Robotics Experience

Coding, Cold-Calling, and Competition: My Summer with Epic Labs Robotics

In the summer of 2024, I decided to dive headfirst into STEM by joining Epic Labs Robotics, an organization home to three FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) teams: Expedition, Odyssey, and Adventure. After applying, I was thrilled to land a spot on Team Expedition.

Getting into the program started with an interview. The panel asked about my background in robotics and programming, and thanks to a coding course I took the previous summer—along with a long-standing fondness for block-coding in Scratch—I was able to impress the judges and earn my place.

Finding My Focus: The Marketing Subteam

Before everyone was divided into their specific roles, our entire team took introductory workshops in computer-aided design (CAD using Fusion 360) and Java programming.

Eventually, I was assigned to the Marketing subteam. While other subteams worked directly on physical assembly or line-by-line code, our job was to build the brand, secure resources, and connect with the community.

What the Marketing Subteam Does:

• Corporate Outreach: Pitching our robot and its capabilities to major tech companies like Apple, Collins Aerospace, and Microsoft.

• Community Mentorship: Teaching younger students at schools like Harmony and QCA.

• Team Sustainability: Running fundraisers (like bake sales) and compiling the essential team portfolio for competition judges.

A Dual Role: Bridging Strategy and Hardware

Our dynamic wasn't strictly limited to desk work. A typical meeting involved spending three hours in a workshop room drafting presentations, designing portfolios, and cold-calling potential sponsors—followed by an hour or two down in the main lab getting our hands dirty on the robot.

As competition season approached, the line between subteams blurred even further. We all spent long nights in the lab getting ready. I personally got the chance to help program the robot’s pathing and write the code for the Autonomous period of our matches.

Lessons Learned Beyond the Lab

Unfortunately, our season ended at the regional competition. Reflecting on our run, I realized that our main challenge was consistency: rather than picking a single, strong robot design and iteratively refining it, we often started over with completely new concepts for each tournament.

Even though we didn't advance past regionals, the experience was invaluable. It gave me real, hands-on exposure to engineering, professional outreach, and technical problem-solving. Interacting with industry experts, tuning competition code, and building team spirit taught me skills I'll carry into every future project.