Announcements

Final Logistics

September 9, 2025

Hello Teams,

We're so excited to see you at this year's SoCal Showdown! Please read this email carefully and share it with any other adults on your team who support event logistics!

USEFUL LINKS

Event Schedule: https://www.socal-showdown.com/schedule
Event Shirt & Food Preorders: https://store.team4201.org/socal-showdown/
Workshop Schedule: https://www.socal-showdown.com/workshops
Rule Changes: https://www.socal-showdown.com/rules
Event Award Descriptions: https://www.socal-showdown.com/awards
FIRST Fingerprinting for Mentors/Volunteers: ApplicantServices.com/FCRVPE

FOOD PRE-ORDER DEADLINE COMING UP!

Food pre-orders are available for lunches on Saturday and Sunday, and must be submitted by Monday, October 6. https://store.team4201.org/socal-showdown/

Please note that we will group all team orders together for pick-up by a designated individual (you can list more than one if unsure).

PITS

We will have the standard 10' x 10' pit as offered at official events. At least one power outlet will be available per team. However, we ask teams to bring an extension cord and power strip to ensure that you will have adequate power. The planned pit map is attached, but subject to change.

PARKING AND LOAD-IN

Load-in begins at 5 PM on Thursday, October 10. DO NOT arrive earlier than 5, or you may be turned away. Parking attendants will direct you to unload right outside the gym. Do not leave your vehicle unattended, as we need to keep the line moving immediately after the vehicle is unloaded.

Trailer, bus, and other large vehicle parking will be at 550 Continental Blvd., El Segundo, CA 90245. You may leave off your large vehicle there after unloading for the duration of the event.

Event parking will be available at the school lot all weekend, with overflow parking next door at Millennium Space Systems.

TEAM TENTS

We know that many teams like to set up canopies for their team to gather for lunch and other team activities. Unlike in previous Los Angeles Regionals, teams will not be able to set up tents along the fence between the gym and the main school building (due to AYSO soccer utilizing the field). Teams will instead be able to set up their canopies in the lunch area adjacent to the practice field and main school building. Please see the attached event maps for further details.

MATCH QUEUING

We will use Nexus for FRC (formerly "FRC Queue") to Queue for your matches. This means there will not be any queuing announcements in the pits. All teams will be provided a QR code slip in their team packets that will have a unique link for you to sign up for SMS queuing alerts, a unique team page on Nexus for FRC, and allow you to get alerts in your team Slack or Discord.

DISCOVERY ROW

This year's Discovery Row will be on Saturday, October 11 in the main school building (where the practice field is). We are expanding to include FTC demonstrations and activities, and FLL scrimmaging and activities. We hope you will share the invite (flyer below) with younger siblings, local elementary and middle schools, and other families interested in the FIRST family of programs.

DONATION DRIVES

Cleaning out your shop and have metal, e-waste, or batteries that you need to dispose of? Team 4201 will be collecting these items and arranging their safe disposal. Feel free to bring them with you to SoCal Showdown and follow the signs at Discovery Row for the recycling bins! Help us make the world a little greener!
Supporting Women, One Donation at a Time. Team 4201 is hosting a Women’s Health & Hygiene Drive! We’re collecting feminine hygiene products, gently used clothing, and other essentials to support homeless and under-resourced women. You can drop off your donations at Discovery Row. Every item makes a difference!

MENTOR/VOLUNTEER FINGERPRINTING

If you have not yet been Live Scanned for FIRST, SoCal Showdown offers a great opportunity to make sure you complete this required step before the upcoming season. All volunteers 18 and over, including mentors, are required to complete this step prior to events. This Live Scan event is open to anyone. The cost to complete fingerprinting at this event is $32. Signup is required in advance. This service will be offered on Saturday, October 11, from 11 AM to 2:30 PM.

PLEASE share this information with your mentors and other volunteers:

https://www.socal-showdown.com/live-scan

MENTOR SOCIAL

We will have an informal mentor social at Common Space Brewery in Hawthorne on Saturday night. Mentors from all teams are welcome to join. Please share with your team's mentors.

Where: 3411 W El Segundo Blvd, Hawthorne, CA 90250
When: Saturday 10/11 @ 7:30 pm, 1 hour after pits close
Common Space has mostly outdoor seating, so bring a jacket

One Month to Go!

September 9, 2025

We have just one month before SoCal Showdown, so I wanted to share a few more logistics and announcements with you.

