A more local example to SoCal is 4201. They always put on a good show, but have not won a regional yet.
For a number of years (2006-2009) they would always make Finals only to lose out on the banner. Based on the stories I’ve heard over the years 2004 should have been an Einstein appearance in that their failure to advance was due to bad luck, not bad performance per se.
I’d say 1741 is also up there, at least in the Midwest (and for sure in Indiana). IMHO thier best shot was 2013, but that was also a good year for two other teams, 868 and 234, which kept them from the win at both of their regional appearances. That’s what’s nice about districts; it gives more opportunities for teams to win events (less of a “shadow” effect).
This is very true. Me saying this is a bit biased as I know Flo (and work with him at a lot of Indiana events) though.
+1 I am also astonished that this is true.
Team 708 has really stepped up their on-the-field game over the past few years, and is the best non-winner in MAR that I can think of (now that 1089 has a division banner).
1x Regional finals (2009)
2x District event finals (2012, 2016)
1x Sub-division finals (2016)
2x District Chairman’s Awards (2016, 2016)
1x MAR Championship Chairman’s Award (2015)
FeelsBadMan
3974 and 4954 are some (relatively) younger MAR teams that are still looking for their first wins.
From the UP of Michigan: probably have to go with 1596. One time regional finalist, a smattering of design awards, and a couple trips to States. As to why they haven’t won, some of it is probably the small number of teams and events in the UP, and the show’s been stolen by downstate teams and the likes of 2586, 3602, and 4391.
In a different vein, I think 2246 The Army of Sum must be the best at winning the Imagery Award (8 times) without having won an event.
Beat me to it…
Top teams without an event win by average MAR points:
3974 118.6 (3 time finalist)
484 109.2 (4 time finalist)
708 103.2 (4 time finalist)
1647 101.2 (3 time finalist)
2180 99.6 (2 time finalist)
1712 98.2 (1 time finalist)
The best team in this category in Colorado has to be Team 1440, The Kraken. During 20 events they have been eliminated in the Finals 3 times, Semi-Finals 3 times, and Quarter-Finals 5 times. They have picked their own alliance 4 times and have won 10 awards.
I’ll try the Midwest Regional. It’s not as interesting as some of the previous mentions…
2704 - Roaring Robotics from Batavia, Illinois (Home of Fermi Lab). They have accomplished alot, including Engineering Inspiration and four Safety Awards in seven years. They’re also just a pleasure to compete with in general.
Correction: Flo won a Woodie Flowers Award in 2006 at the Buckeye Regional in Cleveland.
Aha! Thank you for the research on that. Now TBA should update the 461 history page.
IIRC, some scorekeepers have not always entered team affiliations for WFFA. And even when they do, TBA sometimes doesn’t pick them up. For example, Frank Dressel got the 2006 St. Louis Regional WFFA and the scorekeeper recorded his team number, but it doesn’t show up on 931’s TBA history page.
Some that come to mind from Tennessee.
2393
In many ways, TNFIRST is concentrated most strongly in Knoxville. 2393 is one of the backbones of FRC in Knoxville. They share a build space with 3824 and 5571, they’re a constant source of information and support to other teams, and they’re some of the kindest people in FRC. Since 2013, they’ve earned the Creativity Award, the Innovation in Control Award, the Excellence in Engineering Award, and the Entrepreneurship Award three times. They were Finalists at SMR in 2013, the #1 seed at SMR in 2014, and have always been a team to watch out for at SMR.
(Their 2014 bot is also one of my favorite robots in FRC that I’ve gotten to see in action. The thing was brilliant.)
3140
This team is also one of the core teams promoting FRC in Knoxville, and they work very hard to keep raising the level of competitive play at SMR. They were quarter-finalists at SMR in 2014. In 2015, they were semi-finalists at the Georgia Southern Classic Regional and SMR, after seeding #2 at SMR. In 2016, they were semi-finalists after seeding #6 at the Arkansas Rock City Regional. At SMR, they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by the alliance that went on to win the event.
5571 isn’t old enough to be considered for this thread yet, but the fact that they went unpicked for Eliminations this year is still a crime.
For Colorado, I’d say 4499, 1410 or 1339. All build steady robots and have consistently appeared in the playoffs, but none have won a regional yet.
From Kansas City, I believe 1939- The Kuhnigits have never won a regional. They were Regional Finalists in 2010, 2011 & 2013, won multiple Chairman’s and Engineering Inspiration awards, and always build asthetically pleasing robots as evidenced by their many, many Imagery Awards.
It is always a pleasure to be on an alliance with 1939.
For South Carolina, never is a long time–teams that have played at that high a level with any consistency have hung a banner, and several that don’t play at that level have backed into one at some point.
However, one team that seems chronically slept-on is 1876. Let’s lay out the resume:
2016: 19-7, Palmetto 8 seed (QF), Orlando 7 seed (SF)
2015: Palmetto 2 seed (SF), Orlando 16 seed (QF)
2014: Palmetto 2 seed (QF), Orlando 32 seed (QF)
2013: Palmetto 30 seed (no elims)
2012: Palmetto 7 seed (SF)
Despite numbers that would be the envy of many a team, their trophy cabinet contains exactly two trophies going back to their 2006 inception: the 2006 Palmetto Regional Highest Rookie Seed, and the 2016 Orlando Regional Industrial Design Award.
3476 won San Diego in 2012 as first overall pick!
Definitely agree on 3250 and 1671. My local mentions would have to be 4201 and 3495. Both Vitruvian and Mindcraft have produced robots in the top 8 of their regional events.
Billfred, You beat me to it. I definitely agree with that pick.
Beachbotics have brought a super competitive game over the last several years especially considering they had the #3 and #1 OPR at their two events this year.
David
In the NYC area, I would probably say 333. For the past couple years especially they’ve built solid robots. Obviously I haven’t been around for as long as them, but for a team as old as theirs, I would have expected them to win already (granted the previous team I was on had their first regional win in 2014 during their 15th year of existence).
1876 is coming to Smoky Mountains Regional for the first time in 2017. Maybe this’ll break their streak, and they’ll take home a win.
I’ll second that. But for some reason I thought 4499 had won a regional. I guess that shows what I “know” about my friends across town.
- Since 2013, they have made the finals in 5/8 regional events (each time as alliance captain or 1st pick). The three times they did not make it to the finals, they still made it to eliminations. They also made eliminations at the championship the one time they attended.