Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Wait, Danny it's your last year this year?? That stinks! I'll have nobody to avoid seeing then! haha just kidding Danny. I don't avoid you. :)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Are the pits at Philly in numerical order?

If so, we get to be next to 56 ^_^

Photos of our robot are on Flikr http://www.flickr.com/photos/34830140@N06/

We were semifinalists while doing our best in NJ so idk how Philly will end up. We'll bring it all though.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

So excited, one week away for us (have to leave on Wednesday to get there on time). Going to be VERY busy with redesigns on Thursday. Does anyone know if there will be places to go outside and throw a Frisbee around?

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

There are some of Temple University's athletic fields across the street, but I'm not sure about their policy regarding use of these. You might have to wait until the regional returns to the DAC next year. :rolleyes:

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I think so, or at least as numerical as NJ.

Winners. The MORT Anomaly Ftw.

Btw, For the Record, MORT was the only team to score more than one ball in our trailer with a Robot in New Jersey. They were also on the alliance that Eliminated us the Last two years in New Jersey. Also in the Semi's of NJ in 2008 MORT was on the alliance that dealt us our first Lose of 2008 (We were 10-0 up to that point). Needless to say, I'm not going to let them eliminate us here.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

You're going down Dustin. :) Thanks so much for the kind words man. You were nothing short of spectacular yourself these past 2 years.

Our team is looking forward to presenting at Philly for chairmans for the first time ever. We've never presented outside of NJ before and it'll be awesome competing against teams like 433, 316 and especially 341, we're just glad 103 and 365 can't win it anymore ^_^

P.S= If 341 wins the national chairmans this year, which I personally think they will, they'll be the THIRD out of the PA/DE area. Good stuff.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Way to edit that Stogi.

Seriously though, this'll be my last Philadelphia Regional as a Student. This is where it all began and you better not end it early. 816 + 11 > 1114....From 2008.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

[quote=Akash Rastogi;834890]

Our team is looking forward to presenting at Philly for chairmans for the first time ever. We've never presented outside of NJ before and it'll be awesome competing against teams like 433, 316 and especially 341, we're just glad 103 and 365 can't win it anymore ^_^QUOTE]


sorry... you won't have 316's competition. We decided not to run for chairmans this year. but good luck with it!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Can we still win Imagery? :D (won that at Champs last year and in '04)

Philly will be great this year with a nice mix of old friends and fresh faces in the Chairman's and of course robot competition. With 9 more teams right now this should be the most competitive Philly regional all around in recent memory.

It would be mildly surprising for anyone besides a 300-level team to win the RCA. Since 2002 (when the award was introduced), the only teams to win the RCA at Philly have been 341 (3), 357 (1), & 365 (3) (and each team has a RCA at another regional). They also grabbed a few Philly EIs: 341 (1) & 357 (2). Of course 433 has won 2 EI in the last 3 years so they have a good shot. Still, it seems like 341's to lose. Everything seems to be coming up Daisies since 07 with 3 regional championships, an RCA and last year's Champ Entrepreneurship (their second).

See you all there!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

You know Dustin, the best way to insure you don't get eliminated BY them is to align WITH them ;-)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

George:

Will you be announcing Philly again this year? You did an amazing job at Drexel last year. I can still hear your voice-over in the Philly finals matches for FIRST Overdrive. You really inspired the crowd to get totally into what was going down on the field.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Team 56 (ROBBE XTREME) is looking forward to catch up with old friends and make new ones in Philly. 1 week to practice day..WOOHOO!!!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Yup, I'll be there. I wouldn't miss this for the world. Even though I've only been volunteering at Philly since 2006, It's quickly becoming the one regional I look forward to year after year. This regional truly exemplifies what FIRST is all about.

I can't wait!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I am going to greatly miss Philly this year. 1511 had a great time last year but wanted to try out Chesapeake this year. Good luck to all the teams! And George I hope your announcing! :)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

It seems as though the Philadelphia teams want a team social, so here it is!!!!!

Who: Hosted by the Firebirds Team 433 and CHASS Team 1218

What: Robotics team social!!!!!!!!!!

When: Friday, March 20 from 7:30 to 10:30 PM

Where: Mount Saint Joseph Academy
120 West Wissahickon Avenue
Flourtown, PA 19031

Why: To connect and socialize wih people from other teams in order to make a stronger FIRST community

Features: Food, fun, dancing, DJ, video games, team socializing

Request: Please wear your team shirt!

Price: $7 per person. However, if your team brings more than 15 members, the price drops to $5 per person!! Proceeds will go to cover the shipping costs to send robots to Ghana!

The Firebirds and CHASS Robotics teams will be handing out flyers and directions from Temple to Mount Saint Joseph Academy on Thursday and Friday of the Philadelphia Regional.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at bdevenny09@msjastudent.org or stop by 433's pit during the regional.

