Bayview Glen Robotics on the Provincial and World Stage

ALT-F4’s experience at the FIRST World Championships in Houston was quite an experience. From high-stakes qualifiers to the final matches, ALT-F4 fought hard and never gave up. From the first moment to the last, we had fun – whether it was eating Dippin’ Dots ice cream, scouting our fellow robots, or playing frisbee with the whole team, there was never a dull moment throughout the week. Vanguard, our legendary robot, was able to rack up countless points in FUEL for our team, carrying a reputation for consistency and reliability, all while constantly facing an uphill battle against an increasingly intense schedule.

This memorable experience started at three in the morning at Pearson Airport, where the whole team arrived for our flight to Texas. The robot had been shipped, and our whole team was raring to go. Upon arrival in Houston, we quickly got ourselves settled at the hotel, which was just a few minutes’ walk away from the George R. Brown Convention Center, a location we would certainly be frequenting over the coming days. The next morning, we made our way to the convention centre, where we loaded into the Johnson Division Field to set up our pit and begin some much-needed practice matches. Following that hectic first day of competition, our team decided to go outside to recuperate. One of the most memorable experiences for the entire team was the game of Frisbee we played at a park near the convention centre. Here, the coaches battled hard against the students in what was an incredibly exciting game! Everyone was involved – right down to the media team snapping pictures of the game.

The next two ensuing days resulted in quite the blur of qualifying matches, scouting, and much-needed Dippin’ Dots breaks. ALT-F4 was given one of – if not the most difficult – qualifying match schedules in our division at Worlds. We had to fight tooth and nail to climb the rankings, demonstrating that perseverance and consistency really do pay off! Throughout those two days, both our robot, Vanguard, and our drive team proved themselves by dumping huge amounts of balls into the HUB and earning a reputation as an unbreakable robot. That night, after the last day of our qualifying matches, we met in the hotel’s conference room to commence what would be a truly legendary Scouting and Strategy meeting. We pored over robots and discussed which aspects could earn us a win. The scouts relayed their hard-earned data to our Strategy team, while both engaged in incredible discussions, working together to finalize our Pick List. We even discussed our robot rankings with the number one ranked team on our field, SCREAM, who reinforced their intention to pick us.