[dez250]

with all the arguments that everyone is saying about the original 6 teams that are still here out of those 28, and how they get a free ride is finally getting to me. i am going to continue this post on my own thoughts and conditions, it has no input from my team nor any other the other 5 left. What i want to say is going to be a very harsh reality to many of you and i will prob get grief back at "home base" of 250 for saying this but i am going to post it to show some truths behind the craze of being on a team that was formed in 1992 and has competed each year since then.

This organization brought me in when i was an 8th grader, i did not join a team until my sophomore year in high school because i wasn't sure if i wanted to be on a team or just watch it on TV still. though i was lucky enough to be brought into a family when i joined named; Team 250: Capital Region Robotics, The Dynamos. these people have been close to me and have shown me what the truth behind FIRST really is, and at points i wish i didn't join this team, as every team does have their bad times. But you may think oh were an original team, it must be easy to stay around now! But that truthfully is the exact opposite of what it is like to be on this team. our funding has not been the steadiest and our team at points have not been the closest. i am not going to go into personal events as this is not the time nor place for them, but our team is like each and every other team out there. we may get a "free ride" to the nationals event but believe me when i say this and many other teams can contest to this, the original 6 teams that still are around today, and personally i can speak here for 250, WE WORK OUR A$$ES OFF STILL AND SHED OUR BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS FOR THIS ORGANIZATION WE CALL HOME. We don't do it though for the ride to Nat's or for the recognition, we do it for the main purpose of FIRST and that is to spread this organization to our next coming generation and to other schools then just ourself. We may have been here longer then almost all other teams but we still are dynamic and we are never the same one year to another.

At this time i would like to once again ask you all to take a step back from your monitor and look at what everyone has done including yourself to make this place we call home, a better place. Also if you can for a minuet, just think what this place might be (or NOT be) with out the 6 teams that are still around from 1992.

~Mike