Kettering Kick off 2010 event

[Karibou]

I'm not sure that that a separate thank-you thread really needs to be made, so I guess this is the place for my post.

I don't think that anyone on 1189 entered the venue this morning expecting today to roll out like it did. We ended the regular season with 4-16-4 record and a robot frame that had parts that were so bent, they looked like sine waves. We fixed up the robot for this competition, and expected to do significantly better than we did during the districts - we could actually drive around now. Even after experiencing several issues during the matches, mostly due to battery problems, we were ranked somewhere between 15th and 20th (I didn't check the rankings before alliance selection), which was pretty shocking to us. Everyone who was with the team (about 15 rookies, 13 veterans, and maybe 10 parents) was having a lot of fun, and I would have been perfectly content with packing up and cheering for our close friends 3096. All of us were beyond shocked when the #1 alliance asked us to join them.

469 and 910 - Playing with you two was a treat. I don't think that you can even begin to realize what you did for our team by selecting us. Morale has been boosted tenfold, even though we were subbed out after the quarterfinals. Being a part of that alliance made team history - we've never been finalists before. Ever. We've been semifinalists a handful of times, but we have never been part of a finalist alliance. This is the first award that, in our team's 8 years, we have ever received for something related to our robot. Saying that we aren't at all disappointed in the alliance's loss would be a lie - winning would have been fantastic, there's no doubt about that - but we still felt like champions, which is what FIRST is really about.

548, thank you very much for subbing in for us for the semis and finals. Your performance was great, and I was actually really surprised when you weren't picked during alliance selection.

I would also like to specially thank 910 and 2619's programmer for helping us get our kicker working before the eliminations. We spent a while trying to figure out why in the world it wouldn't work - everything was plugged in in the right places, the code didn't have any problems, everything was getting the right amount of power, etc. We're still not entirely sure why it's working now, but we really appreciate the thoughtfulness and help that you provided. 910 also provided a lot of insight on and off the field. It was wonderful working with you and having your pit right next door, and I hope that we will have the same opportunity in the future.

More thank-yous...to the volunteers (who I now appreciate a lot more after having been one at IRI) that made the event possible. To the host teams, for providing volunteers and for contributing so much to the event. To any team who let us borrow a part or gave us a cable or provided help (I don't know who these teams were, since I wasn't keeping track like I usually do). To Kettering University, for hosting the event and supporting FIRST like crazy.

[fuzzwaz]

This event was great! Many thanks to everyone who was kind enough to help us cheer with us when we asked!! Those made my day!

[JackN]

Can someone post Alliances and results?

[Jim Zondag]

Alliances:

1. 469, 910, 1189, 548 (Finalist) (substitute 548 for 1189 in QF)
2. 1718, 33, 3096 (SF)
3. 217, 2337, 3401 (QF)
4. 862, 27, 1322 (QF)
5. 2612, 51, 2137 (SF)
6. 1243, 2619, 494 (Winners)
7. 2145, 247, 503 (QF)
8. 326, 70, 2832 (QF)

This was a fun and very competitive tournament as always.
There were a number of upsets in the Elims which kept it very exciting right to the end. It was a great way to kickoff the new FIRST season. Congrats to 1243, 2619 & 494, you guys had a great alliance.

[maltz1881]

Just had tons of fun!! I told my kids that if you win the IPad it was so going to be mine!! WTG to the young lady who won it, I am completely jealous! Looking forward to next year! Kettering always puts on a great event!

[FoleyEngineer]

Kettering Kickoff was once again a blast! Team 910 just loved seeing all of our friends there and enjoyed getting to know our neighbors 1189 so much better. 1189, I have to compliment your programmer on his sharp mind and ability to code quickly and under pressure. He just needed to know that the spike must be driven by a relay output and to put in the relay vi and he was good-to-go from there. It was sure great to see that kicker kickin! Suggestion for next time... fasten down the radio and jaguars. It's a rough ride inside there!

469, thanks for picking us and tying our world record of 38 points! What fun! I loved the cooperation and willingness to work so well together from all of our partners. We were truly ONE TEAM. To 1189 and 548, your whole teams - from the coaches to the players to the fans - your enthusiasm was infectious! Great playing and great effort. Congrats!

