Burning rumors

Posted by Mike McIntyre, Coach on team #47 from Pontiac Central HS.

Posted on 3/5/99 11:19 PM MST

RUMOR Cobo Hall in Detroit catches fire shortly after Delphi puts on an exhibition; possibly a connection…?
FACT An entire day went by between our exhibition and the fire: the only thing we burned up was a Victor when some metal flakes somehow fo
und their way in through the fan opening.
RUMOR Chief Delphi and the other Delphi Teams got an extra 5 hours to work on their robots.
FACT How we wish that was true! (We could have really used it) Unfortunately, the robots were all crated before 9P
M, with permission from FIRST, so that a demonstration of what we’re all about could be made for all the SAE Convention to see. From those 4 extra hours you subtract the drive time in heavy traffic, the looking for parking, loading all of your pit suppli
es into a trailer, unloading all of your stuff, waiting around for the Teamsters to load/unload crates, waiting for the field to be set up…etc. I estimate that we may have gained an hour of time with the robot, but I’m sure the Delphi teams that came fr
om Flint, Kokomo and Saginaw actually LOST time with their machines. None of us with Chief Delphi really wanted to go: the time could have been much better spent in our own facility: all our resources would have been handy and our drivers would have had f
ar more time on the machine; we put in the 16 hour day because we thought that it was important to let engineers and business leaders from across the country get a look at a FIRST event, not because we were looking for some kind of an edge.

Posted by Jason, Coach on team #252/254, Bay Bombers/Cheesy Poofs, from Broadway High and NASA Ames.

Posted on 3/6/99 1:31 AM MST

In Reply to: Burning rumors posted by Mike McIntyre on 3/5/99 11:19 PM MST:

 This is a fact, FIRST goes to great lengths to make this competition as fair as possible.  If it was a 100% sporting event, some things would have to be more stricktly enforced - but it is not.  The playing field will never be completely level, but I don't mind that.  Some teams will always have better facilities, more money for parts & supplies, more access to workshops & high tech equipment, and so on.  This is the nature of the competition.

 Would I like my students and other schools like ours to have access to everything I just mentioned?  Of course!  But that is not reality.  Because we don't have all those resources, do other teams have a minor advantage over us?  Maybe, I guess.  I think it is great that some schools have so much support, money, and resources - it gives other schools something to shoot for, a model to someday have an equivalent program.  The purpose of FIRST is to provide students access and experiences with the best science and technology has to offer - and if some schools/teachers/coaches/engineers/companies find ways to provide the most resources possible for their kids...GREAT.  I'm happy for those kids.  It doesn't mean other less funded schools aren't also having a tremendous, positive, valuable educational experience.

 My point is this:  it is easy to be envious of schools/teams which have more resources to use than others - good for them and the learning opportunites they provide their students.  But if there is one thing wonderful about FIRST, it's that small advantages & inequities such as money, facilities, assistance, and even maybe a little extra time do not automatically guarantee success.  Ultimate sucess - as shown by a number of rookie teams with little or no resources at the NASA ames regional last week (Newbridge, Willow Glen, Lincoln, Broadway, Foothill to name a few)is a result of hard work, long hours, creative designs, driver/controller/human player skill, and obviously a certain degree of luck and having the breaks go your way.  Every team has a chance in every match, and that makes this competition great.

 If any Delphi team had a few extra hours, I don't care.  Especially if it was putting on an exhibition to advance the knowledge and/or popularity of FIRST.  ALSO, for the amazing abundance of resources the DELPHI teams seem to have - they more than give back to the rest of the field.  This website has been an invaluable resource for my team, as I'm sure it has been for others; the Rookie workshop Delphi put on in Manchester was a great help.  And the general willingness of DELPHI teams to help any other teams in need is known.  Hats off not only to DELPHI, but also to the other Veteran teams who might be regarded to have "advantages" over newer/less funded schools.  I know that the schools here in the Bay Area with the experience, facility, & monetary advantages over the new schools have gone out of their way to assist and mentor the new rookie schools as much as they could.  Gunn, Palo Alto, Monta Vista, Woodside, Aptos, and others have held mentor workshops, answered questions, helped teams with questions & repairs, and more.  If somebody didn't have the extra resources that we don't, than nobody could help us :)

To all those veteran teams, THANK YOU for the assistance you offer, for setting examples for new teams like ours to admire & strive to match, and for sharing your knowledge and resources with the rest of us. My experiences over the past year with FIRST have shown me that it is the interaction between teams, students, & engineers which is by far the most valuable aspect of this program. My students aren’t used to having that sort of positive interaction, especially in an academic setting, with other students. I have seen the effect it has had on them, the stereotypes that have been dispelled, and the increased self-esteem and confidence they now have. I think I see the same sort of impact on many students on many teams. Every team has a part in this, and every one involved should be proud.

  GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE.  (remember, money & extra time can't buy a trip to the finals: only a good design, hard work, good control, and luck can do that)

Posted by Keith of team #131, CHAOS, from Central High School sponsored by Osram Sylvania.

Posted on 3/6/99 12:31 PM MST

In Reply to: Burning rumors posted by Mike McIntyre on 3/5/99 11:19 PM MST:

So wait… you guys didn’t burn down Cobo Hall? lol…
someone actually thought you guys set fire to a building? If someone was serious about that then that is just sad… this is a fun educational game… not a terrorist conspiracy out for blood… lol
And someone complained about 5 or 6 extra hours with the robot? There has been 6 long weeks to work on it… that’s what… 1008 hours? what is 5 more hours going to do? Just for putting up this site they deserve 5 more hours… Rumors are getting out of hand… everyone should just relax and enjoy the competition… No offense to anyone who came up with the rumors…

  • A laughing Keith

: RUMOR Cobo Hall in Detroit catches fire shortly after Delphi puts on an exhibition; possibly a connection…?
: FACT An entire day went by between our exhibition and the fire: the only thing we burned up was a Victor when some metal flakes somehow found their way in through the fan opening.
: RUMOR Chief Delphi and the other Delphi Teams got an extra 5 hours to work on their robots.
: FACT How we wish that was true! (We could have really used it) Unfortunately, the robots were all crated before 9PM, with permission from FIRST, so that a demonstration of what we’re all about could be made for all the SAE Convention to see. From those 4 extra hours you subtract the drive time in heavy traffic, the looking for parking, loading all of your pit supplies into a trailer, unloading all of your stuff, waiting around for the Teamsters to load/unload crates, waiting for the field to be set up…etc. I estimate that we may have gained an hour of time with the robot, but I’m sure the Delphi teams that came from Flint, Kokomo and Saginaw actually LOST time with their machines. None of us with Chief Delphi really wanted to go: the time could have been much better spent in our own facility: all our resources would have been handy and our drivers would have had far more time on the machine; we put in the 16 hour day because we thought that it was important to let engineers and business leaders from across the country get a look at a FIRST event, not because we were looking for some kind of an edge.

Posted by Thomas A. Frank, Engineer on team #121, The Islanders/Rhode Warrior, from Middletown (RI) High School and Naval Undersea Warfare Center.

Posted on 3/7/99 7:48 AM MST

In Reply to: Burning rumors posted by Mike McIntyre on 3/5/99 11:19 PM MST:

: RUMOR Cobo Hall in Detroit catches fire shortly after Delphi puts on an exhibition; possibly a connection…?
: FACT An entire day went by between our exhibition and the fire: the only thing we burned up was a Victor when some metal flakes somehow found their way in through the fan opening.

Humm, could have been a smoldering amber, a small piece of toasted robot waiting the perfect chance to burst into flames and surprise everyone… :slight_smile:

Another pair of Kudos to Delphi for supporting such a worthwhile cause! Do you think you sold any more companies on FIRST?

TAF

Posted by Mike McIntyre, Coach on team #47 from Pontiac Central HS.

Posted on 3/7/99 4:06 PM MST

In Reply to: We love the smell of FIRST in the morning (was Re: Burning rumors) posted by Thomas A. Frank on 3/7/99 7:48 AM MST:

We saw a lot of foot traffic and I spoke with a number of engineers but no CEO’s, so I’m not sure how many (if any) new teams will form; with some media there and the volume of people moving through, it’s likely some doors were opened.We’ll see!

Posted by Joe Johnson, Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.

Posted on 3/7/99 7:40 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: We love the… posted by Mike McIntyre on 3/7/99 4:06 PM MST:

Hopefully we primed the pump for the future.

The SAE show is full of folks who can just decide on a whim to sponsor a FIRST team. More than that, the participants are mostly engineers and tech types.

We tried hard to use the event to get folks to come out to the Great Lakes Regional. I think that if we can get these folks out to a competition, we can close the sale.

We won’t know how it went for a long while.

I can say that attendance at family night was 10 to 20 times higher than in prior years, so the news could be very good indeed.

Joe J.