Monthly Archive: December 2009

Dec 20

Mod Sim Strategy 2020 Released in Hampton Roads

Categories:

Education & Workforce, Innovation

by HR Partnership

News at ODU

John Sokolowski, director of research and interim executive director of Old Dominion University’s Virginia Modeling, Analysis and Simulation Center (VMASC), led a forum Wednesday, Dec. 16, at which he laid out a vision for the growth of modeling and simulation in the region.

John Sokolowski

An emerging economic sector in the past few decades, helped by the creation of VMASC in 1997, M&S is ready to explode in importance for the entire Hampton Roads region, Sokolowski told a roomful of representatives of industry, government, the military and academia at VMASC’s Suffolk research center.

The forum was conducted to present “Hampton Roads 2020,” the regional M&S strategic plan created by business and government leaders, as well as VMASC.

Research and development in multi-disciplinary M&S helps differentiate Hampton Roads from other modeling and simulation clusters such as Orlando, Fla., and Huntsville, Ala., Sokolowski said.

“Over the years, we’ve seen it evolve into a multidisciplinary, problem-solving toolkit in many areas,” Sokolowski told the crowd while standing in front of a giant video board.

“To help you understand better what multi-disciplinary modeling and simulation is, it’s not just a military thing. It’s also supporting the medical and health care area, transportation. There are many, clear uses for modeling and simulation. We’re even working in the social science area.”

The framers of Hampton Roads 2020 created a vision statement for M&S in the region: “Hampton Roads is the international nexus for modeling, simulation and visualization, where industry, academic and government organizations access the most innovative technologies for solving complex problems and making smarter decisions.”

Sokolowski told the gathering that taking M&S from traditional military applications into broader areas involves a multi-pronged approach. “It’s very much a partnership between industry, academia and government. Remove one of those partners and it doesn’t work nearly as well.”

Fourth District Virginia Congressman Randy Forbes made a video presentation at the meeting because votes on Capitol Hill prevented him from attending. He said state and federal representatives of both parties from Virginia are committed to making strategic investments to allow the Hampton Roads M&S cluster to flourish.

Proof of that is the $2.7 million in federal stimulus funds earmarked for M&S researchers to do multi-disciplinary emergency planning, Forbes said. “Our region is planting a flag in the ground to let the world know there’s no more knowledgeable, thriving hub of modeling and simulation anywhere,” he said.

Dana Dickens of the Hampton Roads Partnership, one of the participants in Hampton Roads 2020, said this region is the best organized in the country in its ability to support turning modeling and simulation research into business innovation, leading to real growth.

He said one thing that helps is an education strategy that starts M&S instruction in middle school and continues it through the post-doctoral level.

“Working together, pooling our assets, will put us all in a better position,” Dickens said.

ODU now offers a bachelor’s degree in modeling and simulation engineering, making it the only school in the country to provide a complete M&S education, from undergrad to post-doctoral. ODU just announced the creation of a Department of Modeling, Simulation and Visualization Engineering in the Batten College of Engineering and Technology, which will help further promote the school as a hub for the research.

Concluding the meeting, John Dannon, a senior analyst with Lockheed Martin and chair of the VMASC industry advisory board, looked around the room at many faces he’d never seen before in the crowd of 150. He invited them to get involved in helping shape the future of M&S in Hampton Roads.

“Read through the strategic plan. I’m sure there’s something you’ll see that will make you say, ‘That’s what I can do to help.’”

The stakeholders in the M&S industry in Hampton Roads will gather again at a breakfast to be hosted by VMASC on Jan. 29. The strategic plan for M&S in the region will be discussed further, and volunteers sought to help shape the industry locally.

Click here to download your copy of the Hampton Roads Modeling & Simulation Strategy 2020 (12 pages, 4.7MB).

