We have a record number of competitors this year, with 141 teams registered right now: 87 combat robots and 54 autonomous vehicles. This is nearly a 20 percent increase overall in teams for SparkFun AVC, with three times as many combat bots this year as last year.
Due to this exciting increase in the number of combat teams, we’ve had to rearrange some of the logistics regarding the Maker Faire Denver site, which has delayed us in reaching out to teams regarding scheduling.
There will likely be significant changes to the combat bot competition schedule, possibly asking teams to be present for both days and/or establishing a registration deadline (historically, we have always accepted day-of registrations for combat bots). The rules currently state that combat bot teams need only be present one day, but with the vast number of bots entering the tournament we anticipate that it will take two full days. Our first priority is a fair and efficient competition, and we are very appreciative for the input and flexibility from the combat bot community.
As of right now, here will be no changes to the Classic AVC divisions in terms of scheduling and competition days.
All teams: please look for an email next week with event information, scheduling details and other competition updates. We appreciate your patience as we move forward. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, or your existing travel plans to compete in the combat bot event pose a conflict to this change, please reach out to SparkFun’s AVC planning team at avc@sparkfun.com.
