“The robotics team is a diverse age and gender team, composed of students that love problem solving, critical thinking, and having fun,” senior Eric Hahn said. The robotics team, Defying Gravity, is a team composed of nine AHS students- six boys and three girls.

This past year, Defying Gravity has competed “in two regional qualifier events and the Virginia statewide tournament, as well as an orientation event called Meet The Field,” sophomore Wade Foster said. The team has won first place in every tournament.

Defying Gravity also won the ‘Inspire Award’, “which is the best overall robot and team award,” senior Meghana Illendula said. “This was our first performance and it guaranteed our spot at the State tournament.”

The team won the “Best Robot Performance” at the State tournament on March 2, which allowed them to continue in the global competition- competing against 128 teams April 23-28 in St. Louis, MO.

“Before our current robot, ‘Arcturus’, the team built three smaller prototype robots in order to try out different software/hardware combinations and choose the one optimal performance,” Foster said. “This was when we made one of the most heavily-debated decisions this season: rubber treads vs. wheels. Thankfully, we chose treads.”

“They [treads] are more stable. They allow us greater traction,” sophomore Luc Bailey said. “Treads are slower than wheels, but we overcome this by adding more motors.”

Arcturus has a tank drive, and is designed to pick up and lift small plastic tubes, placing them on racks.

According to the Defying Gravity website, Arcturus “can score rings on any level of the center rack, in addition to reliably identifying and scoring weighted rings.” This is done by using an LED-based weight detector, which is able to tell how heavy a tube is going to be.

Most participants in Defying Gravity have had prior experience in working with robots. “In sixth grade, I joined an FRC [First Robotics Competition] team, which got me interested. In tenth grade, I joined FLL (building robots composed of Lego pieces] with some other members,” Hahn said.

To aid the team financially, Defying Gravity has been working on raising money. “Since States, our work has become almost exclusively geared towards fundraising. Team members have been requesting sponsorships from many different organizations and corporations, as well a many other ventures to gather funds,” Foster said.

One of the team’s ideas for funding is a T-shirt featuring the slogan, “We love Josh Davis.”

“Wade Foster and his parents got bored on a snow say and realized that [they] were at home because of Josh Davis and saw that he loved them…” Illendula said.

“Mr. Davis has been very supportive of the idea. The shirts have been selling like hotcakes, and will likely provide a large part of the team’s funding pool,” Foster said.

Foster estimates that they have raised about $1500 from the Josh Davis shirts. With the team’s expenses totaling over $10,000 for the robot and trip to Worlds, they have also asked local businesses to help support them.

Defying Gravity has become a close-knit and skilled team over the past few years. “Our members have experienced a wide range of skills and talents and, by working together, ensure to get the job done,” Hahn said.

Foster added, “The team has been together for years past. For me, the team is a new spin on an old experience that I know well and love all the more.”