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Dec 19

Happy Birthday to the U. S. Marine Corps

Categories:

Military Bastion

by HR Partnership

MarinesThe 4th Supply Battalion, 4th MLG, held their Marine Corps Birthday Ball at the in Newport News on Saturday, November 14, 2009.

Major General Cornell A. Wilson Jr., guest of honor for the evening, is currently serving as the Commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces South in Miami, Florida and the Deputy Commander of the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Command (MARFORCOM) in Norfolk, Virginia.

In celebration, everyone first paused to reflect and pay tribute to those Marines who have given the last full measure in defense of freedom. Gratitude was extended to the Marine Corps families – the unsung heroes who endure hardship and sacrifice so that the Marine is able to go forward and accomplish the mission. Appreciation was extended to their countrymen who have answered the Marines’ every need. And they celebrated the magnificent men and women who willingly and selflessly continue to go into harm’s way to protect this great nation.

Marines are “Soldiers of the Sea,” defenders of our country, and protectors of the ideology which our forefathers, in their wisdom, instilled in the hearts and minds of our nation.

To all who have gone before, to those who wear the uniform today, and to the families that give them the strength to forge ahead, we wish you all a heartfelt HAPPY 234th BIRTHDAY.

excerpts from an article by Sue Wyatt in the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce’s monthly newsletter, Enterprise, December 2009

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Dec 18

Historic Battle of Great Bridge

Categories:

About Hampton Roads, Military Bastion, Tourism, Arts & Culture

by HR Partnership

Paul Clancy 320pxThe Battle of Great Bridge, one of the earliest and most important battles of the Revolutionary War, is re-enacted every first weekend in December.

By the time you read this, dozens of Redcoat reenactors will have fallen to the cold, soggy ground beside the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River as Patriot sharpshooters catch them in a murderous crossfire. That’s not all that takes place in this event. There are encampments, character portrayals, lectures and skilled crafts demonstrators. But the battle recreation, depicting a furious half hour in the history of Hampton Roads (Tidewater), is the centerpiece.

In a prelude to the 2009 weekend events, the City of Chesapeake held a dedication ceremony for a new street, Billy Flora Way, just north of the bridge. It is named for a freed slave from Portsmouth who fought on the Patriot side during the Revolutionary War. During the battle on Dec. 9, 1775, he was one of the last sentinels to leave his post as the enemy advanced.

Great Bridge Waterways

Flora withdrew “amidst a shower of musket balls, returning fire eight times.” Flora is also credited with removing a causeway plank in order to slow the British advance.

The real battle lasted only a half hour, but its outcome was breathtakingly pivotal for the fortunes of Hampton Roads and, for that matter, Virginia.

Lord Dunmore, the last royal governor of Virginia, had fled from Williamsburg as Patriots rose up in rebellion. He took refuge on his ships in Norfolk Harbor and at Gosport Navy Yard, vowing to retake control of the colony by putting down the uprising. He’d recently defeated Patriot defenders at Kemps Landing and turned his attention to Great Bridge, a critical way station for goods moving to Norfolk from North Carolina.

Battle of Great Bridge

“Having heard that a thousand chosen men belonging to the rebels, great part of whom are riflemen, were on their march to attack us,” he wrote to Gen. William Howe, in command in Boston, “I determined to take possession of the pass at the Great Bridge.”

He ordered a stockade built on the north side of a narrow causeway, and “I make no doubt that we shall be able to maintain our ground there.”
And they were able to hold their ground, but they made the mistake of assuming that the Patriots would turn and run if they attacked. Smartly attired in red coats, they advanced six abreast across the narrow bridge and into a storm of rifled bullets. Before they fell back, Dunmore’s forces had lost between 60 and 100 men, while but one of the defenders suffered a slight wound.

An enraged and desperate Dunmore ordered his ships to open fire on Norfolk, and the resulting conflagration virtually wiped out the city. But the battle also triggered the end of colonial rule as Dunmore and his supporters sailed out of Hampton Roads, stopping at Gwynn’s Island in the Chesapeake Bay before returning to England.

