Today is competition day at the University of Maryland.
After we set up our table in the pit area, we scouted other teams. The idea is to connect with people and learn other design concepts. Teams came to our table to scout too. There was a team very impressed with our claw and asked to take a picture. They have struggled this year to grab it. Our simple design is attractive.
Our run was at 1 pm. Drivers Nathan and Peter plus coach Amanda and documentor Jess were on the pool deck. The rest of our team was in the stands. Peter ran the Obstacle Course in 48.78 seconds. Nathan ran the Mission Course in 3 minutes 44 seconds with 90 points. The drivers were given 20 minutes to complete two Obstacle Course runs (keeping their best time) and one Mission Course run. The video and technical documents were done and submitted several weeks ago.
We signed up for a tour of the University of Maryland Robotics Building. University students showed us their very large pool they use for space training and ROV use. We also got to see some 3D printed projects: a walking crab that they assembled and programmed and a turtle that swims by turning gears. This tour was given to students by students and they had lots of neat projects they showed the kids.
The awards happened at 7 pm. The first award we got was the video award-1st place. We were excited! Then the writing award. Again they called team Mecha Mules #909. The level of excitement went up a notch. Our drive times on both tasks took 5th place, so no awards here. However, the way this competition is scored, there are many factors that determine your final score. All these events named above total your points, giving your overall standing. We came out the #1 overall winner in the competition! We are #1 in the world for SeaPerch! To say the least, there were lots of emotions flowing through this winning team! There were 14 different countries competing, over 800 kids participating, and 200 plus mentors/coaches.
We are excited! We are humbled and the achievement is still sinking in. The hard work and dedication this team has put in have them bringing home three trophies, a banner, and quite a title: World Champions!
Wahkiakum Mecha Mules
Pictures attached:
World Champions – organizer
Obstacle Course Run – Jess Vik
Crab project from the tour – Jess Vik
Wahkiakum and Naselle teams – Naselle teacher
