Thursday, September 30, 2021

Coming to a Qualifier near you...Duckies!

 


We hope you're all as excited as we are about the FREIGHT FRENZY season! Bring on the duckies! You can find all the Freight Frenzy season information here:
Arizona Qualifiers - Schedule and Registration! 
Registration for qualifiers will open Friday October 1 at 8:00 AM and will close on November 3 at noon! Teams will be able to register for 2-3 events and an alternate all on the same form. Cost for the season is $225 for two qualifiers and $300 for three. Starting the week of October 11, teams will receive a confirmation email with an invoice for the season. 
  • Nov. 20, 2021: Cactus Wren Qualifier 
    • Gilbert Christian High School (Gilbert)
  • Dec. 4, 2021: High Country Qualifier
    • Coconino High School (Flagstaff - TENTATIVE)
  • Dec. 11, 2021: Saguaro Blossom Qualifier
    • Cactus High School (Glendale)
  • Dec. 18, 2021: Palo Verde Qualifier
    • San Miguel High School (Tucson)
  • Jan. 22, 2022: Copper Qualifier
    • American Leadership Academy (Queen Creek)
  • Jan. 29, 2022: Turquoise Qualifier
    • Valley Christian High School (Chandler)
  • Jan. 29, 2022: Petrified Wood Qualifier
    • Brophy College Prep (Phoenix)
  • Feb. 5, 2022: Desert Vista Qualifier
    • Canyon View Qualifier (Waddell)
  • Feb. 19, 2022: Arizona Championship 
    • Northern Arizona University (Flagstaff)
The High Country Qualifier is listed as tentative for now as we are waiting to see if there is a need and an interest in this event. If we have enough teams sign up for it, we will add it as an official event to the season. 

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion in FIRST
"Our Role in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion FIRST® is a robotics community that prepares young people for the future. A vital part of our strategic plan is to provide opportunities for all youth to engage in our programs. We understand the broader societal context of economic, educational, and social factors historically leading to disproportionate access and outcomes. Leveraging cross-sector and industry collaboration, our organization is committed to implementing efforts to ensure equity, diversity, and inclusion in order to remove barriers and increase access to FIRST programs so that all youth can participate."


Driver Station Workaround
Version 7.0 of the Driver Station exposes a bug in Android 6.0 on Moto G series phones. This bug is fixed in Android 6.0.1; however, the last update for some Moto G series phones in some regions was Android 6.0. The bug manifests itself as a crash when attempting to switch to Control Hub pairing. The FIRST® Tech Challenge Technology Team has developed a workaround, labeled v7.0.1, for this problem specifically for this phone.
 

Teams using Moto G series phones as Driver Stations, running Android 6.0 with no option to upgrade to Android 6.0.1, should use FtcDriverStation-7.0.1-release.apk available through the REV Hardware Client or directly from the v7.0 release page on GitHub. 

Inspire the Future: FIRST Educators Recognition Program 
The FIRST community is full of dedicated and inspirational teachers. Here at FIRST, recognition is not only part of our name but core to our ethos, and that’s why we are proud to launch the Inspire the Future: FIRST Educators Recognition Program! 
 
We want to celebrate the FIRST educators who impact and inspire their learning communities. We truly could not further the mission of FIRST without them.Learn more about the Inspire the Future: FIRST Educators Recognition Program and how YOU can nominate an educator who has made an impact in your community! 

Thursday, September 16, 2021

Welcome to Freight Frenzy!

Welcome to the 2021/2022 FIRST Tech Challenge Season! 

We're so excited to welcome everyone back! Find out everything you need to know about Kickoff here! 

Date: Saturday, September 18, 2021
Location: Brophy College Prep (4701 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85012)


7:30 AM: Doors Open
8:00 AM: Finals matches from Reunion Tour (recorded)
8:30 AM: Welcome and Arizona season information
9:00 AM: Game Reveal! 
9:40 AM: Game deep dive with Rich and Robert
10:20 AM: Workshops
11:30 AM: Lunch break
12:20 PM: Workshops resume
2:30 PM: Kickoff ends

IMPORTANT: COVID MITIGATION REQUIREMENTS
  • Brophy requires masks for everyone while indoors.
  • Food must be eaten outside.
  • All students, coaches, and mentors need to sign a current 2021 FIRST Consent and Release form. (Online on FIRST Dashboard or on paper - ENGLISH - SPANISH)
  • Please bring your roster and any paper consent forms to Kickoff. 
  • Do not allow any student, mentor, or spectator to attend that is feeling ill or showing any COVID symptoms. Temperatures will be scanned as you enter the venue.
  • Continue to meet safely, complying with mitigation strategies put in place by your schools.
  • High touch areas will be sanitized frequently.
  • Each workshop will be offered twice. If a classroom is full, please find another workshop and attend during the 2nd session. 
KICKOFF WORKSHOP SCHEDULE & LINKS
LIVE STREAM FOR ARIZONA KICKOFF!


Thank you REV & PITSCO for providing us with goodies to hand out at Kickoff! Check out their videos below! 

Thursday, September 9, 2021

Kickoff is Coming!

 

WELCOME BACK TEAMS!!!

We're SO excited to Kickoff the 2021-2022 "Freight Frenzy" season with you! We hope you will join us in-person or via live-stream at our Arizona Kickoff. 

Date:         Saturday, September 18, 2021
Location:    Brophy College Preparatory (4701 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85012)

Tentative Schedule: 
7:30 AM    Doors Open
8:00 AM    Finals of Ultimate Reunion Tour (recording from previous week)
8:30 AM    Welcome and AZ Season Information
9:00 AM    Freight Frenzy Game Reveal!!!
9:40 AM    Game discussion with Head Refs Rich & Robert; Field measuring
10:30 AM   Workshops begin
11:30 AM   Lunch Break
12:15 PM   Workshops resume
2:30 PM     End of Workshops (tentative; exact workshop schedule will be sent early next week)

If you haven't already, please TELL US YOUR KICKOFF PLANS HERE

ROOKIE GRANTS NOW AVAILABLE 
Grants to start new FIRST Tech Challenge teams are now available. Grants are $275 for team registration and $225 toward the robot kit. Help spread the word and grow new FTC Teams! 


KICKOFF SWEEPSTAKES

Register your team with FIRST by September 15 for a chance to win a FREIGHT FRENZY field! CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE!


WATCH THE ULTIMATE REUNION TOUR HERE: