2002 Kennedy Space Center Regional

Team 342 with Awards
Team 342 with Awards
FIRST Robotics Team 342 competed against some of the strongest teams in the nation at the Kennedy Space Center Regional this past week. Team 342 quickly proved the capabilities of our robot through a flawless execution of some brilliant strategies. We maintained the Number 1 Seeded position for most of the day on Friday. The Award Ceremony that afternoon was good to Team 342 as we earned the Judges' Award for design, quality, and appearance. The ceremony was followed by the launching of the Atlas 2 rocket, which delivered a communication satellite into space orbit. Later that evening the team enjoyed a team party hosted by NASA and held in the Saturn 5 Rocket assembly building.
Saturday was a different story as the teams began a very aggressive approach and pushing and shoving became the norm. Fortunately, our robot was designed and built just for that type of strategy. We finished the day in Number 2 Seeded position just 3 points behind the number 1 seeded team. The finals began Saturday afternoon and our alliance had the strength to push the goals to scoring position and hold them there. We eliminated a couple of the strongest teams and advanced to the semi-finals. We were in a position to win but, as luck would have it, we damaged the controller in the robot while battling with another robot for the highest score. This left our robot without control. We had only 3 minutes to change the controller in the arena area, a task that would normally take 30 minutes in the shop. A very proud moment for our team was when our students completed this complex task on their own and reprogrammed the controller. Unfortunately, they finished it just seconds too late to get back in the game and we were eliminated. We finished in a tie for third place. The Regional Event closed Saturday afternoon with an Awards Ceremony.
Team 342 capturing a Goal
Team 342 capturing a Goal
Team 342 Racing to a Goal in High Speed
Team 342 Racing to a Goal
in High Speed

Chairman's Award and Judges Award
Chairman's Award and
Judges Award
Team 342 Receiving Chairman's Award
Team 342
Receiving Chairman's Award

The most prestigious and coveted award that FIRST has to offer is the Chairman's Award. This award recognizes the team that exemplifies the mission of FIRST. The FIRST mission is about building partnerships among the community's schools, businesses, industry, and colleges. The FIRST mission is dedicated to changing the way America's young people regard science and technology, and to inspiring an appreciation of the real-life rewards and career opportunities in these fields. Team 342 was awarded the 2002 NASA Kennedy Space Center Regional Chairman's Award for our partnerships and commitment to the FIRST mission.

FIRST Robotics Team 342 is a partnership between schools, industry, businesses and college. Our partners are Dorchester School District Two, Fort Dorchester High School, Summerville High School, Trident Technical College, United States Department of Labor Bureau of Appentice Training, and the Robert Bosch Corporation. Our investment partners are South Carolina Schools of Excellence Grants, NASA Kennedy Space Center Grant, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough L.L.P., Terry Environmental, Kiwanis Club of Summerville, and LabVolt. Team 342 would like thank our partners for their support.

 
Improving Traction
Improving Traction
Planning Strategy
Planning Strategy
Number 1 on Friday
Number 1 on Friday
Talking to Judges
Talking to Judges
Teams 342 and 343
Teams 342 and 343
Teams 342 and 343 in Action
Teams 342 and 343 in Action
Atlas Rocket Carrying Satellite
Atlas Rocket Carrying Satellite