The battle recreation has taken place for several years, but this time it’s in the midst of a critical phase for the Great Bridge Battlefield and Waterways History Foundation (www.gbbattlefield.org). The park phase of the group’s Battlefield Historic Park and Visitor Center, at the northeast side of the bridge, is expected to be completed next fall and construction of the visitor center begun. A capital campaign has raised over $4 million of the $6 million project, Lin Olsen, the foundation’s executive director said.

includes excerpts from “Our Stories by Paul Clancy“

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Dec 17

Today in Air History

Categories:

Military Bastion, Tourism, Arts & Culture

by HR Partnership

Wright Brothers Kitty Hawk

On December 17, 1903, 106 years ago today, Orville & Wilbur Wright made the first powered (“controlled,” per commenter) flight. Their aircraft flew for 12 seconds above the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, making them the first men to pilot a heavier-than-air machine that took off on its own power, remained under control, and sustained flight.

In 1917, what is today’s NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) was begun when the War Department purchased land in Elizabeth City County, now Hampton, Virginia. This land was procured for the joint use of the Army and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the forerunner for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It was then designated Langley Field after Professor Samuel Pierpont Langley, an early pioneer in flight. Professor Langley had flown stable, steam-powered model airplanes as early as 1896, and until 1907 he had served as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

Langley Field and NACA began parallel growth as air power proved its importance during World War I. NACA was created “to supervise and direct the scientific study of the problems of flight, with a view of their practical solution;” and Langley Field, authorized in June 1917, was built as a joint experimental air field and proving ground for aircraft.

However, it wasn’t until June 11, 1920, 14 years after the Wright brothers first powered flight, when Orville helped establish the nation’s first aeronautical research center, its real beginning, at a permanent site staffed by its own employees, in its own facilities, and with its own program of aeronautical research. The facility was then officially designated “Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory.” The research efforts were overseen by an advisory committee of noted scientists and aviation pioneers, including Orville Wright as well as the legendary Charles Lindbergh.

Learn more about LaRC at: http://gis.larc.nasa.gov/historic/resources/

Photo credit:  NASA

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Dec 16

Volunteer Accolades in Hampton Roads

Categories:

About Hampton Roads, Business & Economy

by HR Partnership

Hands on Networkby Donna Morris, Executive Vice President of Hampton Roads Partnership

At the Corporate Volunteer Council (CVC) Excellence Awards and Annual Meeting held on December 9th, remarks by Vanessa Coria, Anchor/Reporter for WVEC-TV, captured the value and growing awareness that volunteerism is a critical tool in developing a community and its workforce: “From the passing of milestone legislation such as the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act to the launching of the Entertainment Industry Foundation’s iParticipate Campaign that will span four years and pull in support for volunteerism from TV, film, music and theater, the nation is rallying behind volunteerism. Even Disney is getting into the spirit. In 2010, Disney Parks will offer one day passes for volunteers as young as six who donate a day of serving through a Hands On Network agency, such as Volunteer Hampton Roads. It is an exciting time to give back, do good, and do more.”

VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads (VHR) is doing just that. As the region’s nonprofit resource center, VHR brings together socially responsible businesses with local nonprofits in need. By fostering the growth of corporate social responsibility, they not only advance our communities through more capable nonprofits, but they improve the quality of our work/life balance for everyone involved. They accomplish their mission through three key areas – corporate outreach, nonprofit training and technical assistance, and volunteerism.

Keynote speaker for the event was Edwin Taylor of Capital One. Among many corporate responsibilities, Edwin has managed the “pro bono” program in Capital One’s Brand Marketing Department, helping nonprofits expand their capacities in brand strategy, market strategy, direct marketing and event marketing. Last year, Capitol One volunteers donated 2,400 hours of pro bono service to community partners, a market value of over $1.7 million.

