2007 Las Vegas

[nsr]

Congrats to team 254, 1425 and 1983 for a well deserved regional win in an offensive Las Vegas regional. unfortunately for our team we weren’t picked for any of the 8 alliances but ranked 15th as a rookie team.

On the bad side, being and senior on a rookie team and enjoying every waking moment in the pit as well as on the playing field and in the stands makes me want to become a freshman in high school again.

Thank you to all the teams who competed in the Las Vegas Regional for making this experience and event one that i will cherish and build upon forever.

-Ryan

[987HighRoller]

Las Vegas Regional was amazing. The competition was on another level than the other regionals I have watched. Thanks to team 39 for picking us and being great partners, and big thanks to 597 as well. The finals matches were so intense. I’m willing to bet some of the alliances in the Las Vegas eliminations were stronger than some of the divinal winner alliances will be in Atlanta!!

Congrats 1425, 254, and 1983

[Quijas]

We lost to a great alliance, but with a fight.
Thank you team 39 and 987 for choosing us, you guys are the best.

and Congrats 1425, 254, and 1983

[RIGHT]-Jose Quijas
Team 597 Driver[/RIGHT]

[gobeavs]

I agree, the competition at LV was very intense and fun. Thanks to all of our partners in the qualifying rounds, and most of all thank you to 254 and 1983, our partners in the elimination matches. You performed above the expectations we had when we were selecting you as partners. (even though the expectations were great…which is why we wanted to play with you :-D)

Thanks also to the regional finalists, 39, 987, and 597 - you gave us some great matches at the end.

[dsmason807]

Anybody have any suggestions on how a rookie team (team 1983) can get some quick funds so that our robot doesn’t end up in Atlanta on its own? We won the competition as well as rookie all star, so we ended up making a last minute decision to send it, but we don’t have the money to get ourselves there. Anything helps.

You might try re-approaching your existing sponsors and see what they might be able to do. Any company that wants to fund a rookie team in the first place will probably be more than willing to kick in more money for a Regional Champion AND Rookie All Star team. Talk it up, and I’m sure they’ll agree that you’ve earned it.

Companies like the good press from sponsoring teams, but they like the great press from sponsoring winning teams even more.

When 1885 won Rookie All Star last year, we immediately appealed to our existing sponsors and the county school board (which had not previously funded us), letting them know how our situation had changed, what a big deal the All Star award is for a rookie team, and what a great event the Championship is. We got great responses, with our main sponsor (Lockheed Martin) covering the Atlanta entrance fee, the school board helping out with travel, and some other sponsors digging a little deeper too.

You might also look to parents. Many teams have students/parents pay all their own travel costs, and a good percentage of the parents of our team’s students have been willing and able to provide, given the merits of FIRST. Also, this year we had several generous families donate funds specifically for the purpose of covering students who weren’t otherwise able to travel with us.

Every situation is different, but it never hurts to ask.

[Stephi_Rae]

You might try re-approaching your existing sponsors and see what they might be able to do. Any company that wants to fund a rookie team in the first place will probably be more than willing to kick in more money for a Regional Champion AND Rookie All Star team. Talk it up, and I’m sure they’ll agree that you’ve earned it.

Companies like the good press from sponsoring teams, but they like the great press from sponsoring winning teams even more.

When 1885 won Rookie All Star last year, we immediately appealed to our existing sponsors and the county school board (which had not previously funded us), letting them know how our situation had changed, what a big deal the All Star award is for a rookie team, and what a great event the Championship is. We got great responses, with our main sponsor (Lockheed Martin) covering the Atlanta entrance fee, the school board helping out with travel, and some other sponsors digging a little deeper too.

You might also look to parents. Many teams have students/parents pay all their own travel costs, and a good percentage of the parents of our team’s students have been willing and able to provide, given the merits of FIRST. Also, this year we had several generous families donate funds specifically for the purpose of covering students who weren’t otherwise able to travel with us.

Every situation is different, but it never hurts to ask.

Thanks for the advise. Our major problem is that we don’t have many sponsors at all, and those, like our PTSA, have already given up a significant amount of their budget for us. Many people, like our coach, have not been reinbursed for many purchases either. SPEEA has been our major sponsor outside of school, but it would most likely take too long to get any money from them because they have to hold meetings and such. It looks like the parents are going to have to bear most of the load, unfortunately we are a small team, and that is a lot of money. It looks like NASA might cover our registration though because we never got a NASA grant in the beginning. It sounded like that was a contributing factor in our all star award too.

