Personal Reflections from 2011

[AlecMataloni]

Out of all the teams at the championship, you guys were hands down my favorite team to watch.

I have no knowledge of your previous seasons, but I think it's safe to say that you more than redeemed yourselves. Simplicity really is a beautiful thing and it's led you to massive amounts of success this season. I think I speak for everyone on my team when I say that it was a great pleasure competing against 1503 on Einstein. I'd love to stop by your pit at IRI to see what you guys are all about.

Congradulations on a spectacular season.

-Alec

[Chris is me]

I can't tell you how many times I wavered on floor loading or not floor loading during the first three weeks of build. I'm pretty sure Nick and I both flipped back and forth at least twice, arguing with each other constantly over which was actually the best call for either of us. At one point we made a bet, where if I won a regional without floor loading, I'd win, and if he won a regional floor loading, he'd win. Neither of us won the bet.

In the end, Nick and 1503 absolutely made the right call, and it's something I wish I didn't push so hard for on 2791's machine. The floor loading wasn't the cause of our problems, but if we focused on slot loading we would have had time to fix them.

[Akash Rastogi]

Nick, it was different seeing 1503 make it to Einstein than other teams. We (myself, Dustin, etc.) I think, felt more proud and happy to see you succeed than any other team this year. It was a great feeling to see a friend struggle and emerge victorious.

[thefro526]

I have never been so happy to see a team succeed.

Thanks for being awesome Nick. You, Your Team, and your machine will serve as an inspiration for many people in the years to come.