Sabercat Robotics

Our first day of competition was a bit rough as we experienced a number of setbacks that were disheartening to all of us, to say the least. This morning our build team members got up bright and early to head over to the arena and start preparing the robot for its first practice match at 9:00. Unfortunately we ended up missing this because our robot was unable to make it to the initial round of inspection.

Meanwhile, our PR team worked on getting to know the other FRC teams in the Galileo division and scouting their robots. One of the many perks to this competition is getting to see the innovative robot designs, as every team has their own individual story of how their strategy worked well enough to get here.

The 4146 robot was ready to go just in time for our first match at 2:10, yet the autonomous mode stopped functioning correctly. Since then, it has not worked all day. During our other two matches of the day we were suffering because our robot’s best trump card was missing, but the drive team did well to make as many points for the alliance in tele-op mode. It seems to be an issue with the coding and will just need lots of time and some practice in the shooting pit to be amended. The drive team worked frantically through dinner to fix the problem and finally, just in time for Robo-prom held by team 399, their efforts came to fruition and seem to have pinpointed the problem.

The team quickly primped and preened, then embarked in high heels and dress shoes looking very dapper indeed. We took a series of zany pictures, as well as the obligatory “prom pose,” in front of the St. Louis arch and in the Hyatt’s lobby. Most of the team was on the dance floor until the very end of the night. We shimmied, shuffled, and even got low! David and Marina represented the team by dancing for prom king and queen, yet we believe the competition may be rigged since our dancing skills were just too good.

Tomorrow we start all over again! We hope to fix the autonomous mode early enough in the day to perform better on our matches and have a more successful day.

The Sabercat Robotics team has safely arrived in St. Louis! Late this morning, the team arrived at the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. At the airport, the Sabercats were warmly welcomed by the FIRST welcome table! The Sabercats have already seen the Cardinal’s Baseball Stadium on the way to our hotel.  St. Louis’ history and landmarks are really interesting! We have been capturing every memory!

David, Lewis, Aidan, Mr. Brandt, and mentor Daniel have already left for the arena. Meanwhile, the rest of the team is going on a walking tour with mentors Mrs. Simoncic and John this afternoon. We are so excited for the competition!

On Monday, April 16^th, we reserved the auxiliary gym for our meeting to practice playing some robotic basketball! The whole team got a chance to practice driving and shooting hoops with the practice robot. The team had a great time practicing with the robot. During practice, a few people tried the role of “Human Shooter”. Danny, our in-bounder from the Arizona Regional, made 16 shots!

It is crunch time now! With the competition in just a week, packing and preparation is our main focus. Getting ready for the World Competition has been very stressful, but it’s been worth it. We have even been recieving donations to our team from people who have read about our achievements in the newspaper. Special thanks to all that are supporting us! The team is very excited to leave for St. Louis!

Recently there have been a few articles in the newspaper about the Sabercat Robotics team! On April 7th, the Scottsdale Republic ran an editorial about us and the Navajo Elementary FIRST Lego team! They called our team “quick learners” since in our rookie year we were Rookie All Stars and will go the Championship. Also, on April 4th, the Paradise Valley Independent published an article about us! Paradise Valley Vice Mayor Mary Hamway went to the Arizona Regional and experienced the fierce competition there. She wrote, “The achievement is even more amazing when you realize that four months ago, the Sabercat Robotics team didn’t even exist.” From the team, we would like to say thank you so much for recognizing us putting us in the news!

Today was an exciting day for the Sabercat Robotics build team! The parts for the practice bot arrived! Immediately after school, the build team rushed over to the robotics room to rip open the newly arrived parts. Bits and bolts were tightened, motors were revved ,and omni wheels were attached to create the practice bot’s drive train.

The PR team was hard at work writing personal thank you’s to all of our wonderful supporters and finalizing the Sabercat “swag” for the championship in St. Louis.

We are all so excited for this robotastic opportunity to take part in the championship. Only 3 more weeks till our plane takes off for St. Louis!

Remember to “like” us on Facebook!

As our major update said, Sabercat Robotics is on its way to St. Louis, MO for the FRC Championship! We have been quite busy! Build team, programming, and PR have been diligently working on their individual projects to prepare for this incredible opportunity!

Some of you have asked to see our robot in action, and now you can on our facebook page. To find us on facebook, search on the web for Saguaro Sabercat Robotics and find the facebook link. Once you find Saguaro Sabercat Robotics on facebook, please “like” us. If you want to see the robot in action, click on the link to the quarterfinal match posted on the page!

A lot has happened since our last post! Team 4146, Sabercat Robotics, has accomplished so much, and we are so proud.  At the 2012 Arizona Regional Competition at Hamilton High School on March 22-24, Sabercat Robotics had the robot in action for the “FIRST” time.  It was a long weekend but well worth it.  As it turned out, we competed all the way into the finals and were named Rookie All-Stars!  That designation qualifies us to go to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 2012 Championship!

Here’s what happened in Chandler:  Our team spent Thursday organizing our pit, tuning up the robot, and meeting new teams. It was a hectic but exciting day. On Friday the competition officially started, and excitement filled the robot arena.  By the end of 24 qualifying matches, Sabercat Robotics was seeded 46 out of 50 teams.  Despite this low ranking, the 3rd ranked seed, Team 498– the Cobra Commanders, chose Sabercat Robotics to join its experienced alliance, along with Team 2486, the Coconino Coconuts. Sabercat Robotics was thrilled, and we were put into the semi-finals in an alliance named the “CocoCobraCats!”

The Sabercat Robotic team’s stands were filled with cheering teammates and parents.  After winning the quarterfinal and semifinal matches, our alliance advanced to the finals.  We won the first game but lost the second and third to the alliance that was led by Team 610, from Toronto, Canada, and included Team 842 (Carl Hayden High School) and Team 1212 (Seton Catholic High School).

At the closing awards, we were honored to be named the Rookie All-Stars!  We never could have been so successful without the great support and encouragement of our mentors, sponsors, parents and our fellow FIRST Robotics teams from Arcadia (Team 3187) , Chaparral (Team 3019) and Coronado (Team 3133) high schools.   We are grateful for all the support!

Well, Rachel and I have been working diligently on this website and progress is being made! The build team has built the drive train and the frame of our robot. With the help our our mentors, the programming team has been working with labview and are learning quickly! Our rookie year is going great!!!

Robot love,

Olivia and Rachel