Congratulations to the Sabre Bytes on a successful 2007-2008 season. The Sabre Bytes competed in 3 Regional Events across Canada and the United States. Although the Sabre Byte's were unable to win a regional event, they worked extremely hard, often advancing well into the elimination rounds.

The Sabre Bytes won several awards over the course of the season, such as:
- Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers Entrepreneurship Award (Waterloo, and Toronto)
- The Motorola Quality Award (Connecticut)
- The UL Safety Award (Connecticut, Waterloo)

Thank you to all of the sponsors (GM, Amherst Quaries, Dr. Anil Dhar Medicine Professional Corp., Capaldi Corp, Centerline, Axiom, Penalty Box Restaurant, The Finnerty Family, The Law Office of James Branoff, Electrozad, and ATS Robotics) for your final contributions over the course of the season. Our success would not be possible without your support. The Sabre Bytes would especially like to thank GM of Canada, for graciously providing with transportation, sponsorship and Engineer's to provide mentorship and guidance to the students during the build season, and at the competitions. Your continued support has been vital to the teams success.

The Sabre Bytes would also like to thank all of the parents, mentors, and teachers who gave up their time to assist the Sabre Bytes. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Although the build and competition season may be over, The Sabre Bytes still have other activities left for the duration of the year. Check back soon for more information.

Due to the high volume of traffic on our web server, we are experiencing some technical difficulties and as a result - have had to restore the server from a backup. We do plan on restoring all content in the near future, however, at this time, certain features of our website may be unavaliable.

As a result of this failure -some of the live updates from yesterday, and earlier today are unavalible. However, we have created a new live updates page and will post updates as we get them.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will be traveling to Waterloo, Ontario to compete at the Waterloo Regional. Check back for live updates on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

The Sabre Bytes competed in the Hartford Regional over the weekend. Although the team worked hard, they did not advance to the elimination rounds. However, the team did come away with the both the UL Safety Award and the Motorola Quality Award.

The team looks forward to competing in the next competition in Waterloo, March 20 to 22.

Team 772 has just launched a new Safety Section on the website which can be accessed by clicking here.

Also, don't forget to check out the live updates to track our progress at various regional events.

On Wednesday, March 12, the team will travel to Hartford, CT to compete at the the Hartford Regional. If you want to check in on the Sabre Bytes, you can view live updates here.

Good luck to all teams and we will see you at the competition.

I would like to congratulate everyone on a very successful Six Weeks. The production of our robot is finally done, with the robot shipping at 9:30 this morning. A big thanks to all of the teachers, mentors, parents, and engineers who provided assistance to the team during the Six Weeks.

I would also remind everyone that parents night is Thursday, February 21st at 6:30 PM in the cafeteria. At least one parent/guardian must attend, along with the team member.

Pictures of the build and robot, along with videos should be made available shortly in the Media Section of our website.

I would like to inform everyone that over the past week, our server has been experiencing some technical difficulties, which resulted in certain pages not loading or returning "Forbidden 403", along with two or three complete shutdowns of the website. However, the IT department has informed me that everything has been resolved and we shouldn't expect any more problems. In the event that you encounter any problems, I kindly ask that you e-mail me (webmaster AT sabrerobotics DOT com).

We regret to inform you that the Grade 7/8 Dance, previously scheduled for Friday, February 29th, 2008 has been postponed due to a scheduling conflict. The dance will be rescheduled to Friday, April 4th, 2008.

However, until then, we invite you to check our some video footage from our last dance!

The "6 Weeks" are well underway and the Sabre Bytes are working hard, completing the robot for this years game - Overdrive. Check out our Media section to see what the Sabre Bytes have been up to!

Attention Grade 7 and 8 Students – We will be hosting another grade 7/8 dance on Friday, January 7th, 2007.

Admission will be $5 for standard admission or $10 for VIP admission. VIP admission includes a free coat check, one free pop/chips, a free glow stick, and access to the VIP Lounge and music request list.