We’re doing our best to find some quick new sponsors and definitely playing up our recent accomplishments.

Thanks again to 1425 and 254! You guys were great!

[pepe]

gl on finding funding, and hope to see you there

[Jon_Jack]

I must say that the Las Vegas Regional was not a very good regional. We’ve attended the regional every year of its existence and I must say that this year’s event was the worst competition (off-season events included) that I have been to.

The production setup was poor to say the least. You could see shadows of the stage lighting on the projection screen, the stage lighting was dark and the projector seemed off.

The inspectors, more specifically the head inspector was entirely inappropriate. He humiliated the students, mentors and parents on our team. He seemed to not know the rules and misinterpreted many of them and therefore was not going to let us pass, even though we passed at a previous regional. When he did pass us, he made it seem like he was passing us because he felt bad for us and ended the inspection by calling us ‘ignorant’. If anyone on the Las Vegas planning committee is reading this, I would highly recommend you not let this person be involved with your event again, period.

The reffing was some of the worst I have ever seen at a FIRST competition. I saw several matches where multiple ringers that were clearly legal were not scored. The head ref was not consistent in his calls, and he seemed to loosely follow the rule book. He told some teams when they would try to contest calls that he did not have time and had ‘better things to do’. We were not the only team to have problems with the head ref. I talked to several teams during the course of the competition and they all seemed to be having similar problems.

Obviously a lot can change next year, but I would advise teams considering Las Vegas as a possible regional next year to be cautious.

[Guy_Davidson]

The inspectors, more specifically the head inspector was entirely inappropriate. He humiliated the students, mentors and parents on our team. He seemed to not know the rules and misinterpreted many of them and therefore was not going to let us pass, even though we passed at a previous regional. When he did pass us, he made it seem like he was passing us because he felt bad for us and ended the inspection by calling us ‘ignorant’. If anyone on the Las Vegas planning committee is reading this, I would highly recommend you not let this person be involved with your event again, period.

The reffing was some of the worst I have ever seen at a FIRST competition. I saw several matches where multiple ringers that were clearly legal were not scored. The head ref was not consistent in his calls, and he seemed to loosely follow the rule book. He told some teams when they would try to contest calls that he did not have time and had ‘better things to do’. We were not the only team to have problems with the head ref. I talked to several teams during the course of the competition and they all seemed to be having similar problems.

From what I’ve seen and remember, the lead inspector was very ‘loose’ with his interpretations of the rules. Some of them he just kind of checked off, on others he gave us semi-related advice, and on other he was strict.

The reffing, however, was truly bad. From the complete lack of calls for ramming until the eliminations (which is way too late and misleading - ramming could’ve changed quite a few qualifying matches, and teams that adapted to the loose rulings were hit with penalties during eliminations), to the lack of knowledge of th refereeing staff (I asked three different referees about when we can step past the line after autonomous, and got three different answers), to restarting one match because of the rack falling apart to not restarting another (which is another thing I haven’t seen in any other regional), I was really unhappy with the quality of refereeing.

We had fun, and we’ll probably be back next year, but these are the kinds of things that just leave a bad taste in your mouth when it’s all said and done.

-Guy

[Brian_J_R]

From what I’ve seen and remember, the lead inspector was very ‘loose’ with his interpretations of the rules. Some of them he just kind of checked off, on others he gave us semi-related advice, and on other he was strict.

The reffing, however, was truly bad. From the complete lack of calls for ramming until the eliminations (which is way too late and misleading - ramming could’ve changed quite a few qualifying matches, and teams that adapted to the loose rulings were hit with penalties during eliminations), to the lack of knowledge of th refereeing staff (I asked three different referees about when we can step past the line after autonomous, and got three different answers), to restarting one match because of the rack falling apart to not restarting another (which is another thing I haven’t seen in any other regional), I was really unhappy with the quality of refereeing.

We had fun, and we’ll probably be back next year, but these are the kinds of things that just leave a bad taste in your mouth when it’s all said and done.