GET EXCITED FOR LUNACY!!!!!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

So in less than one week we'll be battling at the Liacouras Center for some hardware. Needless to say I'm excited so, I think we need to get this thread moving!

As far as 816 goes, be prepared to see an even stronger performance than what we showed in New Jersey. We've got some surprises in store... (Nothing too special - but you'll notice it.)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Needless to say, I'm about as excited as you can get. I wish i could just fast forward through these two days of school and just get on with it. Going to be making some upgrades to make our robot a little more competitive, and hopefully elimination worthy. Gunning for another safety award, but it looks like 250 could give us a run for our money.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Did anyone realize how many regional finalists, winners, and just overall BIG teams will be there?!?!?:ahh:

So psyched. Honestly, I just want to have a good time at Philly. Hardware or no hardware, this regional should be fun. =D

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

That's usually the case in Philly. Lots of old northeastern teams with plenty of trophies in their cases all packed together in a loud, sweaty gym.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

The line-up looks good!
I can't wait to see what's going to happen! Even though I won't be there this year, you can bet I will be next year. :)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Hmmm.... Safety Award, eh? 816's won the Safety Award in '05 and '07 in Philly, and we also won the Safety Award in NJ this year too. Needless to say we're going to give you a bit of a challenge for the award. (or should I say you're going to give us a bit of a challenge?)

Stogi, Philly is one of those Regionals that has always had quite a few High Caliber teams year after year. It's just it never really got noticed by a lot of people as one of the "Stacked" regionals like Midwest. Regardless, I haven't even looked at the team list yet. I've decided that the only thing that determines how well a team will do is performance, not lineage or hype. If you want to Debate that, remember 2 out of 3 World Champions were eliminated in their First Regional. That being said, I heard some Rumors of a "MORT Anomaly".....;)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I can honestly say this is the most excited I have ever been for a competition. We had a pretty good showing in Jersey we just got to take it even further here in Philly. It seems like it will be a very competitive competition this year. The Elims this year should be even better then last years. Can't wait to see some old friends and meet some new people. See you all in 4 days.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I counted 15 big names and good robots based on this year's performance alone. I don't look at team history when walking into late week regionals. Only week 1 regionals.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Does anyone know if the regional gives out parking passes for volunteers?

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Touché.

We've seen robots go from being on Fire one regional to being a dud in the next though. But maybe, just to get a leg up I should look into the teams going...

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Parking at 15th and Cecil B Moore should be free for volunteers and the public as well.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Also depending on where you are staying, SEPTA's regional rail service could be a viable alternative.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Will anyone be webcasting/archiving mathces for TBA? Upset that NJ hasn't even been archived on TBA yet.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

WOOOO!!! Philly Regional just got better with Koko Ed gracing us with his presence!!!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Yeah! I get to yell at you and Libby to hurry up and get your robot on the field and move it or lose it when the match is over.
Good times await!:D

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Only 3 days until the regional and 4 days until the social! I'm starting to get superduper excited!!!!!!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I second this notion, archiving would be fantastic.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Free is a good price! Is that the parking garage what looks like to the west one block of the Liacouras Center? See here at google maps. We've got a couple of 15-seat vans to find parking spots for.

Any places nearby that serve early breakfasts? We had an excellent sub shop near Boston's regional that had good, fast, and cheap breakfasts -- something you don't find too often.

Also -- so many questions! -- we've got a couple hours Sunday morning before we have to drive back home. Any Philly sights to go to on a Sunday morning or is everything closed then?

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

The Philadelphia Museum of Art (complete with those famous Rocky steps) is free on Sundays and opens at 10AM. Other typical Philly sites include the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall (right next to each other), which open at 9AM (though you need to pre-book your tour if that's what you want to do).

Lastly, both Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks in South Philly are open 24/7. Stop by for an authentic cheesesteak for Sunday brunch.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Jared nailed most of them. I'd definitely suggest Geno's (and Pat's, but mainly Geno's) as a must-visit for anyone coming to Philly. There's a number of good cheesesteak places, but none are like Geno's.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

This will always be the debate around Philly, but Pat's is the original creator of the steak sandwich and nothing is better than Pat's, but a true Philadelphian usually won't eat either. :)

Cass

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

A true Philadelphian eats whatever is made by the shop on their street corner.

And the true Philadelphian then argues to anyone who will listen that his cheesesteak is the best one, and all others are imitators.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Haha. This is true. :)

Cass

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I think I've heard of these two on a PBS "Sandwich tour" on tv -- they're like across the street from each other? After having the rest it would be nice to try the "original" -- whichever one it may be.Oy! Cheesesteak right before a 6 hour drive? Not sure that would quite agree with my interior. :) Maybe just a pretzel with mustard...

