Phoenix Phanatics
Team 11104
We're a small happy-go-lucky rookie team who's in FIRST Robotics Competition to both inspire and become inspired by and through robotics! We've made it through our first season, and are ready to go forward!
What is FRC?
The FIRST® Robotics Competition is FIRST's premiere robotics competition.
Teams that participate in FRC don't just have to build a robot using LEGO instructions: teams need to fundraise, design, and build lasting mechanisms that can be easily repaired, fully functionable, and bring their team to victory. There is no limit to how many members can be on a team, and no limit to what you can design (within the limits held in place by FIRST's safety book). No matter what you're good at, there's 100% a place for you in FRC.
Robots in FRC can be as heavy as 120 pounds, and as big as 28 cubic feet.
They can feature many things, such as mechanical arms, turrets, elevator shafts, large shooters, and huge reservoirs, depending on the game that year. In a single year, you can see a lot of solutions to solve the same problem, and FRC rewards creative thinking and innovative design over a template. Every year incurs a new challenge, and every year brings on new and innovative ideas to optimise for the best robot.
It's not just about building either.
FRC guarantees no funds to any team; in fact, a team's yearly registration costs $6,000, just to sign up. Teams have to reach out to sponsors, perform outreach events, and get donations from the community just to have a chance to play. That's why a big part of any robotics team is the business team: a dedicated subsection of members that help to fundraise, reach out to businesses, and make the team possible.
FRC isn't just a robotics competition.
FIRST's mission is to provide life-changing robotics programs that give young people the skills, confidence, and resilience to build a better world. Or, in other words, to spread the love of robotics and competition that FRC inspires. FRC is rooted in community, inspiration, and social experiences: teams always try to help out each other, whether it's at competition, off the field, or just a quick email asking for help. It's also the responsibility of the robotics team to inspire others to explore robotics!
Why join us?
We're a small team!
Rather than work with a fixed structure, every member of the team has the opportunity to work on every part of the team. This means even if you don't know a ton about the mechanical part, you can learn through experience, or if you have experience with electrical work, you won't be constantly stuck on electrical (which is 100% a boon).
Being a small team, it means that each member's voice is very loud, and has a major place in the direction of the team. Everyone has a say into how the team is run, and what the team does, which makes this team a lot more personal for everyone involved.
This was the first official robotics team I had ever been a part of, and it helped me in more ways than I could have thought.
We're a student led team!
A lot of new teams are completely directed by a coach or mentors. Our team, however, is different: we don't have any strict direction we have to follow. The students, as in us, completely direct what we do throughout the season. We're completely dependent on the judgement on some teenagers, so we have a lot of fun with the freedom of design and consequence of decisions!
Because of this, we take a lot of pride in what we design. In everything, from our side panels, to our t-shirt, you can literally see the team's effect on there. Every part of the team works together to give us both direction and magnitude!
We're a community team!
We already mentioned this, but we are a team that serves all of Middlesex. If your school doesn't have a robotics team, it's often hard to get your foot in the door. However, we accept all members from all around Middlesex, so even if your school doesn't have the funds for a team, we can introduce you to this new world.
