Frequently Asked Questions

Why is your team nickname the 'Flaming Chickens?': We tossed around a few ideas and really liked the name, and besides, this way Tyler gets to wear a chicken suit! You can see our Flaming Chicken in action, as well as our always exciting robots, if you come to a competition!

Why are the robots named as they are?: Once again, we broke our team's tradition of naming our robots after chicken celebrities. This year, our competition robot's name is "Pyro", and our prototype's name is "Spy". It is a play off a video game characters, plus we liked thought Pyro a fitting name for a flaming chicken! Last year, we chose the name "Epic," with the prototype "Fail." Epic Fail? Our awards beg to differ! We chose the name of our 2008 robot, "Nemo" (along with our prototype robot "Dory"), after the characters in the movie "Finding Nemo." Our 2007 competition robot, "Fowler," was named after another character in the movie "Chicken Run." Our 2006 competition robot was called "Free Ranger" in general respect to our friendly organic chicken, and also out of pure glee. Our 2005 robot was named "Rocky," also after a character from "Chicken Run."

What is this year's competition?: Breakaway!

How long does it take to build a robot?: For the competition we only have 6 weeks to design, build, and fix our robot. However, in the off season we usually take 3 or 4 weeks to build a general-purpose robot.

How large are these robots?: Robot size varies depending on the competition guidelines. Please visit the Our Robots page for more detail about this year's robot.

What does last year's team 1540 robot do?: Last year's robot can collect moon rocks and cells through a system of conveyers and an elevator to throw collected cells and moon rocks into other trailers. You can check out the latest on Epic here. The previous year's robot, Nemo, could pick up, carry and lift large balls from the ground or a platform and deliver them onto platforms. Drop by Our Robots page for more information.

How many people work on the robot?: During the competition season, nearly everyone in the team contributes to designing and building the robot. In the beginning of the season we all sit down and brainstorm about the general design of the robot. Then, once our design is decided, we split up into our different departments (for a list of all our departments and their purpose go to our Departments section), and start working on the robot.

What aspects of the robot is student designed?: We proudly say that all of our robots are 99.99999% student designed. We may seek the mentors for advice and help, but all design decisions are discussed and decided by the students.

How do I contact the Catlin Gabel Robotics Team?: All of our contact information is at Contact Us section of our website.

How do I become a volunteer for the Flaming Chickens?: Please contact our Head Coach, Dale Yocum (our mentor) for more information.

How do I become a sponsor for the Catlin Gabel Robotics Society?: We would love you to help sponsor our program. Please contact our head coach, Dale Yocum for specifics.

What is FIRST?: To find out more about first we invite you to visit our FIRST Competition section, or go directly to the FIRST website.