Undaunted by a run of bad luck in this year’s regional competition, the Becker High School robotics team has spent the interim fine-tuning their competition robot, now known as “Gumdrop”. The process has included a partial cannibalization of the development robot, known as “Betsy”, which will have its superstructure removed and re-welded into Gumdrop in time for the state meet next week.
The high-strength aluminum frame on the competition robot has proven to be not a match for the powerful catapult required to advance the large ball in this year’s competition specifications, team members said, which resulted in the needed transplant.Team member Ryan Swanson has earlier confided that the team is using the same type of neoprene rubber banding on the catapult as that used in spear-gun firing mechanisms, which provides great throwing distance, but with substantial recoil, it turned out.
Coach Alex Jurek and several team members were practicing “moving and shooting” the catapult indoors Wednesday afternoon, easily clearing the length of the North Commons area as they practiced the needed techniques.
Tournament Schedule
The tentative schedule for the MSHSL FIRST® Robotics State Championship at Williams Arena on the U. of M. campus calls for all teams to load-in, set up and undergo inspection on Friday. May 16. Opening ceremonies will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Sat., May 17, with matches starting at 8:45 a.m. and continuing until 2:45 p.m. Alliance selection will begin at 3:00 p.m., with play-offs from 3:15 to 4:30 p.m. The awards ceremony will follow.