Edwin challenged attendees not to be “crabs.” Crabs don’t donate because they are “shellfish.” Capital One uses the Taproot Foundation whose goal is to harness human capital (professional expertise) to help the human condition by strengthening nonprofit organizations to be more effective in serving society.

In addition to the great work done in the community by Capital One employees, the company benefited in that specific job skills were further developed through the employee volunteer experience, and they have the data to prove it:

  • 67% reported an improvement in problem solving
  • 56% improved their communication skills
  • 50% improved their leadership skills
  • 70% said pro bono experience improved happiness on the job
  • 62% felt better about working for the company

Where do you start? Determine core-competency skills. Nonprofits have needs, and your skills can help no matter what they are. Develop a service catalog with a list of who in your organization can do what and use this creatively in sourcing volunteers.

How do find a nonprofit? Let VHR know the services you plan to offer, and they will match you with a nonprofit needing those services. Start small and leverage resources. “Teach them to fish.”

The event, in partnership with Virginia Business Magazine, was sponsored by a long list of well-known corporate citizens, honoring others who have shared their time and resources to positively impact Hampton Roads through dedication of their employees and leaders.

Beth Lloyd, President and CEO of VHR provided an update on 2009. Despite economically challenging times, the Hampton Roads business community has accepted the call to assist those in need. She spoke of plans in 2010 to offer online training classes for nonprofits throughout the state.

Good Corporate Neighbor Awards were given to Chubb & Son; Wall, Einhorn & Chernitzer, P.C.; W R Systems, Ltd.; Booz Allen Hamilton; GEICO; and, Norfolk Southern Corporation. William Hall of Booz Allen Hamilton and Beth Prever of TowneBank received Corporate Volunteer Program Coordinator awards.

It was the vision of Lenora Matthews, executive director of VHR during the 70s and 80s, which was instrumental in creating the organization. Tom Frantz, of Williams Mullen and a former co-chair of the Hampton Roads Partnership, is the 2010 Lenora Matthews Lifetime Achievement Award recipient.

Stephen Evans, of KPMG LLP and 2008 Recipient of the Volunteer Leadership Award, presented the 2009 honor to Jim Carlson, CEO of AMERIGROUP. Jim thanked the CVC and acknowledged the great work done by the employees of AMERIGROUP. He described the work of the company, serving the poor and most vulnerable citizens, and working to change people’s impression of what a modern insurance company does. AMERIGROUP is a unique organization with 4,000 employees in 11 states. Their largest market is Texas. They have 1,000 volunteer enterprises involving thousands of their employees, 1,200 of whom have a clinical background.

AMERIGROUP has effectively tapped into the spirit of giving back. Especially due to the nature of their work, they care about other people. Jim mentioned their Disaster Recovery Program (part of their company-wide initiative, REALCaring) which sent 50 recreational vehicles to Florida to offer assistance during Katrina. Because they had a disaster plan in place – they were able to fill the gaps government and others could not fill. AMERIGROUP is deliberately trying to nurture a culture among its employees – to be part of something bigger than you are as an individual. Jim and the AMERIGROUP team are people with big hearts who live their values every day.

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Dec 14

Quality Transportation: Timing and Shaping a New Direction

Categories:

Transportation

by HR Partnership

Citiwire-AlexMarshall

by Alex Marshall / Dec 12 2009 / for Citiwire.net

As America gets ready for debate on federal transportation legislation next year, we’ll surely be told again to place our confidence in the familiar yardsticks of miles traveled per hour, average commuting times, cost per passenger.

But couldn’t we have license to think more fully and imaginatively about this sector that is not only essential economically but occupies so much of our lives?

When I was a teacher in Virginia 25 years ago, I used to drive 35 minutes each day from Virginia Beach to my job at a high school in Norfolk. I drove at 60 mph almost the entire way. Not a bad commute, though I noted even then that high speed freeway driving is tiring. Pay attention or you may kill someone, yourself included.

