[Yaaarc] FREE FIRST contest (for visitors) Sat 9/20/06 at MCC

[Keith Mc. (Route-To YAR)]

(Sorry for the late post, but this is the first chance I had 
to get this onto the list...)

For anyone that wishes to see what a FIRST contest looks like FOR FREE,
Sweet Repeat VI will be tomorrow AM at Macomb CC, in Warren MI.  It is 
being thrown by "Team Ford FIRST", the collective set of Ford sponsored 
FIRST teams.  This is a repeat of the 2006 game, and is FREE for visitors.

TFF wrote:
> Team Ford FIRST & Macomb Community College Presents the
> 2006 Team Ford FIRST Robotics Invitational
> Saturday, October 7, 2006
> At the Macomb Community College Sports & Expo Center
> 14500 E. 12 Mile Road, Warren, MI 48088
> Pits open at 7:00 AM

The contest itself will start somewhere between 8 and 9 AM, break 
for a short lunch around noon, and then run through mid afternoon.

FYI, a "repeat" contest is a one day version of the previous year's 
FIRST FRC game, hosted by a school, with the full field setup 
"borrowed" from FIRST.  A number of schools that have a FIRST
robot sitting around from last season use them to go have some fun 
cheaply, and compete for prizes.  Repeat style contests are normally 
limited to roughly 24-32 teams or so, so that everyone has a chance 
to play a number of rounds in the AM qualifying rounds.  The afternoon
is reserved for an Elimination Tournament between the top 8 robots from
the AM and their partners, to determine the ultimate winner.

There's normally a food court available for lunch and snacks.

I'd advise newcomers to bring both ear protection (plug or muffs)
for the arena, AND standard shop safety glasses for the pits.  
That way, you can freely tour the pit area, see the robots up close, 
and chat with teams while they're off the field.  (You MUST wear 
safety glasses in the pit area at all times.)

For more information, and a map to the site, see:
  http://www.teamfordfirst.org/2007_Season/Events/index.htm
  http://www.teamfordfirst.org/Maps/Sweet_Repeat_VI_Event_Map.pdf

- Keith Mc.