SOAR Lancaster Robotics

By Evamaryl Sillas

Staff Writer

Bot Squad 5011 was uncertain whether they would get to the qualifier rounds. Programmer Anthony Perry speaks about their upcoming competition, “We’ll do better than last time.” He was optimistic and ready for February 8th starting at 8:00 am. The Palmdale Aerospace Academy was where these challenges would commence. The team removed the poorly functioning system to score high goals in hopes of replacing it with a more efficient one. 

Other members weren’t as optimistic and looked from a more grounded angle. Osmar Alfaro with the position of Designer comments on their team’s current condition of their robot: “I don’t think it’s going to be very well, as it’s a last-minute decision to change a part of our design. It’s looking very bleak. It’s just our time constraint. I hope for a miracle.”

A miracle these hard-working people received. An award called, Connect gives them a second chance. The award is given to the team who has the most connections with their local STEM community. 5011 helped a part of their community and soon others to understand what FIRST is all about. On February 23rd starting bright and early at 7:00 am the team gave it their all—the wildcard event at Notre Dame High School in Los Angeles.

First Tech Robotics is a competition known for the program’s gracious professionalism. Gracious professionalism can mean a lot of diverse things. For every team and participant, this would be to learn to be a strong competitor while treating others with respect and kindness. Including others and avoiding making anyone feel unappreciated. Each year, FTC has a competition to challenge teams. This year the game is “Into the Deep.” Humans help to create specimens to score in chambers. They submerge themselves and ascend from the ocean's depths before the clock runs out. Specimens are like the basketball to a hoop. Instead of throwing, the robot extends to bring the specimen to its scoring location.

Anthony Perry shares his thoughts on the new opportunity, “If our arm works we’re good. There’s some good bots out there, but I have faith in us.” Botsquad finished 30th place out of 35 places. Team 5011 did not make it to regionals. Although this tournament wasn’t a complete success, the team left with the motivation to do better next year. 5011 discusses their plans for next year. Bot Squad plans to focus more on the organization as the 2024-2025 year could have been better planned out. This will apply to their robot and fundraising. Currently from a grant, the team is getting more parts for their program. To raise more money they plan to apply for more grants and set up more events to sell items and to spread awareness of FTC. In the past, the team has sold elotes and horchatas at the annual SOAR Haunted House and used a donation box at events when they weren’t selling to name a couple.

The team successfully got an award (Connect) from the Aerospace Academy. This is an achievement since the team hasn’t won an award from at least 2022 to this day.  The Notre Dame tournament was an experience to improve upon, the Bot Squad isn’t done yet. Applications for Bot Squad 5011 Robotics are opening soon so keep an eye out for applications.