Now in present day Brooklyn, I often commute 45 minutes to the offices of Regional Plan Association in Manhattan. This involves a 15-minute walk to the subway, a five-minute wait for the train, a 20-minute subway ride, and a five-minute walk to work. This is longer than my old 30 minutes commute by car. But it’s less tiring. I enjoy the morning (and evening) walk. I can read or watch TV (my newest bad habit) on my iPhone while on the subway. I enjoy talking to strangers.

My conclusion: when it comes to transportation, time is an elastic, subjective, almost mystical thing. One minute spent traveling one way is not the same as another. But the “intangibles” are hard to introduce into official transportation debates.

And how about biking and walking? Sometimes I do ride by bike to work. This is actually shorter in time than the subway, but it’s qualitatively much different. I arrive invigorated from the excitement, and let’s face it, danger of urban cycling, while also physically tired, even though I ride pretty slowly. And there’s the weather to consider.

By foot? I sometimes walk part of the way to or from work, say a mile, just for the hell of it. Walking 20 blocks in a crowded city is fun. But let’s say I lived in suburban Long Island or New Jersey? I probably wouldn’t walk a mile along a suburban arterial with cars whizzing by me, even if I covered the same distance in the same amount of time.

Travel between cities offers qualitative differences in experience as well. Plane travel seems to have become a series of lines that one waits in, broken up by small quantities of actually flying. Train travel, if available and good, can offer unbroken hours for sustained concentration. Driving for hours in a car between cities, with or without company, can be good or bad depending on one’s temperament, physical size, and the quality of one’s stereo.

Speaking of stereos, years ago I did a story as a reporter for The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk called “Drive Time.” It was a counter-intuitive story about the guilty pleasure many people experienced while commuting to work because it was often the only time they had to themselves. Particularly if they had young children and or a demanding job, driving was often they only time they had to listen to music or simply to sit quietly. Even being stuck in traffic wasn’t so bad, particularly if they had a nice car.

Another difference: the shape of equipment. My 35-minute commute to Norfolk was in my aunt’s old 1973 Ford LTD that I had bought from her. Not a bad car, but a Jaguar might have eased my commute. I love train travel, but when I lived in Spain in the early 1980s I hated traveling in the slow, uncomfortable and crowded trains they had then. The country was still recovering from decades of dictatorship, and its infrastructure was poor. Now Spain has a network of sleek rapid trains I’d love to board.

Or–my experience on the New York subway. It would have been very different in the bad old days a generation ago, when the subways were hulking wrecks, lurching along through bad smelling, dangerous dark stations. My 45 minute commute from Brooklyn to Manhattan would doubtless have been an unpleasant affair I did not care to repeat. But now the New York subways are clean, free of graffiti, and orderly–one reason their ridership had often grown faster than the standard models based on population and economic growth would have predicted.

Do policy makers consider things like the quality of a car ride when considering whether to fund a new light rail line, build another lane on a highway or repair a crumbling road? Shouldn’t they–even if there’s really no fully objective way to pronounce, conclusively, one way of traveling better than another?

Miles, speeds, costs are a vital transportation issues–numbers can’t and shouldn’t go away. But we shouldn’t pretend that quality doesn’t matter as well, even if it’s hard to quantify.

——————————————————————————–
Alex Marshall’s e-mail address is alexmarshall@alexmarshall.org.

Citiwire.net columns are not copyrighted and may be reproduced in print or electronically.

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Dec 11

Top Digital Cities and Counties in America 2009

Categories:

Government & Citizens, Innovation, Military Bastion

by HR Partnership

eGovte.Republic’s Center for Digital Government (Center) and Digital Communities magazine have named the most advanced digital cities in America. The cities were chosen from the results of the 9th annual Digital Cities Survey, open to all U.S. cities with a population of 30,000 or more, which examines how municipalities incorporate information technology into operations which better serve citizens engaging with local government.

