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Spruce Mountain team fought on despite the odds at FIRST Robotics competition
LEWISTON — SMART, the Robotics team from Spruce Mountain High School in Jay/Livermore, won the Safety and Team Spirit Awards at the FIRST Robotics Competition (New England District) at Androscoggin Bank’s Colisee, on Saturday, April 1, proving that never giving up is a win in itself.
Team advisor Daniel Lemieux said the team’s robot had some issues in early trials and had to have the electrical system rebuilt on the second morning of competition. He added, “The team stayed focused on safety and supporting one another in a very emotional situation.”
This year’s competition, Steamworks, required the robot, operated by a team member, to gather up large whiffle balls, then shoot them into a large steam boiler stack; to grab a large plastic gear from another team member and deposit it in a central area; finally, to hook up to a crane that lifted it off the playing area. The three tasks were to be accomplished in three minutes.
The teams competed in Alliances by cooperating with teams from other parts of Maine and New England. Cooperation and sharing technical skills is a large part of the First Robotics and Pine Tree District goals for the students.
Lemieux said in a Facebook post that the team’s robot could not compete in the final matches while the control system was being rebuilt, knocking out any chance of competing in the elimination rounds. Still, team members worked to fix the problem.
“During repairs, the team spirit and safety standards remained high. The team walked the length of the building three times to cheer on its alliance partners’ matches and then to support the build team working on the robot at the far end of the arena,” according to Lemieux.
“The team never gave up,” Lemieux said. “Seniors Shane Riley, Shawn Lecowitch, and Curtis Farmer, as well as junior Tanna Herlihy, were still working to reprogram the new control system late into the afternoon, long after the team had been eliminated.
“The most important life lessons are learned through failure. SMART demonstrated to themselves and others how failure can lead to future success by winning the spirit and safety awards,” Lemieux said.
Lemieux also said many members of the team deserved recognition:
Bailey Morrell, cheering team leader, and Kaylin Beck, spirit captain, led SMART’s spirit team during the competition. SMART won the Team Spirit Award, which celebrates extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit through exceptional partnership and teamwork, furthering the objectives of FIRST.
Austin Gilboe, safety captain, helped lead the team to its Industrial Safety Award win, which pays tribute to the team that progresses beyond safety fundamentals by using innovative ways to eliminate or protect against hazards.
Rob Taylor was nominated by the team for the Woodie Flowers Award, which is presented to an outstanding mentor who best leads, inspires, teaches, and empowers their team using excellent communication skills.
Chairman’s Award coordinators Camryn Berry, Austin Gilboe, Destiny Daigle, Celia McDonald, Bryan Riley and Kaylin Beck were responsible for researching, writing, and presenting the team’s entry for the Chairman’s Award. The entry includes eight 500-word answers to questions and a 10,000-word essay explaining why the team deserves the Chairman’s Award. The team was responsible for presenting to a panel of judges and producing a three-minute video about our team. Mentor Kym Bryant helped with the video.
[Spruce mntn 1] LEWISTON – Spruce Mountain Robotics’ team works on repairing their robot’s electrical system before taking the competition area again during a New England FIRST Robotics Championship in Lewiston on April 1. (Photo by Bill Van Tassel)
