[dubious elise]

I have to admit, the thing that amazed me the most about robotics competitions was the insane amount of camaraderie that is exhibited in the stands, in the pits, and in the heat of battle. Our team varies by who can come to competitions. At Purdue, we sat in the back of the stands and cheered; at Midwest, we often stood in the front and danced during field repairs/resets.

I must also say, however, that there is a limit. I can understand cheering, I can understand waving banners, I can understand noisemakers (yes, ours were terribly annoying last year and are all in the hands of college students now) but I simply cannot tolerate shrieking. Yes, to the two girls behind me that I gave a stern warning to at the Championships during the Finals matches: though I do believe that you were cheering on your friends, I did not appreciate your shrieks underneath an echoing concrete overhang, and I am truly sorry that three days of sleep deprivation from myself and two teammates exploded all over you. You know that there has to be a limit when people like myself that are nearly deaf in one ear cannot tolerate the noise.

I know this is a bit of a rant, but I needed to get it out. I'm all for the cheering, that is what makes it spectacular for the people in the stands. Shrieking...my ear is still ringing.