Another event is on the horizon, and it is time for me to make predictions!
Bot Blast 2014 is an annual event held in Bloomsburg, PA. It features antweight, beetleweight, and mantisweight robots (and formerly fairyweights). I will be competing with two ants this time, Slim Pickens, and my new ant, Viciously Circular (formerly called "Endgame").
Let's get Started!
Here's how the ants look:
Edit: as of July 4th, Cannon will not be competing
Probably my biggest concerns include Gyroscopic, an eggbeater that beat me at FI 2012, Cannon,
another beater that got second at Motorama 2013, FireArrow, a very good wedge that got 3rd last year, and Antelope (it's being redesigned to be 4wd instead of just 2wd), another good wedge. Another bot, Velociraptor, could possibly be a threat. It's done very well in the past, but my wedge should hold up against the sawblade. If we do fight, I do hope to see a lot of sparks!
Now we're onto the beetles!
Probably the one to watch out for is Raptor 2.2, the two-time Robogames champion. It's fast, very well driven, and can take a beating but keep on going. From the same team is Allosaurus, a drum bot which is one of the few bots that has ever beaten Raptor 2.2. Ripto 3.0 is a returning champion(?) which has done really well and can hit hard. Reigning champions Mondo Bizarro return as well. It's a good bot, but I think it might get outclassed by some of the other bots. One Fierce Javelin is competing, and seemed promising when it got a few wins at the 2014 USATL STEM Tech Olympiad, and is pretty fast, too.
Finally, the mantisweights.
Reigning champion Threecoil returns to fight against some more dangerous bots. It's got a flywheel powered flipper that gave it two first place finishes in a row. Returning after a years' hiatus, One Fierce Bush Wacker is a nasty spinner that won a few years ago. It's another hard hitter. Chibi Blackout is a nasty looking drumbot that resembles that of a 15lber. CATAPULT is a shell spinner that has been under construction for a while. If it doesn't have any technical problems, it could do a lot of damage.
That's it for today!
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Motorama 2014: Days 2 and 3
I'm back!
Day 1:
So my adventures in Motorama scaled up by three pounds. Thunder Child had some ESC issues, but they ended up getting fixed thanks to the folks from the Grande Tambor team.
Battle 1: Thunder Child vs Trilobite
Your standard (boring) wedge match. I was facing the Kitbots man himself, Peter Smith, with the exact same bot. My electronics were screwed up for some reason, so I ended up stopping and slowing down at some points. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but my guess would be that it had something to do with the BEC. Trilobite won on a judges' decision.
Day 2:
Battle 2: Thunder Child vs Mulcher
Mulcher is another bot from the team that brought Magzant, Kate the Rat, and Heartbreaker. It's a horizontal spinner that's shaped like the starship Enterprise. Pete Smith gave me an attachment to keep the spinner at bay. I went into this match really worried that my bot would get torn apart. However, I remembered the words of Matt Maxham, the driver of Sewer Snake, "Break his fist with my face". Mulcher spun up early before the green light, but I started driving early so the judge's ignored it. He got some good hits on me, and I kept ramming him. I ended up losing a wheel and was basically limping like every Sewer Snake v Last Rites match. After another hit, the belts for his drive motors came out and he stopped moving. He ended up tapping out.
Battle 3: Thunder Child vs Maniac Kathy
Maniac Cathy is another Kitbot, which is an undercutter with a self righting hoop. I wasn't sure what I'd do to KO him, so I figured it would be best to just push him around for the full 3 minutes. We traded blows, and then he flipped me over. Two of my drive motors stopped working, and I ended up high centered. It was a tap out for me.
So I was done for the day when it came to competing. That was okay, because there were lots of awesome fights to watch, and more places to explore in the event.
At the end of the event, I got a trophy, prizes, and a picture with Ms. Motorama.
I also learned a few things:
-Make sure to check your connections with a 9 volt before using a lipo battery.
-Bring a lot more spare motors, since the spinners will kill them.
- Make more attachments for different bots.
Day 1:
So my adventures in Motorama scaled up by three pounds. Thunder Child had some ESC issues, but they ended up getting fixed thanks to the folks from the Grande Tambor team.
It works!
Battle 1: Thunder Child vs Trilobite
Your standard (boring) wedge match. I was facing the Kitbots man himself, Peter Smith, with the exact same bot. My electronics were screwed up for some reason, so I ended up stopping and slowing down at some points. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but my guess would be that it had something to do with the BEC. Trilobite won on a judges' decision.
