Response to “Is This Right”,
I would like to start by formally apologizing for any damage that the “mouse” may have sustained. It was definitely not our intention to cause any damage. Many of our team members commented on what a great idea the mouse was as they scouted in the pits. We were not one of the teams who brought up the entanglement issue.
If you saw our robot you would know that it was designed with defense in mind. Our game plan was basically to defend our goal zone in an effort to keep the opposing teams goals from scoring. We rarely even crossed the middle of the field. Our cross axis drive train allows driving back and forth sideways in the goal zone. Many of the robots at the competition had much more aggressive designs. The play in question was also essentially a defensive play.
We did not win the “best play award” for damaging the mouse. We won the award for quickly reversing what appeared to be a hopeless losing match. With very little time left, we managed to escape one opposing robot that had intentionally lifted us off our wheels and pinned us against a goal. Then we raced across the field, pushed the opposing teams goal out of the scoring zone into our home zone (that is the defensive part). We also got our robot into our home zone while blocking the mouse from escaping, thus insuring us the win.
It just so happened that the mouse was lined up with the goal in such a way that when we came roaring into the home zone pushing the goal, the goal struck the mouse. In the time we had to get the goal out of the scoring zone and to get our robot into the home zone, there is no way we could have taken the time to steer into the mouse. We just gave the goal a high-speed push in a straight line. Unfortunately for the mouse it was in the path of the goal. Our drivers couldn’t even see the mouse from their position in the driver’s station since the mouse was up against the wall. The only way to know the position of the mouse was by inferring its position by looking at the tether.
Our drivers are good, but to steer a 180-pound goal with a 127-pound robot that does not physically couple to the goal is a near impossibility when considering the time frame of a few seconds. As for the big screen, it is very hard to drive your robot while looking at the big screen. When you are driving you are singly focused on watching your bot not the screen. The camera angle on the screen is always changing so you cannot drive using the big screen as a monitor.
I have also heard that some believe that we went into the match with the sole purpose of destroying the mouse. How could we plan the chain of events that led to the mouse’s destruction? Our team is not that good. The only reason that the mouse was in our home zone in the first place is that we were losing so badly that team 329 drove their mouse to our side so that they could maximize their points. Did we some how plan this??? Did we start losing so badly to lure the mouse over to our side of the field???? If the game had played out with the mouse running back to the opponent’s home zone as is conventionally the case we never would have come in contact with it. (Our robot rarely crosses the entire field.) Are these the same people who believe that the moon landing was one big conspiracy???????
After the incident the driver asked me (teacher/mentor) to go with him to apologize for damaging the robot. When we went over everyone was understandably feverishly working. We got the ear of one student and he graciously accepted the apology. He did say that he was disappointed and believed that we continued pushing the goal longer than necessary. (He said he saw our wheels spinning) Maybe, maybe not. Our robot is only 1.5 inches off the ground. It is very hard to slow down and stop instantly from full speed. We have all seen major league baseball players run into the wall after making a catch. (Because he couldn’t slow down in time) What was most disconcerting was what he said next. He pointed to an adult member of the team and said. “Don’t let that guy see you, he wants to kill you.” (Figuratively I am sure) I can understand that this adult was upset, but usually in FIRST any misunderstanding is between the students. We left the pit and went back to our own not wanting to cause any kind of confrontation and to let all parties involved calm down.
We do not come to FIRST events looking to damage anyone. We are always willing to lend tools and support to anyone who wants it. We are not involved in FIRST with a sole aim of winning events or awards. We do it because it offers our students with a unique experience that combines competition with caring and giving. Since we are not there for cutthroat competitiveness, I hardly see how the quarterback analogy fits this situation. We had no way of knowing if team 329 would be an alliance partner in the future so why would we want to render them useless?
The award was based on voting from other teams at the event. So clearly the overwhelming majority of those who witnessed the match saw it differently than 329. Most of the responses on this board so far have been from people who did not actually see it. Please respond if you saw the event. We would like to hear your perspective.
On one point we can agree, overall the event was a huge success and everyone had a great time.
Thanks to everyone who worked tirelessly to make this event a success. (Especially Fred)
See you in NYC. I hope no one has gotten the wrong impression of our team. Our drivers were very concerned when they first heard the accusations.
Ken Tiu
Jeff Yablon
Hauppauge Team 358
