"Varsity Sport of the Mind." BHS Series 4.

1st row: Sarah G., Hiba C., Kristin L., Francesca F., Andi M., Judith H.,

2nd row: Adam R., Capt Ryan H., Ritsuma I., James J., Capt. Matt R., Capt Justin L.

3rd row: Andrew G., Rohan S., Josh I., RJ R., Bernie E., Justin P.

4th row: Sid R., Deven K., Alec E., Capt. Jason L., Tim M.

Combining the the excitement of sports, with the rigors of science and technology, Robotics has been called the varsity Sport of the Mind. The Bionic Barons a robotic team from both Bloomfield Hills Andover and Lahser High Schools, will compete in district qualifying events at Waterford Mott High School on Mar 9-10 and Troy Athens on Mar 30-31. Should they have success in the district qualifiers they will move on to State Champion ship events at Eastern Michigan University on April 12-14.

The 2012 Competition is called Rebound Rumble. Each team competes to earn points by scoring as many basketballs in the hoops as possible. The higher the hoop in which the basketball is scored, the more points the team receives. The match ends with robots attempting to earn bonus points by balancing on bridges located in the middle of the field

The State and National competitions are sponsored by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). First was founded in 1989 by Dean Kamden whose goal was to "To transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders."

The Bionic Barons of Andover and Lahser are in their fourth year of competition. This year they are aided by what the school district calls a “Significant grant” from the Chrysler Foundation. The Barons coach, Ed Law announced a $6625 grant which will enable the team to purchase equipment and register for competitions.

 Part of the FIRST (or FRC for FIRST Robot Completion) competition requires the team Under strict rules, limited resources, and time limits, teams of 25 students or more are challenged to raise funds, design a team "brand," hone teamwork skills, and build and program robots to perform prescribed tasks against a field of competitors. It’s as close to "real-world engineering" as a student can get. Volunteer professional mentors lend their time and talents to guide each team. Students benefit from learning from professionals, building and competing with a robot they designed and built, and qualify for as much as  $ 14.8 in college scholarships.