Hello! Welcome to IntroVex, your robotics guide to VEXcellence. In this article, I will introduce what to expect in a VEX competition season using the example of my previous seasons in both VEX IQ and V5.
Timeline Overview
A complete robot season timeline would start from around June to May of next year, from the uploading of the current season's Game Manual to the next season's Game Manual.
A season is so long that a lot of events occur, and your photo album will be filled with pictures as well as videos of your robot runs. You may also meet a lot of new people along the way, which is the most exciting part of participating in robotics.
Starting in June, you will experience multiple robot construction cycles and improve your robot after each competition. At the end of February, you will know if you got the ticket to the VEX World Championship.
Next, I will talk about each section of the competition season in detail, follow along!! Please note that the following are based on my experience in Taiwan, it may differ in your country!
Robot Generation Cycle
The classroom buzzed with the clatter of tools and the whir of spinning wheels. Lively conversations and brainstorming sessions echoed throughout the room, creating a vibrant symphony of collaboration.
"Ah! It’s that time again—to design and test our new robot!"
Your first robot construction starts shortly after the release of the Game Manual, or it may start a bit later than this. You may be searching for inspiration, developing your prototype, or discussing with your teammates. The first robot may not be perfect, but it would give you insights on how to improve.
After the robot is built, programming is needed to test its functions. You may find a few, if not multiple problems with the robot. Here comes the most tiring part, solving a series of problems, but once you complete all of them, the sense of accomplishment is definitely going to be huge.
Competitions
The most important type of event in a competition season is a competition/tournament. These are times when you use the robot and program that you have prepared through the past few months to win awards for yourself.
A season may contain from 1 to over 10 competitions based on your location, goals, and time. From my example, one season contains around 3 competitions nationwide. One of them being a Qualifier and one being Nationals which is the one that gives out world positions.
Competitions may last from a day up to three, depending on the number of teams participating. More details about competition agendas will be introduced in future content!😊
Final Destination: VEX Worlds
After your national competition, you will know very soon whether you got into Worlds or not. If you didn't get the ticket through your state competitions, you will still have the chance to be chosen through skill rankings if there are extra positions released.
VEX Worlds consists of three consecutive days and is in a significantly larger scope than you can imagine. There are hundreds of teams competing and you can get loads of souvenirs during the event. If you have the opportunity to go, please do so and try to enjoy the competition as much as you can!!
Conclusion
The VEX competition season is full of surprises and happiness along the way, but there are also times you might feel defeated by a complex problem from your robot or code. Ultimately, participating in VEX Robotics will definitely lead to your mental and physical growth.
If you are someone who is willing to start and has the opportunity, please do so. If you are someone who has participated for a long time, please continue! Anyway, VEX Robotics brings more joy than you would imagine!
This is IntroVex, your robotics guide to VEXcellence, see you next time!!