However, I was asking about early breakfast places near the Liacouras Center -- one to fill me up at the beginning of the day and not as $$$ as inside the Center.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Pat's is the original, and yes they are across the street from each other, causing the much heated debate as to which one is better.

I would be careful around the Liacouras center at all hours, it is a very risky place sometimes. It is right on Temple's campus so I'm sure there are a handful of places to eat that aren't expensive. :)

Cass

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

So, to be strictly scientific about this, I should go to all the steak-and-cheese shops in the greater Philadelphia area and try them all? Maybe I should go start now...




But Jimmy's in East Walpole really is the best!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Google maps says there is a Dunkin' Donuts on Cecil B Moore between 15th and N. Broad.... I'm not finding anything else especially close... but I've not been to the Temple area of Philadelphia before.

You might have better luck finding something closer to your hotel and bringing it with you though.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

There's a place on Temple's campus called Saxby's that's a coffee shop that serves breakfast as well. It's pretty much a low-cost version of Starbucks.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Where are you staying? You might have better luck with breakfast in that area.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I'm sure there's a restaurant at our hotel, and we might end up there anyway for breakfast, but if it gets pricy I'd like an alternate. Plus there is the "early crew" that likes to get to the place early. Splitting us up into smaller groups might get better service than one huge group.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Re: Food near Licourias...(hope I spelled it right)

There are usually plenty of the infamous 'grease wagons' on and about most Philly area campuses. Most of them are cheap and relatively good...some better than others.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

The Lunch Trucks/Roach Coach/Grease Wagons/Whatevers may be a good option for breakfast or lunch, but I'm not familiar with the ones around Temple so I wouldn't be able to suggest any in particular. Several will likely be open for breakfast on Thursday and Friday, but it might be harder to find one open on Saturday.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

And if the locals affectionately call them Grease Wagons and Roach Coaches, they can't be bad!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Ok so you want to know which are the best trucks for food. I'll give you my top 5 at temple.

1) Crepe Truck-basically all kinds of meat, fruits and veggies, in any combination in a crepe for a good price(less than 6 dollars) On norris near 12th
2) Unsure of name, but its a big truck on 12th with a 5 dollar foot long sign- really really good footlongs(I recommend the chicken they use really good chicken, like 3/4" thick)
3) Fame's Pizza truck- Also on 12th, right past bell tower, 2 pieces of pizza with topping and a drink for 4.50
4) Sushi Truck- I haven't eaten there but I have heard good things, it is on 13th and montgomery
5) Ritchies- On 12th next to fames, good prices for good breakfast food

Coffee-
We have multiple places to get coffee
Dunkin as previously mention on Cecil B. Moore
Starbucks on Broad St. its mixed in the series of shops on the Avenue North( Big blue cluster of stores and restaurants)
Starbucks-Yes we have 2, this one is in the tech center on 12th, no id necessary to get in
Saxby's- this is on Liacouras walk in the middle of campus
Also assorted trucks and stands have coffee

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Awesome info, thanks! Though even with a recommendation I'm not sure I would ever have the guts to order sushi from a truck.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Although "unacceptable," I unfortunately will not be able to attend the Philly regional this year. I will be at the UCF Relay for Life all night long, however. Best of luck to everyone, perhaps I will be able to come again next year.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

It sounds like My HP and I are going to go scout out the area tomorrow as long as nothing else comes up. If I find anything cool I'll definitely post it up here.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

My brother David works at Temple, and set up everything for archiving the Philly Regional.

GO 304!!!!!

--Philip

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Awesome! Tell him thanks!:)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Leaving tomorrow morning. Can't wait. Hope to see everyone there.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

First time at the Philadelphi Regional - looking forward to meeting all the teams and seeing all the robots.

Quick Question - On which side of the building will we be loading in all our tools and bins on a cart?

Thanks

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

From what I have heard, teams will be loading in carts through the loading dock which is to the left of the main entrance to the building.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

It took a little digging at www.liacourascenter.com but the load-in entrance is on Briad Street at the southeast corner of the Liacouras Center -- so it is to the left of the Main Entrance. Some other info:

And, not that I'm expecting it or anything, the Center is capable of doing pyrotechnics, with a pyro permit. Just goes to show what you can find out if you dig deep enough. ;)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

222 will be leaving 4:30 AM tomorrow and is looking forward to having a great time competing in Philly!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I checked out the area that surrounds The Liacouras Center and I was pretty impressed. I didn't think it was in a bad area or anything, maybe if you walked about 5 blocks in any direction and got off campus you might walk into some shady characters but usually they'll have better things to worry about than you.

I also saw quite a few places to eat within like 5 minutes walking distance but I didn't check any out because I was far too lazy to get out of my car and walk.

See you all in the AM.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Good Luck at Relay for Life!!! =]

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Alright so we had a final prep meeting and all is set. We leave at like 5:45 tomorrow morning...

