Critical field safety reminders that all coaches should read and share with their participants. 

We love, love, LOVE that so many teams are able to build a practice field that they share with other teams.  It is one of the many ways our community supports each other, HOWEVER, it is starting to have a negative impact on safety at our competitions especially when it comes to students stepping over the field perimeter. 

Participants must use the gates to enter and exit the field.  It is in the rules (See G102 & G211) and your team can receive a card from the Head Referee if you break it!  We would love for our practice field hosts to follow this same rule, HOWEVER, regardless of the rule at the practice field, you may not step over the side wall at a competition!  Please make sure your students and mentors know this; we want to keep them safe. 

Our District Championship/Championship Briefing scheduled for this Tuesday, March 17 at 7:00 pm

We will be going over high level event information for our District Championship event as well as Championships in Houston.  More detailed information will be sent to registered teams after week 4 events have been completed and all teams have registered. 

If you believe you may qualify for District Championships, I strongly recommend you plan to attend this briefing. 

I know the registration window falls during spring break for some teams so please be prepared to register for the event and secure your registration even if your school is on spring break. 

Click here to attend this meeting.   

Interest survey for an off season in the Palouse area during the summer 

Several entities on the Palouse are exploring the possibility of hosting an off-season event in Pullman, and we’d love your input as we consider whether this idea is worth pursuing. Please take a moment to complete the short survey below to help us understand your level of interest. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdlpMUyH1hVzduFepgzt4eqWcc7_PBH0PJkkxIJWw3V-ZU5BQ/viewform?usp=dialog 

Thank you for your time and insight! 

Important Dates

Our District Championship/Championship Briefing scheduled for next Tuesday, March 17 at 7:00 pm

We will be going over high level event information for our District Championship event as well as Championships in Houston.  More detailed information will be sent to registered teams after week 4 events have been completed and all teams have registered. 

If you believe you may qualify for District Championships, I strongly recommend you plan to attend this briefing. 

I know the registration window falls during spring break for some teams so please be prepared to register for the event and secure your registration even if your school is on spring break. 

Click here to attend this meeting.   

Site Specific Information 

Expect to receive an email from us with event specific information on Wednesday 2 weeks before your event loads in. 

We will also update the event page with information as we receive it from the site.  You can find a list of events on our website here:  https://firstwa.org/competitions/  

Important Dates

Our District Event Briefing was last Thursday, Feb 12 at 7:00 pm

If you missed the briefing, you can find the slides and recording on our website here:  https://firstwa.org/webinars/  

Yes, much of this info is the same from year to year, but we will be going over some new information, so please take the time to look over the slide deck.   

Quiet rooms at events 

Right now, only 1 event has a quiet room:  Auburn High School.  While we send quiet room materials on the truck to each event, we rely on teams to staff and manage the quiet rooms at the events.  If we do not have teams volunteer to host the quiet room and coordinate the volunteers, we will not be having quiet rooms again this year.   

If you are interested in hosting the quiet room at an event, please fill out this form by this Friday, February 21.   

Accommodations at events

One last reminder for the season, if you need an event accommodation please fill out this form.  We will make every effort to accommodate your request.  The sooner we know about a need, the more likely we will be able to meet that need at our events.   

Site Specific Information 

Site specific information was emailed to the Lead and Alternate contacts for our week 1 events this morning.  Expect to receive an email from us with event specific information on Wednesday 2 weeks before your event loads in. 

We will also update the event page with information as we receive it from the site.  You can find a list of events on our website here:  https://firstwa.org/competitions/  

Important Dates

Our District Event Briefing scheduled for next Thursday, Feb 12 at 7:00 pm 

We will be going over high level event information for our District events.  Site specific information will be sent for each event about 2 weeks prior to the event. 

It is important you have 1 coach attend this meeting.  Your team coaches, mentors, students & spectators are all expected to know this information.  

Yes, much of this info is the same from year to year but we will be going over some new information so it is important that one adult from each team attend 

Click here to attend this meeting.  (I have verified the link and know it is correct.  Sorry for the confusion at the last coaches chat, that is totally on me!) 

FIRST Force Scrimmage – 2026

 Once again, FIRST Force will hold an FRC scrimmage at Corvallis High School in Corvallis, Oregon on February 22, 2026.  This is a great opportunity for all teams to test and tune your robots, practice driving, and see what other teams are planning before the first competition. FIRST Force has even purchased a half-field of game pieces for this event. Registration is free for teams who were new to FIRST® in 2025 or 2026 and for FIRST Force member teams.  A $100.00 registration fee for all other teams helps provide materials to build game elements and game pieces.. Read more about the event in Scrimmage Nuts and Bolts.  Complete the registration form to make sure your space is reserved.  You can also contact denise@firstforceteams.org if you have any questions.  We look forward to seeing you at scrimmage in February. 

Important Dates

Workshops/Activities/Quiet Room at events 

Workshops 

Workshops are great at events but take extra work.  If you are interested in hosting a workshop, please fill out this form The deadline to submit for a workshop is 5 pm this Friday, February 6. 

Quiet Room 

We had lots of people asking us about quiet rooms last year.  FIRST Washington is unable to manage quiet room sign ups at events.  Volunteers do need to sign up for the role through their firstinspires dashboard to make sure they have passed youth protection screening.  Many adults enjoy taking a shift in the quiet room to give them a break from the noise and craziness of the event! 

Please consider hosting the quiet room, we are happy to work with you and give you contact info for the folks to sign up.  Fill out this form  by this Friday, February 20 if you’re willing to be a quiet room host for an event.  

Our District Event Briefing scheduled for next Thursday, Feb 12 at 7:00 pm

We will be going over high level event information for our District events.  Site specific information will be sent for each event about 2 weeks prior to the event. 

It is important you have 1 coach attend this meeting.  Your team coaches, mentors, students & spectators are all expected to know this information.  

Click here to attend this meeting.  (I have verified the link and know it is correct.  Sorry for the confusion at the last coaches chat, that is totally on me!) 

Robot Rule Reminders from Your Inspectors 

The best way to ensure your robot is ready to compete safely, fairly, and quickly at events is to stay up to date on the latest robot rules! Here are some useful links to help your team do that: 

• Game Manual, Section 8 ROBOT Construction Rules and 9 Inspection & Eligibility 

• Combined Team Updates 

• FRC Q&A System 

• Rule change highlights from PNW Senior LRI Steven Smith 

 For any robot rule or inspection questions during the build season, please email or text Steven: 

        Steven Smith – PNW Senior LRI 

        stevengsmith71@gmail.com
        425-346-2039 

 If you reach out, be sure to include your name and which team you are affiliated with. 

Recording and slide deck from last week’s coaches chat have been posted

Thank you to everyone who attended last week’s coaches chat.  I think we had some great discussions! 

We didn’t record the entire meeting but we did record the presentation portion which includes some information from our Lead Robot Inspector, Steve Smith on changes to the robot rules this season. 

You can find the slide deck and recording here:  https://firstwa.org/webinars/  

An important message from our Finance Dept regarding booster deposits

Important note: All checks must be made payable to FIRST Washington. We are unable to deposit checks made out to teams or individuals. This will delay your team from receiving these funds as they will have to wait for a new check to be issued correctly.   

Important Dates