“This year’s winners demonstrate how cities have faced economic challenges with creativity and innovation in the use of information technology,” said Cathilea Robinett, executive director for the Center for Digital Government. “The Survey clearly shows that cities place a high value on positive experiences for their constituents when using government services. These winners are at the leading edge of the future in digital advances for citizens.”

The Hampton Roads winners are:

  • 250,000 or more population:  6th place City of Virginia Beach
  • 125,000 – 249,999 population:  1st place City of Norfolk, 8th place City of Hampton

The Center has found in its 7th annual Digital Counties Survey that America’s counties are embracing new technologies to involve citizens, are moving toward transparent government and are increasing green and sustainable measures while continuing to improve online services.

The 2009 Digital Counties Survey is an annual study by the Center and the National Association of Counties (NACo) which identifies best practices and recognizes those counties with exemplary digital service to their citizens.

The Hampton Roads Winners are:

Less than 150,000 population:  2nd place Gloucester County

For more on the digital surveys:  http://www.govtech.com/dc/surveys/cities/89/

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Dec 10

Pepsi over 100 years in Suffolk

Categories:

Business & Economy

by HR Partnership

PepsiBottlingGroupThe Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG) held a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new 11,000 square-foot distribution facility on Wednesday, November 4th. The previous 50-year-old building, located at 2595 Holland Road, was demolished and a new modern facility was recently completed.

The facility is strategically located to serve customers in Southampton, Isle of Wight and Suffolk. The Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG) is the world’s largest manufacturer, seller and distributor of Pepsi-Cola beverages, featuring some of the world’s most recognized consumer brands.

They have a long and storied history in Suffolk, dating back to the early 1900s, are strong supporters of community service and have made a lasting impression with many local nonprofit organizations and Suffolk Public Schools.

“We look forward to serving the Suffolk market for another 100 years,” said Ron Lewis, Unit Sales Manager for Pepsi.

“Pepsi’s decision to remain and reinvest in Suffolk is very rewarding for our city,” said Mayor Linda T. Johnson. “Their long-term success is a result of excellent leadership and dedicated employees. We thank them for their commitment to our community and we are pleased to have an industry leader like PBG as a partner in the city of Suffolk.”

From the City of Suffolk

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Dec 09

Hampton Roads M&S Strategy Launch re-scheduled

Categories:

About Hampton Roads, Business & Economy, Innovation

by HR Partnership

M&S Strategy 2020

ODU’s Virginia Modeling, Analysis and Simulation Center (VMASC) and the Hampton Roads Partnership (HRP) invite you to attend the launch of M&S Strategy 2020, Hampton Roads’ strategic plan for the modeling and simulation industry.

You will not want to miss this great opportunity to hear first-hand the “way ahead” for Virginia’s hottest technology and growth sector. Find out how you, your business, and your community can be a part of this important and growing industry!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009
9:00am – 10:30am
VMASC
1030 University Boulevard, Suffolk, VA 23435

Click for Directions

Where will we be in 2020…
where will you be on December 16th?

RSVP to Andrew M. Sinclair, M & S Program Manager
ASinclair@HRP.org or 757-625-4696.

 

VMASC - HRP logo

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Dec 08

Newport News High School Robotics Team Wins State Competition

Categories:

Education & Workforce, Innovation, Military Bastion

by HR Partnership

MenchvilleRobotics_Alex_Snowflake

On behalf of the Hampton Roads AUVSI Chapter, Robot Venture, First Robotics, HRMFFA, STEM and other well wishers…Congrats to Team Triple Helix “Techno Rock Stars” from Menchville High School in Newport News on your most significant victory at the 2009 Robot Rumble held at the Virginia State Fair in October!

The team’s ongoing success during this banner year showcases the health of the Hampton Roads FIRST Robotics program and spin-off from this most recent accomplishment will surely be far reaching.