Excited as anything about this regional! See you all tomorrow, meet the new face of MORT in the morning. :cool:

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Good Luck to Everyone today. It looks like we've got one heck of a weekend ahead of us. I guess no one's heard of a webcast yet?

800th Post!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

... webcast ... please ..... someone .....

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

The pit admin said that the schedule would not be distributed in paper form until tomorrow morning, but the FIRST website has one listed:

http://www2.usfirst.org/2009comp/eve...edulequal.html

Can anyone confirm or deny that this is the correct schedule for qualifications?

(If so, an 80 match schedule with inspection running pretty far behind will be...interesting)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Can someone post a link to the webcast if there even is any.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Match 30 is going to be epic.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Yup, that's the one. We are prioritizing the inspection of robots according to the match schedule.

I think Wayne will like match 44.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

From what I saw today...teams to look out for.

816 - based on what we saw them do today in practice matches and me trying not to be biased.

834- Very strong offense, however I hate to say it but poor driving hinders their offensive abilities.

708- they got a LOT better since NJ

The rest are obvious.

We are pumped for the start of qualifications tomorrow, VERY tough match schedule for us. I look forward to stratgizing with many of you.:D

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

from what I noticed today during queuing, team 1507 is not only going to be an offensive force to watch out for but they are also a fabulous group of people that I am glad I got to know today. Look forward to seeing you all tomorrow.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

816? They were ok.... They should be better tomorrow.

Actually those practice matches were more or less of an experimentation period for us. We played with a lot of different things and found out what was going to work and what didn't. We finally got to play with defensive maneuvers and offensive ramming and pinning and we found what gave us an advantage. Also we found out from a lot of people that we have excellent traction control and looked like we have almost complete control over the robot. (We have no traction control... At all.)

But thanks for the kind words Stogi, it looks like we're getting noticed out there.

See you all in the AM.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Good luck today everyone, I'm heading out. Peace.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Hello Philadelphia Regional fans, friends, and family!

Team 341 is *attempting* to webcast. We have a hookup and everything is working great. Unfortunately, sometimes our school computer crashes so I apologize in advance for any intermittent viewing. Here is the link:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/philad...-regional-2009

We'll try our best to keep it up!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I missed the webcast of the awards ceremony, but I see that you won the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award in Philadelphia!!
Congratulations Kirsten, & thanks again for the webcast! :)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

From what I saw today on the field things went SO much smoother than yesterday. By 10:30 we had every team through inspection and there were only three matches that had any missing robots. Congratulations to all the teams that participated today and to all of those who won awards today. A special congrats to Kirsten from 341 on her WFFA.

Okay, so here are my predictions (in no specific order)...the teams who are going to have a major impact on tomorrows matches are; 365, 103, 1923, 708, 816, 1507, 378, 222, 11, 809, 87, and 272.

There are other teams who have been excluded from this list...don't worry I haven't forgotten about you.

357 has been doing a fantastic job playing the "empty cell" game and if they can get their turret code to function they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with.

Team 1279 has made changes to their robot since the DC regional. They have added two rollers on the top to of their manipulator to give the orbit balls an extra "umph." Unfortunately, for some of the time orbit balls are getting stuck JUST below that top roller. Due to the incredible amount of orbit balls being scored by them I'm not sure if this is a consistent thing that happens OR if it is only when I am looking. I'm sure that they will be able to figure something out and they will continue to impress me throughout the rest of this regional.

Don't let the rankings for team 341 fool you. Miss Daisy still has three matches left and being the champions from the San Diego regional still have a chance at playing tomorrow afternoon.

Team 484 played around yesterday trying to decide if their side dumping manipulator was effective enough to keep. After gathering their data from yesterday they showed up today excited and ready to redesign and rebuild their manipulator. Now it can be top loaded and bottom loaded directly into the original conveyor. This team (now ranked 15) could make it into an alliance captain or become an early-mid first round pick.

As far as human players (payload specialist) go I have seen a number of ones that have completely amazed me. Payload Specialists from teams 56, 2229, 365, 56, and 486 have been extremely consistent and a valuable part of their alliance.

Thanks again everyone for being so responsive today while queuing and getting onto the field. Please continue to make the lives easier for all of the volunteers and make sure you all have a blast. Good luck and see you all bright an early tomorrow.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I think today was one of the most exhausting days in my FIRST Career. I don't ever being so mentally and physically drained after a Friday of competition. I can't thank the Volunteers and Event Organizers Enough for having the regional run so smoothly. The match turn around can get crazy sometimes but then again it's awesome that we have 9 qualifying matches.

The level of Competition here is excellent. Every Match seems to be more tiring than the last and it's nice to see that almost everyone was moving by their second or third match. Needless to say, Tomorrow is going to be pretty epic. (We FINALLY have a match with MORT!!!!!!!!!!!)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Thanks Teams 237 and 1712! I wasn't expecting it but it was a great honor!

