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Unread 05-04-2005, 00:04
dfava dfava is offline
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FRC #0364 (Team Fusion)
Team Role: Mentor
 
Join Date: May 2004
Rookie Year: 2000
Location: Gulfport, MS
Posts: 7
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Re: 2005 Lonestar Regional Awards, Congratulations all teams!

I would like to thank Lucia Sevcik and all of the wonderful Houstonians for another fun-filled Lone Star Regional!

Special thanks to team 57 and 660. Alliance 3! Sometimes you need alittle luck
- we played hard and that's what counts. Kevin - you need not apologize, because you didn't let us down. We win or lose as a TEAM!

On the excessive bashing - I felt that the interaction was all within the rules of engagement. FIRST always tells us to build robust machines! We must listen! If anything, I believe that LSR judges always error on the more conservative side of robot/robot interaction. At the Nationals, the rules change slightly and what was once considered reckless bashing, will then be called clean aggressive defense (as our 2004 robot can attest to - coming home with several Al sideplates bent beyond recognition!)

I agree with Lucien that we must keep our focus on what matters most - and that is changing the world. Would each of us give our lives so wholeheartedly if FIRST was nothing more than a robotics sporting event... I think not. The competitions are just "lagniappe" - something to help us all unwind before starting again on the outreach, community service, the educational experiences, bonding and mentorship. FIRST has so transformed my life and the lives of the students, parents and engineers that are involved, that most of us can hardly remember life before FIRST! A life where we slept more than 4 hours nightly, where we didn't have recurring nightmares about not finding our robot crate at Nationals or where we ate supper on a real kitchen table instead of the workbench in the robot shop! FIRST FEVER - Catch IT!

My hat is off to Lucien (Woody Flowers Award -very deserving)and all the Robonauts (Chairman's award - very deserving)! They made an exceptional bot this year and continue to be role models for all teams through their extension services and outreach. (HEY - they even mentored us many moons ago)!

Congratulations - 118, 231 (loved the seam ripper) and 499 !!!!!!!!

I loved the Ponca City 476? machine too - just beautiful! Great work Tonya!

Also, Congratulations to the other MS teams: 456 Dawn and Warren Central - always with a great machine FINALISTS! and 1205 Scott , Alan, Todd and Pearl River/Picayune - Quarterfinalists!

Special SHOUT to our new friends from Brazil - 1603 Liberato! Koji , Uri and the gang! Thanks for the excitement!

Super special message of respect to all of my students,teacher, mentors, and parents for believing that anything is possible when we work together!

" The difficult we do immediately, the impossible just takes alittle longer!"
David Fava
#364