Predictions Week 4: Playing in Traffic

[waialua359]

I dont think herding machines have as much impact as a team that can knock opponent balls off and speed around the track. If the herding machine can knock opponent balls off and can speed its way around the track, I would focus on that.
Why knock our own ball off and herd it 6 times around the track just to break even? Its not 3 times as others have argued since you would already go around the track to earn 2 pointers lapping the field. I have yet to see a robot that can effectively herd a ball 6 times plus in a match consistently. Plus, you need another teammate to put the ball back up, if you want the bonus points back. Let the opponent worry about knocking your ball off if your not hurdling it.
I thought the strategy worked well in VCU as we only had one hurdling teammate in our 9 seeding matches, losing only a close 1 match against two top hurdling teams on the same alliance.
That strategy soon failed at our next event when we had either a teammate not show up on the field (twice) , or teammates that could not knock opponents balls down, were relatively slower than average, penalty prone and unable to hurdle. It didnt help that the Chesapeake algorithm of match pairings were similar to that of 2007 which I could not understand given the fact that there were 61 teams. (Example: We played the same team 4 times in 5 consecutive matches.)
Many have predicted alliances of 2 hurdlers and 1 racer bot. I think an alliance with 3 hurdling machines "can" be more effective in elim matches. If the 3rd hurdler can effectively knock opponent balls down, relatively quick, and can place balls up at the end, then why not pick them? At CMP where there will be an abundance of hurdlers, I would predict that preferences of alliances of 3 hurdlers will take place. What if a hurdling robot has problems or breaks down or has defense played on them? The other robot can pick up the slack. **Just generalizing here**
Other factors of course: Exceptional robots in specific attributes such as speed racing, NOT getting penalties and exceptional autonomous mode.

[Pavan Dave]

Sorry, but you make it sound like the Robonauts are lacking their competitive spirit on the field... In the last 5 regional competitions attended (Before Lone Star 2008) -- 2005 Denver, 2005 LSR, 2006 LSR, 2007 Bayou, 2007 LSR -- we were winners in 3 of those events and finalists in the other two.

[EricH]

All right, Looking Forward, here's your results from L.A.

330+1717=on the other alliances. They grabbed 980 (who when with 330 gets a similar reaction) as last pick and went 6-0 in the elims. 100+ scores in each match from them, including a 142-0 match. (Penalties on the other side.)

1726 and 842 made it to the semis before falling.

2102 was picked, but I don't think they made it past the quarters.

702--finalist
2659--seventh seed and finalist

[robro2102]

Originally Posted by EricH

2102 was picked, but I don't think they made it past the quarters.

We actually made it to the third round in semi finals.

[Stephi Rae]

In Seattle...

1983 finished up ranked 3rd. 1778 (hurdler) was first, took 948. 1318 (small, lapper bot) ranked second, gets 488 after inviting 1983 who respectfully declined. 1983 (hurdler) gets 2046 (hurdler). 949, who had one of the best and consistent hybrid setup and very good, quick lapper and defensive bot of the competition doesn't get picked until 1983 picks them up on the way back.
1983, 2046 and 949 go 6-0 in the elims to take the win. A few close matches along the way...

488 semifinalists

1778 and 948 finalists

1346 quarter finalists

as mentioned in the predictions, very few hurdlers to go around, and as predicted, it was the alliance with two proficient hurdlers that took the win. 488 had a very nice showing, but had a few problems with falling over. They're addition for ball handling made their bot even better than in Oregon, though. 488 went home with the Chairman's Award, though, and we are very happy for them! Congrats guys! We'll see you, 2046 and 949 in Atlanta!

[=Martin=Taylor=]

Originally Posted by Stephi Rae

They're addition for ball handling made their bot even better than in Oregon, though.

What exactly did they add?

[Stephi Rae]

Originally Posted by Hachiban VIII

What exactly did they add?

488 added a bar like appendage to secure the ball on their fork from above. It reminded me slightly of the top part of 368's ball handler, except that it doesn't fold up. i don't believe there is a roller or anything, just simply another point of contact to prevent other teams from knocking the ball off their fork. I'm sure someone from 488 could elaborate more...

[Justin Ridley]

Originally Posted by Pavan Dave

Sorry, but you make it sound like the Robonauts are lacking their competitive spirit on the field... In the last 5 regional competitions attended (Before Lone Star 2008) -- 2005 Denver, 2005 LSR, 2006 LSR, 2007 Bayou, 2007 LSR -- we were winners in 3 of those events and finalists in the other two.

I think I understand the point Looking Forward was making... we just haven’t always met expectations in the past, and this weekend was another example. Part of it was some major robot failures in the elims (we actually put the robot on the field with three wheels in the last match, which was kinda fun) and the other part was some strong play by our opponents. I congratulate 1477, 1429, and 57 for a hard fought win. The regional was once again a lot of fun with some great teams.

We're looking forward to making some repairs and seeing some more strong teams next week at Bayou.

[BornaE]

When are the week 5 pridictions coming out

Can't wait.............

[SWAT1806]

Originally Posted by Looking Forward

Two of the winning teams from Kansas City are venturing here, 1806 and 476. Both should have solid outings in Oklahoma as well, but will take some luck to add another banner.

I just read this and I was stunned by seeing the word luck thrown in there.

[AndyH]

Originally Posted by Looking Forward

OKLAHOMA CITY:

Two of the winning teams from Kansas City are venturing here, 1806 and 476. Both should have solid outings in Oklahoma as well, but will take some luck to add another banner.
1098 has one of the coolest looking "racecars" around... it even looks like a car! The only won 2 matches in St. Louis though, but they did manage to secure a spot on the short-lived #7 alliance. I expect this racecar to have an edge over many in Oklahoma (most are kitbots), and should be one of the first non-hurdling machines selected.
1742, Shockwave, will likely be one of the better hurdling machines, but given the amount of defense likely, they'll have issues with consistency and likely will need aid if they want to add a regional victory to their resume.

Team 1098 thought it was SO much fun to be mentioned in the predictions! We looked at them from the hotel on Wednesday night, and it was a great way to kick off the weekend and energize after a 10 hour drive!

We had a great time in OKC. We were really impressed by lots of the teams. Shockwave was amazing! They did it all, and were a really great group of people. We got to form an alliance with Teams 476 and 2388, and that was exciting. Team 476 is full of kind people who truly go out of their way to make FIRST fun and accessible for all. After meeting them and working with them, it's easy to see that they are definitely worthy recipients of the Chairman's Award. We can't wait to see how they do at Championships. We'll be rooting for them!

There were lots of other great teams and volunteers, and it was well worth the drive to attend, but we'll talk about them on the 2008 Oklahoma City Regional thread.