[Rick TYler]

OK, I'm posting two.

I spent a lot of time wandering around asking students about their robots. It is amazing how much teams want to show off their work. I LOVE it.

At one team, the student turned out to be a young (probably 19) mentor. He told me that they had taken the 2-speed shifter off their bot to make weight, but that he had designed and machined it himself. He pulled out a metal container full of transmission parts and showed me how the ball-bearing shifter worked. It was a great moment.

I'll gladly stand in the pits all day hearing students tell me how stuff works. I think they inspire me a lot more than I inspire them.