I also have more great news for all of you watching the webcast. Apparently Ustream has selected our show for their iPhone app. I'm not entirely sure what that means but for those of you who have iPhones you might want to check it out tomorrow. All seemed to go well today without a hiccup so I'm very glad. Stay tuned for tomorrow - we'll have it up again!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I'm new to this but I was just curious on what you guys thought about team 486, the Positronic Panthers. We have three wins and losses and one tie and I think were around 20th in the standings.

Thanks and best of luck to all.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Thanks for the kind words. One of the students tried to fix that jamming issue. It's been working in matches and tests ever since so I think that is that...

Good luck to everyone tomorrow.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

you might want to read some of the other posts that people have made. *hint* one that I posted included information on your team*

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Thanks Phil, I did come across that. Unfortunately I'm not sure which payload specialist we were using because lately we have been switching off.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Hooray for 56, 365, 395!!! 56, you guys did it again! i was watching your last few matches, cheering for you. those last matches were so intense. 2 for 2 regionals aint bad...:D

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

HUGE congrats to 433 the FIREBIRDS! Way to win Chairman's, I knew you had it in you. See you all in Atlanta.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Another year of Philly down. Another year of me wondering how some teams look so bad in the Quals and then look so amazingly awesome in Elims. hmmm. All in all it was an amazing weekend. We had a lot of fun matches and played with a lot of good teams. I am very proud of my team because it was the most energy I have ever seen them have in the stands when it came time for cheering us on. It made me feel really good inside to know we had so much support.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

433 Won Chairmans!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WhoooooooHoooooooooooooooooo way to go.
433, I always knew you were going to walk away with chairmans from Philly one year and I am surprised that you haven't until now.
Great Job wish I could have been their to congratulate all of you in Person.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Frustrating event for us. We had a tough-as-nails schedule that wasn't helped by a few unfortunately timed mishaps (including such highlights as an orbit ball getting jammed in an opening not 2" across, getting all of the "fingers" of our intake roller taken off at once, and my personal favorite...the match where we got two empty cells back to one of our payload specialists only to watch him then grab the empty cells rather than the super cells at the 20 second mark).

Congratulations to MOE, 2 Train, and Robbe on a well deserved win. On Thursday I was extremely impressed by how effectively MOE threw their weight around; sure enough, they pulled off the repeat in a typical Philadelphia Regional (defense, defense, and more defense). The three "blue alliance" bots simply played through the defense they faced better than anyone else.

1923 and 272 - we gave it a good fight. I think that we had the robots and the strategy to make it all work. We nearly 968'd 103 and 1153 in round 1, but that one dump in the final 5 seconds did us in. And then round 2 brought even more bad luck with the machine for Daisy...

Thanks to the FTA, event coordinator, and staff for another well-run event. The troubles of Trenton are now a distant memory for many of us.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Congrats to teams 56, 395, 365 on winning the regional!!!!!!!!! You guys were amazing today. :)

Congrats to team 433 on winning Chairman's award!!!!! Good luck at Nationals!!!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

First of all thank you to 222 for inviting us to the 4th alliance, it was a pleasure working with one of the Northeast's oldest teams. Things were looking up for us when 222 snagged 316 as the second pick. Things were so close in the first two matches and then all hell broke loose in that third match in favor of the powerful combination of 1391, 1279, and 834. We are truly sorry if we let you down.

The quarterfinals is definitely not where we wanted to end it all but unfortunately that's what happened and we walked home empty handed, but not without full hearts and spirits. In qualifications MORT proved what we came to Philly to prove, that we could compete and be strong in a field with the best of the best. I am EXTREMELY proud of my entire team for showing spirit, determination, and true teamwork. The improvements in both driver skill and strategy were awesome even in our first qualification match when we went 1 vs 3 and scored half the points of the other alliance with a third of the robots (44 to 86). I cannot express how proud I am of all of you. 7-2-0 earned us the 7th seed and we fought hard for it, never forget that.

There are a few teams I really want to thank out there who either helped us out a lot this weekend via parts and sincere friendship.

365- MOE, you really are the shining example FIRST has of GP. We repeatedly came to your pit asking for critical parts for our robot and you never disappointed us. Match 30 was exhilarating as we paired up with 103 to put up a nice showing. Glad you kept that MOEmentum going and won the regional once again. Sincere congrats with a heartfelt thank you.

1089- Chris, your team was awesome to talk to and it was a wonderful opportunity getting to know them better. Our mentors enjoyed talking to you as well. We look forward to building a relationship with your team. Congrats on both awards and a greatly improved performance! Not sure if you know what I mean, but you are one of those teams that makes others really proud when you succeed without even knowing your team very well, its just something about you guys...Can't wait to see you in Atlanta!

