…since I last posted here.
What have I done since then? Let’s see. The robotics team has built another robot. I got my Director’s number on the Geratol Net. I’ve gotten a month older…
That’s about it.
The robot for 2012 is done and looking good. We had relatively few problems programming it, though not totally problem-free, less than last year. The kids doing our programming are doing a great job and what we have is truly a joint project with us all putting our heads together to come up with working code. We looked good at the Penfield scrimmage a couple of days before the end of the build season. Two days of practice and fine-tuning at the Kenan center after that got things really humming.
Our first competition is March 8, 9, 10 at RIT in Rochester. Anyone who can, should come watch and cheer the kids on. It’s as exciting as any sport and it means a lot to have fans rooting for us. It’s free too.
I am now the holder of Geeratol Directors Award #731. The award is for holders of a Geratol number (75-meter, two-letter, Worked All States Award) who then work and exchange Geratol numbers with 100 other Geratol number holders. Sounds hard, but it really wasn’t. I had at one time worked several hundred G numbers, but had not applied for the award. Then I had a hard drive failure and got discouraged. I took a few years off before I got back at it. This past January, I started listening to the net again and checking in. It didn’t take long and I had the 100. I’m well on the way to several other endorsements to the Geratol award, as well.
I’m the webmaster for the net’s web site, so I might as well be active with the group. I haven’t got the certificate yet. It may be sitting at my PO Box. But I received the number via email from the award manager. The first night I checked in with it, it was like being DX. Everyone wanted to work me. It was fun. I haven’t been back again, due to the robotics work, but will be shortly to work on those other awards.
It’s been a mild winter. I’m not sure if there is even any snow on the ground right now. We had a couple inches the other day, but it’s been rainy and windy, so it could all be gone again. I can’t remember so mild a winter ever, but I’ve been thinking of the bike a lot and will probably be riding again before I know it.
So there I am. See you in another month.
