I finally made it home despite six hours of driving rain and a 30MPH cross wind until I got to Bakersfield.

After being home for a few days I couldn't keep myself from touching the robots again. I wanted to at least review the damage. As you can see below, Malvolio faired pretty well in the grand scheme of things but still bears the scars of battle.

I am very pleased with the performance of Malvolio, but despite that he'll still see some upgrades. Specifically, the weapon will be upgraded and strengthened. Look for more destructive power in the weapon as well as an upgrade to the drive system.

Some Parts will also see some upgrades. Primarily I'll be focusing on gaining some control of this robot. But not being able to leave well enough alone I'll be upgrading and strengthening the structure of Some Parts as well.

It was a great event and I owe a debt of gratitude to many people not the least of which are: Ed 'Phoenix Blaze' Robinson, Ed's girlfriend Diana, James Arluck, Kenneth Peek, Jon Autry, and John Hoffman. Also my wife Jane and my Son Sam for their patience for my crazy hobby...

It rained almost the whole way home. Lame end to a great week.

A little video and comentary by me regarding the drive... (1.3MB MPEG)

Event damage. Pictures taken post event at home.

The weapon shaft pillow blocks. These took a real beating! The weapon was still spinning with this broken bearing.	The brushes in one of my drive motors are melted into place. Five minutes of hard driving in a rumble can do this...	The windings are looking pretty toasty too.	The kill saws went through 1/4" 6061 and into the 3/4" square tubing frame. And I was never on the saw for more than a second.
The bottom took some cuts from the saws but for the most part the bottom plate is quite reusable.	Evidence on my ability to weld or lack there of.	The front cross member and the cross member supporting the weapon were pretty much broken and able to be pulled out by hand.	Another breach of the bottom 1/4" plate and a frame member.