The Future Looks Bright for Team Oz-Ram

By Tucker Gaskill

Every January thirty students and ten adults huddle together in a small room for hours at a time every night for six weeks. Why you might ask? It is Hopkinton and John Stark’s First Robotics Team. The season begins on January 8th, when 2500+ teams all around the world, at the exact same time, sit down and watch a broadcast that gives them all the information about this year’s game. Starting from that time, all the teams have exactly six weeks to design, build, and ship the robot.

Before that cold morning in January, no team across the planet has any idea on what the game might be this year, or what rules might be changed since last year. The only thing teams know is that they have six weeks to build and ship the robot. After that broadcast explaining the game, all the teams across the world meet to start to design and build the robot. In the first few days Team Oz-Ram sits around the room and discusses (or argues) about how our robot is going to work, what our robot is going to do, and what our robot is going to look like. Throughout the six weeks, we somehow get a robot put together through all of the meals, arguing, mechanical problems, and through just the challenge of time itself.

All throughout March and the beginning of April, the Regional events start all over the world. All of the events are three days: Thursday is a practice day, Friday is qualifying rounds, Saturday morning is the last of the qualifying rounds, and Saturday afternoon is all of the championship rounds. Out of every event there are five teams that can go to the championship event at the end of April previously held in Atlanta, but now in St. Louis. The three teams who win the regional get to go, as do the Chairmen’s award winning team, and the Rookie All Star award winning team.

Team Oz-Ram has had huge success since their rookie year in 2006. They have received these awards: 2006 rookie all stars, 2007 semi finalist in Boston regional, 2007 website award in the Granite State regional, 2007 Imagery award in the Granite State regional and the Boston regional, 2010 finalist in Granite State regional, 2010 winners in Boston regional, ranked 12^th in the world 2010.

When asked what he would like to accomplish this year, head mentor Will Renauld said, “I’d like to equal or even better what we accomplished last year.” When asked what he thinks about the team itself Renauld said, “It’s been an amazing run so far. Just traveling with the kids and competing at the level we compete at for this small of a school, it’s been a great experience.”