Wahluke gets first taste of robot challenge
Miguel Quintero, Elian Rivera, Manuel Soto, David Torres, and Toby Martinez, the 5th World Warriors of Wahluke, watch anxiously as it faces the second round of the Sumo Bot competition. Because of programming issues, the robot was disqualified for not engaging. The idea was to push the opponent out of the ring.
Miguel Quintero, Elian Rivera, Manuel Soto, David Torres, and Toby Martinez, the 5th World Warriors of Wahluke, work feverishly to program their robot.
MATTAWA - Wahluke High School technology students got their first taste of robot competition at Zillah on Dec. 1, and it was tough to swallow.
Of the 64 teams that participated, Wahluke finished 49th.
"We had programming issues," coach Rich Arlt said.
There were 275 students at the 9th Zillah Robot Challenge from 27 high schools, making up 64 teams. The veteran teams did best, with Bickleton taking first, Royal second and Zillah third with 24.5, 26 and 26.5 points respectively. Wahluke had 114.5.
Wahluke's struggle was not unexpected. The Wahluke team entered late and members were late building and learning their robot, as well as proper programming.
"We wanted to go, no matter what," Arlt said. "We wanted to have the experience."
Challenge organizer and director Jeff Charbonneau of Zillah said: "While certainly teams wanted to win, it was much more evident that they were simply enjoying the challenge and the chance to work with other like-minded students. Each school should be proud of their participation."
The next Zillah Robot Challenge for High Schools will take place on Saturday, March 9. Applications will be available in early January. Robot kits will be delivered the last week of January.