[BB]: Tune in Tomorrow
 

Good Afternoon Teams,

We still don’t have a complete FRC Event list, but I will post what we have on our website tomorrow, September 24th by noon EST. Look here. I will update the items marked TBD as details are finalized.

This year we are definitely considering permitting teams attending specific events to bag their robots and transport them to events themselves (similar to the Michigan District Pilot last year). Stay tuned.

Do you want to know what the Beta teams are up to? Look here for Chapter 0 of the control system document.

And I promised you an update on the GDC meeting last weekend. In addition to discussing scoring for the 2010 game, we previewed robot capabilities, discussed traction mechanisms, made decisions about the game manual, picked the game name and reviewed the current FRC awards. Throw in gallons of Haagen-Dazs, a mountain of tacos and several interesting dry runs of the new game and it was a full weekend.

108 days until the 2010 Kickoff
See you there!

Re: [BB]: Tune in Tomorrow
 

Since I took the time to type it out....
Here is the latest from VIMS....
Week 1
March 4-6
BAE
Bayou
F.L.R.
Kansas City
Oregon
Peachtree
San Diego
Wash D.C.
March 5-6
Traverse City District
Kettering Univ.
March 5-7
N.J.
Week 2
March 10-13
WPI
March 11-13
Arizona
Chesapeake
Florida
Pittsburg
Wisconsin
Dallas
March 12-13
Cass Tech District
Ann Arbor District
March 12-14
N.Y. City
March 14-16
Israel
Week 3
March 18-20
Boilermaker
Connecticut (TBD)
Midwest
VCU
Silicon Valley
St. Louis
Utah (TBD)
N.C.
March 19-20
Detroit District
West Michigan District
Week 4
March 25-27
Boston
Buckeye
Colorado
Hawaii
Los Angeles
Seattle
Oklahoma
Palmetto
Philadelphia
Long Island
Waterloo
March 26-27
Troy District
Week 5
March 31-April 1
Sacramento
April 1-3
Toronto
Las Vegas
Lone Star
Michigan State Championship
Minnesota 10,000 Lakes
Minnesota North Star

April 15-17
FIRST Championship


Still a couple TBD's. I also noticed N.C. is week 3, and the regional FIRST contact, Marie, said week 5, but she did warn that it wasn't 100%:p

I'm glad Bill shed some light on things.

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This is a little interesting for me. You'd think there's not much left to discuss for carpet traction systems, with the 14 years of carpet games, unless there's something specific about the game / field or a rule change being considered ("no metal on carpet"). Or maybe they're just trying to figure out how to push Truck Town.

Good to see what my team'll be doing for Beta Test (I'm not currently at the shop on anywhere near a regular basis), looks like fun. Hope that the 2009 robot's still drivable when all is said and done; it's definitely my favorite demo robot.

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Dear GDC...I want to be one of you someday.

That is all.

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I am way too bored on a school night.

the regionals'll come out
tomorrow
So ya gotta hang on 'til
tomorrow
I'm wating, tomorrow
you are
too far
away!

I will spare you my singing.

Re: [BB]: Tune in Tomorrow
 

Just wondering about week 2-wpi at 4 days long. Why?

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Maybe a typo on VIMS?

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If memory serves, VIMS usually lists Regionals as four days long because they need volunteers to set up the field (usually Wednesday night) thus the 4th day.

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Even in carpet games, there are sometimes elements to the field that could merit discussions. i.e. Ramps, HDPE, metal grating as in the ramps from Stack Attack. Just trying to convince myself that we'll go back to a nice carpet/traction game...

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http://usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/...ts.aspx?id=430

looks like some changes have occurred to the schedule from what was on there yesterday

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Looks like it's up -- or at least the years changed to 2010.

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Some things that jumped out at me....
WPI is still 4 days, whereas most other regionals are 3.
N.C. went to week 5 as I thought it would.
Palmetto is listed as Sat. and Sun.?:eek:
N.J. and N.Y. City are doing theirs Fri. to Sun.
Sacramento is still at mid-week.

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I like the I choose not to attend a 2nd MI District Competition listing.
I wonder if FIRST will send you a bill if you sign up for it.

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WPI regional?? Interesting...

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WPI that would be cool, if it's held AT WPI it would be like just like BattleCry.... nice

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FOUR DAY WPI regional? More interesting.... Anyone have any details?

