Road to VEX Worlds is a weekly series featuring teams on their path to Louisville, Kentucky, on April 20-23, 2016, to compete with 1,000 teams from over 35 countries under one roof for one epic celebration as we crown the World Champions!
The REC Foundation recently caught up with The Gear Turners, Geniuses, and STEMgineers; Teams 10660 B, G, and E, from Centerra Mirage STEM Academy in Goodyear, Arizona. The teams include Sage, Nathaniel, Serenity, Hai, Ayla, Michael, and their coach Corey McCoy.
Team Strategy
The teams all approach the game in a similar manner, with a focus on going after the balls on the ramp first and then picking up balls to shoot. They’ve also found it valuable to talk to their Alliance Partners in advance of a match to develop a game plan.
These teams have seen their fair share of challenges this season with equipment failures, incorrect measurements for programming, and even rebuilding a robot in 15 minutes after one fell apart! The highlight of their season though was qualifying for VEX Worlds, where they look forward to meeting competitors from around the world and seeing all of the different robot designs.
Unique Robot Builds
The robots the teams came up with have special shooters and bases, which enable them to to pick up a lot of balls and therefore score a lot of points. The most unique touch though was putting their initials on their bots!
Future in STEM
The team members all share a passion for STEM and in particular a focus on future careers in engineering or math that they attribute to their robotics experience. Some of the team members also hope to be future inventors – no doubt they will too with the path they’ve already set on!
