Week Five - FLL and Fundraisers

Saturday was a big day for our team. The majority of the team was at an FLL regional selling lunches for a fundraiser, mentoring, or participating in FLL teams. Sold at wholesale, thanks to Apple Spice Junction, the lunches did well. Much better than the previous regional which we sold them at. Along with sandwiches, my team vended soda, water, chips, candy, and, a best seller aided by the cold, coffee. As soon as the competition began, people started coming to buy items, some returning throughout the day.

On the other side of the tables were twenty-eight FLL teams and of those two were mentored by us and of those three were members of our team. However, two of our three mentors were not present since they are a part of our mechanical team. Instead the remaining mentor did his best to cover for both teams. The competition was enjoyable to watch, although it definitely was stressful for those on teams. By the end, both of "our" FLL teams made it through to the State Championship Competition taking place this coming Saturday.

Week Five - Final Stretch

Right now I'm sitting in the lunch room of Blue Ridge Tool. Electrical components are scattered across the table, the mill is on full swing, and voices of mentors and team members mingle as they discuss last minute robot design, joking with each other, and handing out tasks. Programming sits next to me first overjoyed that the latest National Instruments Labview update is out and then miffed when they know they cannot test the update out since the electrical board is currently scattered in pieces everywhere. Tomorrow marks the fifth week of build and the team is working hard to ensure we will be done on the 23rd. Even though we were able to get our drive train completed earlier in the week, there was a hitch. The gears that directed the chains for the wheels scrubbed the top of our newly carpeted bump leaving oils stains and creating aggravation. Back to the mill and lathe for the quick but time eating fix. On the bright side, our robot design will work and smoothly rolls over obstacles. Right now, mechanical is split into two parts: one reconstructing the drive train and the other formulating the shooting mechanism. The drive train looks great and works! It forms and fits the ridges of the hill nicely.

Kickoff!

So the season begins! This morning several team members and I started out for the first North Carolina FRC Kickoff at 7am. It was cold, it was early, yet because of the excitement staying awake wasn't a factor. After an exciting 2009 season, we were wondering what FIRST would throw at us this time. (Water game?) Arriving at Penske Racing around 9, we were able to take a tour and have a behind-the-scenes look at how race cars are manufactured. Just being able to view the bare bones of a vehicle was really neat, especially since they weld the body of the car on location.

Finally we filed into a conference room to watch the broadcast. Waiting was hard. After each speaker, the excitement built. We all wanted to see the game! During Dean Kamen's speech, he dropped a big hint. "...kicking soccer balls..." A soccer game? Next we were shown a clip of a camera on a robot tracking a target. A soccer game with a target??! Last came Dave Lavery. After teasing teams on ChiefDelphi.com, I was looking forward to what he would have to say.

And the 2010 game is...Breakaway!

We were not expecting that at all. Driving back to our team, ideas were brought up and many questions were asked.

Once we got to our meeting we opened our Kit Of Parts (KOP) and checked to see if all the parts were present. After that came brainstorming and reading.

We have a long, fun, crazy six weeks ahead of us.

-Webmaster