Northern Colorado Vex VRC
Competition Trailer

Equipment in the  VRC Trailer

• 4x metal competition field perimeters and towers with electronics and floor tiles
  Fields are mostly assembled in the trailer.  Please return the same as they arrived.

• 4x sets of High Stakes competition objects

• 2x portable audio systems including Microphones/Speakers/Stands

• 2x striped referee overshirts

• 4x floor mats to cover cables (3' x 4')

• 4x tablets for referee scoring

• 9x laptops for running tournament software, field timers, ...

• 3x portable cases with equipment for field operation

• 4x televisions of varying sizes for the competition audience and results/standings

• Electrical cables and power strips suitable for competition pit areas

• Cables for all of the electronics, fields, monitors

• Tools for field setup and takedown

• Miscellaneous items for the tournament itself in limited numbers such as clipboards for judges and referees who is filling out the match results on paper, robot sizing tools.

Changes for the 2024-25 Season

Berthoud Robotics will charging $150 per event for trailer usage to cover the following expenses (the charge may be more if your event is a LONG way from Berthoud):

• Trailer delivery and pickup  to/from your event by BRC volunteers

• Item replacement (field objects, tiles, electronics). Likely trailer usage is 8-10 events per year.  The recurring expenses are expected to be $2200.

• For event partners we suggest adding perhaps $5 to the cost of your event to cover the trailer fee.

• Payment of the fee to be made at the first planning meeting or at the event setup to Berthoud Robotics, POBox 1844, Berthoud CO 80513.

• Please contact BRC (robotics_trailer@BerthoudRobotics.org) with any questions or if you need an invoice for the trailer fee.

Event Partner Responsibilities

• Make a note in the Planning RECF Google Sheet indicating you will need the trailer.  Note that the trailer can only support one event per weekend.

• Contact BRC early via email   robotics_trailer@BerthoudRobotics.org
  There is only one trailer so reserve your weekend and trailer usage early).

• Meet with the BRC trailer volunteers to discuss what equipment your event needs.

• Plan to attend the tournament before yours because those are the people that are loading the trailer which you will be unloading next.  It will make your life a lot easier if you are familiar how the trailer looks that night (it'll look that way when the friday night before your tournament).

• Learn how to use TM.  BRC volunteers can run you through and make sure things look good but you have to have your event codes and have a vague idea of how the TM software works to run your tournament.

• Reserve the trailer a very nice parking spot so loading/unloading is easy.
  The trailer likely will stay in that parking spot until the event is over the next day.  Please make sure that is acceptable or you get the BRC volunteers to relocate the trailer before they go home for the night.

• Be mindful of the BRC trailer volunteer time.  These volunteers likely have a much longer drive home than you do once setup is finished.  Work to get the parts of the event setup that arrive on the trailer set up and operational early so that the BRC trailer volunteers can head home.

• Have enough volunteers for setup and teardown.  It takes 1 adult and 2-3 students per field to get them set up in a reasonable time. 

• Things NOT in the trailer that the EP will need to provide

  • Two (2) AA batteries for the microphones if using the sound equipment from the trailer.

  • One ream (500 sheets) of 8-1/2 x 11 printer paper (match and playoff schedules for the teams, queuing volunteers, referees and judges) produced the day of the event by the TM software.

  • Printed current game manuals (for referees and judges)

  • Printed judging materials (rubrics, notebook score sheets, interview score sheets, ...)

  • Printed referee scoring sheets (see link at the bottom of this page for an option)

  • One floor mat per field to cover the cabling between the TM server and main monitor and the fields.  This avoids a major trip hazard for referees and the teams.

  • Two normal sized rolls of white electrical tape (for field lines).  Please donate any unused portions of a roll to the trailer for the next field user.

  • Having several sets of tools for your own volunteers to use when assembling field makes the assembly process a lot faster.  This typically means 4x of the standard Vex TORX hand drivers.  Make sure your volunteers keep track of the tools you own.

• Secure Trailer Parking.   The trailer likely will be left at your facility overnight.  The trailer has a lock but having a reasonably secure location is an added benefit.  We will need to have access to the trailer on the day of the event for spare parts and to facilitate loading equipment as the event is concluding.

• Be sure you can identify your gear vs the BRC trailer gear.  Keep BRC trailer fields/tiles together (don't use trailer tiles with your field walls, we'll never be able to figure out who's gear belongs to whom).  Don't use trailer parts, objects on your fields.

• Schedule field setup the night before the tournament starting around dinner (the start time is negotiable but you will spend no less than 1 hour and more likely 3 hours or more setting up depending on how much equipment is used)

• Unload/Setup volunteers:  3 per field + 4 for common. (for 3 fields, you will need about 16 dedicated volunteers).  BRC volunteers are there to provide guidance and tools for the setup, not to actually "do" the trailer unload and field setup.

• Once the event equipment is set up, the EP is the main contact.  BRC trailer volunteers aren't part of your tournament volunteer staff (unless you can convince them to volunteer for the event).  They have tasks to do throughout the tournament separate from the event volunteers.  Those trailer volunteers will likely be taking down the skills fields while the playoff matches are happening.

• Teardown/Load:  Again, 2-3 volunteers per field to efficiently get the tournament equipment torn down and hauled to where the trailer is located.  Follow BRC trailer volunteer directions on what to take apart and what to leave attached to the field walls.  Make sure you load the tiles into a tile bag. Collect your equipment and keep it separate from the BRC trailer equipment.  Loading of the trailer happens under the direction of the BRC trailer volunteers so that everything is safely packed and secure for the trip home.
  
  Typically once the skills/practice fields are closed they can be torn down and loaded by your volunteers (even though the event is likely still underway).  Dismantling and loading the skills/practice fields early helps the event finish earlier.  Remember your BRC trailer crew has likely a 30 to 60 minute drive back to the BRC HQ after leaving the event.