Pop, Chips, and Glowsticks will all be available for $1 each. Pizza slices will be sold for $1.50.

Student, Parent, and Teacher chaperones will be present, in conjunction with LaSalle Police, who will provide security services.

Any additional questions can be forwarded to dances@sabrerobotics.com. Alternatively, you can contact Dave Ferguson at Sandwich Secondary School at 519-734-1237 during school hours.

Select members from the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will attend the Kickoff Event, at the Ontario Science Center on Saturday, January 5th, 2007. For those not attending, you are invited to watch this event live, over the internet. The Kickoff Event officially marks the start of "The 6 Weeks", as this years game will be announced at that time.

For those interested in watching, the event will begin promptly at 10 AM (EST) and can be viewed here

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will be attending the following Regional Events:

- Connecticut Regional, Hartford, CT - 3/13/2008 - 3/15/2008
- Waterloo Regional, Waterloo, ON - 3/20/2008 - 3/22/2008
- Greater Toronto Regional, Mississauga, ON - 3/27/2008 - 3/29/2008

More information about student transportation will me made avaliable at the next parents meeting. Any parents who intend to transport their own children to these events, or who are able to assist with transporting other students, are asked to contact Mr. Ferguson as soon as possible by e-mail (david.ferguson@gecdsb.on.ca) or phone (519-734-1237).

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team would like to thank all the parents, students and teachers who helped to organize our most recent Grade 7/8 Dance. We would also like to thank all the grade 7/8 students who attended and made this dance a success.

Our next dance will be January 11th and more information will be posted as it becomes available.

To see more pictures of our last dance, check out the Media Section of our website.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team would like to inform everyone that we will be offering a monthly newsletter, for all those who may be interested. This newsletter will be sent via e-mail, and will contain in depth updates regarding the team and team functions, along with pictures.

You are encouraged to subscribe to the newsletter by clicking the link found at the top of this page (under the flash animation), or by visiting http://sabrerobotics.com/newsletter1.php .

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will be hosting a Parent Information Session on Tuesday, November 13, 2007. All persons participating on this years Robotics Team are required to have at least one parent or legal gaudian in attendance. Failure to do so, will result in removal from the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team.

Please click here for more information.

Should you have any questions, please contact Mr. Fergsuon at 519-734-1237 or e-mail us at info@sabrerobotics.com

Our Sponsor Banquet will be held on Thursday, November 1st, at the Penalty Box Restaurant, located on Walker Road. Gold and Platinum Sponsors will receive two complimentary tickets. All other tickets, are 10 dollars per person. All members, past and present are invited to attend.

The Menu will include:

- Bread
- Salad
- Pasta
- Chicken
- Vegetables
- Desert Squares

Also, complimentary pop/coffee/tea will be available.

For more information, contact Adam Bulkiewicz (adam@sabrerobotics.com) or Amanda Iarusso (amandaiarusso@hotmail.com).

Due to a scheduling conflict, all interviews that were previously scheduled for Wednesday, October 9th, will be held Thursday, October 10th. For more information, contact Mr. Ferguson or e-mail us at info@sabrerobotics.com

All persons who applied for the Robotics Team should check the interview times posted outside of T-80. Interviews will be held on Tuesday, October 9th and Wednesday, October 10th. Please be advised, we are not responsible for missed interviews. All applicants wishing to apply MUST be present in T-80 at 2:30, regardless of your interview start time.

The final team list, will be posted outside of T-80 on Friday, October 12th. Our first team meeting for all those who are selected, will be held on Monday, October 15th.

Good luck to all those who applied!

For more information, please contact Mr. Ferguson or e-mail us at info@sabrerobotics.com.

All students of Sandwich Secondary School are invited to stop by T-80 and fill out an application form, if you want to be a part of the 2007-2008 Sabre Bytes Robotics Team. Applications will be available Monday, September 23rd and are due no later than Monday, October 1st at 2:30. There will be NO exceptions for late applications.

Animation - Persons in this position will be responsible for using 3D Studio Max to complete the team's two required animations.

