The Alpine Robotics team about as diverse a group of students as you well ever find. From computer nerds to athletes, and debaters to young entrepreneurs, this rag tag bunch of students probably shares about one thing in common: a passion for engineering. Based out of Poudre High School, the team brings together thirty students ranging in age from fourteen to eighteen to work on a complex engineering project with professional engineers from local companies. But the team is about much more than building robots. In addition to the inherent engineering knowledge, students that participate in the program walk away with better team work, entrepreneurial, and time management skills. There's no better outlet for real world application skills students learn in the classroom.

So how can one program accomplish so many things? Each year the team competes in the FIRST Robotics Competition. FIRST, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, brings together over thirteen hundred high school teams to build a robot a meager six weeks that as capable of scoring points in a sports like competition. Each year the goal changes. Some years the robots lift boxes while others must shoot balls or do chin ups from a ten foot high bar, yet the lessons remain the same. However, as FIRST founder said, "First is the hardest fun you'll ever have." This synthesis of work and fun shines on the Alpine Robotics team. It's a rare moment that you'll find their meetings void of music and laughter. And when stress runs high, the hectic season is interrupted for quick games of Halo, a curling competition, or the occasional friends rerun.

Unfortunately, understanding the team takes more than reading a couple quick paragraphs. If you're interested in learning more about Alpine Robotics, we encourage you to explore our media page (in particular, the NewsHour documentary) or better yet, stopping by to visit us and see us at work.

The Alpine Robotics team is about more than robots. It's even about more than engineering. It's about people. Our team aims to expose the local community to the beauty of engineering and inspire future generations to explore the infinite opportunity the science and technology can offer.

Our team is open to any Poudre School District high school student that is excited about exploring engineering. No prior experience is necessary! In fact it is rare that new students on our team have ever designed or built anything. We would love to have you come by and see what your role on the Alpine Robotics team could be

Your age certainly shouldn't stop you from getting involved in science and technology. That's why our team sponsors a local Lego league competition each year. If you are in the Fort Collins area in either junior high or elementary school, chances are your school has a FIRST Lego League team! If you can't find one, let us know, and we'll find a team in your area.

FIRST, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is an organization whose vision is "To create a world where science and technology are celebrated... where young people dream of becoming science and technology heroes." As a part of this, they have developed a multitude of competitions for students of all ages to inspire exploration of science and technology.

FIRST Robotics Competition? (FRC) is a unique varsity sport of the mind designed to help high-school-aged young people discover how interesting and rewarding the life of engineers and researchers can be.
The FIRST Robotics Competition challenges teams of young people and their mentors to solve a common problem in a six-week timeframe using a standard "kit of parts" and a common set of rules. Teams build robots from the parts and enter them in a series of competitions designed by Dean Kamen, Dr. Woodie Flowers, and a committee of engineers and other professionals.

FIRST LEGO League (FLL) is an exciting and fun international robotics program that ignites an enthusiasm for discovery, science, and technology in kids ages 9 to 14 (16 outside of the U.S. and Canada).
Each year FLL teams embark on an adventurous Challenge based on current, real-world issues.

Team 159 is highly active in Fort Collins, across the Front Range, and throughout the Midwest. As is reflected in the team’s mission statement, we are driven to promote a culture where science and technology are celebrated. In order to fulfill this goal we engage in several outreach programs. We make presentations at local schools, enter a float in the yearly homecoming parade, and play an active role in our own schools community. Our biggest contribution to the spread of robotics has to be the founding and promotion of FIRST LEGO League (or FLL). Each year the team plays host to 80 FLL teams in one of the country’s largest FLL competitions.

We love to talk to anyone who’s willing to listen. If you think that your have a school, class, club, or business that would like to learn about FIRST robotics or the Alpine Robotics team, give us an email at team159@alpinerobotics.com and we will arrange a meeting!

Almost every elementary and junior high school in Fort Collins and the surrounding area has a team, so, the fastest way to find a FLL team is by speaking with your local school’s councilor. However, we can also help find a team near you to either participate on or mentor if you need some help; just give us an email at team159@alpinerobotics.com.

Along with our efforts to build a culture of engineering through the promotion and support of FIRST initiatives, the team has several of it’s own initiatives. We are currently partnered with the Women With Wings project.

We are currently hard at work finishing up our homework from Dean Kamen. In fact, we’ve frequently been working a little bit harder on his homework than the homework assigned by our teachers. We’ve sent out letters to over one hundred politicians and are currently pursing active dialogues with many of them We also have several other projects in the works that should hopefully help boost the political profile of FIRST!

Team 159 would like to graciously thank all of the sponsors that keep the team afloat. LSI Logic, HP, Starbucks, Pelco, Agilent, and GST Power Service Group are all major contributing sponsors of the team, each company giving over one thousand dollars. Alpha Plastics and Design, Colorado Iron and Metal, Denver Metal Finishing, Schmid Engineering, and Igus are also valued sponsors, supplying the team with needed materials and services. Finally, Poudre High School and the Poudre School District supply a state of the art machine shop for the team to call home.

FIRST is a phenomenal program that inspires high school students to explore the values of engineering. It uniquely bridges the lessons learned in high school classrooms with the passion of a sports match while also teaching many important life skills; from teamwork to time management and even business savvy. However, a program with as many benefits as FIRST is certainly not without cost. The entry fee for the competition is $5,000. On top of this entry fee, another $1,000 is needed to buy parts for the robot not included in the kit. Finally, if the team qualifies for nationals (which it has every year it has existed) then an additional $6,000 entrance fee is required to compete at the national level. All of these costs do not include travel to competitions, which is funded by each participant.

Our team also has several mentors who volunteer their time to help the team keep running smoothly. Especially if you have a background in engineering or fundraising, our team would love your help! Also, we are currently lobbying to have our government representatives attend the competition on March 30th and 31st. We would very much appreciate you sending them a letter or email encouraging them to attend. We would love to post your letter on our website if you wouldn't mind sending it to team159@alpinerobotics.com.

Yes! All sponsors who support the team are put on the robot. The size and style will depend on the year and what the robot looks like. This year, the sponsors are displayed on the top of the robot laser engraved white on the blue plates. (It looks amazing.)

Thanks to some student photographers (who graduated) the Photo Gallery has over 1000 photos in over 16 galleries covering the team since 2003. Check it out here at the Robotica Media section of the site.

The team has an extensive media program which began in the beginning of the team's history with a documentary by the George Lucas Foundation and more recently with the HDNet and PBS Features produced in 2006. You can find videos and news clips on Team 159 here.

In the 2006 season, Team 159 was being followed and interviewed by PBS and HDNet producers. PBS featured a segment on FIRST Robotics and Team 159. It showed in May, 2006 and shortly after the HDNet World Report feature (a longer and more informative version of the PBS report) was shown. You can learn more about Team 159 Media Coverage and watch both videos here.