You are receiving this e-mail because you are a coach or an assistant coach for an FTC-Iowa team.
(Have you missed a FTC-Iowa Team Blast? An archive of these messages are located on our blog: http://ftc-iowa.blogspot.com/)
1. November Status Reports
2. FTC-Iowa Championship
3. Getting Your Team Prepared for an Event
4. Optional Robot Survey
5. Experiences from the St. Louis Qualifier Tournament
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1. November Status Reports
Just a "friendly" reminder, the November Status Reports will be open until tomorrow (Wednesday, Dec. 8th) for teams to complete. If you haven't already done so, please take a few minutes to complete it.
The information provided really helps us determine which teams need help and how to assist them.
The form can be found at: https://spreadsheets.google.
Thank you to those teams who have already submitted their report!
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2. FTC-Iowa Championship
The FTC-Iowa Championship is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 25/Saturday, Feb. 26 at the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City. Tournament planning is coming together very nicely and its going to be a great event.
A link to register and information about the event can be found at: https://sites.google.com/site/
A few quick notes about the event:
- If you have not already registered, please do so prior to December 15, 2010 to guarantee a spot. (See link above) After Dec. 15, we will allow teams from outside of Iowa to register for the competition, and we will not be able to guarantee your team's registration.)
- The capacity for the tournament is 48 teams.
- There is a $275 registration fee to attend this tournament, which is different than the $275 FIRST Registration fee your team paid at the beginning of the season.
- If you received Rockwell Collins funding (94% of teams), you agreed to participate in an Championship event.
Additionally, we are seeking volunteers! If you have a fantastic parent/teacher/student (over the age of 13) who would like to be involved, please encourage them to volunteer at the tournament. Information can be found at:
https://sites.google.com/site/
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3. Getting Your Team Prepared for an Event
Getting your team (mentally) prepared for an event can seem daunting, especially for the new/rookie teams. A few things to keep in mind:
- Your robot will NEVER be 100% ready.
- Attend an event (scrimmage/championship event) regardless of how ready your team feels they are.
- Robots do not work 100% of the time.
- Scrimmages do not require completed robots. Scrimmages are opportunities for teams to learn from other teams.
Good stuff!
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4. Optional Robot SurveySeveral students from Cedar Rapids Jefferson, a FTC and a Project Lead The Way school, are asking for your help in gathering some feedback. The feedback provided will help them as they work on a PLTW project. All responses will be anonymous.
Please help these students by completing the following form: https://spreadsheets.google.
It will be open for one week, until Dec. 14, 2010.
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5. Experiences from the St. Louis Qualifier TournamentAs mentioned in last week's e-mail, a group of wonderful volunteers attended and volunteered at the St. Louis Qualifying Tournament this past weekend. Overall, it was a great event and the teams did great!
However, there were some items we'd like to pass along. As a coach, please remember:
- The referees have final calls. Do not argue with them, as your behavior could lead to your team's disqualification from the tournament.
A team was almost disqualified for their coach's behavior. (Ironically, this particular team ended up competing in the final matches of the game.) The other coaches, parents, and volunteers were noticing this not-so-nicely behavior and expressed their concern. In summary, he was not a positive representative of his school/organization and team.
- Question box
Near each field will be a taped-off area for teams to ask a question to the referees about a particular call from the previous match. Please keep in mind, this area is for one student to ask the referees a question - coaches are not allowed in the question box area.
- Team judging time
The judging time is a the best opportunity for teams to "toot-their-horn" about their robot and the overall season. If your season hasn't gone the best, but in the end you pull through, please let the judges know. Keep in mind, awards are not determined solely on the robot performance - the awards are determined based on the journey of the team during the season.
- Samantha Mounting GuidelinesDuring many matches, several teams were losing their connections to the Field Control System due to poor placement of the Samantha Wi-Fi module. Keep in mind, if your robot loses connection, there is no a guarantee the match will be replayed. As you prepare for an event, please review the guide FIRST distributed about proper mounting of the Samantha Wi-Fi module. It can be found at:
http://www.usfirst.org/uploadedFiles/Community/FTC/ Team_Resources/Samantha_ Mounting_Best_Practices.pdf
Please review the FTC Team Blast (from ftcteams@usfirst.org) dated Nov. 18 for more information about Best Practices with Samantha. An archive of team blasts can be found at: http://usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/ftc/content. aspx?id=18132
Thank you, coaches, and please do not hesitate to ask if you have any questions.
Rebecca Whitaker & FTC-Iowa team