Communications - Persons in this position will be responsible for picture/graphics, video, and website work.

Electrical - Applicants should enjoy working with electronics. Persons in this position will be responsible for wiring the robot and ensuring that all components are properly connected.

Mechanical - Persons in this position will be responsible for the design, fabrication, and assembly of the robot.

Programming - Persons in this position will be responsible for the programming of the robot using a combination of C (MPLAB IDE) and EasyC Pro.

Public Relations - Persons in this position are responsible for obtaining new sponsors, maintaining sponsor relationships, and coordinating fundraising activities.

772 would like to thank Matt Branoff for creating this new video, which shows pictures and video footage, of members past and present, along with all of our robots, competing in various competitions over the years.

To see this video, click here. Please note that you must be using Internet Explorer (for the time being until we make it Firefox compatible) and must have Windows Media Player installed. Also, note that this is a large download. It may take several minutes to load. Enjoy!

The 2007-2008 season is fast approaching and the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will be looking for new members. If your a student, at Sandwich Secondary School, stay tuned to the announcements and information posted outside of T-80 to find out how to get involved. There will be several sections for you to apply for, some of which include Mechanical, Electrical, Programming, Animation, Website/Multimedia, and Public Relations.

For more information, talk to Mr. Ferguson, or e-mail us at info@sabrerobotics.com.

I regret to inform you that this years Annual Sponsor Banquet has been temporarily postponed due to the health of our Teacher Advisor, Mr. Ferguson. The Banquet will be rescheduled, sometime in the fall. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Once again, it is time for our annual Sponsor Banquet being held Thursday, July 5th at the Ciociaro Club (located at 3745 North Talbot Road, Oldcastle). Doors will open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and ceremonies commencing at 6:30 PM. Dinner will include, rolls, salad, assorted pastas, coffee, and dessert. Please note that there is a cash bar. We would also like to ask those attending, to dress appropriately (no jeans!). Members will receive one free ticket, and can purchase additional tickets for 15 dollars each (children 5 and under are free.) If you have not already received a form or invitation, please contact Amanda Iarusso immediately at Amanda@sabrerobotics.com . All monies and forms must be handed in no later than Friday, June 22, in T-80.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team successfully put on another Grade 7/8 Dance on Friday, May 18th, with over 400 students in attendance. The team would like to thank all of the Grade 7 and 8 students who attended, along with all of the team members, staff, and parents that made this night possible. Check our website regularly for information on upcoming dances and other events.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will be holding a grade 7/8 dance on Friday, May 18th from 7-10pm. All grade 7/8 students are welcome. Ticekts will be sold at the door. Check back soon for more information regarding pricing. Teacher and Student chaperones will be present.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team has finished their 2006-2007 season last week in Mississauga. The team performed extremely well, advancing to the quarter finals in Mississauga and Ohio, and the Semi Finals in Rochester. The team also managed to win the Entrepeneurialship Award, in both Mississauga and Rochester, as well as the Website Award in Ohio. Congratulations to all of the students for all of their hard work during this years build season. Also, a special thank you goes out to all of the teachers, GM Engineers, parents, sponsors, and everyone else who made this season a success. We couldn't do it without you.

However, even though the season may be over, the Sabre Bytes still have plans for the upcoming weeks, including a Grade 7/8 Dance and a Devonshire Mall Event. Check back often, as more information becomes available.

We've just entered the Hershey Center! We found WiFi, obviously, and I'm trying to find an extension cord so we can keep the updates coming. There shouldn't be many today, as it's just practice and we have a whole lot of planning to do... but I'll keep you posted!
I'm working on creating the Live Updates pages, so they'll be up and running ASAP! We're just unpacking at the moment, so stay posted for more later!

In about an hour, the team will be leaving for the Greater Toronto Regional! We're looking forward to meeting some more Canadian teams, as we haven't competed with any yet this year!

The website has been a little off the past few days, we had a few difficulties... but your faithful Webmaster has returned and will be updating as soon as possible.
From what I recall, there is WiFi in the Hershey Center, so Live Updates will be a must!

