[Karthik]

Well, I figured I should chime in at some point.

I'd love to be able to answer the question "Are the NiagaraFIRST Triplets the best team(s) in 2006?" Unfortunately, my opinion is probably slightly biased. Nevertheless, here are some comments.

The regional season put together by both 1114 and 1503 are unparalleled in the alliance era. The last team to win three regionals was Team 47 in 1998. Now, that being said, there are many teams who could have won 3 regionals if they had attended that many. For example, is there anyone out there who thinks Team 71 wouldn't have won a 3rd regional in 2001 if presented the opportunity? We're very proud of our historical accomplishment, but we know that it does not automatically define us as "the best". It just means we have the most trophies on the year.

Where do the Triplets rank among the other elite teams in FIRST? There will always be debates like this, and usually no consensus is achieved. Going into this year's Rose Bowl, there was much debate about who was better, Texas or USC. Many people had opinions, but there was no way anything concrete could be determined. These teams had not played each other, and their common opponents could only be linked by a graph with a depth of three. The same applies in FIRST. How can anyone truly compare Team 1114 with 111, or 1503 with 25? How many people have actually seen the robots they're comparing in person? Anything we come up with and say is pure conjecture. Now, I'm not trying to throw a wet blanket on these discussions. They're a lot of fun, and that's why we have them.

I know for a fact that my teams are not unbeatable. This is because we've lost matches. Team 68 beat the bejeezus out of 1114 & 1503 at GLR during the elimination rounds. Team 469 out strategized 1114 in a qualification match at GLR. Team 229, 217 & 4 plain out outplayed us in the Semis in Toronto. Yes these teams are beatable. Now, after that moment of humility, let me say this. Every other team in FIRST is beatable as well. Even the great Beatty in 2002 lost elimination matches.

So in summation, I hesitate to call our teams the best, but I do think we're on an elite level. At this point there's no way of differentiating between team like the triplets, 111, 25, 254, 968, 469, 71 and the rest of the top teams. We're very honoured to know that people across FIRST consider us the best team they've seen, and we hope that at least one of our teams will be able to earn this honour down in Atlanta, along with two other fantastic FIRST teams.

In terms of the general success of the regional season, I suspect if you ask most members of NiagaraFIRST, especially those on 1114, what their proudest moment of the season was, it would be winning the Waterloo Chairman's award. When the concept of the triplets was first decided upon in 2004, never was the goal to bring home more trophies. It was to spread the word FIRST, which we feel our collaboration has allowed for. Our community has been energized by FIRST, and by the day more kids get bitten by the FIRST bug. This easily outweighs the trophies we've earned.

Congratulations to all teams on a wonderful regional season, and good luck to those competing in Atlanta.