Day 2:
Battle 2: Thunder Child vs Mulcher
Mulcher is another bot from the team that brought Magzant, Kate the Rat, and Heartbreaker. It's a horizontal spinner that's shaped like the starship Enterprise. Pete Smith gave me an attachment to keep the spinner at bay. I went into this match really worried that my bot would get torn apart. However, I remembered the words of Matt Maxham, the driver of Sewer Snake, "Break his fist with my face". Mulcher spun up early before the green light, but I started driving early so the judge's ignored it. He got some good hits on me, and I kept ramming him. I ended up losing a wheel and was basically limping like every Sewer Snake v Last Rites match. After another hit, the belts for his drive motors came out and he stopped moving. He ended up tapping out.
Thunder Child after facing Mulcher
Battle 3: Thunder Child vs Maniac Kathy
Maniac Cathy is another Kitbot, which is an undercutter with a self righting hoop. I wasn't sure what I'd do to KO him, so I figured it would be best to just push him around for the full 3 minutes. We traded blows, and then he flipped me over. Two of my drive motors stopped working, and I ended up high centered. It was a tap out for me.
So I was done for the day when it came to competing. That was okay, because there were lots of awesome fights to watch, and more places to explore in the event.
At the end of the event, I got a trophy, prizes, and a picture with Ms. Motorama.
(Insert joke about how this is the closest I will be to a girl here)
I also learned a few things:
-Make sure to check your connections with a 9 volt before using a lipo battery.
-Bring a lot more spare motors, since the spinners will kill them.
- Make more attachments for different bots.
Friday, April 25, 2014
Motorama 2014: Day 1
My dad and I went to Motorma 2014 last February, and this is our story
Day 1:
I was planning on fighting with two bots: the new and improved Slim Pickens, and 4 Minute Warning, which I bought off ebay from Team Asian Invasion. The latter of the two was unable to compete due to the lack of a lipo battery. No problem, I'd get it ready for Bot Blast. Slim Pickens had burned out its escs a week before the event, and a team graciously gave us some replacements. See, we aren't all bitter rivals!
I got to see many of my friends that day, and meet some new friends. One guy I got to talk to was Ray Billings. You might not know who that guy is, but to me, he's a celebrity. He built Last Rites, one of the most destructive spinners of all time.
Battle 1: Slim Pickens v No Such Robot
This was the guy who beat me in the FI 2014 rumble. Its builder had given it a bigger blade, and added a self righting mechanism. I simply pushed it around and won the judges' decision, while NSR only got a few shots in at my backside.
After that mach, my lipo burned out. I have no idea why. Luckily, some other builder gave me another lipo to use for the remainer of the event.
Battle 2: Slim Pickens v Algos
Algos was built by one of my best friends, Mike Jefferies of Near Chaos Robotics. He's given me lots of advice over two years, so now it was mentor v student! One shot, and I'm stuck on my horns.
Battle 3: Slim Pickens v Klazo
Klazo was the prototype Kitbots Saifu kit, which was also a part of Near Chaos Robotics (the driver was going to marry the driver of Algos). I honestly was surprised that I was drawn up against this bot. In its previous fight, it faced Vile Ant, a terrifying bar spinner, and somehow won. I felt a bit less nervous going into this match, as Klazo was still a threat, but less than the Moto 2012 antweight champion. She got some good shots on me, but I stayed strong and pushed her around and even had her on her dancing on her front for a moment. The judges gave me the nod to go through!
Battle 4: Slim Pickens v Magzant
I've faced nearly all of this team's bots before, and I've beaten all of them. Magzant is unique because it uses brushless motors for its drive (brushless motors are used for spinning weapons). I scooped the other wedge up and got a good hold of it with my little horns. Whilst carrying the other bot, I shoved it into each wall and stuck her in the small space between the wall and floor.
Battle 5: Slim Pickens v Algos (again)
At this point in time, I knew that no matter what, I'd be in the top 3, get a trophy, and go down in Motorama history (okay, the final part might not really happen). This time I removed the horns, so I wouldn't get stuck on my back. Algos knocked me over a few times, and I got under him and pushed him around. Then he got a good shot and tore my wedge off, exposing my battery. I tapped out after that hit.
I got third in the antweights. Yay!
Luckily, the wedge damage wasn't that bad. I just had to reattach it with two screws. I lost both of my drive motors, and was done for the day.
