Monterey Bay Regional – 2023

Monterey Bay Regional – 2023

by | Apr 15, 2023 | Blog, Monterey Bay

The Monterey Bay Regional welcomed 36 teams this year from California, Arizona and Chinese Taipei at Seaside High School from March 29 – April 1, 2023.  The weather on setup day was a bit challenging, and we were thrilled that Mother Nature cooperated for the rest of the event.  Many teams enjoyed the location and took some time to enjoy the nearby Monterey beach.

Congressman Jimmy Panetta (CA-19) joined us during the qualification matches and delivered a great talk to the students about the importance of STEM.  He was then shown around the event and spent time speaking with many students and teams.

Other highlights of the event were the Mentor Networking event which was hosted by Team 971 from Mountain View CA, and the FIRST Impact Award Exchange which was hosted by Team 1671 from Clovis CA.

The Volunteer of the Year was awarded to Roby Hyde from Team 5104 in Pacific Grove CA, and the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award was given to Matt Lussier from Team 7413 in Pacific Grove CA.

The winning alliance was Team 1323 from Madera CA, Team 5940 from Redwood City CA, and Team 6998 from Chinese Taipei.  It was great to see an international alliance take home the honors!

The FIRST Impact Award winner was Team 2486 from Flagstaff AZ. Congratulations to all teams for a great event!

 

LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Monterey Bay Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

FIRST Impact Award

The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

This team has organized outreach events, led workshops, hosted competitions, and sponsored teams – building strong FIRST LINKAGES everywhere they go. Their strong advocacy for STEM with their local government has impacted countless people and driven real change. Their focus on mentorship and accessibility reaches many in their surrounding isolated communities.

They are truly NUTS about the FIRST mission and THEY are the change we love to see! Way to go Team 2486!

 

Engineering Inspiration

The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

Not only are they building innovative robots, but they are working to transform a culture. They understand that not all learning can be done through books which is why these COOL CATS are working through all levels of their government to promote STEM and FIRST.

  • Team 6998 – Unipards from Tainin, Chinese Taipei

Regional Winners

  • Team 1323 – MadTown Robotics from Madera, CA
  • Team 5940 – BREAD from Redwood City, CA
  • Team 6998 – Unipards from Tainin, Chinese Taipei

Regional Finalist (wildcard)

  • Team 9125 – Mechanical Magicians from Newark, CA
  • Team 8033 – Highlander Robotics from Piedmont, CA

Dean’s List Finalist

In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

  • Eleanor Lyons from Team 7413, Plus Ultra
  • Sindhu Gokaraju Team 4255, Robodores 

Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

​​This mentor is a volunteer, mentor, advocate, and inspiration and has helped multiple teams. Students share how this mentor “promotes a wonderful work ethic, makes us laugh during stressful times, opens doors for us, and believes in us.”  He provides insight in technical, logistical, and business skills to his students. “Every day we interact with him, he inspires us to be better people.”

  • Matthew Lussier from Team 7413, Plus Ultra

Additional Awards

Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Monterey Bay Regional! See the list here.

Instagram Highlights

Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Monterey Bay Regional. Watch Instagram Highlight Tab!

Sacramento Regional – 2023

Sacramento Regional – 2023

by | Apr 5, 2023 | Blog, sacramento

Attended by thousands of fans, families, educators and industry leaders, the Sacramento Regional awarded 16 teams with honors that rewarded design excellence, competitive play, sportsmanship and high impact partnerships between schools, businesses and communities. Held at the University of California Davis Pavilion at the ARC from March 16-19, 2023, 46 high school student teams competed to earn a spot at the FIRST Championship.

With the hope of winning one of the several coveted awards, high school students worked with professional Mentors to design and build a robot over a six-week period that solved a problem using a kit of parts and a standard set of rules, while also developing high-impact partnerships between schools, businesses, and communities.

Each team clearly demonstrated teamwork, professionalism and strategic thinking in solving the competition’s challenges. The noise level from the audience cheering on the teams was tremendous. Students, school groups, community members and professional team mentors filled the stands and helped to bring a level of fun and excitement to the competition. With the sustained support of the Sacramento community, this robotics competition will continue to grow and inspire students to study math, science and engineering.

LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Sacramento Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

FIRST Impact Award

The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

  • Team 1072, Harker Robotics from San Jose, CA

    Engineering Inspiration

    The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

    • Team 4135 – Iron Patriots from Modesto, CA

    Regional Winners

    • Team 254, The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA
    • Team 1678, Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
    • Team 3189, Circuit Breakers from Placerville, CA

     

    Regional Finalists (wildcards)

     

    Dean’s List Finalist

    In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

    • Sanaya Bhasin from Team 1458, Red Tie Robotics
    • Hongfei Liu from Team 6941, IronPulse Robotics

     

    Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

    FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

    In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

    Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

    • Ryan Cahoon from Team 766, M-A Bears

     

    Additional Awards

    Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Sacramento Regional! See the list here.

