Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

With all of the focus on the big dance this week, I figure it's only right to give a tip of the hat to the 1,000+ teams that aren't.

Who, in your opinion and by your method of measurement, are the best teams not attending the 2008 Championship Event?

I'll post mine in a while, but I will set one rule: no mentioning your own team, even if you have enough silver medals around your neck to cause scoliosis.

Let's hear them!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I think 1731. They were first pick in both VA and the other regional they went to, but had terrible luck. They lost VA by penalties =S

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

The Best team in Atlanta may NOT be the team that wins!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I'd have to agree with the choice of 1731. At both VCU and Buckeye, both regionals I attended, they were the most consistent robot in both hybrid and tele-operated mode. You always know what you are going to get with 1731, they have the type of consistency that many teams strive for. That kind of consistency makes it obvious that 1731 is doing some serious engineering that works time after time just as it should.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Im pretty sure there not going..but i can be wrong.. but my vote goes out to 910 the Foley Freeze.. They have a great robot and were on the #1 allaince at the Great Lakes Regional and they were getting better and better with each passing match..

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

1731 handsdown. Look out for them during off season events, their robot will finally earn gold somewhere.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I'll go ahead and put my two cents in: 342. They were outgunned in Florida against 233 and 1251 both at the peak of their game, and it was tremendously bad luck in the Palmetto finals (stripping a power distribution block and losing 343 in the early seconds of Finals 4--yes, 4) that kept them from getting their ticket to Atlanta.

You don't become finalist at both Florida and Palmetto without doing something right.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Thank you for the vote .We are all bummed out were not going to the big show, espically our seniors. But we will be watching all the matches via the webcast. Now i want to see team 326 with your awsome hybrid mode knock two balls and five lines like you did aginst us in the Great Lakes finals in match #3 ,sweet!!!!!!! Hopefully we will see every one at IRI or one of the off season events . Good luck to every one.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

defenitly 1726

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

FTC 417.

EDITED: Ah, darn, I wasn't supposed to mention one of my teams. Oh, well, I guess Billfred is coming after me.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

it hurts that 1718 the fighting pi wont be there they put there hearts and soul into those elimination matches at glr they would have made atlanta far more exciting

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

My vote goes to 272. They have a great shooter and they were the 2nd pick (semi) at FLR and 1st pick (finalist) at Philly.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

i would have to agree 1731 is amazing they really deserve to be there. 1629 played with and against them at cleveland and they were some of the most exciting matches we saw. I think that according to our scouting they were the second highest scoring robot below 1024 (but not by much) and above 1126 and ourselves. We talked with them at a chance meeting at Mcdonalds on the way home, and if nothing else they are one of the more friendly teams i've seen after losing in the finals.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I'm going to vote for 1771.. they picked up the ball effectively with a huge suction cup, and then shot it over the overpass with a plunger knocking it out from the grip of the suction cup (kinda 1114-like). go check them out on the blue alliance.. their robot is really quite impressive..

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I think one of the best lapbot will not be in Atlanta and that team would be 381. I am very disappointed that they wont be there. They are all very cool people.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I remember 1731 at Buckeye.
Very impressive shooter. It's a shame they won't get to show off their skills at Atlanta.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Thanks Martijn. We were definitely super bummed that we didn't get a chance to win Peachtree Regional. In some amazing feat of luck however we are actually going to be attending the championship to show of our machine. We also have a much improved method of removing the trackball from the rack.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

1731 FTW!
Dont know why they didn't sign up for Atlanta, but should be there.
Two tough luck losses in finals due to penalties also as mentioned before.
I witnessed one of them.
They literally carried their alliance in elim. matches.

Had they gone to atlanta, they would have been a serious top 10 team overall.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

The one and only 1731.
I was really disappointed not to see 1731 on Championship List.
will definitely miss you guys

-Imad

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

From the robots I've seen, 272 is a great bot. Like The Lucas said, they were the first pick (behind MOE which I've seen get two balls and three lines in hybrid then I've counted 6 balls in Autonomous), and then ahead of MOE in Philly. Watch video of it on MOE's website, http://www.fsrobotics.org/moe365//co...atchvideos.php.

Also, from the offensive power rankings, 1731 is the best bot not to be included in nationals.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I got to say I'm sorry not to see #342 The Burning Magnetos (cool name) from North Charleston,SC going down to the fun at Big A... they got a really solid robot and a good crew.

#1731 is another team I would have enjoyed watching, the put forth a great effort at Buckeye and have a really good shooter.

Better luck next year guys!

As good as your bots and teams are... I'm sure you'll be making it there for sure.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

The best robot that I have seen in person that isn't going is 1718. These guys are amazing, they have been in the top 4 in each of their last 4 events and have not gone to championship either last year or this year. They are good people and I am sure next year they will get over the hump.

In terms of robots I have watched online 272 looks to be the most impressive robot not going. I haven't seen much of 1731, so I can't get a fair estimate of their abilities.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Have to agree with others on 910 - Foley Freeze.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I think from a Canadian point of view, and only judging by the two events I went to, I'm going to give this to 188, unforntaly they had some break downs every now and then, but for how simple there machine was for ball pickup, it worked really well!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

My two are:

910: great robot this year and made it to finals last year, wanted to see them try it again.

342: They were great partners in Florida and it would have been cool to pair up with them again in Atlanta.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

1501, they built one of my favorite robots this year (and last year, and the year before, and the year before). It's a big bummer that they only got to attend one regional...