EVENT SCHEDULE

Our event schedule is published and available at https://www.socal-showdown.com/schedule

Team Load-in will happen on Friday from 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM and Saturday from 7:30 AM to 8:00 AM. Teams will be turned away by security if they try to enter the school parking lot before Friday, 5:00 PM. Please remember that the trailer/vehicle cannot be left unattended during the load-in/load-out process.

Security will direct teams with trailers on where they can park them for the duration of the event.

EVENT SHIRT PRE-ORDERS

We are excited to share our designs for our event shirt! Teams can pre-order your shirt to guarantee your size's availability here: https://store.team4201.org/product/2025-socal-showdown-event-shirt/

FOOD PRE-ORDERS

We will have lunch and snacks available for purchase at our Snack Shack, but if your team would like to place a larger order, or members want to guarantee that they will have their preferred lunch available, you can pre-order food for lunch on Saturday and Sunday.

Please note that we will group all team orders together for pick-up by a designated individual (you can list more than one individual if you aren't sure who would be picking it up).

Pre-order here: https://store.team4201.org/socal-showdown/

WORKSHOP SCHEDULE

We will have workshops during lunch on Saturday (with a 30-minute delay from lunch start so students and mentors can grab lunch and eat at the workshop). Here are the workshops for this year's event.

SCRIMMAGE

Join us for our annual scrimmage to make sure your robot is ready for SoCal Showdown on Saturday, September 27. Sign up for the scrimmage or for open practice on weekends leading up to the event here.

MENTOR/VOLUNTEER FINGERPRINTING

Mentors and volunteers need to sign up in order to participate in the fingerprinting at the event. This service will be offered on Saturday, October 11, from 11 AM to 2:30 PM.

PLEASE share this information with your mentors and other volunteers:

https://www.socal-showdown.com/live-scan

MENTOR SOCIAL

We will have an informal mentor social at Common Space Brewery in Hawthorne on Saturday night. Mentors from all teams are welcome to join. Please share with your team's mentors.

Where: 3411 W El Segundo Blvd, Hawthorne, CA 90250
When: Saturday 10/11 @ 7:30 pm, 1 hour after pits close
Common Space has mostly outdoor seating, so bring a jacket.

PAYMENT

We are reaching out to the teams still pending payment, but if that is you, please find payment information at www.socal-showdown.com/pay

Payment Reminder & Fingerprinting Sign-Up

August 26, 2025

We're excited to share that we are up to 47 invited teams (and willing to add one more if you know of any teams that still want to join us)! Just wanted to send a few reminders and updates as we continue to approach the competition.

PAYMENT

To finalize your registration, you must submit payment of $400 by Wednesday, September 3, 2025, in one of two ways:

Teams may pay using Credit card, debt card, e-check at www.socal-showdown.com/pay. There is a 4.7% processing fee for this method of payment.
Request an invoice by emailing info@socal-showdown.com with the following information:

- Team Number
- Name of the paying organization
- Email to send the invoice to

Please email us at info@socal-showdown.com if you have an issue with payment or need additional time.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS

We are still looking for both adult and student volunteers in almost every role. If you have any parents, mentors, or students who want to volunteer or try new roles, please encourage them to apply here: https://www.socal-showdown.com/volunteer

MENTOR/VOLUNTEER FINGERPRINTING

Mentors and volunteers can now sign up for fingerprinting at our site. This service will be offered on Saturday, October 11, from 11 AM to 2:30 PM.

Visit http://ApplicantServices.com/FCRVPE
Enter your email address
Enter the 6-digit code (sent to your email each time)
Click Next to enter your personal information
Click Next to select a location. Select the event SoCal Showdown - Da Vinci Schools - FIRST CA Robotics (10/11/25 ONLY) as shown. If you do not see the event, search the address
Follow the remaining steps until you receive a 7-character Payment ID. If you are ever asked for a Group Code on the website enter FCRVPE
Attend the appointment to complete your fingerprinting!

Event Logistics

August 9, 2025

We were overwhelmed with the number of applications to this year's event, and we want to ensure that each robot can have a good number of matches, so we have made the difficult decision that we will not be able to have second or third robots at this year's event.

The rest of this email goes through further details about the event.

IN HONOR OF

We are deeply saddened to share the passing of Mike Hashiro, one of our committee members and lead mentors for Team 2637, Phantom Catz. Mike was a cornerstone of both our committee and of Phantom Catz with his unwavering dedication to his students and the FIRST community. At the 2020 Los Angeles Regional, he was recognized for his impact in FIRST with the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award. When 4201 first conceived of the idea to run an offseason event, Mike was the first person I thought of to invite to join us. His heart for students and how he instilled values of teamwork, compassion, creativity, and commitment into his team made him and his team an essential part of our successful 2023 event.

