[FIM] Traverse City District Event 2014

[Christopher149]

Well, since no thread appeared to exist, let's start it. Caution, this post will also be an 857 recap, so it might be lengthy.

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First off, big thanks to our partners 3688 and 2586 for an amazing run in elims, with 857 reaching finals for the first time ever. 3688, you had a great shooter and 2-ball auton. 2586, you were great for the third assist (well, 'first', since the HP inbounded to you) and solid defense.

We ended quals 11-1-0, with a 9-0-0 Thursday. There were so many matches that had us worried, but we worked with what we had and pulled it out. Even the match (Q45) where the cycle was simply HP->857->over truss->5213 (looks kind of like Dozer)->low goal. Even a 21-point cycle can win matches.

I think it was 5223 who unfortunately couldn't pass inspection as they were, but we came over with a hacksaw so they could meet either the perimeter or 20" requirement; I personally don't know which.

I think it was match Q18 (79-58 W) where we sat on the field dead for ~30-60 seconds after ramming a wall; I believe it was because we broke the terminals (the fittings on the wire, not the battery itself) leading to a poor connection. Then, I think it was SF1-1; the red pedestal didn't light up for ~30 seconds after scoring.

All three matches we lost (Q61, and F2 and F3), we had thrown chain, either breaking it or having it fall off our sprockets. Looks we have a project for MSC! Aside from chain, the battle scars are few, far between, and mostly just dings and scratches. I would like to think we could have won if our drive had worked, given how F1 went. Still, congrats to 3602, 4391, and 4988 (all UP teams) on your win. You adopted the same strategy as us (it seems) and it sure rewarded you. Fun seeing a finals match with 5 UP teams at a downstate event.

Also during elims, and anyone from the other alliance, correct me if I'm wrong, but: before F2, we called a timeout to try to fix our chains (never got it fixed during elims), and apparently 3602 (or someone on the alliance) coincidentally broke an axle. When we needed more time before F3, they called a timeout on our behalf in thanks for the earlier timeout. Thanks guys, it means a lot.

After about 3 wins, we thought we would probably lose somewhere and drop in rankings, but that never happened and we pulled off an unprecedented record for our team.

After all that, they were announcing the Engineering Inspiration (EI) winner, and I was half listening, wondering what other team might have had some transportation issues and started 4 FLL teams, but when the announcer said "...spreading FIRST to the ends of the Earth..." my brain basically shifted gears and failed, like *mindblown* - wut??? How did we win EI? To break a 10 year drought on awards and much in the way of elims with a Judges Award (Escanaba) and EI and finalist (TC) is stunning.

With 3602, an in-joke has been growing from the Esky event where we essentially parked on their robot for a bit by accident. I love the fun banter.

Lastly, our winning strategy was: find out what our partners can do, and we'll do the other thing (HP inbound, truss, or high goal) as suited. For elims, it was HP->2586->857 (preferably without touching ground)->over truss->3688->high or low goal as defense dictated. TL;DR - cycle like the GDC intended, but Secret Sauce isn't critical.


(I'll post some pics soon)