Texas Torque at the Houston Robot Remix

At the first annual Houston Robot Remix, our team not only hosted the event, but also competed.  Seeding 3rd in the qualifying rounds, Texas Torque formed an alliance with teams 3847 and 3999 for the elimination bracket. In our first and second match we faced the 6th seed alliance and won to advance to the semifinals. However, in the third and fourth riveting matches we faced an unfortunate loss.  While we scored higher in basket points we did not score any bridge points, which proved to be the determining factor.  Team 4589 from Kingwood,TX used our secondary robot and was a finalist. They started a team this year and wanted to participate in the event though they lacked a robot of their own. We were happy to help a fellow team and look forward to hosting the competition next year.

1477, 3847, 3999 Alliance

Houston Robot Remix

Local FIRST Robotics Team 1477, Texas Torque will be hosting a competition, the Houston Robot Remix, at The Woodlands College Park High School on October 27. Approximately thirty Houston-area robotics teams will compete at the event, which will last from 7:00 AM until 5:00 PM and will be open to the public.

The Houston Robot Remix is funded by the FRC Lone Star Region, which represents robotics teams from the greater Houston area. The event is hosted by FRC Team 1477: Texas Torque. The public is welcome to attend the event, and spectators will have the opportunity to watch exciting matches between highly complex and specialized machines engineered by area high school students.

Check out the “Robot Remix”page for more information on the competition.

Texas Torque at Texas Robot Roundup

Texas Torque headed up to Austin, Texas, for the 2nd annual Texas Robot Roundup, aiming to defend their titles as Tournament and Skill Match champions. Seeding second following the qualifying matches, Texas Torque paired up with team 148 Robowranglers and team 2833 Roboscorpions. After fighting through the quarter-finals and the semi-finals, they lost to the 1st seed alliance of team 118 Robonauts, team 624 CRyptonite, and team 457 Grease Monkeys in the final rounds. Outside of the main competition, Texas Torque and CRyptonite teamed up for the Mentor Matches, where alliances are comprised of two teams and mentors are given complete control of the robots. Together with a mentor from team 231 High Voltage, they defeated all of their competitors and took home the title of Mentor Match champions. We look forward to next year’s competition!

Texas Torque at Ozark Mountain Brawl

Texas Torque recently journeyed deep into the Ozark Mountains to Springdale, Arkansas, to compete in the Ozark Mountain Brawl hosted by Team 16 and Team 3612. After seeding 1st in the qualifying matches, Torque partnered with Team 148 and Team 91, an additional robot brought by Team 16. Despite their best efforts to score while avoiding tough defense, they were knocked out of the competition by the 8th seed alliance, which went on to win the entire tournament.

Texas Torque also brought an additional robot, Team 1478. Dubbed Boxbot by the crowd, Team 1478 placed 13th in the qualifying matches before politely withdrawing from the competition for logistical reasons.

Overall, the competition was fun and energetic, and we look forward to competing again next year!

Texas Torque at 2012 FIRST Championship

Texas Torque traveled to St. Louis, Missouri, for the international FIRST Championship held from April 25-28. With over 400 FRC teams competing, the competition was divided up into four divisions – Newton, Curie, Galileo, and Archimedes – played on identical fields. Texas Torque was placed in the Curie division along with other powerhouse teams such as 624 CRyptonite, 987 High Rollers, 341 Miss Daisy, and 254 Cheesy Poofs. Seeding low in the qualifying matches due to mechanical failures, Texas Torque joined up with the 6th seed alliance captain 3528 Up Next! and 1741 Red Alert for the elimination matches. After losing their first quarterfinal match by two points, the alliance managed to pull out ahead in the next two matches, winning each with a narrow margin of one point. Despite putting up scores in the 80’s during the semifinals, the alliance lost its last two matches when faced with scores in the triple digits put up by the 987-led alliance that went on to win the Curie division and compete in the finals on Einstein.

Velociriptar

Velociriptar

In addition to competing, Texas Torque students participated in the FIRST Student Ambassador program. Marta Rippetoe, Teju Kishore, Amanda Lebsack, and Eric Menees volunteered their time to spread their knowledge and love of FIRST with VIPs and delegates from around the world. As the diplomats of FIRST, they gave guided tours of the pits and competition floor. They explained the various levels of competitions to executives from companies such as Boeing and MasterCard, giving them a personalized version of the FIRST experience and the opportunities it provides for students. Junior Eric Menees sums up his experience ambassadoring,”If I can impart even a fraction of the love I have for FIRST to someone unfamiliar with the program, I will have been successful. To paraphrase Dean Kamen, all it takes is that first spark and they’re hooked.”

Students from Texas Torque and CRyptonite lead a tour for Mastercard VIPs