-Guy

Well, the reffing was a little loose and in some matches there should have been a penalty when there was not, and in some there should have been some what there was none called. As for the Rack falling apart, my own feelings is that it is ridiculous to restart, just tighten a few bolts an we are good. But you have to remember, the teams have already scored and have had time to plan further, making it unfair for the opposing team, because the other team already knows what is going on. (I think we lost that round when they restarted too…but thats besides the point) So in all fairness, restarting after that match was probably for a fair call. The other time the rack broke was a simple 2 second fix, not enough time to plan or do anything on either side.

Fortunately we did not encounter any problems with the inspector, just a simply go around of are all the edges shaved, wires plugged in, pneumatics attached ect. Although if what i hear is true, there is no excuse for that. We as teams are here to have fun not to be humiliated and labeled as “ignorant”. I know that people have their bad days, but I am sorry, that is not excusable. All you have to say is “hey guys, you have sharp edges and a couple of loose wires, if you could fix that all you need is to be weighed and you are done.”

I had fun, and as a team we changed into a better team not only experience wise, but attitude wise as well. We will most likely go back if we have the funds next year, but we are hoping that the PNW is in Seattle next year…that would cut down on expenditures a lot.

Well, just my 2 cents

Brian Richards, 1983 Mechanic/Operator

[Zach_Wydick]

Team 1983 was lucky not to have the lead inspector inspect us. I went up to him first earlier in the day and he was just downright rude to me and the team. I waited until one of his assistants was available and had him inspect us and as Brian said, the assistant was much better than the lead

[gblake]

to restarting one match because of the rack falling apart

I intend to follow up with the FIRST folks about the proper procedure to follow when the radios fail during a match. They are as much a part of the field (if not more) than a leg of a spider.

Every indication is that the elimination (and some qual) rounds were dramatically affected by radio failures; and at the time(s) I presumed it would be grounds for blowing the fog horn and restarting or replaying the match. However, I’m not sure this is what FIRST wants to do.

I think the topic does need to be covered explicitly somewhere on paper.

Blake

[Ken_Loyd]

I must say that the Las Vegas Regional was not a very good regional.

During my nine years associated with FIRST, I have attended over 30 Regionals and 8 Nationals. I have been to great regionals and I have been to good regionals. I have had some great high moments and some truly low moments. Please try to keep in mind that even in professional sports, mistakes happen. I hope that we can stay away from encouraging teams not to attend a regional.

Ken

[Ken_Loyd]

We lost to a great alliance, but with a fight.
Thank you team 39 and 987 for choosing us, you guys are the best.

Jose,

Your team earned your spot on our alliance through out the entire regional. Thank you for giving 110%. As Knute R. once said, “We’ll get em next year!”

Ken

[Ken_Loyd]

On behalf of team 987 we want to first thank 39 for picking us and 597 , we were a great alliance and the finals were amazing!
thanks again !

To Natalia and all of Team #897,

I was sooo easy to select team #987. There were so many great teams at LV. Teams like 1492, 60, 842, and the list would go on and on. Team #39 has a history with 987. Whenever we get to team up with the “high rollers,” you just know that the “fun will begin!” If one of our wheels had not broken in the semi finals, we may have beaten them. “We’ll get em next year!”

Thank you for the great effort!

Ken

[Ken_Loyd]

“Congrats to 1425, 254 and 1983 on win! well played, good job to all involved.”

Good job is not good enough…GREAT JOB!

Team 1425, I saw you play in Portland. We had four weeks to get ready for you. You have a truly awesome robot!

Team 254, I have been having nightmares about you since the EPCOT days! I have also had some great dreams such as two years ago with team 64 at Nationals. You folks are a CLASS ACT!

Team 1893, thank you most of all. You taught me something I had not thought of all season. Carring a stopper with you on defense was brillant!

To the winners I say “Mission Accomplished!” You were outstanding! I only hope we put a little fear into your hearts during the finals.

Ken

[dsmason807]

[quote=jjack;609394]I must say that the Las Vegas Regional was not a very good regional.

During my nine years associated with FIRST, I have attended over 30 Regionals and 8 Nationals. I have been to great regionals and I have been to good regionals. I have had some great high moments and some truly low moments. Please try to keep in mind that even in professional sports, mistakes happen. I hope that we can stay away from encouraging teams not to attend a regional.

