[Nemo]

Thanks to everybody involved in a really great FRC regional. This was our first time attending North Star, and we found it to be really well run and staffed by very organized and knowledgeable and friendly volunteers. I talked to people from a bunch of teams throughout the weekend, and I was privileged to constantly meet sharp people who really care about FIRST.

I am a little heartbroken on behalf of the finalist captains who came very close, our fellow Iowans from Team Neutrino (3928), who are a great bunch of truly nice people. They brought an amazing machine that seemed like the clear favorite at the event, and our team is inspired by your work. The combination of 3928 and the lightning fast scoring 2574 was pretty daunting, and adding even more autonomous scoring (and defense) from 4239 was even scarier. After watching the predictably large scores and the way team 4239 was playing defense in the first couple of rounds, I was thinking "this is gonna be tough if we make the finals..." We knew we'd need to catch a couple of breaks. I thought both sides played great. The finals matches were the most exciting ones I've seen.

Our alliance partners 2175 and 4607 were terrific. 2175 had to work through some issues and after playing well all weekend ended up peaking in the last match. Their robot can cycle back and forth to score really quickly, and we loved the way our strategies worked together nicely to allow a smooth traffic flow. I must say it was fun being allied with a team that cheers so loudly! Our scouts were pretty tickled to get 4607 in the second round after watching them compete, and our alliance definitely couldn't have done it without your tough defense and hanging points. Defense in this game is a tough job - you have to do it just right to significantly slow a good scorer without drawing fouls. This rookie team knows how to play smart and work as a team, and I see them taking it to a new level on the way to bright future.

Congrats to our partners and the other teams who won awards, especially 2220 (Chairman's Award) and 1816 (Engineering Inspiration).

Minnesota rocks! 180 teams divided by MN population = highest team density of any state. Seeing the level of excitement and support for FIRST Robotics in Minnesota is really satisfying and inspiring. Thanks to everyone involved!