Robotics makes lots of memories at Regionals

NAMPA — Boundary County’s First Team Alpha+2130 robotics team made a lot of memories at the regional competition in Nampa at the end of March, but won’t be advancing to the next competition.

Starting out in the competition, teams participated in practice matches and, on March 31, began qualification matches. After these matches, the top eight teams of the 48 competing choose two other teams as alliance partners.

Alpha+ was chosen by teams 8814 Blackhole and 801, both teams were from China. Twenty-four teams were then able to advance to the playoffs, which were done in a bracket system. Alpha+ and their alliance teams were eliminated and did not advance to the next competition.

“Like most teams at the competition, our robot had a few injuries that required fixes,” said robotics team member Kaylee McCabe. “On the field, six robots are continuously zooming around the field and often they will collide. This can cause damage to robots.”

Alpha+’s robot broke on two separate occasions. McCabe said this is a relatively small amount compared to other seasons.

When a robot breaks during a match, teams take it back to their pits, a small shop location, to repair it.

“As you can imagine this area becomes very crowded,” McCabe said. “However, in both incidents where our robot broke, we were able to repair it without missing a single match.”

The robot sustained damage when a weld on the arm broke and when a lead screw separated from the versa planetary.

“Our team was able to work well and efficiently to repair the robot quickly. Another challenge we faced was not always having the parts we needed,” she said.

“Unfortunately, we are unable to fit our entire shop in our pits, so we are only able to pack essentials. At times we will need something that we didn't bring with us. When this happens, we are able to ask the pit admin to make an announcement asking if any other teams have what we need,” she said.

During competition, Alpha+ ran out of PWM wire and was able to get it from the pit admin.

“We were also able to provide other teams with several things they needed including, wood screws, washers, velcro, 6 AWG wire, bolts, and more,” she said.

Overall the competition was a wonderful experience, team members said.

“Even with 48 teams there, our team was still one of the loudest,” she said.

At competition there are several positions individuals can have. Drive teams are those on the field during matches and they consist of the coach, driver, operator, technician and human player.

There is also a pit team responsible for communicating with judges and holding down the pits when the drive team is competing. Lastly, there is the scouting team, which watches each match and compiles data on how well other teams perform.

This data can be important for alliance selection in a scenario where our team might be helping to pick alliance partners, McCabe said.

McCabe was the coach on the drive team.

“During matches I would see and hear the scouting team, parents, and other individuals associated with the team cheering us on,” she said. “It was encouraging to witness the team spirit we possessed. During alliance picks, the coach from each team lines up on the field.”

“When we were invited to join the alliance with team 8814 and 8011, I think our team cheered louder than anyone else,” she said. “From my perspective, working with the teams from China was an amazing experience.”

As a coach, one of McCabe’s responsibilities was to develop a strategy with the alliance partners before each match. She said working with these two teams was great.

“I don't think the language barrier slowed us down. The coaches from both teams spoke English well and were able to translate for our team and their own. We were able to all communicate with one another quickly even though not all of us spoke the same language,” she said.

After Alpha+ was eliminated from the playoffs, they spent time with their alliance partners.

“We talked about our teams, took photos and exchanged information. We also exchanged several items,” she said.

The teams exchanged shirts with both their alliance partners.

“They both gave us one of the bumpers off of their robots, stickers, pins, bracelets and more. We had them all sign on our swords and we gave them each one of our shields. As a team, everyone enjoyed the experience and loved getting to work with the two teams from China. Everyone took the opportunity to learn and experience another culture,” she said.

This year Alpha+ was able to bring eighth-grade teammates along, unlike in previous years.

“The experience was a bit of a shock for the eighth-grade students and new robotics students,” McCabe said. “Competition is difficult to describe for those who have never been. You can watch matches online, but nothing compares to actually being there. It's extremely fast-paced and high energy.”

At robotics competitions, teams cheer for themselves as well as one another, she said. Competition also creates a supportive environment.

“You may compete against a team one match then with them the next. This creates an environment where teams build each other up,” she said.

The team thanked their mentors who made the whole thing possible and the community who continuously supports the team.

To learn more about First Team 2130 Alpha+, visit their open house on April 28 at 6 p.m. in the Robotics Workshop at Boundary County Middle School.