The Best of the Best

FIRST General Forum
#1

Posted by Mike Kulibaba, Student on team #88, TJ², from Bridgewater-Raynham Regional and Johnson and Johnson.

Posted on 3/23/99 5:44 PM MST

Even though I"m from the good ol’ Northeast and I"m a favorite of the Johnson and Johnson regional(cause Johnson and Johnson are awesome) every one knows that the best of the best go to Michigan for the regional of all regionals. I expect an all out battle each and everyday and in every round. hopefully someone will give full reports about it every night and if someone is going to tape it I would really like a copy. Good luck to all the teams that are going to be there. Thanks

MIke Kulibaba Team 88

#2

Posted by Andy Grady, Coach on team #42, P.A.R.T.S, from Alvirne High School and Daniel Webster College.

Posted on 3/23/99 8:17 PM MST

In Reply to: The Best of the Best posted by Mike Kulibaba on 3/23/99 5:44 PM MST:

I would have to disagree with Mike here. I feel that the best regional is and always has been the New England Regional. For this reason, all the outstanding vetern teams that show up. Every year teams like Osram, Assabet, Sanders, Nypro, all the UTC teams, and many other great vetern teams come to this competition and it is always exiting. I see most of the regionals that are held either by being there or by video, and no competition i have seen so far matches the challenge, or electricity that the New Englad Regional brings. If your looking at unofficial competitions however i would say the best of the best end up going to Rumble at the Rock. Rumble is almost like the All Star game of FIRST. For instance, last year there was the match of all matches at rumble in my opinion. I beleive it was between Delphi, International Fuel Cells, and Osram, three great teams, and there were many more. What do you all think

#3

Posted by Mike Kulibaba, Student on team #88, TJ², from Bridgewater-Raynham Regional and Johnson and Johnson.

Posted on 3/23/99 9:28 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: The Best of the Best posted by Andy Grady on 3/23/99 8:17 PM MST:

Andy,

I wil agree with you that the New England regional is great I just didn’t like where is was held this year and it kinda took away from it. If you look at Michigan they have something like 45 teams just from that state alone, so when they have a regional it’'s more like a state regional then anything. But I will agree that most veteran teams do go to NE, there are only a few teams that have been in this program since it began and those teams always go to New Hampshire as sort of a ritual. My first year on my Team, TJ², team 88, we went to the New Hampshire regional up at New Hampshhire college, sponsored by DEKA, and what a thrill it was it was an atmosphere that I can’t even describe. But when you look at about 40 teams from the same state going after one another there is no other competition I would rather be at. you brought up a good point about the rumble, my team has been at the Rumble at the rock for the past two years and I would have to say that it is my favorite competition of all. I like it cause it is so small with only a few teams in a nice small arena and it mostly is the best of the best and I thank Plymouth North and Pilgrim for putting on for putting on such a great show. In closing, I would like to say that all the regionals are fun, I think they are even a better atmosphere then the national competition, but if Massachusetts had 40 teams going up against each other I would love to have a chance to have our robot there trying to get bragging rights over all 39 other Massachusetts robots. But that is just my opinion.

#4

Posted by colleen, Student on team #126, Gael Force, from Clinton High School and Nypro.

Posted on 3/24/99 3:15 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: The Best of the Best posted by Mike Kulibaba on 3/23/99 9:28 PM MST:

i must say i’m biased, and i with andy on this one. the NE regional just always seemed to be the biggest conglomeration of veteren teams, and although it may not be all the best robots, you’ve got teams experienced in strategy and tough competition that they don’t need to have a perfect robot to scrap a victory from beneath the wheels of opposing teams. now, i may be biased in this fact because our team competes in this competition, but it’s what i think nonetheless.

i will have to agree with Mike on the fact that the local change kind of lost something to the atmosphere. although taking home gold allianced with team #19 was sweet, the theater didn’t have the same feeling of closeness and competition as the gym in NH gave us in years past, and something was lost.

however, regardless of what we all think, head-to-head or partnered we shall meet in florida, and a list of previous awards and accomplishments won’t win any of us anything; it’s a clean slate, new opponents and alliances, this biggest challenge of all.

hope to see you all there, ready to have fun, compete, and win!!! And after the nationals, it’ll be on to Rumble for some of us (which, of everything in FIRST, is my favorite part)

Good Luck all around!!!

colleen

#5

Posted by Jeff Bazydlo, Other on team #126, Gael Force, from Clinton High School and Nypro Inc…

Posted on 3/24/99 5:02 PM MST

In Reply to: My humble, yet biased, opinion posted by colleen on 3/24/99 3:15 PM MST:

I have read all of the messages on this topic from the last couple days,
and want to bring up a COUPLE OF POINTS!!!

First I have been involved in the program for five years; four years in high school
and 1 in college… When I was a freshmen at Clinton High School there
was only one regional. This is why I believe that a lot of people refer
to N.E. as the best or at least the father of the competition, but times are
changing for better, the program is expanding and with expansion comes
more regionals… five years later there are 7 regionals. The disagreement
comes because some claim the best is the Great Lakes, some the Hartford…
but how do we gage it, I don’t think we should.

I offer a little thought of mine for ‘food for thought’, I think of the
competitions’ expansion as a major league baseball expansion or something similar
more talent spread over more teams. I now believe that what was the best might
not be anymore, this year maybe Detroits’ is but how is to say that
next year California is not going to be the best.