    Instagram Highlights

    Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Sacramento Regional. Watch Our Instagram Highlight Tab!

    San Francisco Regional – 2023

    San Francisco Regional – 2023

    by | Apr 5, 2023 | Blog, San Francisco

    The 2023 San Francisco Regional is in the books! Congratulations to all 42 teams that participated in the San Francisco FIRST Robotics Regional Competition from March 16-19, 2023! 

    Putting a working robot on the field is a feat in and of itself! A big thank you to all of the mentors, volunteers, and sponsors that helped make this regional a favorite of so many participants. Your work is appreciated.

    SFR began with an inspiring set of remarks by California State Senator Scott Wiener (CA SD-11). The Senator then watched the opening match and visited with teams in their pits. Later that day, SFR would award its 2023 Woodie Flowers Finalist Award to Jenny Stevens of team 9143. Additionally, long time CA FIRST volunteer Laura Hall was named SFR Volunteer of the Year.

    Despite the rain on our final day, the teams came in ready for action. After a quick end to qualification matches, our top eight ranked teams picked their alliances, and an exciting playoff round commenced. The final best-of-three series was played between the second seeded alliance (teams 971, 972, and 8016) and the fourth seeded alliance (teams 1351. 115, and 9143), with the former taking the crown as the winner of the 2023 San Francisco Regional. After an exciting final set of matches, SFR announced the winners of the FIRST Impact Award (Team 115), Engineering Inspiration Award (Team 1700), and the Rookie All Star award (Team 9038).

    LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

    The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the San Francisco Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

    FIRST Impact Award

    The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

    The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

    • Team is 115, MVRT from Cupertino, CA

      Engineering Inspiration

      The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

       

      Regional Winners

      • Team 971, Spartan Robotics from Mountain View, CA
      • Team 972, Iron Claw from Los Gatos, CA
      • Team 8016, Eco Robotics from Rohnert Park, CA

      Dean’s List Finalist

      In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

      • Cameron Nguyen from Team 649, MSET Fish
      • Priyanka Karunakaran from Team 2854, Prototypes

      Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

      FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

      In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

      Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

      • Jenny Stevens from Team 9143, Armor Robotics

      Additional Awards

      Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the San Francisco Regional! See the list here.

      Instagram Highlights

      Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of San Francisco Regional. Watch Our Instagram Highlight Tab!

      Los Angeles Regional – 2023

      Los Angeles Regional – 2023

      by | Mar 30, 2023 | Blog, Los Angeles

      This year’s FIRST Robotics Competition Los Angeles Regional, held at Da Vinci High School in El Segundo, was a great success! The event was at full capacity with 44 teams participating, and despite some occasional rain moving in and out of the area, everyone managed to stay dry, and teams reported having a great time.

      Students were excited to have visits with Cathy Looman, Director of Education for season sponsor HAAS Automation, and Annabel Flores, Chief Operating Officer, Global Spectrum Dominance, for local lead sponsor Raytheon Technologies. Annabel welcomed teams Sunday morning during Opening Ceremony, sharing some of her personal experiences in the professional world and offering words of encouragement to all the students participating.

      On Friday, team 4201 Vitruvian Bots held a panel on Neurodiversity in STEAM, sponsored by LA Regional sponsor Raytheon. Nearly 100 students and mentors gathered to hear from panelists discussing some of the challenges and triumphs they’ve experienced as students and professionals in STEAM. Panelists also shared suggestions for students about how to successfully pursue any needed accommodations as they navigate their educational and professional futures.

       Saturday night, the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award was presented to Rigoberto Cruz, mentor for team 5089 Robo-Nerds. It turned out to be a very exciting weekend for team 5089 Robo-Nerds, as the team also received the FIRST Impact Award for the region on Sunday night! The Volunteer of the Year was presented to Joan Horvath, who has served as Judge Advisor for a number of years, and has been a judge in Los Angeles since the region started in 2000.

      The playoffs were highly competitive, with well-matched alliances turning in close-scoring matches. In the end, Team 687 Nerd Herd led the winning alliance, along with Team 5199 Robot Dolphins from Outer Space, Team 702 Bagel Bytes and Team 6833 Phoenix Robotics.

      Gracious host venue Da Vinci High School and their team, 4201 Vitruvian Bots, helped make it possible for FIRST California to hold another successful LA Regional!

      View Event Photo Gallery

      Big thanks to Matt with Matt Beard Photography for capturing these amazing Los Angeles Regional memories!

      Feel free to download and share any of these photos.  You can tag FIRST California on Instagram at @firstroboticscalifornia and use hashtags #FIRSTinCA, #firstininspires, #CHARGEDUP and #omgrobots.

      LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

      The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Los Angeles Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

      FIRST Impact Award

      The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

      The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

      • Team 5089 – Robo-Nerds from Los Angeles, CA

        Engineering Inspiration

        The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

        • 4201 – The Vitruvian Bots from El Segundo, CA

         

        Regional Winners

        • Team 687, The Nerd Herd from Carson, CA
        • Team 5199, Robot Dolphins from Outer Space from Dana Point, CA
        • Team 702, Bagel Bytes from Culver City, CA

        Dean’s List Finalist

        In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

        • Brianna Adewinmbi from Team 687, The Nerd Herd
        • Naomi Uehara from Team 4201, The Vitruvian Bots

        Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

        FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

        In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

        Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

        “This mentor evolved from starting an FRC team with a few students to a strong contingent of support for all three FIRST programs. He not only emphasizes technical skills but embraces everyone’s natural talents to help them improve and build a better team. He has made great strides in creating opportunities for underrepresented students and combating language barriers. He is helping his students cruise to success.

        Please join us in congratulating the 2023 Los Angeles Regional Woodie Flowers FINALIST Award winner, Rigoberto Cruz, from Team 5089, The Robo-Nerds!“

        • Rigoberto Cruz, from Team 5089, The Robo-Nerds

        Additional Awards

        Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Los Angeles Regional! See the list here.

        Instagram Highlights

        Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Los Angeles Regional. Watch Our Instagram Highlight Tab!

        Central Valley Regional – 2023

        Central Valley Regional – 2023

        by | Mar 23, 2023 | Blog, Central Valley

        The FIRST Robotics Competition Central Valley Regional, at the Fresno Convention Center from March 9-12, 2023, was a big success!  There were 39 teams in attendance and the weekend was Charged Up! 

        Among the teams that came from all parts of California, we also had teams visiting from Arizona, Idaho, Mexico and Chinese Taipei. The teams had a special visit from Patti Poppe, the CEO of Pacific Gas & Electric Company. Patti and her husband Eric, along with matching funds from PG&E, donated $200,000 to Northern California FIRST events and teams, including 20 of the teams competing at the regional.  And they announced they were committing to another $200,000 for the 2024 season! 

        The Central Valley Regional was also hosting several local FIRST Tech Challenge and FIRST LEGO League Challenge and Explore teams, which included the a team that will be competing at the World Championship in Houston this April. There was even more excitement for teams when they visited the Air Force booth and got to talk with officers about the many opportunities that exist using the skills they learn through FIRST within the Air Force and Space Force. 

        The competition was filled with excitement and culminated with many awards to teams for their skills, talents, performance, outreach, dedication, and Gracious Professionalism at the event. In fact, 47 individuals were awarded an exclusive FIRST California Gracious Professional pin for being ‘Caught in the Act!’

        We’d like to extend an immense THANK YOU to all the sponsors, mentors and volunteers who contributed to this very successful Regional.

        We hope you too had a memorable experience at the Central Valley Regional! 

        LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

        The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Central Valley Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

        FIRST Impact Award

        The FIRST Impact Award represents the true spirit of FIRST.  It honors the team that best serves as a model for other teams to emulate and that embodies the goals of FIRST.  It remains FIRST’s most prestigious team award.  The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants, school, and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season or school year. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient will be invited to the FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against the winners from all the other qualifying events.

        You can watch their Impact Award video here.

          Engineering Inspiration

          The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

          This team’s dedicated outreach team strives to bring engineering and stem fields to underrepresented communities. They empower Girl Scouts and kids of all ages, those with learning disabilities and other nations through their robust outreach. Their sustained outreach efforts prove they are anything but inert.

          • Team 840, Aragon Robotics from San Mateo, CA

          Regional Winners

           

          Dean’s List Finalist

          In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

          • Anisha Shukla from Team 2135, Presentation Invasion
          • Emilia Plancarte from Team 4400, Cerbotics

          Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

          FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

          In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

          Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

          You shared high praise for the accomplishments and dedication of your mentors and your teams. Based on your input, we now recognize the outstanding contributions of ONE mentor to the FIRST experience.

          This nominee has dedicated over half their life to the FIRST mission. Their passion and commitment to their team and FIRST is unmatched. They work to make their team and their community more efficient and effective. This mentor works with nearly every part of their team from design, software, business, and graphic design inspiring their students to be well-rounded. He is an exceptional role model to students on their teams and to every team he works with.

          Please join us in congratulating the 2023 Central Valley Regional Woodie Flowers FINALIST Award winner, Andrew Nabors, from Team 1671! 

          • Andrew Nabors from Team 1671, Buchanan Bird Brains

          Additional Awards

          Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Central Valley Regional! See the list here.

          Instagram Highlights

          Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Central Valley. Watch Our Instagram Highlight Tab!

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