I hope you're all excited as we are!

"Have Fun, Be Safe"
Team 772

Team members, teachers, engineers, parents, etc. are leaving tomorrow after school for the Buckeye Regional in Cleveland, Ohio!
The entire team is quite excited to, again, be the only Canadian team at this regional. GO CANADA!
We're crossing our fingers that there will be WIRELESS internet... but if there's not, I'll still update through the day and then upload it at night at the hotel. But, here's hoping!... it's SO much cooler when it's LIVE ;)
Needless to say, everyone's quite excited... but I need to cut this short and pack!

The Sabres have been taking full advantage of their March Break! All areas have been strategizing and improving as our next regional is quickly approaching!

Website work has been slow this week due to my laptop's hard drive completely crashing... luckily, I managed to save most of my media and will be adding it to the site slowly. Once I get my new hard drive in, things will be up and running again!
I apologize for any inconvenience, but I assure you that Live Updates will continue through the next two regionals!
For the time being, I've added a few more pictures from Saturday in Finger Lakes, as well as a page about the ride home, Sunday.
All will be "snazzed up" soon, but for now it's pretty basic.
Thank you for your understanding!

Select Members, Teachers, and Engineers will travel to Rochester, New York to attend the Finger Lakes Regional. The team will depart Wednesday, March 7th, after school and return Sunday. Be sure to check our website for live updates during these dates, including travel updates, pictures and match results. Check back often to see how your Sabre Bytes are doing.

Are you (or your company/business) interested in becoming a sponsor of the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team? Click here to find out more about the benefits of being a sponsor.

If you are interested, please contact us at sponsors@sabrerobotics.com, with the title Sponsorship in the subject line. Alternatively, you can contact us by phone at 519-734-1237 (ask for Dave Ferguson.)

The Six Weeks have officially ended. The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team endured many challenges along the way, but in the end all of their hard work and dedication paid off. The Sabre Bytes would like to thank all of the Teachers, Parents, GM Engineers, and Sponsors who helped make the six week building period a success. All of the food, donations, and building advice were greatly appreciated and our success would not have been possible without you.

To view pictures and video footage of the building period, check out the Media Section of our website.

Great job Sabres!

The Sabre Bytes would like to thank all of those who came out to the Grade 7/8 Dance, as well as all the Students, Parents, and Teachers who helped organize this event. Stay tuned for more information about our next dance in May.

To view the poster for this dance, please click here.
The Sabre Bytes will host a grade 7/8 dance on Friday, February 16th, 2007 from 7-10pm in the Sandwich Secondary School Gym. Tickets will be sold at the door for $5.00 for a regular ticket and $10 for an exclusive VIP ticket. VIP's can:
-Cut the line
-Receive a free pop/water
-Enjoy an NEW exclusive lounge area
-Receive a free glow stick
-Make music requests

All grade 7 and 8 students are welcome. Parent, Teacher, and Student chaperones will be present.

Glowsticks, pop, water, and chips will be sold. For more information, please contact David Ferguson at dances@sabrerobotics.com or 519-734-1237.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team would like to inform you that on Thursday, February 15, 2007 there will be a parent’s information meeting. The meeting will take place at Sandwich Secondary School in the school’s cafeteria. The meeting will begin promptly at 7:00pm and will last no more than an hour. It is crucial that you and your child attend this meeting. If you and your child do not attend this meeting, your child will not be permitted to attend any competitions.

At this meeting the team will be giving a demonstration of the robot. We will also go over the competitions that the team will be attending and the appropriate Greater Essex County District School Board documents for such trips.

If for some reason there is an extenuating circumstance that will render you unable to attend this meeting, please contact Andre Capaldi at andre@sabrerobotics.com.

All members are reminded that order forms for team jerseys and practice polos must be handed in by this Friday (February 9th), no exceptions. Please be sure to get them in as soon as possible as these articles are manditory for all members!

