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Competition Details

Review the Tournament Checklist of things to bring - many things are different this year as compared to previous tournaments.

Details for completing your registration include paying your tournament fees.

Pre-Tournament Nominations for Outstanding Mentor Award

We are asking teams to nominate their mentor or coach to receive one of the Outstanding Mentor Awards. Email jwilker@playingatlearning.org, up to 2 paragraphs with who you are nominating and why. Your nominee may be a youth or adult.

When and Where to Arrive:

The tournament is Saturday, January 8, 2005 at San Jose City College, 2100 Moorpark Avenue San Jose, CA 95128. All check-ins will be in the Community Room starting at 8 am.

There is ample parking near the Community Room in the student parking lot on the southwest side of the campus off of Bascom Avenue. There is also a convenient drop off horseshoe just behind the Community Room. See campus map.

There is a mandatory All Coaches meeting (for both AM and PM groups) with the Referees at 8:30 am in the gym. If your team has a "Scott Evans email (paper) ruling", it will only be accepted at this time in front of all coaches and referees. Any other last minute details will be covered during this one meeting - plan on having the coach or a co-coach attend.

Each team will have 2 check-ins, one for judging and one for robot performance.

If you are assigned the morning Robot Performance session, you will check-in at 8 am. Your judging check-in will then be in the afternoon, at least 10 minutes before your judging session starts.

If you are assigned the morning Judging session, you will check-in at least 10 minutes prior to your judging time. Then, you will check-in for your afternoon Robot Performance session at 12:30 pm.

ALL coaches must attend the mandatory coaches meeting at 8:30 am in the gym, regardless of when your team's actual robot performance session is scheduled.

Robotic Performance Competition & Scoring:

Check-in for the MORNING Robot Performance opens at 8:00 am, please plan to arrive and be ready to check-in by this time. If your team is in the very first round of the robotic performance slots, we recommend that you come no later than 7:45 am. You will need to have your robot checked for compliance in the pit area before you compete. If you need to calibrate a light sensor, you will be given a very short time on the challenge tables to do so prior to the start of the morning rounds.

Check-in for the AFTERNOON Robot Performance opens at 12:30 pm, please plan to be ready to check-in by this time. If your team is in the first round of the robotic performance slots, we recommend that you check-in no later than 12:15 pm. You will need to have your robot checked for compliance in the pit area before you compete. If you need to calibrate a light sensor, you will be given a very short time on the challenge tables to do so prior to the start of the afternoon rounds.

• Each team will attempt the "No Limits" robotics challenge in three separate rounds during the tournament day
• Scoring will be based on best score, with ties being determined by 2nd and 3rd best scores. Please review the scoring sheet that will be used.
• Participation medals will be handed out to each team at the end of the teams 1st round of robot performance.
• Review the latest Q&A posted on the FLL site for clarifications and official rulings.
• Each team may have only team members & 2 adult coaches in the pit area during their performance rounds (AM or PM).
• Turn in liability waivers (AM only)
• Turn in MC team intro card if you have one
• IMPORTANT: Referees will not remove any chair (or other obstacle) prior to your robot interacting with it. This is different than what was done at some regionals.
• New (1/5/05) There will be a box at each competition table that you can put the balls, any retrieved objects and the robot attachments.

Judging:

Check-in for all Judging opens on a rolling basis for each team. You will be queued for check-in 10 minutes prior to your judging sessions begin.

• Judging will be done in 4 10-minute sessions. Teams should be at their judging station no less than 5 minutes before their scheduled time.
• You must attend all judging sessions - for example, you must go to the Research Project presentation judging room even if your team does not have a research presentation.
• Judges may, at their discretion, exclude coaches from the judging area.
• Each team has 4 Judging slots. These are for judging of Research, Robot Design, Programming and Teamwork.
• Turn in liability waivers when checking in (AM only)
• Turn in your team introduction form, team photo, and robot photo when checking in at the judging area.
• Bring all materials (programs, robot, project presentation) needed for all judging when you go to check-in. You will not have time to get it between judging sessions.
• You will not have access to the pit areas during your Judging Session (AM or PM). The pit areas are only for use during your robot performance rounds.
• IMPORTANT : Provide phone number (mobile phone?) of someone that can contact the team on the day of the tournament in case the Judges' need to do team callbacks at the end of the day. This is especially important if your team had your judging in the morning and may be disbursed at the end of the day.
• IMPORTANT: Space is very limited in the judging areas - each team may have only 1 coach/adult attend any of the judging sessions unless you contacted the tournament directors before Friday with a valid reason.

   

What to Expect

• Emergency Contact Number for the day of the tournament is : (510) 517-8826.
• Cancellations CANNOT be accepted.
• Individual team schedules can not be changed. It is a convenience to the teams and their families to post them early - please don't make us sorry by requesting changes. Teams were randomly assigned with deference given to distance being travelled.
• Teams will be given only a few minutes (before their AM or PM session starts) to check the lighting conditions on the competition tables to allow for light sensor calibration. All other practice should be on the pit practice tables.
• The pit area is restricted to only team members and 2 coaches. Here's the layout of the pit areas that includes the pit table numbers.
• Officials will be wearing specially marked Tshirts. NO OTHER PERSONS WILL BE ALLOWED INSIDE THE COMPETITION AREA EXCEPT DURING THEIR TEAM'S ROUNDS. There are no exceptions to this rule.
• Referees and Judges have the final say on all calls.
• If the team has a question about a score, the team members (not the coach) must bring it to the attention of the head referee immediately, before leaving the competition table. The head referee's decisions are final.
• Coaches or other adults that argue with any referee, judge or other official will be asked to leave the competition area! We are serious about this.
• The schedule is designed to be somewhat "relaxed". We encourage teams to use the relaxed schedule to: watch other teams compete, tour the pits and see the other robots, each lunch, check out the exhibits, practice their presentation, or make final tuning modifications to their own robot or programs.
• Food (sandwiches, pizza, snacks) and drinks (water, soda) will be sold at on site concessions in the Community Room at a reasonable price.
• This event is open and free to the public.
• We will be using 2 buildings on campus. The Auxillary Gym will host the opening ceremony, the robotic performance rounds and the award ceremony. The Community Room building will host the Judging Rooms (on second floor), Pit Areas (in 2 connected classrooms), Exhibits, and Vending.
• Tournament souvenirs will be sold at the tournament include a custom No Limits pin, the Justin Case animation video of the No Limits challenge and a highlights DVD of the tournament. Pre-orders are still being accepted.
• Again, coaches and parents are asked to refrain from engaging in confrontations with any tournament officials. Such confrontations can lead to a team becoming disqualified and/or the coach or parent being barred from the tournament area.
• Remember, EVERYONE working at the tournament is a volunteer and doing the best they can. Please respect each other and let our volunteers know how much you appreciate their efforts. Remember that we can not put on a tournament without volunteers - please treat them well.

Tournament Schedule

We are using 2 buildings on the SJCC campus - the Auxillary Gym and the Community Room.

Please make sure to check the http://www.ncafll.org web site for additional information and/or updates:

Mark Edelman and Jill Wilker
Directors, Fremont Regional FLL Tournament

Educational Enrichment Through Play
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Last Updated: 01/05/2005 4:55 PM