Robots shoot, they score: It’s the FIRST competition at Gull Lake

A FIRST Robotics District Competition that will attract 40 teams and well over 1,000 spectators to Southwest Michigan begins Friday, March 2 at Gull Lake High School.

The competition begins with opening ceremonies at 10:30 a.m. Friday, and concludes with an awards ceremony at 5 p.m. Saturday.

This year’s competition is Rebound Rumble, in which robots shoot at baskets and balance on a platform while fending off attacks from competing robots. The game is played between two alliances of three teams each. Each alliance competes by trying to score as many of the basketballs in the hoops as possible during a two-minute and 15-second match. Balls sunk in higher hoops earn teams more points. Team alliances are awarded bonus points if they are balanced on bridges at the end of the match.

The FIRST robotics competition offers students a chance to design, build and program robots. They also apply real-world math and science concepts.

Students have six weeks to build robots from a common parts kit, issued by FIRST Robotics. The robots are designed to complete a variety of tasks and competitions and typically weigh about 150 pounds.

Problem solving, organizational and team-building skills all are developed through the competition.

Participants compete but also cooperate in games that require alliances.

Winners go to the world championship and qualify for nearly $9.7 million in college scholarships.

There are about 58,000 high school students that participate on 2,300 FIRST Robotics teams across the United States. Teams are led by coaches and adult mentors, often with engineering or machining backgrounds.  

Teams that advance from the Gull Lake District Competition will compete at the Michigan FIRST Robotics State Championships, held at Eastern Michigan University, April 12-14.

Many teams partner with corporate sponsors as they prepare for competition. Among the sponsorship partners of teams competing at Gull Lake are: Western Michigan University, the Herman Miller Foundation, the GM Foundation, Stryker, Whirlpool, Kellogg and Gentex.

Local teams include students from Kalamazoo Public Schools, Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency (KRESA), Harper Creek Community Schools, Lakeview School District, Vicksburg Community Schools, Gull Lake Community Schools, Pennfield Schools, and Southwest Michigan Virtual Academy.

FIRST Robotics (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science & Technology) is a national, not-for-profit organization that exists to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology now in its 11th year. Here you can see FIRST competitions over the year.

Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave
Source: Tim Hiller, Gull Lake Community Schools