1403- Its something about our teams that just clicks when we're around each other. Your students are very committed to the team not only on the robot aspect, but the relationship aspect. We've found a new friend in FIRST and I thank you for that. Congrats on your well deserved team spirit award.

And finally, 816- What can I say guys, this regional just wasn't in the cards for us no matter how strong both of our robots were. We make an amazing team on and off the field. We truly know how you feel right now and I hope you can find your way to Atlanta. Your friendship is priceless.

Everyone who staffed, volunteered, and competed at Philly really made this a great regional. It was full of intense competition, energy, and many many strong friends. We hope to return to Philly to compete with you all again. It was a blast.

Hope to see many of you in Atlanta.

P.S.- Thank you to the many people who complimented our drivers and robot, it means more than you'll know whenever our robots get complimented. We put our hearts and souls into them. Good luck with the rest of your seasons.:)

btw 222, we will not be missing PARC. ^_^

I am disappointed in the outcome, but proud as hell of my team. We're glad we came to Philly.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Awww...Philly is over and so is my last "official" robotics season. :( . Congratulations to ALL the teams that participated in the Philly Regional.
Thanks to teams 222 and 11. It was nice working with you guys.
And congrats to 433 on their Chairmans Award and Kirsten on her Woodie Flowers.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

1279 had a great time competing in Philly. We enjoyed it a lot and will likely return in the future.

Thank you to our partners, 1391 and 834. Really there wasn't anything we could do better. The semi's were close matches and we don't regret any part of our alliances match play. Good job to both of you and I hope you succeed throughout the remainder of the season.

Congrats to 395, 365, and 56 on a regional win.

Congrats to 433 on Chairman's Award.

See you all next year. :)

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

On behalf of Team 56 , ROBBE Xtreme, we would like to thank 395 and 365 for picking us and forming an awesome alliance. We had tough qualification rounds but were able to come together and have a series of tremendous elimination matches.

We are looking forward to many old friends in Atlanta.

Congrats to team 433 on your chairman's award.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Okay, so FIRST thing is first. Everyone who put their best foot forward today both in qualifications and eliminations did an absolutely fantastic job. The queuing went smoothly today and we have you all to thank...if you guys didn't show up we would have no one to que.

A HUGE congratulations to team 433 on your regional chairmans. I can't wait to see you guys again in Atlanta and good luck next week in Connecticut.

Another congratulations to team 341 on your regional Engineering Inspiration award. Although your team did not walk away with a fancy banner you sure do have a lot to be proud of this weekend. A WFFA (perceived to be an individual award, but really shows how good the team is), and an EI...not too shabby in my opinion. Congrats again.

So, here is my bystander opinion on what went down in the elimination matches.

Alliance #1: 103, 1153, and 708. Between the three of them I don't believe there were enough orbit balls on the field to share with their own alliance let alone alliance #8. 103 used the strategy of runner around the perimeter of the field gathering as many orbit balls as they could and then eventually took a huge hit on an opposing alliance. 1153 used their fantastic shooter to sneak up on unsuspecting robots and score an enormous about of points all at once. 708 was a great 2nd round pick and I was surprised they were still there for 103 to nab. They were a human loaded slow dumper but when it scored, it scored. Between the three of them, they were an almost unstoppable alliance.

Alliance #2: 378, 1507, and 250. Firstly, you guys were a pleasure to hang out with in the queuing area. 1507, although you were not the alliance captain you put on a fabulous show and really shined when your alliance needed you. Although your manipulator was somewhat slow it stored ALOT of balls. 378, your solution to the game this year was something that I never thought I would see a team do so effectively. Congratulations on making it this far. Team 250, congratulations on the safety award...So, my question to you is; "What do you do at the Philadelphia Regional in case of battery leakage?"

Alliance #3: 223, 816, and 87. Although individually each of your teams played well individually you seemed to have a hard time getting a working strategy together. In your first match you certainly had no idea how the number 6 alliance was going to play together and it was a complete surprise to all of us how they came right out of the pits and played liked champions. Your second match against them went much better than the first but it was still not enough. Congratulations to all of your teams on a job well done.

Alliance #4: 222, 11, and 316. You guys were awesome. Individually each of your teams showed great ability to carry an alliance. When you were put together I thought you guys were going to be unstoppable. Unfortunately, alliance number 5 had other plans. After emerging victorious in match 1 Cold Fusion, Spartechs, and Metal Moose were not going to let you guys go any further. 222, you showed a consistent promise of racking up tons of orbits balls each match. Also, congratulations on the Industrial Design award, truly deserved. Team 11, I am glad you guys traveled from Jersey to compete with us here in Philly. 316, as the weekend progressed, so did your abilities on the field. The drive team you sent to the field had an exceptionable ability to control that robot and every match I saw there was improvement.

