After a year-long break, Perham's robotics team, the Full Metal Jackets, are back in action — starting their first week in Duluth for The Northern Lights Regional. The team got through to the Quarterfinals before getting eliminated.
The Full Metal Jackets were chosen to be in an alliance with team 2491, NoMythic. The two teams worked together and made good progress throughout the competition. They had trouble with the robot breaking down but got the issues fixed before leaving for the next match.
The Full Metal Jackets ended the day being ranked 33 out of 53 teams. They faced heavy competition but had lots of fun, according to student Dacotah McDonald. The team had a new head mentor this year, Andrew Paulson, as well as past mentors John Bell and Chad McDonald, who all helped lead the students through competition.
The team is comprised of Perham High School seniors Quentin Frohling, Johnathan Horn, Jacob Gallmeier, Fred Femling, Jonah Bieger, Justin Spencer, Hunter Horn, and Shannon Stafki. Other team members are junior Nathan Glover, sophomores Reid Starzl and Gary Steeke, and freshmen Dacotah McDonald and Arthur Femling.
The Full Metal Jackets' last competition will be the Great Northern Regional in Grand Forks, March 23–26.
