2009 Finger Lakes Regional!!!!

[Bongle]

Originally Posted by esquared

It would absolutely be useful, thank you!

Can you PM me with an email? I'll send it once I've got it edited.

[Pat Fairbank]

Originally Posted by esquared

While I don't normally believe in coincidences, your bots behavior matched a brownout or reset condition on the cRIO. I did go over the robot's power and data connections with your drive team immediately after the match to try and identify if there was anything loose, possibly anything that was wrong with your bot on the field was fixed when checking the connections. That's a pretty farfetched theory however, as while they were doing that I did not see any sketchy connections

Thanks for investigating this. I did see that the RSL was out completely when the robot wasn't moving, but I wasn't paying enough attention to see whether it was blinking slow or fast at the other times. The alliance station light was blinking too while the robot wasn't moving, but I suppose that's just an indication of everything not working right.

[AndrewL1626]

Originally Posted by AndrewMorrison

This year was a big turn around for team 229.
On behalf of our team I would like to thank 1241 and 1626 for being amazing alliance partners. We would love to run with you guys again in the future, we had a blast.

Now this thread is full of congratulations and thank you's, so I feel bad having to lodge the first complaint, but I feel it is necessary.
This entire weekend it seemed like the only thing that mattered to the referees, FTA, and scoring table was staying on time.
They refused (until the very end) to believe that there could be anything wrong with the field. They refused to let 1241 link with the field in one match, and in the same match when the field stopped working with 2-3 seconds left they still almost said that the scores would stand(even though human players kept going because the buzzer never went off). We actually took the rule book to them, and showed them the rule about replaying the match whenever there was a field error. It still took them a 10 minute conference and the stands to start chanting "re-do, re-do" before they finally agreed.
We all know what happened in week one, and all the field errors that went on then, but they completely disregarded that this could even be a possibility. Now I can understand that some problems were because of a jostled wire or some code issue, but they blamed absolutely everything on the teams. It wasn't until the finals when they started to truly acknowledge field problems. After quite a bit of complaints.

Now this is all after the competition has ended, but who knows how many problems actually happened during qualifications? the rankings could have changed, and the outcome could have been completely different. (absolutely no disrespect to the winning alliance, you had a phenomenal alliance).
Speaking for my team, we were all very disappointed in how the field was ran.

Thanks to Teams 1241 and 229 for picking us to work with you. We had a great experience. We're hoping to be able to work with 229 in Annapolis as well.
I agree with the points you made as well. They should not have started that match if there were field communication errors.

Good luck to 1241 in your next regional(s).

[Flyin' Axe]

I would like to say thanks to all the teams who showed up to the Finger Lakes Regional this year. I hope everyone had amazing experiences. The FLR would have been even more incredible if there were no field problems, no doubt about that. Although I wasn't there to see my team along with 1507 and 174 win the regional, I was following the regional via the webcast just wishing that I was there.

1507 and 174, you guys were amazing alliance partners with great robots. Good luck at the future regionals and at the World championships.

[Bongle]

I did the video editing, and despite the high resolution, it simply isn't possible to tell if 1503's RSL is blinking, not blinking, etc because the camera moves too much and the field lights are too bright.

[viney22]

i would just like to thank 173 and 191 it was amazing working with you and hope to c u in the future

[computerboi1503]

The only thing that not many else have noticed that I did during that match was, our robot was completely powered through the match, indicated by the victors and the radio. I would love to see that video to confirm this, as I am not 100% positive.

It is quite possible that I beat our operator to powering things up, as for that match I did power the robot up in a hurry. I cannot recall a thumbs-up from our operator at the start of that match. So, although there was nothing we could find wrong with our robot, human error on our side of things could have played a role. The RSL is still confusing me though. For sure I am hoping to implement a monitoring system, so our team can review every match the robot's functions and happenings.

-Nick

[Josh Goodman]

The picture that many wanted:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/33341

[Shankar M]

I apologise for the lateness of this post, but I had to do a little bit of studying for a couple of midterms I had over the past couple of days. Now that all of that has been taken care of, I can get to the important stuff.

I have been to the Finger Lakes Regional twice now, and each time I have left blown away. In 2006, as with this year, the energy in the building was incredible. The smaller environment made for a homely feeling, but the many teams kept things extremely competitive. This is definitely a regional that I hope Team 188 continues to attend in the future.

The run that Team 340 has had with the Chairman's Award in recent years is ridiculous. When we decided as a team to submit our RCA at the Finger Lakes Regional, we knew we would be going up against one of the very best. This past weekend I got a chance to look at some of the stuff your team has done personally, and I must say that it is simply astounding; it was a very well deserved win again this year. Good luck in Atlanta, the big prize surely cannot be too far off for you now.

Team 1547's runs with FIRST's biggest awards have also been incredible. Year after year, your team manages to deliver. Last year's Chairman's win at GTR was long due and this year's EI was no different. Teams like yours not only serve as an inspiration for the rest of us, but also push us to do more year after year. Congratulations on your win and see you at GTR. (Also, thank you for lending us your easel for our Chairman's presentation!)

To the eighth alliance, Teams 3015, 3003, and 2053: you definitely left us with our hearts in our mouths after that first match. Visions of 71, 1114, and 1000 being downed in the quarters at Midwest were looming and so many on our team were left stunned. You deserve a ton of credit for your spectacular strategic manoeuvre you pulled off. All three of your teams have great potential for the future, and I wish you the very best of luck.