The best match of the day IMO was the antweight rumble. Take a look!
The bots in the rumble are: PMD (Penis Measuring Device), Klazo, Magzant, Kate the Rat, Poco Tambor, No Such Robot, and Vile Ant
Next post: Days 2 and 3!
Day 1:
I was planning on fighting with two bots: the new and improved Slim Pickens, and 4 Minute Warning, which I bought off ebay from Team Asian Invasion. The latter of the two was unable to compete due to the lack of a lipo battery. No problem, I'd get it ready for Bot Blast. Slim Pickens had burned out its escs a week before the event, and a team graciously gave us some replacements. See, we aren't all bitter rivals!
I got to see many of my friends that day, and meet some new friends. One guy I got to talk to was Ray Billings. You might not know who that guy is, but to me, he's a celebrity. He built Last Rites, one of the most destructive spinners of all time.
Battle 1: Slim Pickens v No Such Robot
This was the guy who beat me in the FI 2014 rumble. Its builder had given it a bigger blade, and added a self righting mechanism. I simply pushed it around and won the judges' decision, while NSR only got a few shots in at my backside.
After that mach, my lipo burned out. I have no idea why. Luckily, some other builder gave me another lipo to use for the remainer of the event.
Battle 2: Slim Pickens v Algos
Algos was built by one of my best friends, Mike Jefferies of Near Chaos Robotics. He's given me lots of advice over two years, so now it was mentor v student! One shot, and I'm stuck on my horns.
Battle 3: Slim Pickens v Klazo
Klazo was the prototype Kitbots Saifu kit, which was also a part of Near Chaos Robotics (the driver was going to marry the driver of Algos). I honestly was surprised that I was drawn up against this bot. In its previous fight, it faced Vile Ant, a terrifying bar spinner, and somehow won. I felt a bit less nervous going into this match, as Klazo was still a threat, but less than the Moto 2012 antweight champion. She got some good shots on me, but I stayed strong and pushed her around and even had her on her dancing on her front for a moment. The judges gave me the nod to go through!
Battle 4: Slim Pickens v Magzant
I've faced nearly all of this team's bots before, and I've beaten all of them. Magzant is unique because it uses brushless motors for its drive (brushless motors are used for spinning weapons). I scooped the other wedge up and got a good hold of it with my little horns. Whilst carrying the other bot, I shoved it into each wall and stuck her in the small space between the wall and floor.
Battle 5: Slim Pickens v Algos (again)
At this point in time, I knew that no matter what, I'd be in the top 3, get a trophy, and go down in Motorama history (okay, the final part might not really happen). This time I removed the horns, so I wouldn't get stuck on my back. Algos knocked me over a few times, and I got under him and pushed him around. Then he got a good shot and tore my wedge off, exposing my battery. I tapped out after that hit.
I got third in the antweights. Yay!
Luckily, the wedge damage wasn't that bad. I just had to reattach it with two screws. I lost both of my drive motors, and was done for the day.
The best match of the day IMO was the antweight rumble. Take a look!
The bots in the rumble are: PMD (Penis Measuring Device), Klazo, Magzant, Kate the Rat, Poco Tambor, No Such Robot, and Vile Ant
Next post: Days 2 and 3!
A Very Very Belated Franklin 2013 Report
I AM BACK
So I went to Franklin 2013, and this is my story.
I got there around 7:30 and bring all of my crap in. The arena is where it has been for the past couple of years, in an area that is rarely used outside of robot stuff. The table I picked was near the boundary line where non-competitors could go, and sandwiched between Hugh Savoldelli and his dad, and Zac O'Donell's two bots. Team Cooking with Gas took up the other side of my table, and I made sure to give him as much room as possible, since he had two 30lbers.
Battle 1: Slim Pickens v Hangar 11
So it's me vs Hugh. I get a couple of good rams at him (Also, you can see how zippy my robot is. It's running 22.2:1 Silver Sparks), but he flips me onto the wall and I can't get off. Oh well.
Battle 2: Thunder Child v Mr, Croup
I got an unlucky draw against this vertical spinner. I got hit several times until I was on my back. Luckily, it actually worked!
Battle 3: Slim Pickens v Ubersaw
Ubersaw's blade wasn't working, so the match was much easier for me. I simply pushed him around like it was nobody's business. Unfortunately, I got stuck underneath the gutter (seriously, why add that?), but the other robot got stuck as well. We got unstuck, and then I won on a judges' decision.
