My Wish, For You🖤
An Open Note To My Combat Robot Friends:
As the 2023 year wraps up, I wanted to take a minute (or a bunch of them) to remind you all why you are so important and how you've made an impact on my life over the last few years. While I had an amazing year in the combat space, on a personal level, myself and a lot of people around me experienced huge loss and sadness. I have learned this year that it is important to remind people why they are special - so this is my chance to do that for all of you.
From day 1, as a whole, you have been the most accepting, uplifting and supportive group of people I have met in my life. I feel lucky every day that I now to get to call many of you my friend. I look forward to every event for so many reasons, but mostly, because of the people. Being able to attend an event every 6 weeks or so means that we are lucky enough to keep creating special moments and memories to take with us through our lives.
There are so many of you, individuals and groups, that have left footprints in my heart -- to many of you, (I know there will be people I forget, but that does not mean you are any less special in this moment) these are my open thoughts and things I want to remind you.
Alex
I had no idea that when I walked into 165 Water Street for the first time, I would get so quickly drawn to someone wearing a dinosaur hoody. Little did you know then, that I was always cheering you on and waiting to see what was next. Since then, I have been lucky enough to consider you a friend. I have watched you live out your dreams and seen you take down some of the best robots in the game. Thanks for always dealing with my hugs and my forced selfies. You are truly one of a kind.
Angel
I will always love 2023 because it was the year that you and I became close. I love everything about you, and I hope you never change. I look forward to seeing your name pop up on my phone with the cutest reel to put the biggest smile on my face. Your design talent and ability to put things together is one of the things I admire about you most. You are always there when I need you, whether it is something small I am worried about, or just wanting a hug. I am ready for lots of field trips and fun with you in the coming years.
Anthony
There are so many things I could say, and many of them you have heard before - but your time, effort, and dedication to this community never goes unnoticed. You are one of the hardest working people I know, across so many different platforms, and continue to show up every day and make sure everyone gets taken care of. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all that you have done for me, my friends, and my teammates. I look forward to creating more memories and cool merch with you in the New Year. Lastly, thank you for bringing Aria into my life through MakerBattle this year – watching her progress throughout the year was so special, and I cannot wait to see how far she goes.
Brandon
Oh my heart just beams with pride thinking about the year that you have had. I have never met anyone so deserving of the success they have had than you. Your never-ending hard work is so impressive. The way you look, analyze, and fix is remarkable, and I am so glad I was able to be there to watch your success firsthand on so many occasions. I am absolutely stoked to see what is next for you and I look forward to being able to continue to be one of your biggest fans.
Casey and CJ
Thank you for being the first people to consistently sit by us in the pits, our connection with you was well appreciated from the beginning. Thank you for letting me love you and your children, mostly from afar, but always keeping me up to date with photos and videos. Hoping you make a trip out in 2024 so our whole family can be complete again.
Christine
Goodness – where do I even begin. I have so many reasons to be thankful for you. The energy and happiness you bring into my life is truly something special. I have had a blast working so closely with you on different things and I will always be grateful for you giving me the chance to talk about something I love so much, so frequently. Watching you dig into competition this year was amazing and I am excited to support you as you continue your own robot journey. I love you and Liv (and even Jimmy too) so much it is hard to put into words, but I am so glad, that even from far away, we have continued to grow closer every day.
Corey
Watching your journey this year has been nothing short of incredible. The journey and progression of synthesis is remarkable and to see how much you have dialed it in is amazing. I will never forget being cage side with you during the best match of the year, and I am so happy I was able to share in that moment with you! As the year has started to wrap up, you have really grown into the mentor roll, and I am excited to see you continue to share all your knowledge with others to help grow and progress this sport.
Craig
They always say if you work hard enough, or dream big enough, you will get the chance to meet the people you look up to. For me, that was you. Your incredible creations have always drawn my attention and I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world to now call you a close friend. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for always checking up on me, for answering all my questions and just being someone who I always know is there.
Ethan and DJ
I will never be able to fully explain how much joy you both bring into my life. While you may joke that you make the worst robots ever, I have seen you both excel in helping others, and quickly coming up with new ideas to solve problems. The random messages, Instagram reels, gifs, and other things you send me always brings a smile to my face. Thank you both for always being yourselves and being two people I can vent to about any random thing.
Evan and Alicia
Thank you for letting me be a part of your lives, watching you grow as a couple and seeing you both so happy brings such a smile to my face. You are both amazing individuals in your own ways, but together, I know you are going to achieve great things. I am grateful that you have so much trust in me – I will always have your backs, in any situation.
Pit Control
My little NHRL family, I am genuinely so happy I get the chance to work with each of you at every single event. I love our, almost daily, banter about so many different things. When things get stressful or out of control, there is no greater group I would rather manage the chaos with. I have been lucky enough to spend time with you all outside of competitions with our new Havoc podcast, and I am excited to cheer some of you on next year as builders (well – if, you get your top plate on in time).
