EVENT REPORT:
GCRS 11 — Robots, Birthday Cake, and Off-Road Trucks!
● by Andrea Suarez
GCRS 11 continues its series of events hosted by Jim Smentowski, owner of The Robot Marketplace. The
events give Florida Insectweight robot builders a chance
to get together for a day of robot battles with some new
competitors, as well as to continue some long-fought
rivalries!
The Antweight class started with Busted Nuts’
Hoodoo vs. Ram Robotics’ Calamity Kid. Hoodoo tried to
use its hinged wedge to push Calamity Kid early in the
match, but Calamity Kid’s drum soon destroyed one of
Hoodoo’s wheels, followed by a second wheel, and then
finally ripped off a third wheel as Hoodoo flew across the
arena.
Ram Robotics continued winning with their second
Antweight Capricant, as it beat Duke Robotics’ four-wheel drive wedge, Blue Devil, when it pushed it against
the wall and got it jammed between the floor and the
Lexan. Busted Nuts’ WhipperSnapper tried some new
design changes to increase the durability of its direct
drive weapon set-up, fighting its way through to the
semi-finals for a 3rd place win.
Capricant and Calamity Kid battled it out in the
finals in a show of driving skill, as both robots came
dangerously close to falling out of the drop-out zone.
After the full three minutes, a close judge’s decision
declared Capricant the Antweight winner.
A new competitor to the Antweight division was
Matt Spurk’s five year old son, Cayden, with his very first
bot. Although he didn’t win the event, he took every
chance he could to grudge-match the other competitors.
“With very close father supervision,” he has already built
a new robot for the next event that he has named
Speedy. Watch out, GCRS!
Busted Nuts Robotics’ Pissed Off Unicorn faced off
against Duke Robotics’ Thresh to start the Fleaweight
bracket. Both robots spun up to full speed and met in
the center of the arena, taking direct weapon hits that
launched the tiny robots against the walls. One big hit
broke one of Thresh’s weapon rails, as Pissed off Unicorn
FIGURE 1. Capricant pushes
Blue Devil into the wall during
this Antweight match.
FIGURE 2. Antweight
Capricant almost
pushes Calamity Kid
out through the
drop- out zone!
FIGURE 3.
Fleaweight
BoomStick
loses his
weapon
versus I Kid.
TABLE 1 - GCRS 11 WINNERS
FLEA ANT BEETLE
1st: I Kid Capricant Steve
2nd: Pissed Off Unicorn Calamity Kid
DeJa Voodoo
3rd:
inVertigo
WhipperSnapper Voodoo Magic
32 SERVO 04.2013