Pratt High: Clubs/Orgs: Botball

BEST robot team members (from left) Logan Barker, Bronson Blasi and Will Shoup examine the materials they will use to construct a radio controlled robot.

BEST Students Launch Mars Mission;

"We Need To Recruit Mentors,"--PHS "BEST" Advisor Heath Sharp

by Dennis Gonzales & The Pratt Tribune

September 06, 2007

This is the premise students participating in the Boosting Engineering Science and Technology (BEST) competition are facing as they build a radio controlled robot to perform specific tasks similar to what a robot on Mars might have to do, said Heath Sharp, PHS science teacher, who, along with computer and business teacher Janice Brown are advisors for the team.

Pratt resident Craig Roberts also acts as an advisor. Roberts is a retired design engineer for Northrop Grumman. He designed and built systems for robots. The advisors are just that. They are not allowed to build anything but can only give advice on how to solve construction problems.

Community volunteers are encouraged to get involved. The team needs workshop facilities because the instructor has to be present to use the school shop and that is not always possible, Sharp said.

"We need to recruit mentors," Sharp said.

Team members are Ian Hampton, Bronson Blasi, Josh Koler, Gary Tapia, Jacob Whitson, Savan Patel, Matt Hart, Andrea Clarkson, Greg Jones, Elisabeth Short, Will Shoup, Logan Barker, Brendan Whited and Willson Worden.

All teams got exactly the same supplies on Kick Off day in Alva, Okla. over Labor Day weekend. They have the same amount of time to build their robot. Any parts that are defective can be replaced. The entire process has to be documented so at least one team member has to keep accurate records of each step of the process. The documentation is also judged at the competition, Sharp said.

Students must maintain their eligibility and practices are held twice a week for two hours at a time. The team has to draw up the plans and build the prototype to see if it works. Everything has to be documented.

The Pratt teams have never made it to state and are anxious to change that. "They want to get to state and do better than last year," Sharp said. Heartland BEST Hub competition will be Oct. 12-13 at Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva, Okla. Oral presentations are given by all sixteen teams. The top four teams from hubs advance to regionals in Little Rock, Ark.

Four teams compete at the same time on 30 feet by 30 feet playing field. Each team has a robot driver and a spotter. The goal is to drive the robot up a ramp that is 16 inches high and gather and deposit as many "supplies" (medical, fuel and food) as they can in three minutes. Teams are also judged on team spirit. Some bring bands and cheerleaders, Sharp said.

Teams must also make oral presentations, produce business flyers and build a presentation booth on "Mall Day" in September in a mall in Enid, Okla.

Four-time competitor Bronson Blasi, a PHS senior, enjoys the opportunity to build something and then seeing if it works. The team splits up, builds various components and then has to put them together. He is anxious for competition even though it can be challenging.

"The competition is extremely hectic," Blasi said. "Last year we had to tear up our robot and start over because of a design flaw. We found we couldn't get it out of the gates." The tear down and redesign was done in less than 30 minutes.

Sophomore Will Shoup enjoys the challenge of programming and learning everything the more experienced team members already know.

"It's difficult for me but it's fun. I enjoy it," Shoup said.