[delsaner]

I have many favorite experiences, each having their own reasoning (for lack of better term).

My best (inspirational) experience was watching Einstein field in 2008. Since it was my first championship I went to, it was very inspirational to see other beautifully designed robots compete against one another. Certainly something I will never forget; it inspired me to build a better robot for next year, despite having done my best share in the team as possible. Having been a freshman, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I was certainly excited for it.

My best (favorite) experience was being on the drive team in 2010. My team won our first competition that year when I was the human player. Next competition, I took on the role of drive coach. Being drive coach was a great experience in itself, but winning that competition as well was a great feeling. Come to championship, I took on the role as drive coach again, and competed in the eliminations of that year. Doing my best with some of my closest friends on the team, we did the best we could, won matches that I thought we were not going to win. Being knocked out during the finals against 1114, 469, and 2041, it was an absolute pleasure losing to that powerhouse alliance. It was also great getting hardware from championship that year. I still think about that weekend, and it helps remind me why I do what I do.

My best (feeling good about myself) experience was mentoring the team for a few weeks while I was home. We had a brand new CAD team that year, and having been the CAD person during my years on the team, I felt the need to teach the new-comers what they needed to know. Taught them the basics of modeling, went over more complicated applications, and set up tutorials for advanced portions of Inventor. The day before I had to go back to school, they all thanked me for helping them out. They stated that I taught them a lot and they were able to apply it to their work on the team. I left that day feeling good that I was able to give something back to the team that gave me so much.