Robotics Team is going to World Championship in Houston!

Fan support for the Digital Dislocators was amazing at State Competition last weekend!

submitted by Andy Galicki, Manchester Digital Dislocators

This past weekend, the Manchester Digital Dislocators traveled to Saginaw Valley State University to compete in the Michigan State Championship. We started off strong, but did experience some issues late in day two. At the end of qualification, we were ranked 16th in our field with a record of 5–7.

During alliance selection, the team was selected as the first pick of alliance 2! We fought through the double elimination bracket, but unfortunately were eliminated one match before the finals on our field! Thank you so much to 3668 | TroBots from Whitmore Lake and 4776 | S.C.O.T.S. Bots from Howell for being such wonderful alliance partners! We had such an amazing time playing with you!

Being eliminated wasn’t the end of our weekend, though! The Digital Dislocators were the recipients of the Industrial Design award, which celebrates the team that demonstrates industrial design principles, striking a balance between form, function, and aesthetics. Also, our very own Bodi Foulke was chosen as a Dean’s List finalist and will compete for the award at the world championship!

He won’t be alone, though … because after the dust settled this weekend, the Digital Dislocators are ranked 21st in the state of Michigan and have qualified to compete at the world championship in Houston, Texas! This is the first time the team has made it this far, and we are so thrilled! The expenses for this trip to worlds are quite extensive, and we are doing our best to make it as affordable as possible for all of our students, mentors, and their families. Thank you so much to all who have already supported us in this endeavor. It has already made such a difference for us.

If you would like to support us, here is a link to our GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/a555264b

Or if you’d prefer to offer your support via cash or check, you can always mail them to Manchester Community Schools, Attn. Robotics, with Robotics on the memo line.

We’d like to thank all of the students, mentors, and parents for their dedication and hard work, this season and always. We know it’s a lot and that sometimes we spend more time with our bots than we do with our families. We appreciate everything that you do for us.

Additionally, thank you to Caife Aspire, Chuck’s Auto Repair Shop, the Manchester Athletic Boosters, the Manchester Men’s Club, the Manchester Masons, AMCOR Rigid Plastics, Worth Repeating, and all of our other amazing sponsors for everything that you have done for our FTC and FRC programs over the years and especially this season. The official FTC field allowed The Flying Dutchbots to precisely test all of our robot functions without worrying about variables, and the purchase of swerve drive enabled the Digital Dislocators to design a robot that is significantly more efficient and versatile than in previous years. Your support helped both of our programs to take home winning banners this season as well as make it to the playoffs in both of their respective state championships! We couldn’t have done any of this without your gracious support, and we are so incredibly thankful for each and every one of you.

The world championship will be held at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas, from April 19 to the 22. For those interested in following the team, there will be online coverage on Twitch.

Manchester’s Bodi Foulke will compete for the Dean’s List at Worlds April 19–22!

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.