Alliance #5: 1279, 834, and 1391. Each one of these teams had competed at least once before this event. After seeing Cold Fusion go all the way to the finals in DC I knew they were going to play a huge role in this weekends event. By their first match on Saturday morning they were set and ready to go with their new and improved dumper. Once they fixed the jamming, that thing was lethal. 834, finalist in NJ had a lot to live up to and they were sure not to disappoint. 1391 was one of the biggest improvements I have seen so far this year. Coming into Philly with a 1-6-0 record left over from NJ they managed to make it all the way up to the 8th seed and found their way into the 5th alliance. You guys came and really tore up the place. Congrats to your entire alliance.

Alliance #6: 395, 365, and 56. Another huge congrats to all of you on becoming the 2009 Philadelphia Regional Champions. Team 395, fantastic choice of teammates. As a NY team I didn't know much about you guys until this weekend. All throughout the matches your robot continued to catch my attention and impress me. Team 365, you never cease to amaze me. Coming from losing in the quarter final in DC to Regional Champions...thats quite impressive. I was honestly surprised that you weren't picked sooner. You worked well with all of your teammates and really pulled this alliance through a lot. Also, your human player was fantastic...he's a keeper. Team 56, this is regional #2 for you guys. This is a huge accomplishment. If the the title of two regional champions wasn't enough for you then its a good thing you were also awarded the Quality Award. Your robot and human player were both consistent and of a high caliber. Congratulations again and I look forward to seeing all of you in Atlanta.

Alliance #7: 204, 1089, and 224. Although the scores don't show it, you guys put up one hell of a fight in the quarter finals. Even though you walked away without a win in the elimination matches you need to realize that there were 30+ other teams that didn't get the chance to even play Saturday afternoon and you were part of Philly's 2009 creme de la creme. Once again, Congratulations to all of you.

Alliance #8: 272, 1923, 341. Although this 8th seeded alliance had two Regional Champions (341 San Diego, and 1923 New Jersey) it was not enough to beat out the #1 seed. Under the conditions you guys did a fantastic job. Congratulations again to 341 and 1923 and see you in Atlanta. 272 you guys did a great job and each year you guys come up with another solution to the game that continues to amaze me.

To sum all of this up, every team out there this weekend has something to be proud of. Whether it is an award or trophy or something less tangible you all competed like crazy while remembering the spirit of first. I am glad that I was apart of that this year an the incredible Philadelphia Regional. See you all in Atlanta.

-Phil

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Haha, thanks man, that means a lot.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

On behalf of Team 341 I would like to thank all of the volunteers, sponsors and FIRST folks that made the Philly Regional possible. I know the change of venue put a lot of strain on the planning and coordination of the event. But you would never know it by how smoothly it ran. Awesome Job!

A special thank you to our alliance partners 272 and 1923. We gave it our best shot and all most had them. It was almost 10 years ago that 272 LC picked an untested rookie team as their alliance partner. I never forget how amazing you guys really are. In so many ways, our team still looks up to Lansdale Catholic.

Congratulations to the winners 365, 56, and 395. A truly impressive showing from three amazing teams.

Congratulations to Team 433 for winning the Chairman's Award. You are very desrving and have been for many years. The problem in Philly is that their are about 6 teams that deserve the award each year. Its probably one of the toughest regionals in FIRST in terms of Chairmans competition. It was truly your year.

and finally... I wanted to thank our amazing media coach and 341 alum Kirsten Jahn for winning the WFFA. Since she joined our team as a kid back in 2000, she has truly been the "Face" of Miss Daisy. All of the incredible graphics, web pages, posters and videos that you see produced by our team are due to her guidance of a small band of kids that do a ton of work. "MissDaisyGirl" often says she has been "slaving" for the Daisy since 2000. We would not be who we are without her tireless efforts and the way she inspires her students. Congratulations Kir!

Good luck to everyone in their remaining regionals and to everyone heading to Atlanta.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

The Philadelphia regional is always a fantastic experience for us, but this year was particularily exciting. Going in I was unsure about the (temporary) venue change, the lack of some familiar teams, and our spotty record in NJ.

None of these things, luckily, made the tiniest amount of difference this weekend.

Going 6-0 on Friday was fantastic - going into Saturday undefeated is a brilliant feeling that I hope I have at all FIRST events in the future... This is a nice change of pace for our team and I think we really showed what our robot and especially our driver are capable of. We expected to do far better than we did in NJ, but it was gratifying to show everyone else that we weren't just crazy.

1279 and 834 thank you for a fantastic run in eliminations. With a little more luck (loosing by 2 points one match and 6 points the next is very close) we'd have taken it to the finals and put some heat on the winning alliance. I hope we managed to make 103, 1153 and 708 sweat a little during the semis and I really think that if we did it again it might go either direction. Very evenly matched alliances. We got shut down by 708 in that last match and coulden't pull through for you guys.


