[April 24, 2013] Coronado robotics team has national title in sights Tweet Apr 24, 2013 (The Gazette (Colorado Springs - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Designing and building a robot isn't quite like suiting up and making a pigskin fly. But robotics has enough similarities to football that when a former high school gridiron coach like Bryce McLean switches fields, a winning streak is sure to follow. McLean coaches Coronado High School's robotics team, Cougars Gone Wired, which won the Chairman's award at this year's regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) event, held April 6 in Denver. It's the second time in three years Coronado brought home the honor and qualified for the international championship. This week, several students from the 60-member team are in St. Louis, vying for the world title. Very cool, team leaders said last week, as they prepared for battle. "It's a strong robot," said the team's chief executive officer, senior Joshua Munson. "We take pride in what we do and should have a good chance." "We took a lot of damage in Denver -- a back piece got bent 2 inches, which was scary to pull out," teammate Brian Sullivan said. "We had to do an emergency repair, but it's holding up." Having previously coached football and baseball for 10 years, McLean uses many of his sports philosophies to motivate the techno team. "We spend the whole first semester team-building so that students understand the dedication and commitment it takes to be a strong team," he said. "It's not just about the robot; we have to learn to rely on each other, and it's one of the reasons we've won so many awards." While Cougars Gone Wired hasn't placed at the international level, where 400 teams from around the world pit their student-created robots against each other in a game of play, the team has done well in the regional competition. In addition to the prestigious Chairman's award at regionals for best expressing the ideals of FIRST -- such as inspiring younger kids through public demonstrations and workshops -- the team also scored the Rookie All-Star award and accolades for website design and computer animation. As McLean says: "Success breeds success." This year's game at the regional and international competitions is along the lines of Ultimate Frisbee. To score points, robots must be able to shoot Frisbees into three goals of varying heights and climb a metal pyramid. Like football games, robotics competitions feature a stadium atmosphere with announcers, loud music and a tension-filled environment. Coronado's robot, Sebastian, is a complex machine made of motors with chains, electronic circuit boards, sensors, wheels, arms, remote-control devices and other elements. Students use principles from business, engineering, math, computer programming, electrical and mechanical systems, problem solving, animation and communication. "I enjoyed wiring this one -- it was harder than last year's," said Forrest Horne, the team's electronics expert. There's also a camaraderie that teammates value. They spend six weeks together building the robot, sometimes up to 13 hours a day. Plus, "We're always willing to help other teams, lend them tools, invite them to practice scrimmages," member Ryan Windom said. Student fundraisers and corporate sponsorships from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Honeywell, Challenger Learning Center, Aeroflex, Vertec Tool Inc., IEEE and Fastenal are paying for this year's efforts, which will run about $60,000, McLean said. Along with being the coach, McLean is also the team cheerleader. "We can do this -- I know it," he said about this week's championship competitions. ___ (c)2013 The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) Visit The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at www.gazette.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]