Ken

I agree, please do not discourage.

I have a medium-sized list of gripes with the regional, starting with the radios and the referees, but overall it was a young regional that felt like a mature one.

The pit admin staff as quick, well-informed, and courteous, as was the shipping staff. The team announcer was fantastic, great energy level. The queuing flowed well. The practice field was well organized and spacious (supporting 3 teams at once vice the 2 that we were used to). The IFI parts guy was top-notch, bending over backwards for teams repeatedly. They had a team-sponsored color laser printer for teams to use (man I wish /we/ has Xerox as a sponsor ). There was free and open wireless internet access in the whole place. There were no restrictions on bringing in your own food and drinks (many of our mentors live on Starbucks). They provided brochures for local attractions on the strip (since it’s Vegas, after all). There were displays and information packets for the local engineering college.

I could go on, but my point is to look at the whole picture, and remember that there were bad things /and/ good things about this regional, and every regional. Yes, by all means document the problems and let the event organizers know, but don’t bash the whole thing because of a few issues, especially when those issues can easily be addressed in a year’s time.

D[/quote]

[ericand]

Team 1425 has robot POV video from all our matches in Las Vegas except the last 2 (the finals ). We also have many of the matches we were in in Portland and San Diego. I would like to post them, but the files the camera makes are very large (100-150 MB each).

The actuall match footage is smaller, since the camera tends to be turned on well before the actual match start (esp. when we were the first match after lunch on Friday - ouch > 200MB), so editing out the waiting to start stuff would be a big help.

I am looking for suggestions for tools to edit and convert them down to more manageable sizes. I see that the regional webcasts seem to max out at about 25MB per match.

What I have are .AVI files, recorded at 640x480 resolution at 15 FPS (and audio).

The camera we used is an Oregon Scientific ACT1000, which records onto a 1GB SD card. We removed the battery tray and replaced it with a custom connector that provides 5v from the robot’s main power.

The camera does not provide any feedback to the robot, nor does it emit any signals (visible or otherwise) that could interfere with the operation of other robots.

Thanks,

Eric Anderson

[Bob_Steele]

Good afternoon!!!
Well I just have to add my wishes to everyone elses.

Team 1983 grew a lot at this regional… The students got to see some terrific teams… 39, 233, 597,60 1517, 1492, 8, 987… sheesh I could name probably EVERYONE… sorry if I forgot you…

I had told my students to expect to see some big action and we certainly saw it…from some fantastic teams both on the field and in the pits…

We made lots of new friend from all over the country!!!
We got to help another team (2069) and we couldn’t have been prouder of them making the elimination rounds as a substitute and actually getting to help them fix their robot ON the field… that was great fun and we will never forget it!!

Mark was absolutely the BEST announcer and we had great fun with the safety inspectors and judges and referees…

It just doesn’t get any more fun than that…

I have been around FIRST for a long time…I was originally in the Midwest… and worked with a few teams there… so I have seen a lot…

Everyone needs to learn to take things in stride and concentrate on all of the really cool things we get to do… sure we hit some bumps… sure some people may not treat us exactly as we would want to be treated… but in the end this is FIRST!!! and its all good… the good completely outweighs the bad… We all worked hard and had a great time with each other… and everyone there was touched by someone else or something that happened…

Thank you Las Vegas!!! You were terrific… and we would not only come back but we would love to bring some more Washington teams with us…so they can bask in that warm and DRY weather…

And thank you team 1425 (a fellow Pac Northwestern team) and 254 (what can I say about the Poofs… unbelievable machine… great drivers… great coach…) thank you for believing in a new rookie team… We had great fun defending for you… and sharing the championship with you…
thank you…

Thank you too, team 2069 and everyone else for helping us see what FIRST was all about… we love joining this team…

Now we are taking a big breath and trying to get to Nationals…
Hopefully we will see many of you there… and rekindle these friendships…
stay in touch…

thank you all for a great regional…

We love you guys

[Joe_Ross]

I am looking for suggestions for tools to edit and convert them down to more manageable sizes. I see that the regional webcasts seem to max out at about 25MB per match.

What I have are .AVI files, recorded at 640x480 resolution at 15 FPS (and audio).

I think most people us Windows Movie Maker, which comes with Windows XP.