Posted by Brent L. Marriott at 04/10/2001 9:08 AM EST
Engineer on team #279, Tech Fusion, from Toledo Technical Academy and Rogers High School and Dana Corperation.
People cheer to promote spirit and to help get their team noticed by the judges and scouts. Cheering is a part of gracious professionalism.
People need to remember that nothing is perfect, and a competition of this magnitude will have some flaws. That is why we continue to come back every year, to improve on these flaws. We are perfectionists (engineers).
People cheering because of another team not doing well, that is a terrible thing to imagine. All the teams had six weeks to build these marvelous machines and I was very impressed by all of them. I saw a lot of winners at nationals!! I met a lot of brilliant engineers and students, and made many new friends. I can’t wait to see all the new designs next year.
Posted by Erin at 04/10/2001 9:32 AM EST
Other on team #65, Huskie Brigade, from Pontiac Northern High School and GM Powertrain.
In Reply to: Cheering
Posted by Brent L. Marriott on 04/10/2001 9:08 AM EST:
Brent,
I actually noticed that even when the finalists made a mistake, no one cheered. Actually everone kindof went “awww”… It was also wierd to some of the people I was standing with in the cheering area that even when it was obvious that the finalist alliance didnt score 700, the students on Beatty had enough sense not to go about their success in a bad or tactless way and cheer for the other side’s lower score. I actually noticed that the cheering during the finals was in much good taste.
I guess it was just the game throwing another surprise on us this year.
-Erin
Posted by Mike Soukup at 04/10/2001 10:01 AM EST
Engineer on team #111, Wildstang, from Rolling Meadows & Wheeling and Motorola.
In Reply to: About the silence…
Posted by Erin on 04/10/2001 9:32 AM EST:
: the students on Beatty had enough sense not to go about their success in a bad or tactless way and cheer for the other side’s lower score. I actually noticed that the cheering during the finals was in much good taste.
I agree. Since I couldn’t reclaim my front row spot for the finals, I got stuck in a block of Beatty team members. They cheered a little (which is expected) when our alliance had no chance of winning, but not in an unprofessional manner. They saved their big cheers for when our score was announced and they were declaired the winner.
I also had a good time joking around with them in between matches. What other competition could boast the same claim?
Congrats to team 71 & their alliance and thanks for not harassing the stray Wildstang member too much 
Mike
Posted by Alan Federman at 04/10/2001 2:01 PM EST
Engineer on team #255, Odyssey, from Foothill HS, San Jose and NASA.
In Reply to: Cheering
Posted by Brent L. Marriott on 04/10/2001 9:08 AM EST:
: People cheer to promote spirit and to help get their team noticed by the judges and scouts. Cheering is a part of gracious professionalism.
: People need to remember that nothing is perfect, and a competition of this magnitude will have some flaws. That is why we continue to come back every year, to improve on these flaws. We are perfectionists (engineers).
I found the noise level (background music ) much too loud at the Nationals. It was impossible fo me to tell if people were cheering/silent/ or blasted by sound into
bruised numbness. I think many times teams lost points because spoken instructions could not be heard. Often teams were unaware the bridge was off the pivot until after the match - they simply could not hear the other teams or even the announcer.