Classic / Ultimate Drive Teams

[Kevin Kolodziej]

Originally Posted by Andy Baker

Kevin Kolodziej and Sarah Michna on team 71 were great in 01 and 02. Their skills led to 71's dominance. Add these two to the winningest coach in FIRST, Brian Beatty, and you have an unbeatable drive team.

Andy B.

We can't take much credit for the 2002 season....anyone could drive that robot! Thank goodness there was no autonomous that year...I'd have been out of a job!!

71's drivers before my time would put me to shame though.

I'm also adding Tony Morales and Allen Hoem from Wildstang (Tony was driver from 98-01 and Allen from 01-03...I think!). These guys could control those maneuverable Wildstang bots like nothing. I had some great friendly rivalries with them in my days.

[JackN]

Drive Teams that I remember as amazing

179 '05-Tytus and Amanda were just a perfectly coordinated team. That robot was pretty good, but they elevated it to another level. Two regional victories and making the Archimedes division finals with the six seeded alliance is a pretty impressive run.

330 '05 and '07-Great machines need great drivers and the Beachbots fielded some of the best drivers ever. They were able to dominate matches in two years where in which your success was entirely dependent on those teams you were partnered with.

25 '06-Corey and Bharat were the two best drivers I have ever seen. I think 25's robot was good, but they made it legendary. I still am amazed by their streak of consecutive matches won and the dominance they displayed. This was what made their team great.

The best drive team that 494 ever had was our 2004 drive team. They were very good at working together and could play with the best of them.

[Guy Chriqui]

I really think that 968 had an amazing drive team this year. They were putting up more tubes then 254 was.

As for the all time best drive team I have to give it to Jeff Kane & Co. from 1138. They take what is a mediocre robot every year and make it amazing. They constantly impress me.
-guy

[Grant Cox]

I'll second the vote for Kyle Love. Ever since seeing them for the first time in St. Louis, I kept telling my scouters "man, I would just loovvve to drive a match with 45!" It's really too bad we didn't get more of a chance in Atlanta..

Also, 233's drive team from this year. With that funky arm setup, it would be easy for the driver to say "okay let me position it, you just let go" or the arm operator to say "you just get it close, I'll finish it." Watching them play, however, you can't tell who is the "dominant" member of the driving strategy. It truly functions like one fluid operation.

I'll admit.. I don't know very much else about the history of drive teams, this being my rookie year, but I'd like to throw out 217's driver from last year, Mike Ross. When he gets behind the joysticks, he really is one with the robot. He sees things out on the field as if he's sitting on the robot, and I can vouch firsthand for his defensive driving abilities dude knows what the game is about, and deserves to lay claim to a championship.

[Jeremiah Johnson]

Any year of Team 71's existence. They face adversity like no other.

For example:

In 2004, I didn't think they had a chance after they were defeated in the semi's of Midwest (don't know other performances for regionals) by the alliance of 648, 65, and 447. However, they ended up winning the whole she-bang...

In 2007, we again defeated them in the semifinals of Midwest and then they were Championship runner-ups...

They tend to bounce back at big events.

[B. Flaherty]

Hands down my favorite drive team has been Corey and Bharat from 25. 25 had a decent bot in 05, but it was still threatening with their driving skills, especially as a rookie driver that year. Of course, they were deadly in 2006. It was simply inspiring to see them win so much. Corey also spent a lot of time talking different driving strategies with me from 06-07, and I have to admit, I owe some of my team's success to those talks for this year. Thanks Cor Cor.

[Cory]

Team 254's best was probably Matt Yu and John Kiely in 2005.

[Aren_Hill]

i'm gonna chuck one up here for whoever swamp things base driver this year was. i think they made it from one side of the field to the other in 3 seconds and flew up 71's ramp.

[Grant Cox]

Originally Posted by Gear

i'm gonna chuck one up here for whoever swamp things base driver this year was. i think they made it from one side of the field to the other in 3 seconds and flew up 71's ramp.

Oh man, I totally forgot about that. MAJOR props to whoever that was; I was watching the field, and I saw them start to come back with literally 4 seconds left. I'm thinking "there is noo wayy they are going to make it in one try at that speed, with that much pressure [from time]." Incredible job there.

[nuggetsyl]

I see our 03 and 06 bot coming up. I whill have to say the 03 driver (steve) was hands down the best. Our 06 guys were great (cory and bharat) but no one and i really mean no one could stop a robot like steve could on that plastic stuff. Also i asked steve how he knew where the robot was on the feild, because the bot was so small you could not see it over the ramp. Steve said i just watch were the boxes were flying.

[Jeff Rodriguez]

I want to mention the 121 driver, Jon. I remember seeing that robot drive backwards across the field while avoiding other robots. He can make those robots dance around the field.

[Chris Hibner]

I have to vote for 1997 Team Hammond (now 71, can't remember their number back then). How they rank compared to all time is hard to say since ever year is a different game and many other factors, but no drive team has ever out-classed the competition like they did that year.

It was 1997 that made the rest of FIRST realize that you can double your robot's productivity by having a finely tuned drive team, and this was all thanks to the way Beatty/Hammond looked like a smooth, well oiled machine and no one else came close.

[James1902]

Team 179's drivers were very fluid and fast, you would turn away for 20 seconds and the whole bottom row would be filled.

Also 1902's base driver last year (2006) was awesome Chuck took a very moderate robot and made it into a regional finalist, semifinalist, and Archamedies finalist.