Yeah.
Much as I hate to admit it, Travis is a huge help to 968. He's also insane. He did most of the work on the 4-speed gearboxes we have, and he has this addiction to chrome, polish and powder coat. There were many a night during the pre-season where I would go into his room at 2 a.m. to find him yelling at his computer, working out the details of our drivetrain. From spacing to the gear ratios, it was Travis, with a little help here and there. He really put a lot of time into those things, and they came out beautifully.
Travis has an obsession with making the robot look clean. In addition, we all feel strongly about making sure the robot works properly before we get to the pretty stuff. These values drive Travis to design a good robot, then keep redesigning it until it is perfect. If he weren't so crazy, 968 would really have difficulty getting a robot done on time. Without him, we wouldn't enjoy the reputation he's helped us earn, and we would have saved thousands on Mother's Polishing Compound.
Design, Fabrication, Wiring, Welding,
(Arguing with Kevin... 
), Competition, Ordering T-Shirts, Driving stuff to the welders when Kirk and I had class, or really didn't want to... Travis works best under intense pressure, and when he works, he doesn't take any prisoners. The Devil is in the details, but so is Travis. He's got the most follow-through on the team, and that really saved our bacon this year.
He's also the one who roped me into this whole robotics thing. Back on team 115, He got me to show up for the design part, and got me in on 968 when the team was in its infancy. It's been a good experience so far. I remember back in high school, when Travis was a sophomore on team 115. one week into the competition, he showed me a sketch of what he wanted the robot to look like. By the end of that build season, the robot resembled his drawing pretty well. He went on to be the mechanical director of 115, and designed a robot that won the national championship.
Down here at Cal Poly Pomona, he was hell bent on starting a team. We met Kirk in the fall our freshman year, then met Scott, the owner of Cityware.com owner. They started having meetings, and got Bob Anderson and WCHS on board. Next thing I knew, the kickoff rolled around, and we were building. Travis was, is, and will be a key player for team 968. The team has been successful because of his contributions, and will hopefully be able to reach out to help spread the inspiration FIRST promotes.
On behalf of Team 968, Thank you to Travis Covington, and also to Kirk Oden, Travis's partner in crime. (Kirk is our "fabricant extraordinaire," and also does a whole lot.)