254A History

Team 254A is the oldest of the 254 VEX teams, which first competed in the 2008 FIRST Tech Challenge as Team 567. Relying mostly upon private donations and personal savings, the team far surpassed its original '08 expectations, winning a tournament, seeding second at another, and seeding fourth in Franklin Division at the World Championship. This initial success opened up many more resources, making multiple VEX teams a reality for the first time ever.

Upon FIRST's decision to switch to a new robotics platform in 2008, the team transitioned to the VEX Robotics Competition for the 2009 season, and helped found the other 254 VRC teams. Under its new team number, 254A achieved great success, culminating in the World Championship CREATE Award.

With two tournaments left in its 2010 season, 254A has been fortunate enough to receive seventeen qualifications to World Championships, including seven tournament victories and three Excellence Awards. We look forward to meeting old friends and making new ones!

Members

Batt: Battery, B: Build, C: Coach, D1: Driver, D2: Operator, M: Media, P: Programming

2008: Quad Quandary

• John Mueller, Captain (B, P, M, D2)
• Michael Chrisman (B, D1)
• Kendall Searing (M)
• Taylor Furtado - Honorary (B)

2009: Elevation

• John Mueller, Captain (B, P, M, D2)
• Taylor Furtado (B, D1)
• Tyler Santos-Matson (D1)
• Kendall Searing (B, M)
• Drew Willner - Honorary (B, D1)

2010: Clean Sweep

• John Mueller, Captain (B, D2, P, M, C)
• Taylor Furtado (B, D1, M)
• Avery Norris (D2, P)
• Charlie DePalmo - Honorary (Batt, M)
• Roshan Patel - Honorary (D1)
• Kendall Searing - Honorary (D2)

Match Data and Awards

Team 254A is 136-29-1 on the field. For a tournament-by-tournament breakdown, please click here.

Team 254A has qualified for World Championships at ten regionals, winning nine of them. The team won the CREATE Award at the 2009 World Championships, the Excellence and Tournament titles at the Inaugural All-Star Championship, and the Tournament title at the Second Pan-Pacific Championship.

Robots

Fat Boy '08 ★ 31.5 lbs, ~18"x18"x18", ~144 gears, 36" stretch (outward) 1 bumper switch 6-wheel, 4-motor drive, top speed 1.20 fps 4-motor unfolding arm, 35:1 gearing Dual intake roller intake, 1:1 gearing, cap. 6 rings Retractable platform hook, geared to arm
Rambo '09 ★ 22.5 lbs, ~18"x18"x18", 38" stretch (upward) 1 potentiometer, 2 limit switches 4-motor, 8-wheel drive, top speed 1.20 fps 2-motor single-joint arm (360-degree freedom), 35:1 gearing 2-motor arm extender, 1:1 gearing 1-motor wrist (360-degree freedom), 7:1 gearing 1-motor quad intake roller double-ended basket, 1:1 gearing, cap. 6 cubes Autoloader pull (5 cubes in ~12 sec) Bonus cube (multi-directional)
RoboRanger I '09 15.0 lbs, ~18"x18"x18", 293-line OperatorControl() code with OperatorAuto functions 1 potentiometer, 4 ultrasonic sensors, 3 limit switches 6-motor, 6-wheel drive, top speed 1.74 fps 1-motor dual tank tread + dual 4" rim intake, 1:1 gearing, cap. 5 cubes 1-motor single-joint arm, 25:1 gearing 1-motor arm extender, 1:3 gearing 1-motor dual intake roller claw, 1:1 gearing, cap. 1 cube Autoloader pull (5 cubes in ~5 sec) Bonus cube (multi-directional), Platform
The Cheesy Failure '09 10.0 lbs, ~18"x18"x18", > 3 ft. of chain 2 potentiometers, 2 optical shaft quadrature encoders, 2 limit switches, 2 bumper switches 6-motor, 6-wheel drive, top speed 3.60 fps 2-motor single-joint arm, 7:1 gearing 2-motor dual chain + dual 4" rim intake/outtake, 10:24 gearing, cap. 5 cubes Autoloader pull (5 cubes in ~4 sec) Bonus cube (multi-directional)
RoboRanger II '09 18.0 lbs, ~18"x18"x18", 496-line OperatorControl() code with OperatorAuto functions 1 potentiometer, 2 ultrasonic sensors, 2 optical shaft quadrature encoders, 3 limit switches, 2 bumper switches 4-motor, 6-wheel drive, top speed 2.91 fps 2-motor dual tank tread + quad 4" rim intake, 1:3 gearing, cap. 5 cubes 2-motor single-joint arm, 7:1 gearing 1-motor arm extender, 1:3 gearing 1-motor dual tank tread outtake, 1:1 gearing, cap. 4 cubes Automated autoloader pull (5 cubes in ~2.5 sec) Bonus cube (multi-directional)
The Alpha Release '10 ★★★★★★★★★★ ? ? ? ? ? ? ?	?
The Beta Release '10 ★★★★★★★ ? ? ? ? ? ? ?	?

Contact

John Mueller, Captain: jmueller.bcp@gmail.com

This page is for the most part duplicated on the 254A Wiki on Vex Forum. Besides the detailed tournament data, this page contains all public information about VRC Team 254A.