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I'm going to chime in and agree with the 1731 crowd. Fresta Valley is an amazing team with an amazing robot. By far the best team to build their robot in a barn. The past three year's they've been on the #1 alliance at VCU (as the #1 seed their rookie year in 2006), but they haven't been able to win it yet. This year they also were on the #1 alliance at Buckeye, but met the brick wall of 1024 and 1126 in the finals there. At both events their captains were hurdlers, and (no offense to their partners) at both events they carried their alliances into the finals. They had a unique and effective robo-coach system (using the CMU cam and colored flashlights), effective hybrid (3 lines, 1-2 balls), solid pick-up, and great hurdling. They'll be a contender for years to come.

I saw 272 and 381 in person, and both of them were also outstanding. 272 was a great shooter and 381 is the best lap-bot I have seen, which is an accomplishment as I attended four regionals (NJ, VCU, Philly, NYC).
1655 and 405 were also outstanding lap-bots at VCU who are not going to Championship.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

No doubt: 342

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Wow!

Thanks guys. It gives the warm fuzzies to be mentioned here - especially by teams like you guys Martians and Red Tails.

Someday we'll get there. We tend to be pretty short on funding, so we can't schedule the championships in advance. We just cross our fingers for a regional win, and then hope we can get more money out of Sponsers :) .

We'll get there eventually!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

No question 272. Lansdale Catholic!!
Great shooter. Great knockdown. nice people!

They are awesome and I wish they were in Atlanta!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I'll nominate Team 1730, Team Driven. If memory serves me right, they were the #1 seed at Wisconsin and they deserved it. An excellent team with a great robot.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

272 is incredible and could easily be one of the top 3 picks in any division (that means they are a top 6 robot on any division assuming the top 3 are robots that many consider to be the top bots). They are always up there every year but they always go unnoticed nationally.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Played against them. Very smart drivers. They got the most out of their bot every round.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I have to agree with 1771. When we were scouting for Peachtree and saw a picture of their robot, my first thought was "that thing will never work." Boy I was wrong:eek: During a team meeting, after we got back from Peachtree, we were discussing other teams robots, and the comment came up about how affective 1771 was. I mentioned to our team that 1771 would not be going to the nationals, and you should have seen the jaws drop. I think the students realized how lucky they were to get to compete in two regionals and get the shot at nationals. Good luck next year guys. We'll keep a look out for you in the ATL, and I love the video you put together:)

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Drake thank you so much. That means so much coming from you guys since ya'll were so awesome. We were pretty devastated that we weren't going to get to go but somehow it all worked out. I can't wait to compete again. I'll definitely keep an eye out for you guys. You were awesome.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

agreed! we played with and against them, a few times, definatly a smart bunch on that team lol. It dissapointed me that we never saw you guys on the feild ever (played with or against) because you guys were pretty good as well!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I vote 1731. I've seen these guys for the last few years and not only are their designs successful, they're also unique. They definitely built a world-class bot this year and agree they helped carry more than their load in many of their matches from what I saw.

Last year's design really pushed the limits of engineering, and I'm glad to see it in the RackNRoll book.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

125 has a pretty nasty hurdler this year, easily hitting 15 feet high at times.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

We'll have to watch for them at Beantown.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I guess Martijn and myself will have to change our answers. Looks like 1771 will be playing in Archimedes. I'll have to go will Billfred and say 342. If we had to redo this season's bot, my vote would be a "scoop and shoot" design like theirs. Might be bias b/c I'm a Summerville grad, and on 343.:)

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Thanks to everyone for mentioning us. This was probably our best year ever, but the cards just didn't fall into place:( . I had a great time in Atlanta last year and would have loved to end my senior season their. Good luck to all the teams going

PS to 1319 and 343: I'll be watching you guys!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I am going to say 342 they were a great alliance and they diserve to be in atlanta with us i think they had a great season and should have got to go to atlanta

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I don't remeber the complete list of who's going and who's not but, 381 definitely sold me on the idea of a lap bot being a strong contributer to an alliance. Also I'd have to say 1712 Dawgma is up on my list, they may not have been the best but, they're cool people.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I would agree with you on that one 188 had a good bot again this year, had problems with consistency but when they weren't breaking forks or tangling their ropes they could put up a big score. Again on the Canadian front 1310, who was aligned with 188 at GTR, was a pneumatic beast that was a good hurdler and placer.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Team 1726. I guess they were just unlucky this year, but their bot inspired some other very successful designs. They'd be up for a design award at the Championship had they made it.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Yes 1310 was also good, although they had a slow pickup at some points (some points they were really good at it lol) their shooter arm was awesome "Pokey Pokey"!!!

Our team mothers were calling 1310 the gaint teddy bear, cause it looked like it hugged the ball all the time!

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

I would have to second 1726. They built a great bot. While talking to them, they gave us some advice that honestly defined our bot. It is funny that they shared our fate; my signature says it all.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

a yes... the distribution block... that stunck like nobody's business...

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

We had that problem too... they don't seem to like the 10 gauge wire lol :(

Thankfully we had our wire at the right length and the block in a safe spot that nothing could happen to it ever lol! (although we had to push the wire back in every so often :eek: )

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

Immediately 342 and 272 popped into my head, I got to see both in person. 342 is a bit quicker, but 272 had excellent holonomic maneuverability. I am going to give 272 the tip of the hat for the cool electromagnet shooter and for being able to hurdle over the lane divider.

However, since we are voting for best team, and not best robot performance, I wish 1098 were going to be in Atlanta. Having the back to the future delorean is just plain awesome.

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

the best team in Atlanta won

Re: Who's the best team not in Atlanta in 2008?
 

But, it was.