The website will be updating quite quickly in the immediate future!
Notice now that we've added pictures to our team profiles. Images of teachers, engineers, and mentors will be added very soon!
Also, the About FIRST section has been updated with some new quotes from the 2007 team.
Make sure to keep an eye on our Sponsors page as we get more and more support every day!
Media updates are coming soon.

Last night the Sabre Bytes' hosted their first Grade 7 and 8 dance. The event was a smashing success and the turn out of students was great. Please stay tuned to the media section of this site for the pictures from this event. A big thank you goes out the all of the students that attended this event. Without you this event would not of been such a success. Also, thanks to all of the parents, teachers, and team members for their help in the event. A special thank you goes out to Amanda Iarusso, for all of her efforts in the event coordination and planning of the dance. The next dance will be on Friday, February 16, 2007. If you have any questions please feel free to contact Amanda Iarusso at dances@sabrerobotics.com.

The Sabre Bytes will hold a grade 7/8 dance on Friday, January 12th, 2007 from 7-10pm in the Sandwich Secondary School Gym. Tickets will be sold at the door for $5.00 for a normal ticket and $10 for a VIP ticket. VIP's can:
-Cut the line
-Receive a free drink
-Enjoy an exclusive lounge area
-Receive a free glow stick
-Make music requests

All grade 7 and 8 students are welcome. Parent, Teacher, and Student chaperones will be present.

Glowsticks, pop, water, and chips will be sold. For more information, please contact Amanda Iarusso at dances@sabrerobotics.com or 519-734-1237.

The six weeks have officially started! We will have mandatory team meetings every day this week (starting Monday, January 8th, 2007). The meetings will be held in T-80 and will commence at 2:30PM.

On Saturday, January 6, 2007 select members traveled to the kickoff event at the Ontario Science Center. This years challenge is called Rack 'N' Roll, stay tuned to the current season section of the website for updates. During the second half of the day we competed in the VEX competition. The VEX robot performed very well and when all was said and done we ranked 4th out of all the teams participating. Great work Sabre Bytes!

On Friday January 5th, select students, teachers, and engineers from the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team will travel to Toronto to attend the annual kickoff event where this years game will be revealed. The kickoff signifies the start of what is known as "The Six Weeks" in which teams across the globe will design, build, and test their robot before shipping them to the various competition sites. Stayed tuned for updates.

The Sabre Bytes Robotics Team would like to thank Joseph Mancini for all of his hard work in completing this years safety animation. The animation has been submitted to FIRST and should posted on our website in a few days.

Great job Joseph!

Hello:

I would like to welcome you to the Sabre Bytes Robotics Team website. This is my fifth year involved with the team, and second year as team coordinator & financial controller. The team has been working professionally budgeting, organizing, and planning for the upcoming season. If you have any questions about the team or are interested in making a financial contribution to the team, please feel free to contact the Sabre Bytes. I would also like to thank General Motors of Canada for continuing their valuable advisory and financial commitment to the team. I am very confident that this year’s season will be our most successful one yet!

Regards,

Andre Capaldi
Sabre Bytes Robotics Team
Team Coordinator & Financial Controller
andre@sabrerobotics.com

Team 772 organized a presentation for the school's Pep Rally on Thursday. The student body was very excited to view and play with the robots, as well as learn more about FIRST. Great job, team!
The website team has been working hard. The new team roster will be up as soon as possible, but there are a few FTP problems to sort out first. All other aspects of the website are also under review, so be sure to keep checking for updates!
In other news, just over one month until the kickoff! Do you have FIRST fever yet?!

The Sabre Bytes have been quite hard at work! Our training has been going great, and we have high hopes for this season.
The website has successfully changed servers, and we are working out a few issues having to do with that switch. Stayed tuned for a flawless site!
We are entering the Vex competition at the Kickoff Event that the team is attending in Toronto. We also plan to attend three regional events; Finger Lakes, Buckeye, and Greater Toronto.
The team would like to thank GM Canada for their ongoing support.

