[Jaywalker1711]

Originally Posted by MysterE

To you that win, I have a few questions: How has winning changed you? What has it turned you into? And most importantly; Are you happy with who you have become?

I could not be happier with how far my team has come

In 2012, my freshman year, we built the most freaking awesome drive-train you could possibly design. Unfortunately, it took four and a half weeks. We went into comp without a shooter, but managed to be a finalist at TC due to out bridge skills and win Chairman's award at Kettering. We went on to the MSC and were happy to be there!

In 2013, we hacked together a robot using c-rail box tube and rivets. It was quite ugly, but it could really score. According to our scouts, we were one of the top 20 scoring robots in Michigan that year. But we missed some matches due to communication issues in our first comp, and had some bad luck, and we didn't even make it to the MSC. But we did win EI!

In 2014, We came up with a solidified design process and applied it to the design of the robot, then carefully designed everything before any of it was built. In my opinion, we built the prettiest robot I had ever seen, but unfortunately due to faulty math we could not shoot into the high goal. Nonetheless, we made it to semis and to the MSC. We also won chairman's award at TC!

And now we get to this year. 2015. My team has come so far in little ways that really add up. Underclassmen were involved in both design and assembly. We even trusted them to do most of the wiring on the robot. This is the first year I have seen where everyone on the team has made a real difference. We actually came to a solid consensus on robot design, and everyone felt that they were a part of things. Our robot got finished on time, and was fully functional entering our first comp. We entered Kettering, and at the end of day 1, were in dead last. Wow. Day 2 was the greatest comeback ever though, because we climbed in rankings to 18th, and our spirits climbed with us. Then we were selected to be on the 8th alliance, and we got to the semi finals. We then won engineering inspiration. Wow.
But Traverse City was a whole new story. We had everything figured out. We were the 6th seed at the end of quals, and then we were the very 1st pick. Our alliance absolutely swept in eliminations. We found ourselves in the finals for the first time since 2012. Then something amazing happened.
For the first time ever, we won a district competition
I can assure you that this was the best moment of my life. It was exhilarating. I was crying tears of joy.


Now it is on to the Michigan State Championship, where I hope we can continue to improve not just our robot and our strategy, but also our team as a whole. I hope that my team has all sorts of new FIRSTs this year and in the future.

Even though this is my last year with Team 1711, I know that we will continue to improve. As my signature says, I know that we will be a powerhouse someday. And everyone on the team will help get us there.


You probably don't know us. You probably don't know our name.

But we are RAPTORS. And you're gonna hear us ROAR