We held a dual event on Saturday November 20, the Downingtown Fall Classic (sponsored by QVC) for High School Teams and the Downingtown Junior Fall Classic (sponsored by QVC) - This is the coverage of the Fall Classic.
We had 24 teams from four states, thanks to the VA and NJ teams for making the huge drives to get to us.
Robots scoring systems were in 4 categories: Custom claw, Claws that could do a tower of 4 rings, spatula and snorkel bots. Base designs were omni, holo, variety of omni/regular wheels (including the new super grips), and one trike. The trike was wicked fast and fun to watch. There was also a robot that had four standard omni wheels and then a pair of omni’s at right angles (making a 6 wheel drive).
Only one robot could hang on a regular basis, it was a custom hook on a slide that grabbed the upper outside and the lifted the robot. When it hung it was the turning point for those matches. A few other robots tried to hang, but from the matches I saw it was hit and miss.
The spatula bots when teamed up with a snorkel bot was the best playing team on the Junior Classic side. One of the Acme teams had combined them into a single robot. It was magical how it was all folded up inside the 18" cube. It was clear that the drive teams had practiced, it was a smooth action that removed a ring of one color and replaced it with another. Another advantage was it could reach into the ladder area and retrieve rings.
One of the largest robots on the field was 677’s robot. Build on an omni base it was a dominant player on the field. The Jones brothers like their Acme counter parts appear to spend hours and hours in drive practice. The only thing they can’t make the robot do is hover.
While I spent most of the day on the Junior Classic side, I did get a chance to see the High School roboteers play. The level of the robots were clearly up a notch. I’m impressed year after year how much better the VEX robots get. The linkages and build skills really have changed from the early years. I sent my teams down into the pits to talk to the teams and I want to say thanks for everyone that took time to talk to them.
I got a chance to watch the semifinals and the final matches. Huge play action with lots of close scores. It’s still early in the 2010-11 season, I can’t imagine what these robots will do in another 4 months.
The final moments was an impromptu Junior Classic vs Classic winner takes all - three on three match. Action was fast and amazing. The Juniors held their own for the first 1:45 of the match. The Classic winners came back with 5 quick scores in the last 15 seconds to take the match.
Thanks for everyone that came and played we appreciate you coming to make the Downingtown Classics the largest VEX event in Pennsylvania. All of the robots were top notch.
Thanks to our major sponsor QVC and award sponsors Kaloke, Techentrouge and STEMRobotics
Excellence Award
* 12A The Potomac School
Tournament Champions
* 12A The Potomac School
* 169A The Haverford School
* 677 Montclair High School
Tournament Finalists
* 1267B Delaware County Christian School
* 1267C Delaware County Christian School
* 357 Upper Darby High School
Robot Skills Winner
* 677 Montclair High School
Programming Skills Winner
* 677 Montclair High School
Amaze Award
* 277 Scotch Plains Fanwood High School Robotics Club
Build award
* 12C The Potomac School
Design Award
* 12F The Potomac School
Judges Award
* 12M The Potomac School