The team got off to a rocky start in the competition due to a problem with the autonomous mode that masked itself as a network communications error.  It took three matches to finally resolve the problem, and the team was very fortunate to have been 2 – 1 when the problems were finally fixed.  From that point, there were a few unlucky matches in which some of the balls used to play the game became jammed in the Team Triple Helix robot.  By the end of the first day of the competition, however, all confidence had been regained in the Triple Helix robot. The drive team was performing admirably and ended the day with a record of 6-3-1, placing 5th in the rankings out of 14 teams.  On Sunday morning, the team continued to roll, but had a few very difficult opponents and some close matches, ending the qualification matches with a record of 9-4-1, placing in the number 4 seed position.

One of the team goals for the weekend was to implement a new scouting system developed by two students.  The system worked to perfection, and when it came time to select an alliance partner for the finals, team 384 – Sparky – from J.R. Tucker High School in Henrico, Virginia, was chosen. Sparky was ranked fairly low in the standings, but the scouting team was convinced that their team matched well with Team Triple Helix’s capabilities – a hunch that turned out to be right on the money.  

Triple Helix and Sparky stood together as alliance partners and took the quarterfinals in two matches (all of the elimination round matches are best two of three).  The first semifinals match was at loss at 61 to 52, but stiffened the team’s resolve in the second match by getting the critical win to stay alive.  Match 3 of the semifinals also fell to Team Triple Helix and on to the finals!

The alliance that Triple Helix and Sparky faced in the finals was led by team 1086, Blue Cheese, from Glenn Allen, Virginia.  Blue Cheese is one of the leading teams in Virginia at this time, as they are the winners of the last two NASA/VCU Regional events and were also the defending champions of the Robot Rumble coming into the weekend.  In addition, they have won the Chairman’s Award for the last two years at NASA/VCU, so they are an extremely well-rounded team.  

In short, Triple Helix and Sparky were up against a juggernaut. During the qualification matches, the opposing team learned to respect the robot’s maneuverability and firepower, and knew that they were going to have to play well to beat the alliance of Triple Helix and Sparky in the finals.

The first match in the finals went to the Blue Cheese-led alliance. The second match was a very tough and defensive battle, and Blue Cheese knew that the score was too close for comfort.  They launched a last second attempt for the win by throwing a Super Cell aimed at one of the alliance trailers to try to score a quick 15 points and walk away with the win.  It failed to work that way when they accidentally hit their own trailer with the shot!

The third match was every bit as exciting and a defensive struggle, as well.  At the end of the match neither alliance was certain of victory and there were a group of very stunned looking people standing around. No one, however, appeared to be more stunned than those on the Blue Cheese drive team, because they knew that they had committed another critical error by having their robot scoop up two Empty Cells at one time, which is a rule infraction and a 10 point penalty.  Since they knew that the Triple Helix and Sparky alliance had kept it close, they were afraid that they had lost.  

In the end, the Triple Helix alliance won by a mere two points with a strategy to apply unrelenting pressure to an obviously superior opponent and pull off the upset.  

Team Triple Helix is currently in training for another successful season in the FIRST Robotics Competition with a plan to compete in the Washington, D.C. Regional on March 4-6, 2010, and the Virginia Regional (what has been called NASA/VCU up until now) on March 18 – 20, 2010, so mark your calendars.  

Onward and Upward,
Mike French, Hampton Roads AUVSI
Frank Roberts, Hampton Roads Military & Federal Facilities Alliance (HRMFFA) Executive Director
Matt Wilbur, Head Coach, Triple Helix (The Menchville Robotics Team) and FIRST Robotics Competition Team 2363

Sponsored by the US Army Research Laboratory Vehicle Technology Directorate NASA Langley, The Boeing Company, Jacobs Engineering ROME Group, BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair, Eagle Aviation Technologies, Inc., Cardinal Machine, and ZelTech, LLC.

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