TNT 2008 Pictures

Friday














The TNT Field


Dave and Mr. Ellich


TechTigers [chillaxing]


TNT from a distance




Human Overdrive!





Saturday






Drive Team






El Tigre!




Rankings after Qualifying Matches


Mr. E-in-the-hat!


TechTigers in the stands


Our alliance: 1251, 179, 1029


Top 8 Alliances


179, 1251, 1029


1251


Hurdling [233 near, 1251 far]


179


The Winning Alliance: 233, 744, 1999



More pictures can be found here.

Tempest 'N Tampa 2008

This past weekend was the 2008 Tempest 'N Tampa (TNT) off-season robotics competition held at the USF Sun Dome and hosted by FIRST robotics team 79, Team Krunch. This was the 2nd time this event has been held and it is sure to become an off-season event to be modeled after.

Friday

The TechTigers departed from school at 9am [fortunately, Broward County schools did not have class that day] and arrived at the Sun Dome around 2pm. Upon settling into the pit, establishing the 1251 sleep zone [TNT is a lock-in event], and helping with the event setup wherever it was needed, the TechTigers were on a mission to storm Tempest 'N Tampa.

Being a lock-in event, all the teams slept in the Sun Dome in staked out areas. Entertainment was provided well into night, including Guitar Hero, Halo 3, Human Overdrive (a human version of the robot competition), a FIRST Overdrive computer game programmed by Lockheed Martin engineers, mentor matches, and many other activities. It was a great way to socialize with other teams and take a break in the middle of competition.

Saturday

Opening ceremonies started at 8:15am and after a time-consuming field error matches started around 9am. The competition was fast paced, with teams putting their all into this last chance to fully play FIRST'S 2008 game FIRST Overdrive. At the end of the qualifying matches, 1251 was seeded 2nd with a 6-1-0 record. Alliance selections yielded the 2nd seeded alliance of 1251, 179 [Children of the Swamp] and 1029 [Wolvcats]. After advancing to the semi-finals, the TechTigers, Children of the Swamp, and Wolvcats lost 1-2 to the 3rd seeded alliance of 233 [The Pink Team], 744 [Shark Attack], and 1999 [Outer Limit]. This 3rd seeded alliance went on to become the 2008 TNT winners - congrats to 233, 744, and 1999!

Following a rather eventful finals round, the awards ceremony took place and TNT 2008 came to an end. The TechTigers had an awesome time, with the new drive team learning how to function in a regional-like atmosphere, those new to the team getting as realistic a feel of a robotics competition, and who can forget the dances at intermissions? Overall, TNT 2008 was a grand success and the TechTigers were happy to have been a part of it.

Check back soon; pics to come in a separate post.

Mission Mayhem 2008

Mission Mayhem field


TechTigers!


Working on the robot


Driving!


TechTigers and TechTigers rookie robots next to each other in match


Mission Mayhem drivers


Even the busiest TechTigers need time to chill...


TechTiger Alumni reffing the competition [Dave and Drew, 2nd from right and far right, respectively]


TechTiger Alumni Melissa doing field reset [left]

More pictures can be found here.

2008/2009 School Year is Underway!

Greetings everyone! The school year finally got underway albeit a couple of days late thanks to tropical storm Fay. Of course that means a new year of robotics as well. I'll try to bring everyone up to date on what's been happening the last several weeks.

This year for the first time we held a "TechTiger Robotics Boot Camp" for new students. Fifteen young roboticists spent a week learning about our program and working with the Vex Robotics System including mechanical design and programming techniques. On Saturday parents, family, and friends were invited to come in and hear about their childs' experience and learn a little about TechTiger Robotics.

The enthusiasm of that week carried over into the start of school as we had over 20 new students attend the robotics organizational meeting on Thursday, 8/28. All students were briefed on their responsibilities, committment, and upcoming events.

Over the next 4 weeks, students will be busy working on their VEX competition robots and getting the rookie FIRST Overdrive robot ready for Mission Mayhem and Tempest 'N Tampa.

Upcoming Events

• Town Crier, 9/7, 9AM - 12PM


• Mission Mayhem @ Stranahan High School, 9/27, 8AM - 5PM


• Tempest 'N Tampa @ USF, Tampa, FL, 10/24, 10/25


• VEX Scrimmage @ North Miami Senior HS, 11/8, 8AM - 4PM


• VEX Regional Competition @ North Miami Senior HS, 12/13, 8AM - 4PM

TechTiger Day!

