By Will Clifford and Thomas Word

Photo credit: Will Clifford.

On March 27, The Match had the pleasure of briefly interviewing Shane Gantz (’24), driver for Collegiate’s robotics team, Torch 5804. 

Torch 5804 competes in FIRST Robotics competitions, one of the premier robotics leagues across the world. Torch 5804 has qualified for the First Robotics World Championships in Houston, Texas three years in a row. They reached the final round of Worlds the last two years, each time finishing in the top five. Gantz serves as the primary driver of the Torch 5804 robot this season. 

Gantz expressed how much robotics has impacted his experience at Collegiate, allowing him to focus on his true passion, engineering. He is currently deciding between multiple top college engineering programs to further his education and passion for robotics. 

When we asked Gantz what the Collegiate community should know about him, he answered succinctly: “I drive robots, man.” 

On a recent Wednesday morning, Gantz was working on his final project for Russian Literature. He showed us a few 3-D printed pieces that he had created as a visual aid for his essay. Gantz expressed an interest in 3-D printing, telling us about his own personal machine and how it differs from the printer in the robotics lab. 

Torch 5804 is traveling to Houston on Wednesday, April 17, to compete in the World Championship yet again. We at The Match wish them the best of luck!