Finally, to Ron, Gary, Richard and Alan - you guys are the best refs ever! Thank you for your tireless efforts in supporting FIRST. You're our heroes!

John

[Karibou]

Originally Posted by FoleyEngineer

Kettering Kickoff was once again a blast! Team 910 just loved seeing all of our friends there and enjoyed getting to know our neighbors 1189 so much better. 1189, I have to compliment your programmer on his sharp mind and ability to code quickly and under pressure. He just needed to know that the spike must be driven by a relay output and to put in the relay vi and he was good-to-go from there. It was sure great to see that kicker kickin! Suggestion for next time... fasten down the radio and jaguars. It's a rough ride inside there!

I'll pass the message on to him And regarding the radio and jags...the jags were replacements to a few Victors that we blew at Detroit. I don't think that any of us really thought about fastening them down for Kettering, since our hanger (the yellow...thing on the top of the robot) was down the entire competition. The radio was a loaner given to us by the FTA guys, who didn't want to deal with the new radio. We over-duct-taped it down after the last quarterfinal, before we found out that we were being subbed.

Again, thank you so much for helping us out. It was great working with you, and we might not have worked as well without your help!

[J@GMFlint]

As an MMRA Team supporting the Kettering Kick-Off, Team #1243 thanks to all who supported this event. Every year this has always been a great event with lots of fun, friendships and great competition!

Another special thanks to Team #1946 for making the trip over from Isreal. It was nice to meet you all and we were happy to be of help Thursday evening with batteries, and a ride to Target!

To our Winning Alliance:

Team 2619- Your hanger was a great inspiration to us- I’ve been a fan since seeing it in action at Ann Arbor- and although we haven’t used our version of it yet (one more chance at WMRI) we’ve learned a lot along the way and appreciate the support and insight you have shared with us. Your robot was just awesome with its elegant and highly functional simplicity that gave it great game play flexibility (loved those Auton. Modes )!! Also, thanks for the programming pointers throughout the season, and for helping us to get a handle on some of the nuance of LabView. Being able to have you guys in our alliance was a great honor and privilege to us. To borrow a quote from the celebration dinner- “you were phenomenal”!

Team 494- Your midfield based design and simple rebounding capability was key in our alliance. Being able to rebound and score from the middle, then doing so at critical moments, gave us depth of play that proved very effective. Good Job! Your new field team has great potential and a lot to be proud of! Then there’s also a peculiar intangible I’ve noticed over the years… in addition to having great students, mentors and robots, Goodrich always seems to be a part of the winning alliance at a large number of the Kettering events! So, I knew we had that going for us as well!

When alliance selections were completed- after getting past the psychological hurdle of “who” we would, and could be playing, we knew we had a well-balanced alliance with everyone in their natural positions & would surely give it a good run. With "phenomenal" execution & a little luck at the right moments we were able to pull off our 2nd major “upset” this year. Note to rookie scouts who may find the job "boring": From our experience and observation, the 3rd robot (last pick) has been just as important as the 2nd (first pick) and that decision is based on the quality of YOUR information!! Scouts rule!!!

Personally, one of the most exiting moments was in QF’s when both 2337 & 2619 (my favorite hangers) were starting to go up, & then seeing our robot clean-up the field just as the clock expired. Ultimately tipping the scales our way in a very close match. As many of us know, you can never really trust the “real time” field score, but in that match, in those few moments you just knew everyone on both alliances had played their absolute best to the very end and at least to me, it had all the makings of great FIRST competition- no matter the final score, it was the kind of match everyone could be proud of. These types of efforts and experiences were repeated throughout the day, particularly by all of the teams in the tournament- especially those outstanding and even legendary teams we played. Great job to all!!

Not to be forgotten- the students of Team #1243. Year in and year out it is each one of you who inspire me to continue supporting FIRST. Although we have a long way to go to build the team by some measures, we continue to make progress every year and work being a small team into an advantage. Keep up the good work and stay focused as we continue to prepare our new folks for 2011!

See some of you one last time again in 2010 at WMRI!