The Sea is Calling...Time to DIVE DEEP!

ARE YOU READY TO TAKE THE DIVE?!?

Qualifying tournaments start next week! 

• Arizona Championship Advancement
• February 21 & 22 at Embry Riddle in Prescott
• Approximately 20% of competing Arizona teams will advance from each qualifying tournament. 
• You will receive an email from Christine with your invitation by Sunday afternoon if your team advances. Please respond by Tuesday at 5 pm to accept your spot. 
•  Four Corners "RezBotics" Championship Advancement
• February 7 & 8 at Dine' College in Tsalie
• RezBotics teams need to compete in at least one official qualifying tournament to be eligible to play at the Four Corners Championship. 
• You will receive an email from Christine with your invitation by Sunday afternoon when your team advances. Please respond by Tuesday at 5 pm to accept your spot. 
• Competition Resources
• Be sure to read the competition manual...then read it again!
• Robot Building Resources
• Programming Resources
• Team Management Resources
• Inspection Checklist - go through this with your team to be sure your robot will pass!
• Volunteer Resources
• See the previous Blog posts with other advice on preparing your team for competition.
• Example Schedule
• Friday 5 to 8 pm: Pits open and inspections
• Saturday 7 am: Pits open
• 8 am: Coach/driver meetings
• 8:30 am: Judging interviews
• 10:00 am: Opening ceremony & matches start
• 2:00 pm: Alliance selections
• 2:30 pm: Playoff matches & awards
• 5:00 pm: Event ends
• Reminders
• Payment for qualifying tournaments is due NEXT FRIDAY NOVEMBER 15!
• All students must be registered and have a signed consent form with FIRST through the youth registration system. Contact Susan with questions. 
• Your team MUST be paid with FIRST and have two adult coaches through Youth Protection screening by the time you pay your first tournament or by November 30 at the latest. We can't add you to the scoring system without this!
• It can take a couple of days for payments to sync with the scoring system - don't wait until the day before your event to complete your payments. 
• Check your team name on your dashboard and make sure it's what you want to be at the tournament - we can't make changes once the event begins. 
• Packing List
• GRACIOUS PROFESSIONALISM...ALWAYS and EVERYWHERE
• SAFETY GLASSES for your whole team
• Engineering Portfolio - loaded to the scoring system by 11:59 PM the night before your tournament
• Robot batteries and chargers
• Programming computer and charger
• Pit displays - check with your tournament director for size constraints
• Robot and controllers
• Extension cord and power strip
• Cart or box for robot
• Team swag & spirit!
• Scouting materials and plan
• Snacks and a plan for lunch
• Accommodation needs for any mentors or students - see Susan for assistance with any special needs. 

Even if your robot is a still a box of parts, your team can still compete! Bring what you have to the event - every team and volunteer will be there to help you succeed! "We're not ready" is not an acceptable reason to no-show for your tournament, and it teaches your students to give up instead of to persevere! 

Ask any veteran coach - you are NEVER ready but tournaments are about far more than winning, they are about growth and celebration. Come join us and see how much your team will learn in a single day!

Pre-season Advice from the Head Referees, Example Tournament Schedule

PRE-SEASON ADVICE FROM YOUR HEAD REFEREES:

Hi Awesome FTC Teams,

As we head into the final weeks before qualifier tournaments start up, we want to make a gentle but firm reminder to really pay attention to the rules regarding the new Team Signs for this season!  Please re-visit section 12.4 of the Competition Manual which details the Signs.  Specific areas of attention are:

• Make sure you have both Alliance Colors – and 2 Signs per Alliance color for a total of 4 Team Signs (2 Red and 2 Blue)
• Please make sure the Team Numbers are appropriate Size and Contrast so that we Referees know who you are!!!!
• Remember that Team Signs may not have backlighting to indicate the Alliance (R402.F)
• Please make sure the signs are ROBUST and can handle the gameplay… they need to be sturdy and secure when placed on the robot.  See rule G415 – A bad Team Sign design that makes the robot not easily identifiable may escalate to a YELLOW CARD situation!!!

And now for the firm aspect of the note…  Remember, you are responsible for the team signs and accountable at inspection.  If you do not have appropriate team signs, do not plan on the inspection teams having make-shift signs that you can use.  A few years ago, when we changed from Alliance Flags to the Alliance Markers, we did offer some last minute handouts to ensure teams could play.  Because of the new rules, we will not have the ability to readily produce Team Signs at the tournaments, so please come prepared.  A final reminder, if your robot cannot pass inspection your team will not get to participate in the match…  see G207 and G303 (RED CARD Potential).   We really hope we don’t need to take any drastic measures, because everyone is fully ready and compliant for the upcoming season!!!!

 

One other note… remember that in addition to the FTC Q&A (https://ftc-qa.firstinspires.org/qa/answered), make sure you are checking the Team Updates (https://www.firstinspires.org/resource-library/ftc/game-and-season-info).  As of Oct 29, we are on Team Update #4.  All updates are also reflected in the online Competition Manual.

 

We are looking forward to seeing you all in action soon and hope to see some awesome and creative robots out there!

Be Safe and Enjoy,

Your AZ FTC Head Ref Crew  -  Rich, Robert and Wade

EXAMPLE TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Times are subject to change depending on the number of teams competing and the flow of match play. Plan your travel accordingly, and please be flexible and patient with our event volunteers. We reserve the right to change this schedule as needed to accommodate anomalies that arise. 

Friday, 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm        

Venue opens to teams for early check in, inspection, pit set up and practice. We encourage as many teams as possible to take advantage of this opportunity. Getting all teams inspected in a timely manner will ensure that the event runs on time. New this season! Teams must be fully through inspection in order to use the practice fields!

Saturday

7:00 am              Pits open, Team registration opens, Inspection continues

                          Practice Fields open to fully inspected teams

8:00 am              Student Drivers meeting on the field

                          Adult Coaches meeting in the pit with the Tournament Director

8:30 am              Judging sessions begin

10:00 am            Opening Ceremonies

10:15 am            Qualification matches

12:30 pm            Lunch

1:00 pm              Qualification matches resume

2:30 pm              Alliance Selections

3:00 pm              Elimination matches

4:00 pm              Award ceremony

5:00 pm              Event ends

ALL TEAMS - Be sure to READ THE COMPETITION MANUAL...then read it again

As we stated at Kickoff, there are a number of program changes this year that all teams, new and veteran, need to be aware of going into the competition. These include (but are not limited to!): 

• Alliance selection
• Number of playoff alliances now depends on the number of competing teams.
• All alliances will consist of two teams.
• Playoff structure
• Double elimination bracket instead of "best two of three" semifinals and finals.
• Bracket structure depends on the number of alliances in the playoffs.
• Advancement order
• Awards
• The number of awards given now depends on the number of teams competing.
• Award criteria has changed - some awards no longer require an engineering portfolio.
• Team signs (see above!)

Don't forget:

• Your team must have your season registration paid with FIRST AND have two coaches cleared through the youth protection screening by NOVEMBER 30 or by your 1st tournament, which ever comes first.
• The scoring system actually will not allow us to add your team unless this criteria is met! 
• Your team name will be displayed at the competition during matches and awards as it's listed on your FIRST Dashboard. Make sure that you update it if there have been any changes prior to your event. We can't make changes once the event is in progress. 
• Questions? Contact Patti or Susan.