My first robotics competition was the 2002 Bash@the Beach.
I was new to the robotics team and knew only one other person on the team at that point. I was overwhelmed by all of the people, and I didn't know a thing about robots, so most of my time was spent standing around wondering what I was supposed to be doing.
I had alot of fun though. It was amazing for me to watch something that I had so little understanding about. I was fascinated by the robot, and wondered what exactly made it work the way it did. I loved to watch the veteran members of the team working on the robot. My most distinct memory was watching Tom, our driver, fix our robot's frame, which was made out of aluminum extrusion and had been skewed out of place in the last match, by whacking it with the hammer.
(the "fine adjustment tool" as he called it
)
I also was fascinated by the matches themselves; I had never seen anything like it. The competition as a whole was very exciting to me; the smashing of robots, the oddly dressed and strangely behaved people
I was also the team's operator for one match, which I remember we lost.
But being on the drive team for one match gave me a better understanding of how stressful and difficult that job is. The experience augmented my appreciation and admiration of my fellow teammates, mentors, and other FIRSTers.
After Bash was over, I left with feelings of great admiration for my team. I wanted nothing more but to be able to do what they do... and learn. I was inspired to follow in the footsteps of the veterans who came before me.
At my first robotics meeting, one of my teammates said, "Once you go to your first competition... thats when you fall in love with it."
And I did.