May 11 was dedicated as TechTiger Day by the City of Coconut Creek Board of Commissioners in 2004.

Hope you have a TechTiger Day!

2008 Palmetto Regional Day 2

After a tough day of matches, the TechTigers are ranked #2 with 7 wins and 1 loss. The team has done an outstanding job of keeping El Tigre Loco running and competitive. Tomorrow will be a hectic day with our final ranking probably being determined by the results of the final qualifying match.

The Clemson School of Engineering hosted a team social at the student union following the award ceremonies. All students were able to socialize, play some pool, bowl, play air hockey and more. And it wouldn't be complete with lots of food. A good time was had by all.

Stay tuned - tomorrow should be a wild and crazy day!

2008 Palmetto Regional Day 1

Today went well. After uncrating the robot and setting up the pit, the guys went to work putting on the new claws, replacing the second stage of the elevator and getting El Tigre Loco inspected.

They managed to get in two solid practice rounds and appear to be in mid-competition form. Several people were impressed with the performance.

It should be a great couple of days. I know the team will do everything possible to keep ETL running and in the game. Check back for a recap of the first day of matches.

E

We've Arrived!

After 12+ hours of travel cramped in the E van, we've settled into the quaint town of Clemson, SC. We'll spend today getting El Tigre Loco ready for competition. I'll post some pictures this evening when we get back to the hotel.

E

1251 YouTube Video Montage, UCF 2008

Video montage on YouTube, featuring footage from the 2008 Florida Regional



Courtesy of David Guzman, 1251 mentor and alumni

2008 Florida Regional Day 3

WOW! That is the only way to express this concluding day of the 2008 FIRST Florida Regional for team 1251. Starting off the day with a loss and a snapped claw, the TechTigers came back with a vengeance and won our second and last qualifying match of the day, ending up as the 4th seeded team.

During the alliance picking, team 1251 was chosen by number 2 seeded team 233, The Pink Team, along with team 86, Team Resistance [our fellow 2007 Florida Regional winner]. After a very intense and high-scoring elimination round, Team 233-The Pink Team, Team 86-Team Resistance, and ourselves, Team 1251- The TechTigers, are the 2008 Florida Regional Winners, playing undefeated through the elimination rounds [the TechTigers lost one match the entire competition]! This is both ours and Team 86's second Florida Regional win in a row.

Following the amazing elimination round, we TechTigers were very excited to also win the 2008 Florida Regional General Motors Industrial Design Award. This is the second GM Industrial Design Award team 1251 has won and we are very honored to have received them.

All in all, it was an amazing three days and the team is looking forward to the Palmetto Regional in the coming weeks.

Team 1251 would like to thank teams 233 and 86 for their amazing performance and their outstanding teamwork - our teams worked well together and managed to pull through with a regional win. We would also like to thank our mentors, parents, teachers, our sponsor Sonny's, and everyone else who has helped us get to where we are - we couldn't do anything without you.

One regional down, one to go. Palmetto, here we come!

[pictures to come]

2008 Florida Regional Day 2

Today was the second day of the 2008 FIRST Florida Regional and the first day of qualifying matches - and what a day it was! At the end of the day, the TechTigers are currently undefeated with a 6-0 record and currently ranked in 2nd place. It was a hectic day filled with fast-paced matches, a few field errors resulting in redone matches, and constant cheering-while-scouting, but all in all it was an awesome day. The TechTigers cannot wait to see what tomorrow brings!

[pictures to come]

2008 Florida Regional Day 1

Today was the TechTiger's first day at the 2008 Florida Regional, held at the University of Central Florida. After a day of making minor adjustments to the robot, participating in 2 of our 3 practice matches and passing the robot inspection, the TechTigers are geared and ready for the first day of qualification matches tomorrow. Good luck teams!


Waiting for the doors to open.


Our ever faithful mascot :)


Working on the robot.


Working with 408, the team we made a twin robot for.


Mr. Ellich - on 801?


El Tigre Loco, fully extended.

[more pictures to come]

2008 FIRST Season Kickoff

2008 FIRST season has arrived! Sonny's was kind enough to host 1251's kickoff event at their facility in Tamarac. For more information about the game, be sure to visit FIRST's website and be sure to check back often for updates on the TechTiger's progress through the 2008 FRC season!









Presenting ideas during the brainstorming session






Mr. Ellich!