FIRST and Success: A Question of Definition

[Ryan Foley]

what is success?

success is tightening that last bolt or conecting that last wire on your robot

success is when that robot does what it was designed to do

success is when the at least 1 person on the team has FUN and LEARNS

success is when the at least one person realizes that there is more to FIRST than just building a robot

For Tantrum 2002:
success was finishing the modifictaions to our 2001 robot

success was seeing that 2001 robot play the 2002 game and move a 180 lb goal that it wasnt at all designed to move*

FIRST's purpose (to me):
to inspire kids to become involved in robotics and technology

to help kids establish a better feeling of team work

to allow them to meet new people from other teams they would have never met if it wasnt for FIRST


*= we werent an official team last year. We modified our 2001 robot and competed at River Rage so that we could recruit new members and get people some building experience