Bubbles Joins Makeshift for First FRC Kickoff Experience

FRC Team 10015 Bubbles joins mentor team FRC 4039 Makeshift for our first FRC Kickoff Event

FRC Team 10015 Bubbles joined mentor team 4039 Makeshift for its first FRC Kickoff on January 4, 2025, analyzing the game challenge, discussing strategy, and experiencing the FIRST community.

By SolversMind Robotics
Published January 4, 2025 | Updated August 5, 2026
Reviewed by SolversMind Robotics mentors

Every FRC journey begins with one exciting moment: kickoff.

On January 4, 2025, FRC Team 10015 Bubbles experienced its first-ever FRC Kickoff event, joining our mentor team FRC Team 4039 Makeshift in Stoney Creek, Ontario, to officially begin the 2025 FIRST Robotics Competition season.

For a rookie FRC team, kickoff was more than watching a game reveal.

It was the beginning of a new chapter.

The Bubbles students arrived with excitement, curiosity, and many questions. Together with the experienced Makeshift team, students watched the official FIRST game reveal, discussed the challenge, analyzed the rules, and started imagining possible robot strategies.

This experience gave Bubbles an important first look at what it means to be part of the FRC community.

FRC 10015 Bubbles team captain Ryan Zhang Talks about game analysis during the Makeshift Kickoff event

What did Bubbles learn during its first FRC Kickoff with Makeshift?

FRC Team 10015 Bubbles joined FRC Team 4039 Makeshift for its first FRC Kickoff event on January 4, 2025. The teams watched the official game reveal video together, analyzed the mission objectives, discussed possible strategies, and learned how experienced FRC teams approach a new challenge. Bubbles Captain Ryan Zhang actively participated in the discussion by analyzing one section of the game rules and sharing his understanding with teammates. After studying the game, both teams participated in a human robot activity where students acted as robots and game elements to better understand the rules, field layout, and possible match strategies. This kickoff experience helped Bubbles students develop a deeper understanding of FRC strategy, teamwork, and the importance of community mentorship.

FRC 10015 Team Co-captain, Queena Lin, presents a XRP gift and a thank-you letter to our mentor team FRC 4039 Makeshift.

Why was this kickoff event meaningful for Bubbles?

As a newly formed FRC team, Bubbles was entering an entirely new world.

FIRST Robotics Competition is different from previous robotics experiences.

The robots are larger.

The engineering systems are more complex.

The timeline is shorter.

The level of teamwork and planning required is much higher.

Joining Makeshift for kickoff allowed Bubbles students to see how experienced FRC teams approach the beginning of a season.

Instead of immediately designing a robot, students first focused on understanding the challenge.

They asked:

What are the important objectives?

What strategies could teams use?

What mechanisms might be needed?

What challenges could make the game difficult?

These conversations helped students realize that successful FRC robots do not start with CAD.

They start with understanding the game.

One of the highlights of the day was seeing Team Captain Ryan Zhang actively participate in the strategy discussion. Ryan analyzed part of the game rules, explained his interpretation, and contributed ideas to the group conversation.

For a rookie team, this was an important confidence-building moment.

The students were not just listening to experienced teams.

They were beginning to think like FRC team members.

How did Makeshift help build the FRC community?

The kickoff event showed one of the most important parts of FIRST Robotics Competition: teams help each other grow.

FRC Team 4039 Makeshift provided Bubbles with an opportunity to experience kickoff alongside an established team, learn from their approach, and better understand the culture of FRC.

After watching the game reveal and discussing strategies, both teams participated in a human robot activity.

Students acted as robots, drivers, and game pieces to simulate the competition environment.

This activity helped everyone better understand:

  • Field movement

  • Scoring opportunities

  • Robot limitations

  • Match strategy

  • Team communication

For Bubbles, this was an important first step into FRC.

The team learned that building a successful robot requires much more than technical skills.

It requires communication, planning, strategy, and collaboration.

This is the spirit that makes FRC unique.

Teams compete against each other on the field, but they support each other throughout the journey.

The relationship with Makeshift became an important part of Bubbles’ early development, helping students understand that the FRC community is built on mentorship, friendship, and shared learning.

Looking back, this first kickoff experience represented the beginning of Bubbles’ journey.

The students came to learn from an experienced team.

They left with new ideas, new confidence, and a stronger understanding of what it means to be part of FIRST.

This is how great robotics communities grow.

Experienced teams share their knowledge.

New teams bring fresh energy.

Together, they build the future of STEM.

Tags:
FRC Team 10015 Bubbles, FRC 4039 Makeshift, FRC Kickoff 2025, FIRST Robotics Competition,SolversMind Robotics, Ryan Zhang, Ontario robotics, Stoney Creek robotics, Aurora Robotics, York Region Robotics

BACK