IRI thanks and reflections from 2826

[Karthik]

IRI was an amazing experience for Team 1114. We were overwhelmed by the amount of teams who came up to us to congratulate us on our 2012 Chairman's Award. The comments and the stories we heard will keep us smiling for years to come.

We knew we'd have a tough road on the field at IRI, as we were using this event to train a new driveteam. It was clear that they were improving as the event went along, but we really had no idea what to expect during Alliance Selection. We were actually a bit startled when 2826 approached us. We thought they would go after a team who was a bit more consistent throughout the weekend. Once we knew Wave was picking us, there was only one thing that went through our heads "We need 4334". Once again, like on Archimedes, we nervously held our breath as each pick took place. We were both stunned and ecstatic when they slipped to our alliance. Grabbing 245 on the back end was a pleasant surprise, as we knew they'd be a great complement to the alliance if we needed them. From there, things just began to click. It was amazing so see are teams work together as a cohesive unit, in matches against some of the best teams in FIRST. It was also crazy to see how our new drive team responded to the pressure and kept getting better, to a point where their inexperience wasn't even noticeable.

There's no doubt in my mind that 2826 is the most underrated team in FIRST. Two regional wins, two regional finalists and two division finalists at champs in the past two years, to go along with their IRI win. Yet, somehow they don't get mentioned with many of the elite teams in FIRST. I'm pretty sure this is going change very soon. These guys are on the cusp of greatness and it's just a matter of time until they hit Einstein. Their robot was an absolute monster in the open field; in fact, aside from 1717, I don't think there was a better open field scorer than 2826. To make sure no one is confused here, these guys were the workhorse on the alliance, absolutely dominating the offensive zone. Not to mention that they're team is a well oiled machine, with a great group of strategists. It was a pleasure working with Jake, Tyler and everyone else. Thank you for taking a chance on us, and letting us prove that we were ready for the challenge.

Team 4334, our "Eh Team" partners, once again proved that they had the best complementary robot in FIRST. With these guys on the field, any two partners would have a shot at triple balancing. Not to mention their ball stealing and tenacious defense. They're just a joy to work with, always willing to fill whichever role is needed by the alliance. The turning point of the elimination rounds was their stand off victory against 148 on the co-op bridge.

We can't forget 245. Even though they were never called into action, they were always ready to act, and very helpful when it came to strategy. It was great knowing that if any one of our robots broke down, we still had a triple balance and two ball auto mode in our back pocket.

To continue on the thought started by Jim earlier in this thread, I'm continually astonished by the pedigree of teams you see in the IRI elimination rounds. In the quarters there were 3 Hall of Fame teams and 8 World Championships, along with 4 2012 Archimedes Finalists. In the semis, we ended up playing against an alliance that won 10 regionals/districts/divisions. It was bordering on ridiculous.

Those semis were especially meaningful for us, playing against three of the teams we respect the most in all of FIRST. 341 who I thought had the best overall performing robot at IRI, 2056 the team who we have such a magical shared history with, and 148 our BFF's from Texas. It was great seeing the entire Eh-Team on the field together. (Definitely not excluding 2168 here, these guys are another up and coming team, who was severely underrated this year.) Going into this matchup, we knew we'd have to execute perfectly plus have some luck to pull out the win. That's exactly what happened. Just a stupendous matchup.

Congrats to the finalist alliance of 1023, 33, 51 and 330. These guys had some dogfights to advance to the finals from the 6 spot, and kept things as close as possible.

Thanks to everyone who helped put this event together, especially Chris and Andy. IRI never ceases to amaze.