Image by Anton Olsen from the 2009 VEX World Championship
T minus 2 days and counting. At an hour that more closely resembled my average bed-time, I packed up the family and headed toward the airport this morning. We are on our way to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex for the 2011 VEX Robotics World Championship.
My daughter decided last weekend that she was not ready to compete in Worlds and that she would rather volunteer to help. Her position in the competition was quickly filled by one of the many teams on the wait list. I’m grateful that she made that decision as she’s now assigned as a field resetter in my division.
This is my third time working the Championship. The last two years were held at the Dallas Convention Center, about 50 miles from our office. Hosting the event 1200 miles away has posed a few more problems, but I’m surprised at how well everything came together at the last minute.
Setup on site started on Monday and continues through Wednesday evening. I’ll be onsite starting Wednesday morning to help. Early check-in for the teams starts on Wednesday. Thursday morning the doors will open at 7:30am to a crowd of 3,000 students representing over 570 teams and 14 countries. Starting at 3pm Thursday I will be working as a field technician in the Math Division.
If you’re looking for something geeky to do this weekend, please stop by and see some exciting robot competitions. Admission is free for the public. The venue address is 700 S Victory Way and it is the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
New this year, the VEX Via app can help you monitor the match schedule, track your favorite team, and see real time rankings. Available for both iPhone and Android, VEX Via is a free download.
Stay tuned for more 2011 VRC World Champtionships news and follow along live on Twitter @VEXRobotics and the VEX Facebook page. Match schedules, scores, and rankings will be updated real-time on the Robot Events World Championship page. Video of each division will be broadcast live on UStream on the RECF-VEX Channel.
