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The WikiYear of the Mounties...
by Aaron Schultz, Oct. 2006
We came out of 2004 running strong. We had been rookies, but we had put up a tough fight and had slowly worked our way up the competition ladders. Now, with renewed interest in the program, our team expanded, joining forces with students from St. Andrew's School located nearby. Continuing our ambition and success from before, we traveled to the newly created regional in Rochester, New York, and then the Championships in Atlanta, Georgia. We were hyped, ecstatic to be attending such a huge event on only our second year, and pumped that we had created a robot several times more complicated than before. But if you ask any alumni what they remember from 2005, they will say only one word: "Canadians."
It all started with the Finger Lakes Regional in Rochester. Most of us had never been this far north, so when we arrived we were in for a shock. It was March, but the ground was covered with a foot of ice and snow. Icicles three-feet long dangled from every building. And it was cold.
Despite the weather, Rochester seemed to be an electrified event. We were bouncing off the hotel walls with energy, spending our time in the warm waters of the indoor pool or transiting the speedy elevators. At the arena, the mad rush of repair jobs and statistics kept everyone on their toes. On our "night on the town," we spent our time singing karaoke (much to the dismay of everyone's ears), and at closing awards we saw our chief mentor, Mr. Kelly, walk off with a Woodie Flowers Award. It was in this state of ecstasy that we came across a FIRST team from Canada.
The team, number 1547 and nicknamed "Where's Waldo," was an all-girl group from Trafalgar Castle School in Ontario, Canada. They were a very spirited bunch, and we couldn't help but make friends. We cheered for each other in turn, discussed competition matters, and kept wondering when we would see them next. By the end of the competition, we couldn't keep our feet on the ground.
From Rochester, in which we spent most of our time holed up away from the cold, we ended up in Atlanta for the Championships. Atlanta had a wealth of places to spend time, from the scenic Underground shopping complex to CNN Headquarters. FIRST even offered up a "picnic" in the park, providing food and live entertainment for all competing teams.
Championships was a whole new frontier for us. Not only did we get to see the best teams from around the world, but we saw how huge FIRST really was; three playing fields ran at the same time for hours, and near the end, the new VEX robotics system was revealed. The founders of Google even showed up to highlight the wonders that youths can bring about. While we were still in awe, we chanced to meet up once again with the aspiring team 1547.
With smiles and hugs we greeted our friends. Upon the backdrop that was the Georgia Dome, we strolled through the park together and hopped on various carnival-style attractions that sprung up during FIRST picnic. We had a good time, but time was quick to run out. With only a few days in Atlanta, it wasn't long before we had to hop on a plane and say goodbye to Waldo for good.
It's amazing how strong a feeling of friendship you can create with only a few days time, but it's what makes FIRST Robotics so great. We had been through build season, travel, competition, success and failure, yet back at home, all we could ask was "Where's Waldo?"