Robotics team to national competition in Houston

By Stephi Smith, Executive Editor • April 17, 2017

Chill Out members look at the field in anticipation as they compete in the PNW District Competition. The team will advance this year to the national competition in Houston as one of only 39 teams from the northwest region.

The Robotics team, Chill Out 1778, will head to the FIRST Robotics national competition in Houston, Texas later this week. Only 39 teams from the northwest division will advance.

The team qualified for the competition for the first time in team history, after having gone twice for winning the “all-star rookie” award in 2006 and winning a lottery in 2012.

Chill Out just competed in the PNW District Competition this past month, racking up enough points to place them among the top four teams in northwest, according to Robotics President Ian Davidson. For the past two years, Chill Out has made it to the PNW Districts, but just fallen short of national qualifications.

This year, Davidson said, has been different in regards to the team working together more during competitions.

“Everyone has their job,” he said, going on to explain how some members of Chill Out work on scouts, some are drivers for the robot, some are in charge of electrical engineering, among other responsibilities.

At the PNW Districts, Chill Out made its way to semifinals and on to “eliminations,” in which the winning teams are selected to further in the competition. Robotics Treasurer Eugene Seubert said the eliminations round are where it all happens, when some teams advance but some are disqualified from further competing.

The team will leave tomorrow for their flight to Houston. According to Seubert, the robot is already in Texas, shipped last week from Washington.

The national competition also hosts sessions and workshops, in which teams from all over the world can learn from other teams and work on their own personal and team-wide improvement.

Davidson hopes the team will do well at nationals, but otherwise, he just hopes his team will learn from the experience.

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About the Contributors

Stephi Smith, Executive Editor

Stephi Smith is one of the co-Editors-in-Chief of the Hawkeye. Her official title is Executive Editor. This is Stephi’s fourth year on the Hawkeye. Last year, she created a Hawkeye Snapchat account with the hopes of advancing the organization’s coverage of online and social media reporting. Prior to serving as Editor, she was the News Editor her junior year and Copy Editor her sophomore year, as well as taking the lead on the Crime and Police beat. During her sophomore year, she attended the JEA National Convention in Washington, D.C. where she learned she wanted to be a journalist. Since then, she’s fallen in love with reporting and reported on many different kinds of stories, from School Board meetings to sexual assault on campus. Next year, Stephi will be attending the University of Missouri with a major in Journalism. As a career, she hopes to report on either crime, government and politics or education.

Ciara Laney, Hawkeye Staff

Ciara Laney is the Photo Co-Editor for the Hawkeye. She is enduring her third year in the organization, which she joined out of her enjoyment for keeping records of moments in life. Laney's goal in the Hawkeye is to make the audience feel a sense of belongingness in the Mountlake Terrace community. Outside of Hawkeye Laney spends time with her seven siblings. She has leadership roles in TEMPO, Key Club, ASB and JV Tennis.

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Robotics team to national competition in Houston

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