I believe when you have two competitions so close in distance as N.J.
and N.E., and on the same weekend you lose what was great at one time.
Let me explain how can a team that is between the two sites chose where
to go therefore you are going to lose some of the history and veterans.
I’m not saying that this is bad I am just saying part of the reason that
N.E. isn’t the best this year might just be because it was on the same
weekend as the N.J.

Finally I hope I haven’t bored you, I was just trying to put a little closure
on this debate, who’s to say what the best competition is, we all have
to compete in Florida. so in closing I ask for some feedback, DO I MAKE
ANY SENSE WHAT SO EVER? and do you guys agree or disagree?

Good Luck
Jeff Bazydlo
Team #126
BIG RED GAEL FORCE!

#6

Posted by Mike King, Other on team #88, TJ², from Bridgewater Raynham and Johnson & Johnson Professional.

Posted on 3/24/99 8:08 PM MST

In Reply to: Just A point of view posted by Jeff Bazydlo on 3/24/99 5:02 PM MST:

: I believe when you have two competitions so close in distance as N.J.
: and N.E., and on the same weekend you lose what was great at one time.
: Let me explain how can a team that is between the two sites chose where
: to go therefore you are going to lose some of the history and veterans.
: I’m not saying that this is bad I am just saying part of the reason that
: N.E. isn’t the best this year might just be because it was on the same
: weekend as the N.J.

I agree with you. We attend the NJ regional because our sponser is J&J. But i’m sure it wouldn’t take much convincing to goto the Conn regional if it was on a seperate weekend.

Mike

#7

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

Posted on 3/23/99 9:39 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: The Best of the Best posted by Andy Grady on 3/23/99 8:17 PM MST:

Let me just list a few teams that will be at the Great Lakes Regional this weekend:

#1 3D Services, — no slouch
#16 Baxter Mountain Home — I how did they do in FL? #1 seed and #2 finish
#27 DaimlerChrysler & OSMTech — Winner of Motorola
#33 DaimlerChrysler & Avondale — #2 seed at Motorola
#45 Delphi & Kokomo — National Champs in 98
#47 Delphi & Pontiac Central — No account team thrown in just for completeness :wink:
#65 GM Powertrain & Pontiac Northern — 3rd Place finish at National in 97 AND 98
#67 GM Milford Proving Ground & Huron Valley — Winners of Philly & enough 3rds and 4ths in past years to spin your head
#68 GM Truck & OTC Northwest — Truck Town Terror… …Need I say more!
#71 Beatty & Team Hammond — Winner of Motorola, National Champs in 97 & terror of the midwest!
#111 Motorola & Rolling Meadows/Wheeling — Wildstang… …I think I love you!
#314 Delphi & Carman-Ainsworth — 2nd place in Philly

AND THIS IS JUST A LIMITED LISTING!

It is very difficult to compare various fields of competitors, but anyone who takes a look at the teams that will be at the Great Lakes Regional has to be impressed.

Time will tell which teams end up on top at the Nationals, but I am guessing that over 1/2 of gang of 16 (assuming that FIRST does not expand the field to 16 alliances in the elimination tourney), will be at this weekend’s competition. Not bad considering we are just over 1/6 of the total teams in FIRST this year.

Will any other regional come close? I don’t think so. Would that make this the toughest regional? You decide for yourself.

Joe J.

#8

Posted by Andy Grady, Coach on team #42, P.A.R.T.S, from Alvirne High School and Daniel Webster College.

Posted on 3/24/99 2:03 PM MST

In Reply to: not to put too fine a point on it, but… posted by Joe Johnson on 3/23/99 9:39 PM MST:

I agree that the list of teams going to Michagan is very impressive. And Mike is right when he said that the venue that the New England regional was held in was not the best in the world. Mabey that could be fixed in the future. And we could argue about the quality of teams at the two regionals all day. What it all comes down to is…Thats why we have a national competition. :slight_smile:
Good Luck to all and see you in Florida,
Andy Grady, DWC/Alvirne

#9

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

Posted on 3/24/99 2:32 PM MST

In Reply to: You do have a point… posted by Andy Grady on 3/24/99 2:03 PM MST:

As much as it was nice to have a lot of comfortable seats for the new england comp… I must say I enjoyed it a lot more when we had it here in good old manchvegas (manchester)… I missed the rafter raising atmosphere and the closeness of the stands… Being up on that stage is a hell of a lot more fun when you know your team is crowded all around the stage cheering you on… Connecticut kinda left you feeling isolated up there on that lonely stage… At one point i went to the end of the stage to celebrate with my team… and I was told to back away from the edge : (… I guess it was too dangerous… But it was definately a good time down there… many more lights and stuff up on stage… kinda made it feel more exciting at times. THanks Hartford for putting on a great show…
-Keith

#10

Posted by Tom Wible, Coach on team #131, chaos, from central high school manchester and osram-sylvania.

Posted on 3/24/99 9:13 AM MST

In Reply to: Re: The Best of the Best posted by Andy Grady on 3/23/99 8:17 PM MST:

Man you almost made me cry! Of course we agree that we are one of the top teams, but we thought nobody noticed. We had a blast at Rumble, I wish that match we had with Fuel Cells and Delphi was on the Rumble tape that we bought. We thought it was the showdown of the century. Too bad we got in a tangle and the match really wasn’t a good showing of the power of the teams.
New England rules!

Thanks Andy,
Tom Wible
Team #131 “C.H.A.O.S.”

#11