222, 316, and 11 - you guys were tough. Our first-round loss had us worried and we barely squeaked by in the second round. Good defense, especially from 316. 11 and 222 you stepped up the scoring and slammed our trailers more than any of our qualifying match opponents. Something clicked on our alliance between our 2nd and 3rd matches and it definitiely showed - without that luck on our part you could easily have taken it to the semis or finals.

103, 1153, and 708 - well fought. You guys were a powerhouse of an alliance and (rightfully so) the 103-1153 team-up worried us from the moment it happened. You both showed fantastically this weekend. 708, you did a fantastic job shutting us down in the second semi-final match. It was frustrating to watch from the stands as we sat there with a full hopper, unable to get even a few moon rocks into a trailer. You did what you needed to defend against us and took the match because of it. As I said before, a fantastic, powerhouse alliance. I was frankly surprised you did not take the regional.

The rest of the alliances (from what few matches I saw) solid games and great strategy. Very impressed all around.


Fantastic regional, fantastic teams, and fantastic people. As usual the Philadelphia Regional was incredibly competitive with a deep field, had good, vibrant energy about it (somewhat dissapated due to the size of the liacouras center when compared with the Drexel Atheletic Center), and was overall one of my best FIRST experiences to date.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

This was my first visit to not only the regional but Philly all together! I came in Thursday, but spent most of my FIRST time Saturday. It looks to be a very strong regional, so kudos to the people that make it run.

I was glad to see 103, 1153 and 708 making it to the finals - I hadn't expected some fellow MA residents to be joining me there (1153 is 4 towns away).

BIG congrats goes out to 56, 395, 365! These are three teams that I've always loved. In fact, to any MOE member I encountered I think I said, "I love you guys!" :p

And of course, congrats to 433!! Another deserving team makes it on the RCA list.

Some other shoutouts go to 1089, 11, 222, 1923, 341 (congrats for EI!), 834, and every other team there. :)

The energy here in Philly was great - the crowd had a super spirit to it. Everyone was so nice, I think I may have to come back next year (without peer pressure :D )
If they stay at the Liacouras though, I'm hoping for more pit lighting, not only is it tough for teams, but tough for those trying to photograph them!

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

I can't speak for the rest of my team (but I think they share similar sentiment), but I have to say that I absolutely loved this regional. It was nice to have a different mix of teams around, but at the same time feel similar enough that it did feel like home. I can't compare it to Drexel since this was our first time competing here, but I really liked the venue, and the volunteer staff were all top-notch.

As far as matches were concerned, I really thought that the depth of field was a bit better than in NJ, and the eliminations were much more exciting to watch. I have to say that alliance #1 vs alliance #8 in the quarterfinals was the most EXCITING Lunacy I have seen played yet. 1923, 341, and 272 made it so that I was literally on the edge of my seat. Those matches were both within their reach, but an awesome #1 alliance scraped by. I was bummed for 103 that they were unable to get a win this season, but, as we all know, things "just work out like that".

I had a great chance to speak with a lot of great mentors, including those from 11, 103, 293, 1403, 341, 357, 365, 1267, 1923, 2729, and more. FIRST is in really good hands in this area, I really have to say.

I also got some amazing impressions from some teams I never personally met with before, like 223, 224, 816, 1143, and 1267. Each of those teams were a class act, and I felt very welcomed at the event.

Now onto congrats:

To 341, congrats on WFFA and EI! With all of the work that you guys do for other teams and community, it is great to see you recognized.

To 433, congrats on Chairman's! I got chills down my spine watching you guys get all excited sitting in the stands before you won, knowing what it felt like doing the same thing 3 weeks ago. What an honor! Congratulations for the recognition for all of your work!

To 365, 395, and 56 -- Congrats on the win! You guys put up a heck of a fight out there against the #1 seed!

Lastly, a point of business: Our team found a black insulated hoodie (with like grey flannel print on it) that I took home with me. If anyone knows that they lost it, please PM me and I'll ship it to you.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Thanks Phil. Everything you said means a lot to me. The respect of other people is something that our team strives for and your acknowledgment is appreciated.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Same goes for us, I couldn't have said it better myself.

One thing that was awesome about Philly was how stacked each alliance was (atleast I would call them stacked)

We're thinking of coming back next year but only if its at Drexel and still in the same week =)

Hopefully Boston, DC, and Philly won't conflict with each other. Anyone know if there will be venue/date changes for Philly next year? This was also a really fun and affordable regional for us. Only thing I'd complain about would be the pit lighting. But not a big deal.

Re: 2009 Philadelphia Regional
 

Well 316, looks like you guys had the same fate as us. We got taken out by number 1 in MD. We miss you guys! Hope to see you next year! (May be volunteering, may be coaching haven't decided yet.:p )