Battle 4: Thunder Child v Void
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo9Q1Xxeviw
Void never got its weapon to work. Thunder Child on the other hand, wasn't fully charged, so I was basically pushing him around really slowly. I ended up winning on a judges' decison.
Battle 5: Thunder Child v Play n' Crazy
Thunder child blew 2 of its motors, and was reduced to limping. PnC dealt some good blows against me, and I had to tap out.
Battle 6: Slim Pickens v Dust Pandemonium
DP was a wide bot with a little blender blade behind a "dust pan". I pushed him around for a bit, and then he flipped me over after my flappy wedge flapped backwards. He got the judges' win.
Battle 7: Antweight rumble
It was me vs Ubersaw, No Such Robot (a wedge with a saw), and See You Next Wednesday (a 1lb Sherderator). I started off pushing the other bots around, but NSR got from behind and cut out the back side of my bot. The lipo came out and was dragged behind Slim Pickens. I ended up tripping over it and it disconnected. I believe No Such Robot won the rumble.
Despite both bots going 1-2, I had a great time! Many of my friends were there, and I saw some awesome fights! Next time, I'll talk about Motorama '14!
So I went to Franklin 2013, and this is my story.
I got there around 7:30 and bring all of my crap in. The arena is where it has been for the past couple of years, in an area that is rarely used outside of robot stuff. The table I picked was near the boundary line where non-competitors could go, and sandwiched between Hugh Savoldelli and his dad, and Zac O'Donell's two bots. Team Cooking with Gas took up the other side of my table, and I made sure to give him as much room as possible, since he had two 30lbers.
Battle 1: Slim Pickens v Hangar 11
So it's me vs Hugh. I get a couple of good rams at him (Also, you can see how zippy my robot is. It's running 22.2:1 Silver Sparks), but he flips me onto the wall and I can't get off. Oh well.
Battle 2: Thunder Child v Mr, Croup
I got an unlucky draw against this vertical spinner. I got hit several times until I was on my back. Luckily, it actually worked!
Battle 3: Slim Pickens v Ubersaw
Ubersaw's blade wasn't working, so the match was much easier for me. I simply pushed him around like it was nobody's business. Unfortunately, I got stuck underneath the gutter (seriously, why add that?), but the other robot got stuck as well. We got unstuck, and then I won on a judges' decision.
Battle 4: Thunder Child v Void
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo9Q1Xxeviw
Void never got its weapon to work. Thunder Child on the other hand, wasn't fully charged, so I was basically pushing him around really slowly. I ended up winning on a judges' decison.
Battle 5: Thunder Child v Play n' Crazy
Thunder child blew 2 of its motors, and was reduced to limping. PnC dealt some good blows against me, and I had to tap out.
Battle 6: Slim Pickens v Dust Pandemonium
DP was a wide bot with a little blender blade behind a "dust pan". I pushed him around for a bit, and then he flipped me over after my flappy wedge flapped backwards. He got the judges' win.
Battle 7: Antweight rumble
It was me vs Ubersaw, No Such Robot (a wedge with a saw), and See You Next Wednesday (a 1lb Sherderator). I started off pushing the other bots around, but NSR got from behind and cut out the back side of my bot. The lipo came out and was dragged behind Slim Pickens. I ended up tripping over it and it disconnected. I believe No Such Robot won the rumble.
Despite both bots going 1-2, I had a great time! Many of my friends were there, and I saw some awesome fights! Next time, I'll talk about Motorama '14!
Friday, August 30, 2013
Franklin 2013 Predictions
So it's my second NERC Franklin Institute event coming up, and I thought I'd dedicate this blog post to talking about who I think will win this year, and who looks the most deadly. If you robot isn't here, don't feel bad. Let's start with the antweights.
For me, I think Poco Tambor is one to watch out for. It's been competing for years and has done well before. Gyroscopic is a destructive eggbeater that beat me last year to get first. I hope to get Sean back this time! I've seen Capricant in videos from Gulf Coast Robot Sports, and it looks impressive. It can push other robots around with its little wedgelets and is very zippy (I think it's using Kitbots' 1000 rpm motors). My friend Brandon (aka Headbanger142 on youtube) told me about Antelope. it's really difficult to get underneath, but I think I can do it. It looks durable, too. All in all, I feel more confident with my new wedge that is stronger than before.
