MUSCATINE, Iowa–Following their victory at the Saint Louis Regional, Fire Island Robotics, Muscatine High School’s robotics team, traveled to the FIRST Robotics World Championship in Houston, Texas for the second year in a row. With this return to competition on the world stage, team members took their time in Houston to keep learning how to move their team forward and grow into experienced competitors.
In their second consecutive year at the championship, Fire Island Robotics again marked themselves as an up-and-coming team. This year, they competed as one of 619 teams, narrowed down greatly from the 3,300 FIRST Robotics teams that actively compete around the world. In their division, Fire Island Robotics placed 26th out of 77 teams. Though they did not advance to later rounds of competition, this performance still put them in the top 200 teams, or about the top third of competitors. “I wouldn’t say I was necessarily happy that we didn’t make it past the division, but I’m really proud we all did our best and put a lot into it,” said Luda Engel, a senior leading the drive team.
Even at the divisional level, students got to go up against some of the most accomplished robotics teams in the world, giving them valuable opportunities to hone their skills. Team Captain Gabriel Sanchez, a senior, shared that at the championship he most enjoyed, “going down and competing with some of the robots; I was on the drive team, and driving with some of the best robots was pretty exciting for me.”
Luda added she also valued, “getting to strategize with other teams you’ve never worked with, especially because they’re on that level.”
Members of the Fire Island Robotics team celebrating at the Black Pearl Café following their return from the FIRST Robotics World Championship in Houston, Texas. Photo by Margaret Hurlbert.
Kaelen Tjebkes, Fire Island Robotics’ business lead, a sophomore and first-year member of the team, found the championships an ideal time to connect with others on the team and from other schools: “It was amazing,” she recalled. “The drives were long, but I enjoyed the people, and that made it better. When we got there, the competition was very energetic.”
After the intense preparation for this year’s FIRST Robotics World Championship and the time spent traveling to and participating in the event, Fire Island Robotics will take a break for the month of May before holding several meetings over the summer. In June, they will reconvene, starting to explore ways they can grow and improve before the season officially starts in January 2024. With so much going for the team, current members hope younger students will take an interest in robotics and join them. “I thought it was just a nerdy thing, but there are actually so many things to do,” enthused Kaelen, who plans to return for a second season.
“It’s just a great way to get hands-on in any field,” added Gabriel. “It’s the one school activity anyone can go pro in.”
With continued dedication and hard work, students believe they could return to the FIRST Robotics World Championship for a third year in a row, establishing themselves as a more experienced team. “It depends on the work everyone puts in, but if this year’s juniors really put the work in, there’s definitely a chance,” observed Luda.
