[JVN]

On behalf of Innovation First, myself, and Tony Norman I'd like to congratulate everyone involved in putting on the IRI for a truly fantastic event. We had a great weekend, and really appreciate the hospitality we were shown.

Congratulations especially for the successful Vex competition. We were very impressed by the way it was run, and were excited to see it play out. Special kudos are due to Scott and Rufus from 447 for the hard work they put in on the game itself.

We'd also like to congratulate Lisa Perez, winner of the innaugural IFI-IRI Scholarship. Good Luck in the future Lisa! We were overwhelmed with the quality of the scholarship submissions, and impressed with the candidates. I only hope that next year we can continue to offer a scholarship, and hopefully receive many more applicants!

As some of you may know, Innovation First performed the first "competition conditions' test of a new radio system at the 2005 IRI. We were VERY pleased with the results, and certainly excited to see the system perform well enough that drivers stated "We can't even tell the difference". (This system is being evaluated for possible implementation in 2007.) Special thanks to the IRI organizers for allowing us to perform this test, and to the following teams:

Teams who helped with the morning test:
217, 234, 980, 47, 45, 461

Teams who helped with the evening test:
71, 65, 1114, 217, 269, 469

You've all done us a great service, and we appreciate it.
Hopefully you had a little fun in the process.

IRI continues to be one of the most exceptional FIRST events I've attended. I am excited that Innovation First can play even a small role in the event, and hope we can continue to do so in future years. Again, kudos to all involved.

Take Care,
John