We had a great time at the Second Annual Champions Challenge and hopefully, everyone got something out of it.   We saw Overdrive (2753)  and Super Trouble Makers (4995) set a new world record (unofficial, unfortunately) by beating Say Watt and Landroids 711 to 295.   Every team got to compete at least once with every other team.   It was pretty wild.  In the finals, the number 1 and 3 team paired and the number 2 and 4 team paired up.    It was a lot of fun and Say Watt? finally won a tournament with Landroids – something we have been trying to do for two years.  

On April 14, at Devry University on Route 1, Say Watt Robotics will host the second annual Champion’s Challenge.   Teams that have qualified for the World Championship in St. Louis will meet for a “tune-up” competition.   These teams will test their robots against the best teams from a number of states.  In the process, they will be looking to practice with potential alliance partners for St. Louis.  From 10AM to 3PM expect great robotic’s battles.   Every one of these teams qualified for the World event.   Come cheer them on as they try to set a new (unofficial) world record.  The event is free, so stop by.   Talk to the teams about their robots and how they got started.

Devry University (Cafeteria), 630 US Route 1, North Brunswick, NJ  08902

Watts Up wins Inspire

On Saturday, February 25, 2012, FIRST Tech Challenge Team 5169 Watts Up? from Edison, NJ, won the Inspire Award at the FTC Pennsylvania State Championship that was held at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, PA.  The Inspire Award is the most prestigious award presented by FIRST, a robotics program that is geared to encourage kids to learn about engineering and robotics.  Watts Up? is one of the two teams that will move on to compete at the FTC World Championship in St. Louis, MO on April 25 through April 28 this spring.  Watts Up? is a rookie team in FIRST. They had already done incredibly well throughout the FTC season, winning the PTC (computer-aided designs) Award at two other state tournaments, the Think Award (Engineering Notebook), and the Inspire Award again at regional scrimmages in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

Say Watt? (Team 3539) and their alliance partner, Mad Science (4486) set a new world record score in the semi-final match of the NJ State Championship.   Going against our friends, the CHS Cougars (4102) and their alliance partner, MFS Foxes (110), the final match was 504 to 315!

Say Watt? went on to win the Championship, the Innovate Award, and second place Inspire.   Their friends the Landroids won the first place Inspire Award.    Good Job Landroids!

As the coach of the Foxes said after the match, they thought 315 would be a winning score.   If the Foxes had picked up that second crate, it would have been a lot closer!   Good robotics in NJ!    Credit  goes to the excellent support system from our FIRST affiliate partners, Vince and Pat Frascella.

?World Record Video – 504 to 315

Say Watt (3539) and Watts Up (5169) with partner Ozone (61) were the finalist award winners at the Delaware State Championship on Saturday, January 28, at the Bob Carpenter Arena.    They lost to our friends the Landroids (4220) teamed with alliance captain Tactical Sheep (7) and team 404.    Say Watt also won the Connect award and Watts Up won the PTC award.   The one unfortunate part was that Say Watt and Watts Up went head-to-head in the qualifiers and Say Watt took Watts Up out of first place.

We had a great day with some outstanding scores.   Landroids came within 1 point of tieing the world record with a score of 436 when they lifted three baskets in a qualifier.    It was one of the best tournaments we have ever seen with great offensive and defensive strategies.   It was exciting!

Say Watt and Ozone vs Landroids and 404

All three teams brought robots and ran demos at Liberty Science Center on Thursday, January 26, for a members-only robotics night.   Our friends the Landroids were also there in the main court.    Say Watt ran interactive demos letting the kids run Bounty Hunter (the award-winning whiffle-ball throwing robot).   The kids had fun shooting this year’s robots while they were trying to score a basket.   Later, Say Watt and the Landroids got a little practice together – hoping for a chance to set a new record at Delaware.   The kids did a great job, especially since it was the night before their first mid-term, and two days before the Delaware state tournament.

On Sunday January 22, Say Watt competed in Hightstown at the fifth NJ qualifier.   After the five qualifiers, Silver Soldiers was ranked number 1 and Say Watt ranked number 2 and they combined to form a winning alliance.    Say Watt debuted its new lift.   Unfortunately, they were not able to have two good runs together, but they did score 296 points together in the semi-final round.

Say Watt and Watts Up personnel drove to Philly on Saturday, January 14, to help 12 rookie teams get their robots ready for competition and have a practice scrimmage.  We met our friends Mash 4077 and Minds In Gear to help the rookie teams.   It was fun and rewarding and by the end of the day, all 12 teams had passed inspection and had at least one run on the field.   4077 and 3539 also did a practice run and scored 336 points.   We hope we can do as well in Delaware!

Say Watt helps with software

Watts Up won the Inspire award at the January 7 qualifier at Liberty Science Center.   They also were the captain of the finalist alliance.    Say Watt, Watt The Hex, and Watts Up combined to host the event at Liberty Science Center.