Event welcomes inventors of all ages to battle it out at the first ever AVC+PRS combination contest

May 2, 2016. Boulder, Colorado. SparkFun® Electronics, a provider of electronics parts and educational tutorials, is pleased to announce that team registration is now open for the legendary Autonomous Vehicle Competition (AVC), which, for the first time, will also include a course for the Power Racing Series (PRS) and, for the second year, will feature an arena for Combat Bots.

Teams from all over the world will converge on the SparkFun headquarters on Saturday, September 17, 2016 for the competitions. Participants comprise an endless range of inventors—including independent engineers and hobbyists, corporate teams, robotics clubs, families, and K-12 school and university teams. All top finishers are recognized—see the rules for details. Register here.
There are four competitions:
• Classic AVC: Build your own autonomous vehicle weighing under 25 lbs that can jump ramps, make right and left turns, and self-navigate through a squiggly course.
• Power Racing Series (PRS): Get a power wheels. Swap out a battery (or three) and get that chassis rolling! Human driven, these vehicles get punished in multi-lap group races. Bring your costumes and fun hacker attitude.
• Autonomous Power-Racing Series (A+PRS): Combination of AVC and PRS. Bonus points if you put a gullible human on board an autonomous souped-up power wheels.
• Combat Bots: Bring your 1- or 3-pound fighting robots (antweight and beetleweight) for a fight to death (or at least until time runs out). The fight for robotic dominance continues.
"We have been hosting AVC for 8 years and the levels of ingenuity and creativity increase every year," said Nathan Seidle, CEO and founder of SparkFun. "With the addition of the Power Racing Series this year, we are looking forward to new thinking, new participants, and a very fun day. Ultimately, this is all about celebrating innovation and inspiring people to engage in invention and electronics."
These useful links will help kick off your journey:
• Overview of Competitions: avc.sparkfun.com
• Rules: avc.sparkfun.com/2016/rules
• Team Registration: avc.sparkfun.com/2016/register
These competitions are open to the public--general admission tickets will be available soon. In addition to the races, there will be food trucks, music, SparkFun tours, expert speakers, and an engineering corner.
About SparkFun Electronics (www.sparkfun.com)
Founded in 2003, SparkFun shares its passion by providing parts, knowledge, and innovation for those looking to explore the world of embedded electronics. It helps anyone discover their inner inventor and enables individuals to create their own electronics projects. SparkFun currently offers more than 2,100 products, ranging from simple components, like capacitors and resistors, to GPS units, Bluetooth modules, and comprehensive inventor kits; additionally, SparkFun has developed nearly 400 tutorials to inspire and support others in their exploration of electronics.
About Power Racing Series (www.powerracingseries.org)
Engineering, technology, diversity, and above all imagination are at the core of what we represent. We believe that sharing open source knowledge, tools, and tech among inspired makers of all ages and abilities will unlock the solutions to some of the most difficult challenges we face today. The challenge of creating a working electric vehicle for under $500 encourages progressive use of available technology and inspires our teams to help each other, even in the spirit of competition. Above all else, we believe that anyone with the passion and drive to learn will help lead us into the future.