BBE robotics team has good showing in Duluth
Members of the BBE Robotics team (from left) are Tom Gjerstad, Nathan Wander, Joe Borgerding, Tyler Borgerding, Nathaniel Bast, Ben Wetzel and Jacob Solbrecken.
The BBE rookie robotics team really impressed the judges and other teams with their pneumatic launching system.
The BBE team was the only one with a robot that used a pneumatic launching system and did very well with it. Other teams kept stopping by and commenting about how impressed they were with it.
The team worked hard battling programming and mechanical issues from the first practice day. By the time the competition started, all was working well.
During the first round, the robot took a tremendous hit, caving in one of the main supports. It was checked over and all seemed fine. The second match it ran fine for 20 seconds, then the right drive gave out. The robot was tested in the pits and worked fine. The next match the same thing happened, so the motor drive was replaced. After that the robot worked great, and the team had some tremendous matches doing very well. Later, it was determined the hit the robot took broke a cooling fan on a motor drive, causing it to overheat and shut down. Even with this bad luck, the team finished 33rd out of 64, beating many experienced teams and more importantly showing that BBE robotics has what it takes.
The team members are already planning for next year and are always looking for sponsors. Money is needed for tools and spare parts. Please call 320-254-8211 ext. 2153 if you can help.
