2012 Kickoff
2012 Kickoff Begins “the” Six Week Build!
Mark the date, January 7, 2012! That’s Kickoff for the 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition season. In our region, FRC Kickoffs will be held in several venues across Minnesota, including St. Cloud, Duluth, Minneapolis and Mankato, as well as Fargo, ND.
FRC Teams! Please attend the Kickoff venue you indicated in TIMS! Do not make a last minute decision to travel to a different location. Your Team’s Kit of Parts will be shipped to the Kickoff location you select in TIMS.
The NASA Webcast will begin at 9:30 AM CT. Please check with your specific Kickoff venue for check-in and registration times, and for directions to that venue. For Minneapolis-Coffman Union, registration will run from 8 AM to 9 AM.
The 2012 Kickoff will be held at Coffman Union on the East Bank campus of the U of Minnesota. Because Washington Ave is under construction, please see the following page for parking and driving directions (http://sua.umn.edu/about/directions/coffman.php).
At every kickoff location, you will be carrying out the Kit of Parts. Please be sure that you have a hand truck or cart. The KOP consists of one long box, a battery, and one tote (27” x 17” x 12”, 70 lbs). Rookies Teams-only will receive an additional tote. A light continental breakfast will be provided. At the Minneapolis Kickoff, a mockup of the field elements will be available for inspection after the broadcast.
Important Note: At Kickoff registration, teams must submit a Team Roster in order to be formally registered and eligible to receive the KOP. This team roster must list all current students and mentors. It must indicate whether the students and mentors have either submitted the FIRST 2012 Consent and Release Form online or are submitting paper consent forms. If the consent forms are submitted online, the names will appear on the team roster. However, if students and mentors are submitting paper forms, team leaders must write in the names of those students and mentors. The paper forms should be stapled to the Team Roster.
Team leaders: Ahead of Kickoff, please go into TIMS and print out the roster. Check that all of your mentors and students are listed, and write in the names of all students and mentors that did not file a consent form online. Write your Team Number on the roster! Attach paper consent forms to the printed roster for those mentors and students that did not file their C&R form online with FIRST.
Click this link for the FIRST Consent & Release form: http://usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/content.aspx?id=8128
After turning in all Consent Forms and the Team Roster, the designated team leader will be given a Kit of Parts (KOP) receipt. Do not fill out the KOP receipt until after you have received all of the KOP boxes. The Kit of Parts will be given out only after the broadcast concludes.
Because of the large number of teams attending the Minneapolis Kickoff (90 teams) and the seating requirements for the PoKo event (see below), the broadcast will be shown in two locations at Coffman Union, the Great Hall and the Theater.
Kickoff schedule:
8:00am to 9:00am – registration – Great Hall, Coffman Union
9:00am to 9:30am – introduction- Great Hall and Theater, Coffman Union
9:30am to 11:00am – 2012 Kickoff broadcast from FIRST - Great Hall and Theater, Coffman Union
11:00am to 12:15pm – Kit of Parts distribution – Great Hall, Coffman Union
11:30am to 3:50pm – Post Kickoff Event (optional for teams) – Great Hall, Coffman Union
Post Kickoff Event (PoKo):
GOFIRST, the FIRST student alumni group at the U of MN, will be hosting their second annual Post Kick Off Event directly after the KOP distribution. During PoKo, teams will be analyzing the 2012 FRC game in order to better understand the rules for the season and reviewing the design process to give teams a place to start thinking about the robot they'd like to build.
From 11:30am-12:30pm, lunch will be available. Each team is expected to bring $5/person for lunch.
From 12:30pm-3:30pm, teams will be analyzing the 2012 FRC game, reviewing a build schedule and timeline of the 2012 season, going over the standard industry design process, and then starting a list of requirements with their group.
The event will end by 3:30pm and teams are expected to out of the building by 3:50pm. Please plan accordingly with rides since the building will close at 4pm, no xceptions.
If your team is interested, contact: GOFIRST@umn.edu. Teams must contact GOFIRST-only and sign up for the event by December 28th. By January 4th, teams need to formally RSVP for the event by stating the number of students they will be bringing. Teams will be expected to pay for the amount of people they RSVP for. If more members show up to the event, it will be possible to buy additional lunches for your team. Please e-mail GOFIRST and include your name, team number, and a phone number to reach you at if you are interested in this event!
GOFIRST is also seeking help to webcast this year's PoKo event. Please read this flyer detailing how your team can help!
Directions
Coffman Memorial Union
300 Washington Ave., SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455-0110