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6 September
Saturday
South High School
Denver
Noon - 4 PM
Practice Day
11 October
Saturday
Thomas Jefferson High School Denver
9 AM - 3 PM
Game Day 18 October Saturday Auraria Event Center Denver 7:30 AM - 5 PM
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Steering Team
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Carolyn Bauer-Hub Director, Game
JoAnne Fry and Lori Lazuk-
Consumable Kits
Jose Lopez-School Interface
MSU Students-Protobot
Linda King-Volunteer Interface
Linda Scott-Secretary, Awards & Judging
Lois Walton-Budget
Patty Gaspar-Events
Scott McEwen-Venues
Board of Directors
Kathy Geise - President
Linda Scott - Vice President
Jose Lopez - Executive Director
Carolyn Bauer - Secretary & Hub Director
Lois Walton - Treasurer
Tim Bouvia - Member at Large
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Welcome to the July 2014 Rocky Mountain BEST Volunteer Newsletter.
It is just a little over 30 days to the Kickoff Event for our 5th annual BEST robotics competition and we hope we can find ways to get YOU involved.
In this newsletter, we provide an update on schools interested in competing in 2014 and announce we have an open school slot to fill. We highlight our recent successful Teacher / Mentor Institute with 18 of this year's talented teacher's and mentors and also our planned 9 August Erie Air Fair participation. We describe volunteer help needed this summer to assemble the kits and construct the game field and also volunteer help for our September and October 2014 events. We'd love to see you at the events.
Please forward this newsletter to others who might be interested in Rocky Mountain (RM) BEST.
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2014 Blade Runner
Just over a month until Kick Off reveal on Saturday 6 September!
We now have 31 schools from around much of Colorado interested in competing. In the last month, several schools had to change their plans so we now need ONE MORE school to compete in our planned 32 school competition. The four 2014 rookie schools are in italics and underlined in the table below.
Please ask any schools that might be interested to visit our website or contact Jose Lopez at [email protected].
| 2014 School | City | 2014 School | City | | Academy for Advanced & Creative Learning | Colorado Springs | Manning Middle School | Golden | | Aurora Central High School | Aurora | New Vista High School | Boulder | | Bear Creek High School | Lakewood | North Middle School | Aurora | | Bishop Machebeuf High School | Denver | Rangeview High School | Aurora | | Broomfield High School | Broomfield | Russell MS | Colorado Springs | | Chaparral HS | Parker | Skyline High School | Longmont | | Cripple Creek-Victor High School | Cripple Creek-Victor | Skyview Middle School | Colorado Springs | | Dakota Ridge High School | Littleton | St. Mary's Academy High School | Englewood | | Denver School of Science & Technology | Denver | Standley Lake HS | Westminster | | Denver South HS | Denver | STEM Academy | Highland Ranch | | East High School | Denver | Thomas Jefferson High School | Denver | | Gateway High School | Aurora | Trinidad Middle School | Trinidad | | Golden High School | Golden | Warren Tech Central | Lakewood | | Lakewood High School | Lakewood | Wheat Ridge High School | Wheat Ridge | | Legend High School | Parker | Woodland Park Middle School | Woodland Park | | Lone Star/Otis High School | Otis | OPEN SLOT | |
If you missed it previously, check out the 67 second Blade Runner Teaser Video . Is there a hint in the teaser about this year's game? |
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Successful 2014 Teacher / Mentor Institute
18 Teachers and Mentors Participate in BEST Robotics Training
 Our annual Teacher / Mentor Institute was held at Metro State University of Denver (MSU), Aviation and Aerospace Department on 21 and 22 July.
MSU's facilities were excellent with an added experience of tours of their World Indoor Airport Aerospace Science lab by Jose Lopez and the Aviation Technologies labs by TJ DeCino.
During the two days, we hosted 18 experienced and rookie teachers and mentors from Thomas Jefferson High School, Golden High School, East High School, Trinidad Middle School, Woodland Park Middle School, Cripple Creek-Victor High School, St. Mary's Academy, Manning Middle School, Aurora Central High School, Skyline High School, STEM Academy, and Academy for Advanced and Creative Learning. In groups of 3, they built and competed their own designed robots. Thomas Jefferson High School won the exciting competition with the cheers drawing an audience from across the building.
  Thanks to all our volunteers! Scott McEwen organized and executed the event with other members of the RM BEST Steering Team's support. Kevin Barrett provided easyC training and Mike King guided the teams. We were thrilled to have the following experienced teachers and mentors share their competition insights in panel discussions: Dave Gesler, Joel Noble, Linda Vose, and Pamela Webb.
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Volunteers Needed Near Term
Kit Team and Game Field (July and August) Help Needed
Monday Kit Team (July - August): The Kit Team is finalizing the returnable and consumable kits that will be provided to each team that participates in the 2014 competition. They meet most Mondays at 999 Vallejo St #2, Denver near I-25 and 8th Avenue from 10 AM - 3 PM. No experience or specific skill is needed. They are now in their crunch time....every Monday in August will count and then some! Their final meeting will be on 25 August for Tote Party Day when they will finish the consumable kits. In addition, they will need to move their racks and material from the second floor to the first floor and will NEED extra helpers for this big task. We'll let you know when we have a schedule.  If interested in receiving the kit team email for schedule updates and other information, please contact Carolyn at [email protected].
Game Field Builders (July - August): Use BEST provided drawings to construct and assemble game field pieces. We expect to have final drawings available very soon with construction in July and August. Full assembly of all components and testing must be completed at least two weeks prior to 6 September Kickoff. Multiple separate components permit multiple independent helpers to separately construct their components.Tools needed include the following depending on component: saws to cut plywood, lumber, foam, and PVC; wood sander; paint brushes; drill for bolt holes; and bolt and screw drivers. Skills needed include: read drawings, construct using tools above, and assemble components with glue (PVC), screws, and nuts/bolts. If interested, please contact Carolyn at [email protected] for more information.
Kit and Game Field Donations - We need ideas on obtaining zero or reduced cost consumable robot and game field materials. For example, we need lots of PVC pipes and wood. If you have suggestions or need more information, please contact JoAnne at [email protected].
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Erie Air Fair - Adventure Zone, 9 August
10 AM - 4 PM at Erie Municipal Airport - 395 Airport Rd Erie CO
 Rocky Mountain BEST is participating in the Children's Adventure Zone on 9 August at the Erie Air Fair. Attendance is FREE.
RM BEST will be demonstrating a part of the 2013 GATEKEEPER game, with visitors driving the robot. The robot, EVA, will attend to provide a different driving experience. And, of course, we'll have information about RM BEST and the 2014 game.
The Erie Air Show will have its 2nd Annual Colorado Aviation Classic with Aircraft Judging and Fly Mart. We hope to see you there!!
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Volunteers Needed for 2014 Events
Kickoff 6 September, Practice Day 11 October, and Game Day 18 October
 We are starting detailed planning for this year's events and are collecting names of those interested in volunteering.
Please check your calendars and mark these events.
Most event day positions require no advanced training or specific skills and require from 2 to 8 hours of your time on the day of the event. These positions include setup, registration desks, pit monitors, first aid, staging crew, lunch set up, and venue cleanup. The Practice and Game day referee and scorekeeper positions require advance review of documents and attendance at a training session prior to Practice Day and compliance check positions requires document review.
Please contact Linda at [email protected] for more information or to get on the event volunteer lists.
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We would not be successful without you! We are looking forward to working with you in 2014.
Sincerely,
Linda King
Volunteer Interface, Rocky Mountain BEST
 
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