[archiver]

Posted by Andrew Trax, Coach on team #180, S.P.A.M., from Southfork,Martin Co. High and UTC.

Posted on 5/6/99 4:17 AM MST


In Reply to: Re: Hey, I'm just following orders... posted by Elaine Anselm on 5/5/99 8:54 PM MST:



I can completely sympathize with Andy G. Don't take it to mean that being
soured on the game means being soured on FIRST. But just step back and image
how it felt to sit 1st place Thurs., stay near the top 10 Fri., sit
at 10th until your last match Saturday in which you're paired with a tin can
on wheels (not the box on wheels), slip to 19th and NOT make it to finals.
We were pretty certain that we'd either finish top 16, or be a first round pick.
It was disappointing. And packing up the robot before finals? I couldn't
watch. And it had nothing to do with winning - it had everything to do with
staying in the game.
We had an incredibly good robot. 19th seed out of 207 is a great finish.
We were 6th seed at Kennedy.
And it felt as though no one noticed. Why?
As we were packing up, other teams came by to offer consolations - they
didn't realize we had slipped out of the top 16 and had expected us to be
pickers - not pickees - so our number wasn't on their lists. Having the
ranking board down during match 6 didn't help either. About the time the board
came back online, the student reps were heading to the stage.
Soured on the game, this game? Yes, I am. I dare anyone to tell me that
we shouldn't have felt disappointment.
But soured on FIRST? Not at all. It's still new and if one game doesn't
suit you, there's always next year.

Mrs. Trax