We knew we were up against one of the strongest alliances when we took on 1241, 229, and 1626. A killer human player, some ridiculous driving skills, and solid defensive capabilities made for a frightening team. Your alliance certainly gave us a run for our money. Had you not ended up on our side of the draw, I am sure our match-up would have made for a heck of a final.

The seventh alliance of 340, 1511, and 316 did not make things easy for us in the finals. Thank you for pushing us until the very end. Team 1511 did nothing but improve from Friday afternoon until the end of the eliminations, while 340 and 316 kept at it all weekend.

I felt that a couple of teams at the regional definitely deserved better finishes. The picking mishap for 610 was extremely unfortunate. Your team had one of the better robots at the regional and should most definitely have been in the eliminations. I know you guys will only be better at GTR and look forward to seeing you there. Team 1503 had one of the top three robots at Finger Lakes and had it not been for some rather puzzling happenings in the quarterfinals, could have definitely taken the second alliance deep into the eliminations. I know you will only come back hungrier than ever at GTR.

On a bit of a personal note, Team 2609 again impressed me this weekend. After a stellar rookie year, it looks like you have only gotten better. I am looking for great things from your robot at Waterloo and I have no doubts that you will deliver.

To all the other teams we will be seeing at GTR: 771, 772, 1246, and 1126, we are expecting the very best from you and look forward to yet another awesome Greater Toronto Regional.

Finally, to our alliance partners, 1507 and 174: THANK YOU! It has been five long years since 188 last won a regional and we very much appreciate your help in ending that drought.

Team 1507 undoubtedly had one of the best robots at Finger Lakes. The power dumping ability, combined with seamless empty cell deliveries made your team a treat to watch. In the eliminations, you were one of the most open alliance captains I have ever worked with, never afraid to hear our team out on strategy and decisions about how to play out our matches. Thank you for making us your first pick. I look forward to seeing you in Atlanta, where your team will be quite a force to be reckoned with.

Team 174 was willing to do whatever it took, and that was exactly what they did. From delivering empty cells, to scoring balls, to playing hard defence, you did it all. We could not have asked any more of our second pick and were extremely lucky to end up with a team like you from where we were picking!

Congratulations on a job well done to everyone on Team 188! You did many things well over the course of this season and this weekend your efforts were rewarded.

The scouting team kept on top of things at all times and ensured that we had a great pick list to share with our alliance captain. (Thanks also to Adam, Jeff, Tristan, and Tyler for your invaluable advice over the course of the weekend, particularly Friday night.) The pit crew had less to do than ever before with our robot staying fully functional throughout the regional. Despite this, between matches, the crew were always running system checks and making sure all was well with the robot. The drive team definitely got things right. I had the opportunity to work with you during the season when you were practicing and it clearly paid off. You learned so much, but more importantly your knowledge to use. Shawn (Mr. Lim to some of you), you adapted so well to all the curveballs that were thrown your way and you made coaching a very tough game look easy. Congratulations on a job well done to everyone on the team!

Thank you once again to everyone at the Finger Lakes Regional. It was a blast!

[rachakate]

Man - what a week! I'm so proud of all the volunteers that make this event run so smoothly! Saturday I was able to sit and watch 340 and 424 compete. The headset was quiet - well at least channel 1. The field headset was a different story. These events only work when the volunteers are putting in their A game. Great job to each and every volunteer at FLR. Thank you for your help and dedication

[esquared]

Originally Posted by computerboi1503

The only thing that not many else have noticed that I did during that match was, our robot was completely powered through the match, indicated by the victors and the radio. I would love to see that video to confirm this, as I am not 100% positive.

It is quite possible that I beat our operator to powering things up, as for that match I did power the robot up in a hurry. I cannot recall a thumbs-up from our operator at the start of that match. So, although there was nothing we could find wrong with our robot, human error on our side of things could have played a role. The RSL is still confusing me though. For sure I am hoping to implement a monitoring system, so our team can review every match the robot's functions and happenings.

-Nick

I'm glad to hear another 1503 team member see what myself, the FTA, and others noted. I have a lot more confidence that there was a power/reboot issue with your robot at that time with the number of other people that have noticed it. I will still follow up regarding any possible field-initiated method of resetting robots, particularly with regarding to intermittent E-Stops.

Once Josh Goodman finishes cutting up the 'official' footage captured at FLR for the blue alliance, perhaps we'll see something in there to confirm.

[Jeff Rodriguez]

Huge thanks to 191 and 1503! It was super exciting to be selected for our alliance. We had a great time working with you guys and look forward to doing it again in the future.
RAGE had a great time at Rochester. Thanks to all the volunteers and staff that put on this great event.
Karthik and JonDarr you guys are one of the best combos ever! I hope to see you at many other events.

[rachakate]

Originally Posted by Jeff Rodriguez

Karthik and JonDarr you guys are one of the best combos ever!

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

[Tetraman]

Originally Posted by rachakate

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

YES! That is very exciting news. He will soon truly be the voice of FIRST. I hope they put him on an exciting Division - like Arch or Gali. or Einstein.

Originally Posted by Shankar M

Team 174 was willing to do whatever it took, and that was exactly what they did. From delivering empty cells, to scoring balls, to playing hard defence, you did it all. We could not have asked any more of our second pick and were extremely lucky to end up with a team like you from where we were picking!

That's why I always love my old team: they give it their all for no matter what or how they are needed. I think I'm the only person from 174 who visits this site, so I'll let the team know about this.

[Josh Goodman]

Originally Posted by rachakate

SECONDED!! FYI - JonDarr will be announcing for the first time at championships this year!

MADE MY DAY!