Kickoff Day

Kickoff day answers most of those questions you've asked yourself all summer....High Octane?...What does it mean?...High-speed funny cars?...Rockets?...Big trucks?...What will the competition be?
Kickoff day this year was held at ASU, in Centennial Hall. We had a much larger group of students attend the kickoff day this year. Last year, we had a handful of about 5 students goto the kickoff. This year however, we brought about half the team. About 26 students and 5 chaparones (teachers and parents) attended the kickoff.

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Many questions were answered....many more was formed. The team carefully studied the field, already formulating ideas for this year's robot. The goal this year was seemingly simple: retrieve the balls, and put them in their respective locations. But it had a twist. These were not just any ordinary tennis and raquetballs, these were components to make various chemical equations relating to octane. H₂0 scattered across the field, Catalyst in the towers, Energy in the EGS, and CO₂ suspended in the air. These components, in special equations formed various octane and components. We soon realized that this year would require much more point strategy than last year.

Another twist to the game was the spotter could now interact with a small corner of the playing field, placing components in the correct locations in the storage area. After viewing the field and presentation, we went to some workshops to learn about other parts of the BEST competition, such as spirit and sportsmanship, and booth display. Once we got home, a small group of the team gathered at school to discuss point strategy and review the question and answer board. The fun had only begun... this year's BEST competition was in full swing.