Hermantown Robotics Team Prepares for World Championships

HERMANTOWN, Minn. – Hermantown High School is one of three Northland robotics teams preparing for the big World Championships in Houston Texas.

After winning at the Minnesota North Star Regional in March, the Hermantown Talons robot was in need of a few patch ups in order to perform well at worlds.

The upcoming tourney is set to host 600 high school teams from across the globe presenting new challenges for team Talons 5232.

“There’s a lot of numbers. There’s your average score, there’s your rankings score that’s just raw data that’s on site. And then we also have to walk around to the other robot’s pits and ask what their robot can do, like if it can pick up cones and cubes or if it can balance by itself,” Hermantown Robotics Team Scouting Lead, Emma Klyne says.

“The thing I’m excited for is to play against teams that we don’t get to play against and also some super competitive teams from all over the country and the world. It’ll be a lot of fun to go and play against teams rather than just teams from Minnesota,” Hermantown Robotics Team Captain, Lars Erickson says.

The team is looking to raise 15 thousand dollars to help pay for registration, uniforms, and travel expenses. Tasked with raising the money is the team’s business department.

“It’s really cool and I think it allows for a lot more inclusivity because I know that a lot of students, just like people I know, think robotics is just the robot and just programming, and it’s a lot more than that. It opens us up to a way larger audience and there’s a lot more skills to be gained,” Hermantown Robotics Team Business Lead, Mateo Sandoval-Luna says.

So far, the Hermantown robotics team has focused its fundraising efforts through their website, GoFundMe, and visiting with businesses.

The FIRST Robotics World Championships will take place from April 19th to the 22nd.

The Iron Mosquitos and the Denfeld Nation Automation teams will also be there.