The 4-H Ocosta Wild Robotocats competed March 3-5 in Auburn in this season’s first Pacific Northwest District competition in an effort to work their way up to the FIRST Robotics International Championships set for March 23-27 in St. Louis, Missouri.
Seeded 15th at qualifications, the Robotocats moved up to 8th Captain during alliance selections. They lost during the quarterfinals, playing against the 1st seed captain and their alliance that eventually won the event.
The team thanks Issaquah Robotics Society 1318 and Apex Robotics 5803 for teaming up with them during eliminations.
Bot performs well
According to team captain, Kaylie Prieur, the team’s robot surpassed most of their expectations by breezing through opposing terrain defenses with little effort. This year’s game, called FIRST STRONGHOLD, is played on a 27 ft. by 54 ft. field. Two alliances of three teams each compete against each other to breach their opponents’ defenses, known as outer works, and capture their tower. They score points by crossing elements of their opponents’ outer works, scoring ‘boulders’ (foam-filled balls) in their opponents’ tower goals and surrounding and scaling their opponents’ tower itself.
Program objectives
The FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) combines sport with science and technology. Dean Kamen, the inventor of the Segway, an electric, two-wheeled human transporter, founded FIRST Robotics in 1989. Kamen established the non-profit charitable organization to get students interested in science, technology, and engineering, and to foster a cultural shift in K-12 education.
The robotics competition gives junior and senior high school students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with computer programming, electrical engineering, physics, pneumatics and structural engineering.
Honor and award
Team Captain, Kaylie Prieur, moved on as a semi-finalist for Dean’s List. She is one of eighteen outstanding students in the Pacific Northwest that are guaranteed to move on to the District Championships in Portland. If selected in Portland, she will become one of six finalists from the Pacific Northwest that will go on to the World Championships in St. Louis.
The team also won the Hardhat Safety Award. This award is given to the top three teams considered for the Industrial Safety Award, which is judged and sponsored by Underwriters Laboratories.
