After losing a bunch of seniors to graduation last year, the FIRST Robotics team at Lake Orion High School is just 17 members strong.
But what they lack in numbers, they make up for in effort.
Junior Heather Wilsher said everyone picks up the slack by participating on many different sub-teams, which combine to make the final product come together in competition.
‘We try to just be well-rounded in everything,? she said, noting the smaller team can have its benefits.
The team has been meeting for months, but things really started picking up at the start of the calendar year.
‘Since October, we’ve had basic meetings every week, and now we’re meeting five days a week,? said team member Heather Tucker, a freshman.
The team went to a Jan. 6 kick-off at Novi High School with 62 other teams, where they learned of this year’s game.
‘We came back for a brainstorming session and haven’t stopped since,? Wilsher said.
The ‘game? is different every year in FIRST Robotics competition. This year, the competition revolves around lifting inner tubes and placing them on various levels.
The team from LOHS, Team 302, will ‘team-up? with two other teams at the regional and national competitions, but they don’t know what they’ll see until they get to the events.
‘Each team has a different design and we don’t know what we’re going to see,? Wilsher said.
In the final 15 seconds of competition, the teams can acquire additional points by lifting another team’s robot into the air – a caveat that is sure to cause plenty of pandemonium every time.
As usual, there is a standard kit of parts and common set of rules to be followed in the six-week building timeframe.
‘You have a budget limit, weight limit, size limit, so there are a lot of constraints,? said first-year staff mentor Terese Grant, who teaches physics and math at LOHS.
‘We’re really thankful she came on to help this year,? Wilsher noted.
The team is wrapping up the ‘build? portion of their season and will put their work to the test at Wayne State University in Detroit on March 15 & 16 and at Grand Valley State University near Grand Rapids on March 30.
Their five-day trip to Atlanta for the National Competition will take place in mid-April.
‘I’m really confident,? Tucker said. ‘We’re ahead of schedule from the past few years.?
The team has five mentors from Chrysler and is also sponsored by Brose, among others.
In addition to the technical aspect of the competition, the team is also working on applications for many of the awards FIRST gives out throughout the season.
The most prestigious award is the Chairman’s Award, which requires teams to write an essay.
‘It’s one of the more daunting tasks that we have,? Wilsher said.
The team has also started mentoring Lego teams at the middle school level at Scripps, St. Joseph, and Oxford schools.
‘It helps to build the high school program,? Wilsher said.
For more information on the team, or to help by becoming a sponsor, e-mail Grant at tgrant@lakeorion.k12.mi.us.
Visit www.team302.com for more information on the team or upcoming events.