Though we mourn his loss deeply, we also celebrate the incredible impact he had on so many students and teams. We are dedicating this year's event to Mike Hashiro to continue to remember and honor his legacy. We will have time and space during the event to honor Mike, and we hope that you will share in celebrating his memory and impact.

PAYMENT

To finalize your registration, you must submit payment of $400 by Wednesday, September 3, 2025, in one of two ways:

Teams may pay using Credit card, debt card, e-check at www.socal-showdown.com/pay. There is a 4.7% processing fee for this method of payment.
Request an invoice by emailing info@socal-showdown.com with the following information:
- Team Number
- Name of the paying organization
- Email to send the invoice to

Please email us at info@socal-showdown.com if you have an issue with payment or need additional time.

EVENT TIMING

As a reminder, here are the current event logistics:

When: October 10-12, 2025
Where: Da Vinci Schools (201 N Douglas St. El Segundo, CA 90245)

We anticipate the following tentative opening/closing schedule for each day. The end times in particular are not final; however, we hope these ballpark times will help in planning. Please be on the lookout for a more concrete and detailed schedule in the coming weeks.

Friday 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM (Load-in/Practice Matches)
Saturday 7:30 AM - 6:30 PM (Load-in/Workshops/Qualification Matches)
Sunday 8:00 AM - 5:30 PM (Qualification Matches/Playoff Matches)

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS

MENTOR/VOLUNTEER FINGERPRINTING

If you didn't see the blog from FIRST about AB 506, there is a new California law that requires youth-serving organizations to take extra safety steps for volunteers who work closely with minors. These are required if you volunteer 16+ hours in a month or 32+ hours in a year.

These new requirements include a one-time fingerprint-based background check through the CA Department of Justice. Unfortunately, this is non-transferable between organizations. So, even if you have already been live scanned with another organization (or school), any mentors or volunteers who meet the hour requirement above will still need to complete a live scan with FIRST.

We will be offering this service at the event on Saturday from 11 AM - 2:30 PM. Signups to come!

AWARDS

To help teams prepare for competitions and to celebrate our amazing teams, we will have judges visiting pits on Saturday to talk to teams and learn about their robots and programs. Several awards will be given out at Sunday's closing ceremony. The awards and their descriptions can be found here: https://www.socal-showdown.com/awards

RULE CHANGES

We will be playing Reefscape with the following rule changes: https://www.socal-showdown.com/rules

UPCOMING

We will have food preorders for lunches and boba on Saturday and Sunday, so stay tuned for more information. We will have a snack shack and limited lunch options available on site. Stay tuned for pre-orders for our event t-shirt, celebrating all the teams who will be attending our 2025 event. Please also be on the lookout for a final schedule, Discovery Row offerings, and event layouts in the coming weeks!

Thank you for bearing with the long email! As always, you can find the most up-to-date information on your website: www.socal-showdown.com

Please, don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions!

Event Announcement

May 27, 2025

FRC teams 294, 687, 2637, and 4201 are once again hosting SoCal Showdown. Located in the same venue as the Los Angeles Regional, this event is be a great place to train new members and grow your team’s skills and network.

LOGISTICS

When: October 10-12, 2025 (with Friday night load-in & field time)
Where: Da Vinci Schools (201 N Douglas St. El Segundo, CA 90245)

TEAM APPLICATIONS

Fill out this application form if your team is interested in attending: https://forms.gle/FUJtetgHcsZFkYL78

Application Closes: 7/25/25 (may be longer if there is additional space after this).
Registration Cost: $400 per team, plus $300 for each additional robot.

VOLUNTEERS

Offseason competitions are a great place to try new volunteer roles, teach the next generation of FIRST volunteers, and give back to the community. We need many volunteers to make the SoCal Showdown a success!

If you are interested in getting more involved in the many volunteer roles at official FRC events then this is a perfect opportunity to jump in under the guidance of our veteran volunteer crew. You can apply here: https://forms.gle/KrwMdcWBAJrd7wXD8

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

Stay tuned for more information about workshops and the return of Discovery Row with sponsor/college/professional organization booths and FTC/FLL demonstrations and activities!

More information is available on the event website: socal-showdown.com

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