Category: Slideshow

Torque Mentors

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One of the fundamental principles of FIRST Robotics is that the students benefit from their interaction with mentors from their industries. Texas Torque is fortunate to have mentors willing to give so much of their valuable time and expertise to support the team. They help guide the students through an educational journey and are critical to the team’s success. The members of Texas Torque greatly thank our mentors and appreciate all they have done for the team. Listed below are brief bios for all of the mentors who have helped to support Texas Torque throughout the years.

Mr. Rip is the lead mentor of Team 1477 and has mentored Texas Torque since 2008. He spent over 30 years in the classroom teaching physics and robotics to high school students. After his retirement, Mr. Rip was awarded the position of District Robotics Coach by our school district, and now fully commits his time cultivating the growth of robotics in our area. During his time on Texas Torque, he has molded the team into the powerhouse of engineering and learning that it is today. He also personally impacts every student he encounters. Because of his character and dedication, Mr. Rip challenges students to develop themselves as mature individuals and the leaders of tomorrow.

Ms. Bauer is a mentor for Texas Torque and helps students on the team with all levels of mathematics. Outside of the team, she is a Geometry and Dual-Credit PreCalculus teacher for the Academy of Science and Technology at College Park High School.

Mr. Dunbar is one of our essential parent mentors who has helped a lot of our students in the mechanical sub-team. With his knowledge of several machines and power tools used in the lab, he provides lots of tips and information to help members reach their highest potential. Mr. Dunbar joined this team in 2019.

Trey Wolf
Mr. Wolf is a CISD mentor for Texas Torque and helps the students with coding. Outside the team, he is a Computer Science teacher for the Academy of Science of Technology at College Park High School.

Jim Rapacki
Mr. Rapacki is a mentor

Darpan Musale
Ms. Musale is the Business mentor for Texas Torque since joining in the 2023-2024 season. In her experience with graphic design & marketing, she has helped students create a variety of digital content for Texas Torque.

Gabe Belforti
Mr. Belforti is a mentor

Johnson Division Winners at FIRST 2024 Worlds

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Excited after their win at the San Antonio district competition, FRC 1477 Texas Torque was beyond eager to compete at the World Championship. Torque blew expectations out of the water when it came to our performance at Worlds this year. There, the team cleared the competition and won the Johnson division out of 74 teams and advanced to Einstein’s. The last time they cleared their division and advanced at the FRC Championship was during the 2014 season.

Texas Torque has certainly made a comeback this year and we are very excited to see what they’re going to do next season. Now to prepare for the REMIX!

Wild Ride at FiT San Antonio District Event

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Hopes were high going into this past weekend but reality easily exceeded expectations. FRC 1477 Texas Torque went undefeated over the two days of competition, finishing with a record of 17 wins and 0 losses. The last time they went undefeated was at the 2013 Arkansas Regional where they had 18 wins.

The Winning Alliance of FRC Teams 5103, 1477, and 624

They finished as the number one seed at the end of the qualifying rounds after a hard fought match against Team 624 CRyptonite who they chose as the first pick during alliance selection. With the last pick, they invited Team 5103 The Jaegernauts from New Braunfels. The other alliances played hard fought matches against Alliance 1. In the finals, Alliance 1 played a best of three against Alliance 5 consisting of Team 2881 The Lady Cans, Team 5427 Steel Talons, and Team 7616 Cerberus. Both matches went to Alliance 1 after they edged out their opponents in the highest scoring matches of the event. Texas Torque also won the Innovation in Control Award.

1477 has earned enough District Points to advance to the FIRST in Texas District Championship at the George R Brown Convention Center on April 3 through 6. The event is open to the public.

The REMIX is Here!

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This Saturday the 23rd (3–7 PM) and Sunday (8:30 AM–4 PM) at College Park, the Remix will be a Robotics competition where robots will fiercely compete to balance and construct links consisting of cones and cubes. Spectators will also be able to participate in tours of the both lab and the pit area, so be sure to come and enjoy the spectacle regardless of what team you’re on.

The Return of The Remix

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After a two year hiatus, The Remix was hosted on Saturday, September 24, by FRC Teams 1477 Texas Torque and 7492 CavBots. Thirty-two teams from Texas and Louisiana replayed last season’s Rapid React with one notable difference; the top eight teams were not allowed to choose each other as alliance partners. This simple change makes it more difficult for a couple of good teams to team up and the alliances are more balanced.

The finalists in this year’s event were teams 118 Robonauts, 2848 Rangers, 7492 CavBots, and 7418 Channelview TechnoFalcons. The alliance struggled in the finals when 7492 had to replace a swerve module.

This year’s winners were the #1 Seeded Alliance of Teams 624 CRyptonite, 3847 Spectrum, 4587 Jersey Voltage, and 7691 TSA All-Stars.

The goal of The Remix is to provide teams with an opportunity to compete with their new drive teams. It also allows new team members to experience the excitement of a FRC event.

Several charities benefit from The Remix. The Montgomery County Women’s Center will be receiving a cash donation from the money left after expenses for the event are paid. Forty Lego sets were donated for Children in local hospitals along with a dozen bed sets for Angel Reach, a non-profit that supports former foster children.