Sixteen students and four teachers from Waimea High School and 12 mentors from Westside Kauai businesses competed in the “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology Robotics Hawai’i Regional competition,” at the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of
Sixteen students and four teachers from Waimea High School and 12 mentors from Westside Kauai businesses competed in the “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology Robotics Hawai’i Regional competition,” at the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of Hawai’i.
According to an April 4 prepared statement by Mary Lu Kelley, an Oceanit mentor, the 5-foot-tall, 120-pound robots were designed and built in six weeks by teams of high school students and their engineer-mentors. The students pilot the robots on the playing field.
Waimea High School and Island School came in 28th and 33rd place in the competition, out of 37 Hawai‘i schools, according to a prepared statement by Lt. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona, Jr.
More than 1,500 high schools internationally are participating in the FIRST Robotics program, including 25 high schools from Hawai‘i, according to the release.
Stan Sheriff Center was transformed for this inaugural FIRST Robotics Hawai’i Regional competition with half of the playing court divided up into 10-by-10 pit areas for the teams and their robots. The other half held the carpeted playing field for this year’s game called “Overdrive.”
The event, sponsored by NASA and co-sponsored by BAE Systems, the third-largest global defense company, was coordinated by State of Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism under the direction of Alexander Ho and Art Kimura.
To give the Mainland teams a taste of Hawai‘i, the opening ceremonies included an oli, a Hawaiian chant and a Chinese lion dance to bring good luck and prosperity.
All 37 teams were treated to a lu‘au at the Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki on Friday night. The closing ceremonies included speeches and a taiko drum performance.
The Menehune Robotics team competed with Island School and 23 other high school teams from Hawai‘i and 12 teams from the Mainland.
The 2008 Menehune robot drivers were Brycen Nakashima, team co-captain Crystal Whitehill, Keonimana Shigematsu, Mark Guirao, Cesar Papa Jr. and Jared Coleman-Stark.
At the competition, these drivers were coached by Pacific Military Range Facility mentor Neil Balason. Team 2466 proudly wore their Menehune Robotics Team shirts made for them by WHS teacher John Altomare.
Team co-captain Jordan Sato and Quinn Gonsalves went on the FIRST flight on March 27 with WHS teacher Dave Mecham to uncrate the robot and get it inspected.
The Menehune Pit Crew members Mershelle Rivera, Darrel Nonaka, Royce Kawamura and Harold Shimono Jr. worked with PMRF mentors Nathan Momohara, Kevin Chung and Anson Lee to get and keep the robot competition ready.
Ned Dana, Oceanit mentor, was the software lead for team. Roweld Reynon and Annette Perriera, mentors from PMRF and Oceanit, helped by scouting the other teams for alliance partners.
Joyce Evens, a WHS teacher, brought her media team of Braxton Garma, Eric Bouldin, Dayton Bayot and Joey Kirstine to film the three days of the competition. Evens has scheduled a Robotics Banquet at WHS fund-raiser for the team, with food prepared by Kui Souza, a WHS teacher, and culinary art students. A movie of the team at the 2008 FIRST competition will be shown.
WHS teacher Bob Saligumba provided mechanical support and with the help Pioneer mentor Bruce Heckman got the robot crated up for its trip back to Kaua‘i after the competition. The Menehune Robotics team and this trip to O‘ahu for the competition was organized by Oceanit mentors Kelley and Lynn Heckman, supported by Pioneer mentor Frank Altobelli.
Twenty family members, co-workers and friends cheered from the stands of Stan Sheriff for the Menehune Robotics team, including WHS teacher Michael Mann, CSC mentor Stu Burley and six parents who flew over special after seeing the team on TV.
The two winning alliances of six robots who qualified to compete in the FIRST Championship in Atlanta included four teams from Hawai‘i: Radford High, Waialua High, McKinley High and Sacred Hearts Academy. The Rookie All Star Winner from Honoka’a High also qualified to compete in Georgia.
Menehune Robotics Team 2466, in their rookie year, put on a good show of team work and effort while competing with gracious professionalism. The Menehunes ended up finishing in 28th place.
Next year’s Menehune Robotics team will be even more prepared and competitive, the release states.
Also next year, teachers and mentors are asking that all of the high schools in the state of Hawai‘i build robots and compete in the 2009 FIRST Robotics Hawai‘i Regional Competition.
According to its Web site, the mission of FIRST Robotics is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication and leadership.
Going national
Hawai‘i teams advancing to the National Championships in Atlanta, Georgia, April 17-19:
Honoka‘a High School
McKinley High School
Radford High School
Sacred Hearts Academy
Waikea High School
Waialua High School