Now the beetles! Mondo Bizarro is definitely the one to watch. They've been undefeated in this form (originally it was a UK beetle with a plastic drum, but now it's a Weta kit). The durable and powerful Grande Tambor is also gonna be there. They were runner ups two years ago, and just came off of a third place finish at Motorama 2013. The same team that made Capricant are also competing with Ramvac, a wedge that's improved over years, and is quite fast. We've also got the Biohazard toy Bazinga that got first last year. I think it's the last Bohazard toy still competing, after D12 retired after last year's Franklin. It's got a good amount pushing power, but it's made of plastic! Brandon also told me Mr. Croup is a good spinner. I believe it's sent several bots to the ceiling. My robot Thunder Child will be competing, and I do think I'll be able to stand up to these spinners. The Trilobite kits are very durable, and my scoop can get underneath most anything.
In the hobbyweights, the only bot I've ever seen before is Fiasco. It got second last year, and should do well. As far as the others, I don't have an opinion on them.
Upheaval has been winning for years in the sportsman class, so there is probably no doubt it'll win. I would say the veteran Tyrant, but I don't think Al is going to be there this year (Confirmed: he will not be there). Gigarange is a four bar lifter which I've seen at Motorama before. Phoenix is another flipper to watch out for. I'd love to see a flipper frenzy with it against Upheaval. Jack Reacher is a cleverly designed flywheel powered flipper. Its builder, Zac, made a scaled up version of his smaller robot Threecoil. I want to see more of Jack Reacher, since it's cool to see new designs in the Sportsman class.
Finally, we come down to the Featherweight class. Like a reincarnation of lightweight Ziggo, Tetanus has splattered many a good robot around the box. I give it my vote. We've also got Whammo, a wedge that actually fought Tetanus two years ago. It survived for the judges' decision, since Tetanus wasn't as destructive as it is now.
So what are your predictions? Tell me!
Update: Antelope, Ramvac, and Capricant have pulled out of the competition.
For me, I think Poco Tambor is one to watch out for. It's been competing for years and has done well before. Gyroscopic is a destructive eggbeater that beat me last year to get first. I hope to get Sean back this time! I've seen Capricant in videos from Gulf Coast Robot Sports, and it looks impressive. It can push other robots around with its little wedgelets and is very zippy (I think it's using Kitbots' 1000 rpm motors). My friend Brandon (aka Headbanger142 on youtube) told me about Antelope. it's really difficult to get underneath, but I think I can do it. It looks durable, too. All in all, I feel more confident with my new wedge that is stronger than before.
Now the beetles! Mondo Bizarro is definitely the one to watch. They've been undefeated in this form (originally it was a UK beetle with a plastic drum, but now it's a Weta kit). The durable and powerful Grande Tambor is also gonna be there. They were runner ups two years ago, and just came off of a third place finish at Motorama 2013. The same team that made Capricant are also competing with Ramvac, a wedge that's improved over years, and is quite fast. We've also got the Biohazard toy Bazinga that got first last year. I think it's the last Bohazard toy still competing, after D12 retired after last year's Franklin. It's got a good amount pushing power, but it's made of plastic! Brandon also told me Mr. Croup is a good spinner. I believe it's sent several bots to the ceiling. My robot Thunder Child will be competing, and I do think I'll be able to stand up to these spinners. The Trilobite kits are very durable, and my scoop can get underneath most anything.
In the hobbyweights, the only bot I've ever seen before is Fiasco. It got second last year, and should do well. As far as the others, I don't have an opinion on them.
Upheaval has been winning for years in the sportsman class, so there is probably no doubt it'll win. I would say the veteran Tyrant, but I don't think Al is going to be there this year (Confirmed: he will not be there). Gigarange is a four bar lifter which I've seen at Motorama before. Phoenix is another flipper to watch out for. I'd love to see a flipper frenzy with it against Upheaval. Jack Reacher is a cleverly designed flywheel powered flipper. Its builder, Zac, made a scaled up version of his smaller robot Threecoil. I want to see more of Jack Reacher, since it's cool to see new designs in the Sportsman class.
Finally, we come down to the Featherweight class. Like a reincarnation of lightweight Ziggo, Tetanus has splattered many a good robot around the box. I give it my vote. We've also got Whammo, a wedge that actually fought Tetanus two years ago. It survived for the judges' decision, since Tetanus wasn't as destructive as it is now.
So what are your predictions? Tell me!
Update: Antelope, Ramvac, and Capricant have pulled out of the competition.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
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