- "This is our little Lorena robot, Lorena Bobbitt here. This robot is actually just for show..."
- — Bob Schneeveis describing Lorena
Lorena (also referred to in full as Lorena Bobbitt) was a featherweight robot which competed in the 1996 US Robot Wars competition. A novelty entry built purely to win the 'Strangest Robot' award, it was eliminated from the first round of the Featherweight Face-Off tournament by Buford T. Pusser.[2]
The doll fixed onto Lorena was later attached to Speed Bump for the Lightweight Melee tournament, proving decisive in its victory which was covered in the American Robot Wars 1996 VHS.[2][3]
Lorena was one of six robots brought to the 1996 competition by Bob Schneeveis, who also entered the Heavyweight category with Gutrip; the Middleweight category with Up & Over; the Lightweight Face-Off with Big Shot; a second featherweight called Yo Mama!, and the Heavyweight walker Rex.
Design[]
- "The chassis right here has all the technical stuff, all the motors electronics and all."
- — Bob Schneeveis describing the internals

Bob Schneeveis with Lorena, Yo Mama! and their shared chassis
Thematically, Lorena was considered the 'alter ego' of Yo Mama!, with both robots sharing the same four-wheeled, box-shaped chassis. This feature was demonstrated during Bob Schneeveis' interview in American Robot Wars 1996, which showcased both featherweight designs prior to the Lightweight Melee. In effect, this allowed Schneeveis to swap each of the robots' distinctive top bodies around in between their scheduled fights.[4]
Lorena's most distinctive feature was a tall inflatable doll loosely modeled on its namesake, complete with a blond curly wig, cigar, patterned red dress and black gloves. The end of the doll featured a large knife-like blade with serrated inner edges, as a macabre reference to the incident which the real Lorena Bobbitt was involved in. A spring allowed the doll to swing back and forth, in turn allowing the 'knife' to swing downwards in a similar motion to a conventional overhead weapon.[2]
At the base, Lorena featured a front scoop-type blade, with a large space between the scoop and the main chassis. Though seemingly intended to allow Lorena to get underneath and push opponents along, the Team Spike website asserts that it had no offensive or defensive capabilities whatsoever.[2]
Etymology[]
The robot's name and corresponding design were based on Lorena Bobbitt, a US woman notable for an incident involving her ex-husband in June 1993.
Robot History[]
1996 US Championship[]
Lorena's only competitive appearance was in the 1996 Featherweight Face-Off tournament, where it fought Buford T. Pusser in the first round.
Upon the battle starting, it immediately darted between a mousetrap and its opponent towards a corner on the opposite side. With the doll rocking back and forth, Lorena was pitched into a half-spin by a nearby flipper, before recovering and attempting a forward shove on Buford T. Pusser. Instead of pushing, however, it ended up driving up the front wedge of Buford T. Pusser, which remained stationary in an attempt to pin Lorena.[5]
After several seconds, Buford T. Pusser backed away, prompting Lorena to charge into and bump it a second time. Pitching to the left, Lorena drove and spun in circles near the center, only for Buford T. Pusser to get underneath its back plate. Lorena backed away as soon as both robots separated again, only to drive, lean back and forth, and spin wildly between the arena flippers, much to the audience's amusement. Having nearly toppled over as a result, it was pressured again by Buford T. Pusser, before taking a few hits from one of the flipper paddles. Lorena became immobilized following its encounter with the flipper. Buford T. Pusser gave it a few tentative nudges, then a final shove as it inherited the knockout win.[5]
Following its elimination from the Face-Off tournament, the inflatable doll on Lorena was attached to Speed Bump for the Lightweight Melee tournament. The addition of the doll enabled Paul Bell's machine to win the competition outright on an audience vote, though the American Robot Wars 1996 VHS attributed this victory to the original featherweight.[2]
Despite having been built to win the 'Strangest Robot' award (alternatively named the 'Best Art-Directed Robot' award), Lorena ironically did not receive this prize. The accolade was instead given to Spunkey Munkey.[2][6]
Results[]
LORENA - RESULTS | ||
1996 US Championship | ||
Featherweight Face-Off Round 1 | ||
Round 1 | vs. Buford T. Pusser | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
Series Record[]
Events | Lorena Event Record |
---|---|
1994 | Did not enter |
1995 | Did not enter |
1996 | Featherweight Face-Off, Round 1 Entered with Gutrip Entered with Rex Entered with Up & Over Entered with Big Shot Entered with Yo Mama! |
1997 | Entered with Gut Rip Entered with Razor Back |
Outside Robot Wars[]
Bob Schneeveis and Team Snowhite appeared in Season 3.0 of BattleBots with two fairly successful machines, the middleweight Uplifting Experience which got to the Round of 64 before losing to Zion and the lightweight Wacker which won three matches before being destroyed by Ziggo, which left it unable to fight in the end of series rumble despite qualifying for it.
References[]
- ↑ 'ROBOT WARS ® Photos', US Robot Wars website entry on Lorena (archived May 2 1997
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 'LORENA', Team Spike website (archived)
- ↑ 'SPEED BUMP', Team Spike website (archived)
- ↑ 'YO MAMA', Team Spike website (archived)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 'Robot Wars 1996: Buford T Pusser versus Lorena (Featherweight)', Andrew Lindsey (YouTube), uploaded December 16 2018
- ↑ 'Tournament Tree - Robot Wars 1996 - Heavyweights', Team Run Amok website
External Links[]
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