Seniors 2018-19

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The four amazing seniors that are graduating from IA this year and played an important role in our robotics team 469 are Dyson, Victor, Julia and Anjay. Good Luck to our Seniors in all their future endeavours!

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Titi Tran, our lead mentor, shop is whose second home during build season, has cared and observed our seniors closely working on the robot. In his words:

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Spencer -  It was interesting to watch a very quiet freshman who matured by taking on roles that many of us find tedious. He took it upon himself to compile our scouting data as the rest of us enjoyed the tournament, help setup the first RookieBot training with a controller & programming, stepping up his final year to take on Drive Chassis, and finally motivating teammates to help seek the spirit award... something that most of us who know Spencer found pleasantly shocking. That's taking the Initiative... and its color is green. Society needs people who can take on the jobs many don't want to do or mistakenly feel it's not important. They're the leaders that you don't need to ask to get something done,  because they're way ahead of you already.

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Dyson - It was good to see Dyson get the opportunity to support the team as he always wanted this year, but didn't have the chance due to logistics in prior years. I never knew he was so well-versed in robotics, because I never got the chance to see him in action. The team is glad to have him run the Cargo system this year and make it operable after many tries and tweaks. Like his fight to get solid hours his final year, Dyson teaches us Determination and comes unshaven. For those who think you have it hard and can't possibly make it, know that you probably won't... unless you take things into your own hands with some Determination. 

 

Julia - Another quiet figure when she joined the team, Julia came to us with a lot of curiosity and an obvious thirst to learn. I think that thirst is what drove her through all of the ups and downs she faced over these 4 years... including having a design failure during the first tournament on her system last year, which would  shut down many a student, but not her. What she did to shake it off and jump back in shows us what Courage is all about. For those who are afraid to take on a challenge, because you're afraid to fail, let me remind you that one can't exactly succeed either if one is always taking the easy road or choosing to stay on the bench.

 

Anjay - Although his presence was just 2 years Anjay has been able to leave a legacy... of economic diatribe of which many still want to beat down with pool noodles with each and every utterance. But seriously, be it economics or watching him come back for more and more on the Hatch system this year impressed me. Like many of those who have tried to lead something he experienced a setback prior to this FRC season that can make people your age question their abilities. Instead of giving up he jumped right back in to help support his team leads and together they came up with a system they could rely on. Selfless acts like that (for the team) helps not only build Confidence for a system, but more importantly rebuild one's own Self Confidence, which is not to be mistaken with arrogance. If you want to build your own Self Confidence don't be a spectator. 

 

 

Victor - Another half-timer (2nd year) to the team, Victor joined after returning from Europe where he must have learned the skill for Working To Live (vs Living To Work), because his penchant for looking like he's perpetually sleepy masked the perpetual motion machine this season that he became... when it came to fabricating and assembly. If you needed something done he was on it. Lord knows the Intake system required more rebuilds than a DC Comics super hero film strategy, but Victor accepted the tedious work, because we need it done. Furthermore when he was made the Driver he could have zoned out during matches and fantacized about rowing through his Mustang's 6 gears while drifting around the Cargo Ship, but he didnt... always obeying the coach's guidance, which allowed us some spectacular defensive maneuvers. The ability to ignore the pain or tedium or more fun or easy/lazy urges... in order to stay on goal/target is called Discipline. Discipline is one of the most important traits you can have throughout life as it aids in everything from survival to success. And unlike other things I mentioned, there is no risk of Fail in choosing the Disciplined path to your goal, because it always result in Win.