Thomas
I have been lucky enough to work alongside you at other events, and there is no one else I would rather have in my corner. You always make sure we have fun, and you consistently have me rolling on the floor in laughter. I am so grateful for everything we have done together, and I look forward to making even more memories in the new year.
Team Defective
Most of you are the first “robot children” I was lucky enough to have in the space of NHRL, and I will always be your biggest fan. Thanks for being so patient with my cage side yelling and needing to hide in a corner to take a video or various photos throughout your fights.
Aiden, it brings me so much joy to see you digging back in so hard to this sport and the team, I cannot wait to see how far you go in 2024. You can do amazing things.
Chris, I am so glad you have become family to us and have joined the team. Your willingness to help others, even before your own bot, never goes unnoticed. I am personally grateful for your entire family, and the love you have allowed me to show Maddie.
Joseph, I feel like I barely saw you this year, but I am so proud of you for finishing school - and I know your skills will only help progress you and the team forward. Hopefully I get to see more of you next year! Kris, while I am sure this was not the year you wanted, I loved seeing you create new bots and bring more people into this sport. I am looking forward to what you choose to do next.
Matt, thank you for letting me be me and painting your face or putting cow stickers, glitter, and balloons all over your robot. I am excited to see your newest creations and updates.
Michael, the pure knowledge you have, and the improvements you have made across so many robots is something very commendable and you have made me ridiculously proud this year. Mike, you continue to show why you are one of my favorite humans, the care you have for the boys and the ability to pick up on the little things always amazes me.
Zack, thank you for being you and taking the time to understand me for the scattered person that I am, and for never backing down even in my worst moments.
Team Honey Cracked
I am SOO glad you have become like a sister team to Team Defective. I love watching so many of you not only do great things on your own but also create super fun collaborations with others. The amount of work you have all put in shows so clearly in the large improvements you have made this year. I know there are big things in store for 2024, and I cannot wait to hopefully see one of you take home your first dumpster!
Cody, Liam, and Stack – I am so happy I was able to spend a few extra days with you all this year, watching how hard you work and how much you support each other is truly incredible and I love how much you have all grown and progressed this year. Your cool and calm demeanors show through the level of detail and thought in your robots, and it is truly impressive.
Zoe, From the sparky award last year, to the mentor award this year – this entire community is so lucky to have you. Thank you for letting Jaxon be one of my best fur friends, I always look forward to spending Friday nights with him for our walks around the pits to say hello to everyone. You do your best to make sure I feel included, and I am excited for another year of doing fun things together.
Team Magnitude
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for taking the chance on me and adding me to the team. Chad, thank you for trusting me to take on this role, I hope that I can continue to bring different things to the table to help keep everything on track and organized. I will also always be grateful for the friendship you let me have with Max – he brings such a smile to my face, and I will never get sick of turning around and having a little shadow. Luke, Lindsay, Chris and Kyle – you have watched my story from the beginning, and I am excited to finally have the chance to work much more closely with you all. To the rest of the team, you are all such a talented group of people with so much knowledge and I cannot wait to keep learning from you all.
Team Pandamonium
I am truly impressed with everything you have all accomplished this year. You have provided me with some of my favorite memories and I always look forward to you being some of the first through the doors with each competition. Any team that can band together and all wear onesies, is always one that will have a special place in my heart. The time and effort you all put into your robots, as well as helping each other, is really going to continue to drive you all to bigger things, and I cannot wait to see it all unfold.
Team Stamina
My favorite team of our younger generation. You all are paving the way for more and more people to get involved and really learn a lot of cool things. Watching you all push boundaries at such a young age is really encouraging and I love your genuine curiosity about this sport. I would also like to shout out to all your incredible parents who constantly make it work so you can all be at so many events. This team is full of some of the best young builders I have ever met, and I am so happy that you all trust me so much to share your lives with me.
Tom Farkas
Hands down you are one of my favorite individuals. Thank you for continuing to create my favorite robots ever, and consistently bringing people joy with whatever you do next. I always look forward to your random messages, whether it be to just say hello, tell me about your next crazy idea, or talk about the next fun event we get to see each other at. Your hugs will always be my favorite, and I appreciate your friendship more than words can say.
and finally - NHRL All Stars
Thank you for making my last event of the year so memorable for so many reasons. It was truly something special being able to spend 3 full days with all of you. You are all so deserving of the name “all-star”, and I feel absolutely honored to share such an incredible space with you all. You left me with so many fun memories to close out this year, and you should all be so proud of yourselves. I know there are big things in store for next year and I cannot wait to see you all lead the pack into bigger and more impressive things. Congratulations on an amazing event!
May each day be a canvas for your dreams - filled with joy, growth and remarkable achievements.
