better than before.
3. The drive team: To be cliche - These guys had fire in their eyes and ice in their veins. But seriously, they were focused, passionate about driving and had an understanding of what to do and how to do it at all times. They easily earned their MSC title.
4. The coach: A lot of people have given Adam a hard time for his coaching style. In some cases they stated he was elitist and unwilling to cooperate. I can now definitively state after working with him that they were all right. Sorry, just kidding. Adam will go down in my book as the perfect combination of experience, dedication, knowledge, drive and humility a coach can have. I seriously think he and Tyler Holtzman should write a whitepaper on coaching. The best part of working with Adam is that when he was not sure of something, he said "I don't know, what do you think". Not many people in his position and of his reputation would say these words let alone mean them. I now consider Adam a good friend-in-fire and I hope I get to work with him in the future.

Finally, my team, 2826: After our Duluth regional in Week 2, I was ready to swear off ball-shooting games forever. In 2010, we had an admittedly dismal year and so far, was the only year we did not go to champs. Instead of taking an obviously poor attitude, we iterated, tested, researched and spent countless hours developing and practicing. To be cliche again, we didn't give up and let what we had be the best we could do. What came out of this was a new tower insert, a single axle hooded flywheel shooter (original was a double axle), and a dead-accurate vision targeting system. Our Wisconsin regional performance of 15 balls in F-1 validated our hard work. Lastly, I want to thank our departing seniors, especially, Zac, Tyler and Alan. You will be missed...


Ok, so I know I rambled and sounded incredibly sappy, but I meant every word. I hope everyone can get on CD and give a shout to what they are thankful for. Going to Champs was a great experience and ended better than I could have possibly expected. Though I am still sore to lose, We could not have lost to a better alliance in what was arguably the best match of the season.

Thanks for reading and see you next season...

Re: Archimedes 2012!
 

That's great advice :)

we will definitely make sure do our best to maintain contact with our new "family" as you put it

In fact i would love to build rapport with all the great teams we played with/against during championships.

being one of the two programmers on the team i would be interested in hearing about your tracking system if you feel that is alright it would be amazing to learn such things from one of the best scorers in the championships. (our scouting had you guys getting approx 30 teleop pts per game)