[AcesJames]

I'd like to take a minute to thank all the teams and volunteers in Archimedes for making my first even as a volunteer field reset-er a memorable one. Having been able to watch every single match on Archimedes this year from the dome floor, 3 feet from the field was incredible. We knew Archi was going to be stacked, but I was absolutely amazed by the match play in quals and in eliminations. However, I was also amazed by the people playing in those matches.

Every so often, it seems that people have negative things to say about the "elite" teams that occupied so much of our division this year. Things like "that's a mentor built robot" or "that team only cares about winning", or even "that team is trying to sabotage us". I didn't see any of that on Archimedes. What DID I see?

I saw some of those slandered "elite" teams (67, 1114, 2826, 2056, and others) playing their hearts out all weekend. I saw the student drivers, graciously accepting wins AND defeats, congratulating their opponents when they lost, and being proud of themselves either way. I saw their teams in the stands, cheering them on regardless of their performance. I saw all three nail-biting Finals matches with last second balances involving the 4 teams above. I saw those 4 teams who have been slandered time and again this season for their "mentor built" robots walk out onto the field at the end of their 3 matches, shake each others' hands, smile, and compliment each other on a job well done. It was evident seeing their faces that the students and coaches representing their teams on the field were grateful just to be competing against each other.

Forget the FMS issues on Einstein. I saw the magic on Archimedes. I'm inspired.