VALLEY—Next Saturday, April 1, the San Luis Valley 4-H program will be hosting the second annual RoboRAVE Colorado robotics competition here in the San Luis Valley. This event, held at the Monte Vista High School from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., is a fun and low-cost way for robotics teams from Colorado and New Mexico to show off their skills.

I discovered RoboRAVE in 2015, when my 4-H robotics team was looking for an affordable competition to enter. That first year, I took a team of three to compete at the RoboRAVE International event in Albuquerque. There were over 1500 competitors from five countries. My team had a blast competing that year, and began thinking about how they could improve for the 2016 contest. I left impressed by the tone and spirit of the event which was positive and infectious.

RoboRAVE as an organization works incredibly hard to make sure that participants understand that at their events, winning in secondary. Instead they believe the real spirit of RoboRAVE is teamwork, sharing, and having fun while learning.

These three RoboRAVE goals go hand in hand with what we do in the 4-H youth development program. We strive to build life skills like teamwork and communication among our members. Plus, our slogan is “Learn by Doing.” We deliver on that slogan with fun projects where kids can explore their interests, like robotics.

Because RoboRAVE and our local 4-H program shared a common vision, I partnered with them to start the RoboRAVE Colorado event in 2016. We had a successful inaugural event last winter, and we’re hoping to provide an even better experience this year.

We have embraced the RoboRAVE spirit at RoboRAVE Colorado. Participants will experience a day full of challenges and fun. They will need to work in teams to overcome obstacles and build and program robots that can succeed in four different events. Teams will also get the chance to meet youth from other programs around Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. They’ll build friendships, learn, and “kick bot”.

We give out certificates and prizes to winning teams in our events. We also provide awards for teams and individuals who embody the RoboRAVE spirit by demonstrating teamwork, creativity, grit, and enthusiasm. We believe it’s important to recognize not just outstanding engineering and programming, but also outstanding behavior!

We’re able to give out these awards, and host this event, because of support from our community. Sponsors for this year’s event include Trinidad State Educational Foundation, San Luis Valley 4-H Foundation, Poole Chemical, Holiday RV South Fork, Monte Vista Rotary, Kristi Mountain Sports, Monte Vista Kiwanis, Big Valley HobbyTown, and Dairy Queen.

We encourage community members to come out to support our local teams at RoboRAVE Colorado next weekend. The event is free for spectators, who can drop in anytime during the day. Keep in mind that the afternoon tends to have more action, as teams are busy getting scored runs in before time runs out. Events tournaments will start at 4 p.m., and will be followed by awards. We’d love to see you there so you can experience the RoboRAVE spirit firsthand!

Amy Henschen is the 4-H Youth Development Agent for Colorado State University Extension. To find out more about Extension and the 4-H program visit http://sanluisvalley.colostate.edu or call 719-852-7381. Extension programs are available to all without discrimination.