JAY — Spruce Mountain Area Robotics Teams (SMART) faced some disappointments at the New England competition held recently at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts but still finished 41st out of the 175 New England teams in the First Robotics program.

The team was invited to participate at the World Competition, but several team members will be touring Europe at that time. According to advisor Dan Lemieux, the team instead is now focusing on winning world’s next year.

The team’s robot had never really broken down during district competitions but that changed at New England’s. Two major mechanical issues had to be addressed on day one. Murphy’s Law really kicked in on day 2 with bad alliance choices and game play. Alliance robots running out of control and major issues with the SMART robot left the team tired, worn out, and in 44th place.

The final day of competition had a hopeful, determined team and a robot performing to its potential. However, it was too little too late to be picked for the elimination rounds.

The spirit team took over and danced, cheered, and interacted with other teams. They cheered as winners received awards the SMART team felt were theirs to win. Lemieux said, “As their head coach, I was extremely proud of out team’s gracious professionalism.”

While the team didn’t do as well as anticipated at the New England competition, members did come away with lasting impressions. Drive team captain Chloe Flagg was excited to meet Dean Kamen and Woodie Flowers who are the founders of the robotics program. “They’re like celebrities,” she said.

Safety captain Sam Brenner got to talk with some pretty cool people. “We spent three and a half days of interacting with people from all over New England. I got to talk with CEO’s of huge companies,” he said.

Tyler Ritter was active on the presentation team for the chairman’s award. It was a great experience for him. “Communication is key. In order to survive in the world, you need to be able to communicate and adapt,” he said.

SMART received the Engineering Inspiration Award, the second most prestigious award given to a team,  at the Pine Tree District meet held in Lewiston. At the University of New Hampshire District meet, the team was awarded the Industrial Safety Award, celebrating the team that progresses beyond safety fundamentals by using innovative ways to eliminate or protect against hazards, and the Excellence in Engineering Award which celebrates an elegant and advantageous machine feature. This award was given for the team’s garage door opener lifting system.  

Lemieux said the New England District Championship competition set the record for the entire country. He expects a New England team will have a winning alliance at worlds.

SMART may be done competing this year, but they still have many things planned in the coming months. This past weekend they were at the Jay-Livermore Falls Lions Club Home and Living Show. In May the team will be helping with a 4th grade measurement project and a 3rd grade UL safety training at the Livermore Elementary School.

This summer, half of the team will be helping with the SMART Summer Lego Robotics Camp. The other half will be cataloging models that are then sold in a fundraising effort.

The team will also be making presentations to the Chamber of Commerce and the school board. A pot luck meal with award presentations is scheduled for June 24. 

Lemieux said the team is already looking for championship sponsors for next year. He has no clue what the focus will be next year but will find out on Reveal Day, Jan. 9 when the team will once again start planning and building.