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If you have ever been to Battlecry, you know WPI has ways of making these event last :D

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Palmetto is now switched to a Friday, Saturday, Sunday event. Only one listed that way. Don't like the ideal of driving home 7 hours late sunday evening and having to get to school early Monday morning.

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Traction Control Mechanisms. Hmm.

This year the field will be all 50A rubber and teams will be required to use special 30A wheels in order to simulate the surface of Jupiter.

It doesn't specify mechanisms that aid in gaining traction ... :p

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WPI is now back down to three days - March 11 - 13

I wonder if this will take some of the pressure off of BAE GSR and Boston? In the past, we've had to choose one or the other, as both of those events would fill up on registration day!

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tracion control mechanisms = different types of wheels??

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New Jersey appears to be the same way. Weird event.

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. . . ok Ill say it . .


you know NASA is announcing that they may have found water on the moon today ( aka yesterday's tomorrow)


just saying . . .

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Planning committee assures me this is a typo. This will be the regular Thursday, Friday, Saturday event like always. Which leaves Sunday to recover from the awesomeness!:yikes:

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DARN.....

I was hoping for 4 days of awesomeness at WPI, I mean a 4 day BatteCry would be the highlight of my school year!

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That is a very good observation and definitely is one reason why. I was also thinking that this is planning ahead for possible district-style events in New England starting the following year (or later).

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Besides the WPI Regional, the other interesting thing of note for New Englanders is the Connecticut Regional, at the O'Neill Center in Danbury. From a quick google search, it looks like it's part of Western Connecticut State University. Has anyone been there to see what sort of space there might be for a regional, especially for seating/pits/field?

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Glad to hear this was a typo. Makes a big difference in if we will attend again or go to North Carolina which is a closer drive for us.

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I understand that the arena is for basketball and seats 3500 usually. We'll have around 2000 seats available. I'm not sure where the pits will be, but they want 60 teams there.

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Go to http://usfirst.org/whatsgoingon.aspx and search for 2010 events everywhere? Why are the local kickoffs marked September 1st 2010?

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If you notice there are only 26 open spots for WPI. I'm guessing they will use the same setup as Battlecry. The field next to the stands and the pits right behind the field. I think it will be a great venue to be at.

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At this time the FIRST site has it Thursday, Friday, Saturday.....

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The WPI Regional actually has a maximum of 36 teams. We are hoping to make room for plenty of spectators and a small practice area (which is why it's not 48 teams like BattleCry@WPI).

We are looking forward to keeping up with much of the cool stuff BattleCry@WPI has (and will continue) to offer plus making some additions for a great team experience.

WPI and especially our Robotics Engineering program is excited to be part of the FIRST regional season!

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Question!

With WPI hosting a regional, will there still be a BattleCry 11?

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Yup. BC11 scheduled for 7-8 May 2010. All the same goodness that you've come to expect from BattleCry!

Unfortunately, due to some repair needs in the gym, it will have to stay on this earlier weekend (we tried to move it to 21-22 May).

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Glad you didn't move it.... that's when I go away on vacation!


Thanks Colleen!

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Teams making their choices about what events to attend should check out our new regional's webpage (still under construction): www.wpi.edu/+firstregional

We're hoping to do as much as possible to make this a great (and unique) experience for teams and for WPI and our sponsors. The webpage lists some of what we are planning to offer our participants!

Don't hesitate to contact us with any questions!

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Thanks for posting this information.

Are the travel grants the site mentioned provided by the university (i.e. in addition to anything NASA might offer veteran teams for attending a rookie regional)? How many are available? What is the grant value per team?

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The grants for the WPI Regional will be need-based but separate from any other grants or sponsorship teams receive. We think this makes sense since they are specifically for our event and only available to teams who pay the registration fee to FIRST for our event. This money will be from supporters like WPI & WPI Alumni... those who want to support our university and FIRST teams in a collaborative way.

The exact value and number given will depend on the number of teams that apply and their need. We'd love for everyone to get a little something! We do envision their being several larger grants ($2K+) awarded.

There are so many costs associated with attending a regional, outside of registration fee, that can make it difficult for teams to attend... getting to the event, hotels, food at the venue, etc. We want to make the financial burden of attending our regional a lot less expensive like it is at off-seasons!

Feel free to also send me an email with any questions.