Let them fight
From left to right, Kara Goecke of the MCC Foundation, MCC Professor of Physics, Mathematics and Engineering Evan Frodermann, MCC Foundation Director Elizabeth Wise and MCC Digital Media Professor Jo Frohwein pose for a photo during the fourth annual Battlebots Competition at the Student Activities Center on Saturday.
Jesse Serrano IV, left, looks on while his father Jesse Serrano III, right, works on repairing a Battlebot during the competition at MCC Saturday.
Alex Rice, left, and Owen Eaton, right, show off their Battlebot during the competition at the MCC Student Activities Center on Saturday.
Competitors control their robots as they compete inside the ring on Saturday morning.
T-R PHOTOS BY ROBERT MAHARRY Participants and spectators gathered at the MCC Student Activity Center on Saturday morning for the fourth annual Battlebots competition. The event raises money for the MCC Foundation.
Joshua Phipps of Emerson celebrates after winning an early match during the MCC Battlebots competition.
From left to right, Kara Goecke of the MCC Foundation, MCC Professor of Physics, Mathematics and Engineering Evan Frodermann, MCC Foundation Director Elizabeth Wise and MCC Digital Media Professor Jo Frohwein pose for a photo during the fourth annual Battlebots Competition at the Student Activities Center on Saturday.
Jesse Serrano IV, left, looks on while his father Jesse Serrano III, right, works on repairing a Battlebot during the competition at MCC Saturday.
Alex Rice, left, and Owen Eaton, right, show off their Battlebot during the competition at the MCC Student Activities Center on Saturday.
Competitors control their robots as they compete inside the ring on Saturday morning.
T-R PHOTOS BY ROBERT MAHARRY Participants and spectators gathered at the MCC Student Activity Center on Saturday morning for the fourth annual Battlebots competition. The event raises money for the MCC Foundation.
Joshua Phipps of Emerson celebrates after winning an early match during the MCC Battlebots competition.
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The Marshalltown Community College (MCC) Student Activity Center filled up for a different type of competition than usual on Saturday morning as both students and community members engaged in some friendly robot combat at the fourth annual Battlebots Competition.
The event, hosted by the MCC Foundation, raises money for scholarships distributed to students and featured teams comprised of both MCC students and employees of local businesses like Emerson. Foundation Director Elizabeth Wise said the event has continued to grow each year.
"It really helps because it brings the community in, so a lot of the companies here are engineers. So it gives our pre-engineering students an opportunity to see what their skills are," she said.
It also promotes real-life skills and gives MCC broadcasting students a chance to hone their craft while announcing both for the spectators at the gym and those watching via livestream.
"It's learning how to improv a lot. When you're on a livestream, sometimes you just have to keep talking, and you have to know when to fill the spaces," MCC Digital Media Professor Jo Frohwein said. "And also, we have audio crew working on when to pull in music, when not to pull in music, when to go up, when to go down. A lot of that stuff, you can theorize it in the classroom as much as possible, but until you're hands-on, you really don't know."
Both Wise and Frohwein agreed that the event is something students look forward to and offers great opportunities for all who participate.
As for the battles themselves, the rules are relatively simple: the remote-controlled bots fight for two minutes, and they can't stall out for more than 10 seconds. A trapdoor opens halfway through, and if a bot gets stuck inside of it, that constitutes a forfeit. Otherwise, a panel of judges decides the winner.
Evan Frodermann, a professor of physics, mathematics and engineering at MCC, emceed the event and said his engineering students love the opportunity to gain hands-on experiences that aren't always available at a small community college.
"This is our chance to be able to give that large school experience but here at Marshalltown and connect to the community," he said.
He added that a new robotics program has launched this year under the leadership of Professor Amit Deb Nath, and Frodermann explained the modification process for a Battlebot, which can take "hours and hours."
The partnership with Emerson is particularly beneficial because it helps students envision the kinds of work they could do after college or even an internship while they're still cool. And last but not least, it's an entertaining spectacle for the audience and livestream viewers.
"People love demolition derby for a reason. They get to see cars bash together. This is just a small version of that but with a lot more damage, which is still super fun, and that's why we bring it to the general community," Frodermann said.
A few of the competitors, Alex Rice and Owen Eaton, spoke of the real-life skills they've gained through the process. Rice is an MCC student focused on material engineering, and Eaton is an MHS and MCC alum who is currently studying software engineering with a focus on artificial intelligence and data science at Iowa State University.
"It teaches you on the fly thinking for sure. When I showed up, I didn't know I'd be looking at a robot, let alone a three-pound one. You have to figure out how to turn it on, put the battery in. It's great on the fly thinking -- where things go, who's best at what," Eaton said.
Contact Robert Maharry at (641) 753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.