This robotics season has been an extremely successful one for the Sabre Bytes. We have accomplished so much and our team has truly exemplified the meaning of FIRST. However, there is one person who was not here to enjoy the fruits of our labours. She is currently on a student exchange program in Lyon, France. Her exchange program started right when the team went to competition and ends right after we return from Atlanta. This is unfortunate, as she has put in a phenomenal amount of time to bring the team to where it is today. The team made a promise to this person that we would give her a moment of silence when we arrived at the Championships in Atlanta. The name of this exemplary member is Amanda Iarusso. She was also nice enough to send the Sabre Bytes a post card from France. If you are a team member, check out the members section to view her awesome post card. Thank you, Amanda! The whole team can't wait until you come home!

Today bright and early at 5:00am the Sabre Bytes pit crew left Sandwich Secondary School to start the long fourteen hour journey to Atlanta, aka. Operation ATL. They are the brave souls that will uncrate and make sure our robot is ready to rumble for the Championship Event. The remaining Sabre Bytes are anxious to start their journey as well on Wednesday, April 26, 2006. Stay tuned for the live updates to see a minute by minute report on the successes and failures of the Sabre Bytes.

The Sabre Bytes have been invited to join other Canadian teams and their families/chaperones to attend a special reception on Thursday April 27th, 2006 at the Georgia World Congress Center. Cake and refreshments will be served. This will be an excellent opportunity for the Bytes to mingle with the Canadian contingent of FIRST. We will be able to bond and reflect upon the many exciting experiences we have had and will continue to have!

The Members Section is back in public order. Also, to those concerned, please don't forget the upcoming meeting!

From the Sabre Bytes’ administration we have noticed that a few people still owe the team the required paperwork to go to Atlanta. So could Graeme. D and Alice. S please talk to Andre Capaldi so we get the paperwork sorted out.

The Sabre Bytes are in the final steps of preparation to get them to Atlanta. The Atlanta Championship Regional is soon approaching, and there will be a meeting for all of the students attending. So here is the information you need to know:

This meeting is vital because we will be informing the members about the trip. If you cannot attend, please e-mail Andre Capaldi.

To update, the team has been quite busy preparing for the Atlanta Championship! All is going well and we're most definately anticipating the event. Team 772 has been sorted into the Curie Division along with a few teams we've bonded with during this year's regional events. This will be interesting, to say the least!

We'll see you in ATL!

Just letting all the supporters of the Sabre Bytes robotics team know that due to the large number of awards and achievements that the team has received this year during the regional competitions we have been invited by FIRST to attend the National Competition in Atlanta at the end of April. The team is currently on the pending list for the competition and after First receives that entrance money from the team we will be on the official list of teams that are registered for the Nationals.

A T L Here we Come

The Greater Toronto Regional was a great way to end the season. This was the largest robotics regional the world had ever seen, with over 74 teams and two playing fields. Our robot performed well and made it to the quarter finals. The Sabre Bytes also won the DaimlerChrysler Team Spirit Award. This award celebrates extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit through exceptional partnership and teamwork. This season was awesome and we cannot wait to have the annual Sponsor Banquet. Stay tuned to the posts for information in regards to this event.

The University of Waterloo Regional was another great regional. The robot performed well and made it to the quarter finals. Again, the Sabre Bytes won some awards. On the second day we won the Xerox Creativity Award. This award celebrates creative design, use of a component, or a creative or unique strategy of play. This was the first award our team won that pertained to the design of the robot. On the last day of competition, our team felt the woes of defeat. However, we were soon uplifted after winning the UL Safety Award. This award celebrates the team that progresses beyond safety fundamentals by using innovative ways to eliminate or protect against hazards. The winning team consistently demonstrates excellence in industrial safety performance that shines throughout the competition from uncrating to re-pack. Congratulations to everyone on their hard work. Our final regional will be the Greater Toronto Regional in Mississauga. Stay tuned to the live updates while we are gone!!

The Waterloo Regional is soon approaching, and there will be a meeting for all of the students attending. So here is the 411: