VRC Announcements - September 2011
Get Geared Up for the 2011/2012 VRC Season
Whether the school year is just getting started or things are well underway in your area, the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation (RECF) has some great news to share about the 2011/2012 VEX Robotics Competition season. Team registration is well ahead of last year’s pace at this time, with over 1,300 already registered teams and counting. Second, RECF and Event Partners around the globe are working hard to ensure that there are ample opportunities for teams to compete with this year’s game, VEX Gateway. There are already over 200 tournaments posted on RobotEvents.com and teams should check the site often for additional competition opportunities.
We Heard You & Took Action!
During last year’s competition season, we received a lot of good feedback and have been working all summer to improve the VRC experience based on what you told us. For example, competitors and team mentors should be excited to hear that hotel accommodations for this year’s Disney All-Star Challenge, to be held in Orlando, FL, will be billed by actual room nights and not through a per guest structure as before. This change will result in substantial savings for teams. Teams can also look forward to special attraction packages and meal programs, as well as other enhancements for both the Disney All-Star Challenge and the 2012 VRC World Championship (including discounted Disneyland park tickets). We appreciate your feedback and look forward to releasing more exciting news about changes and improvements throughout the year.
Disney All-Star Challenge in Orlando, FL
Once again this year, RECF is pleased to announce the 3rd annual Disney All-Star Challenge to be held November 10-12, 2011 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World® Resort in Orlando, FL.
Presented by NASA, Autodesk, EMC Corporation and RECF, the 2011 Disney All-Star Challenge is going to be bigger and better than ever. Middle and High school teams attending this year’s event can look forward to lower hotel prices, increased amenities, and a chance to win an early qualification to the 2012 VRC World Championship. Visit the Disney All-Star Challenge registration page for more information about this year’s exciting event. Registration is open and teams that register before October 14, 2011, will be able to take advantage of an early bird registration fee of $250. After October 14th, registration will be $350.
2012 VRC World Championship in Anaheim, CA
The 2012 VRC World Championship will be held April 18th – 21st at the Anaheim Convention Center. Sunny Anaheim, CA is rolling out the red carpet for the over 500 teams from around the globe that will compete in this year’s event, which will set a new standard for the VEX Robotics Competition World Championship. Take a moment to read the World Championship registration page on RobotEvents, the event’s new housing website and the event’s consolidated travel information page. We have worked all summer to ensure that teams can look forward to a truly phenomenal event at an affordable cost.
VRC World Championship Qualification Guidelines
Information about the VRC World Championship qualification criteria and guidelines can be found here. There are also VRC World Championship Q&A sticky notes in the VEX Forums with answers to the most common questions about the World Championship guidelines. Take a moment to read these resources so that you are informed about the new qualification criteria and guidelines.
Register Your Team Today
Go to RobotEvents.com and register your VRC team today to ensure that you receive important updates about the 2011 Disney All-Star Challenge, 2012 VRC World Championship, and other events and opportunities. Registration is still only $75 for the first team at a school and $25 for each additional team. Once payment is received, teams will get a Welcome Kit that includes sample game elements (for the first team only), team license plates, flags, and other goodies.
New Firmware Coming for VEX Cortex Microcontroller & VEXnet Joystick
VEX Robotics has some exciting news for VEX Robotics Competition Teams that are using the Cortex Microcontroller and VEXnet Joystick. A new version of firmware is being released next week that improves VEXnet link speed, communication and overall reliability.
VEX users are encouraged to download free upgrades to easyC V4 and ROBOTC for PIC & Cortex to take advantage of this firmware upgrade.
Not Getting These E-mails?
Many organizations automatically block group e-mails. You have two options:
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Request that your IT department “White List” emails from mail.vresp.com
and/or white list e-mails from the following IP addresses:
74.116.89.0/24 74.116.91.0/24 66.151.143.0/24 -
Make sure the alternate email address in your robotevents.com team account is different - not a school address.
RECF - Robotics Education and Competition Foundation
We are a non-profit that uses robotics to get young minds interested in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. We are here for you. Please let us know how we can help.