Robot Competitions Can Bewilder Newcomers

By Sarah Schuller

For those who have never attended a competition, it can be quite confusing.

During the two days of a District Competition students are competing, presenting, and cheering on the teams from 8 a.m. until as late as 10 p.m. Brightly colored banners identify the 40 teams. Our first competition will be on March 14-16 at Center Line High School.

The matches prepare students for the real world in the sense that they are placed with teams that they have potentially have never met, and need to quickly learn to communicate with.

“It is wild to see all the people getting hyped,” said Cameron Lawton, a sophomore who worked in the pits last season.

The competition begins Thursday night when teams load into the 10-foot-square pit area where the pit crews prepare and store their robots during competitions. Teams will interact with each other, asking questions about the robots and how to work together during matches.

Judges will walk around and talk to teams, gathering information for awards such at Engineering Inspiration, Innovation in Control, Entrepreneurship, and more.

Students also scout the other robots from stands to analyze the data gathered and select teams the Foley Freeze will work well with.

Those who aren’t preparing and presenting in the pits spend their time cheering from the stands. During the meet, especially when judges are present, mentors step back and the team members put their knowledge to the test.

The winners of the competition are announced along with all of the judges awards at the end of the day Saturday. The last award to be presented is the Chairman’s award.