Traxx

For the UK entry, see Trax.

Traxx
Participation Information
US 1994-1997 Events	1996
Team Information
Team Members	Daniel Goff
From	California
Robot Statistics
Weapons	Wedge & spike
Statistics correct as of its most recent show/competition appearance, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Traxx was a middleweight robot which competed in the 1996 US Robot Wars competition. Built by Daniel Goff, it reached the final of the Middleweight Face-Off tournament that year, finishing runner-up to Agamemnon, and later competed alongside the latter in the Middleweight Melee. The Face-Off final featuring Traxx was among the battles highlighted in the American Robot Wars 1996 VHS.

Design

Traxx in the arena

As its name suggested, Traxx was an invertible tracked robot with a box-shaped chassis and a front ramming wedge. Other features included a rounded back panel, and an an active weapon within the wedge in the form of a side-firing, albeit rarely used pneumatic spike. While Traxx was largely designed for pushing power, its drivetrain utilized power window motors that were otherwise more suited for featherweight competitors. As such, it frequently suffered from overheating issues, which would prove especially costly in later stages of its Middleweight Face-Off run.

Robot History

1996 US Championship

Traxx's 1996 campaign began in the Middleweight Face-Off, where it faced The General in the first round.

Instantly, it benefited from the technical issues affecting The General, which was left immobilized on one side from the start. Traxx tentatively approached and pushed Pat Poon's machine into one of the moving wall sections, winning the match after pinning it there for a full 30 seconds.

In the Semi-Finals, Traxx faced the lifter of Up & Over. It started by approaching and trying to push Bob Schneeveis' machine from the side, but ended up getting pushed and lifted during a tentative exchange. On various occasions, the heat drawn by Traxx's motors caused them to become 'overloaded' and start cutting out. Another tentative chase followed, which involved Traxx being flipped over from behind by Up & Over. Traxx, now upside-down, scuttled away, but temporarily lost mobility soon after.

As a result of its compromised functionality, Traxx was pressured by Up & Over, which attempted to drive its rear wedge plate, then its lifter, under the tracked machine. However, a malfunction caused Up & Over to prop its own wheels off the floor, as the lifter had jammed in its lowest position. Neither robot showed mobility for several seconds, until Traxx shot backwards as its drive motors cooled down. Still encountering mobility issues, Traxx persisted to nudge Up & Over aside, eventually being declared the winner by knockout.

Traxx advanced to the Middleweight Face-Off final, where it faced Team Delta and Agamemnon. The title decider would be among the battles covered in American Robot Wars 1996.

Traxx is knocked out by a single attack from Agamemnon

Following a tentative start, both robots exchanged two wedge-to-wedge rams, with Traxx demonstrating its faster pace across the arena. The second of these rams, however, resulted in it being pushed under one of the mousetraps by Agamemnon, while losing a strip of metal from beneath its wedge. More significantly, however, Traxx blew a fuse during these exchanges, leaving it immobilized early on into the fight.

"Agamemnon had been specially adapted on the spot so it could take on a wedge shaped robot, but Traxx was having a bad day and he died very quickly."

— Paul Vallis on Traxx's quick immobilization

Traxx was eventually pushed clear of the mousetrap, though Agamemnon kept slaloming backwards into it until its immobility was recognized. Once this occurred, Agamemnon was declared the 1996 Robot Wars Middleweight Face-Off champion, with Traxx finishing the tournament as runner-up.

Traxx would later compete alongside Agamemnon in the Middleweight Melee, also facing Pokey, Satoru Special 3 and Scrappy. All five machines scrambled to the center of the arena in the opening moments. Traxx attempted to attack Satoru Special 3 in conjunction with Pokey and Agamemnon, but would end up being pushed by the latter into one corner of the arena. After this, Traxx became immobilized alongside Satoru Special 3; both would be left in a pile-up with Scrappy which was gradually built by the victorious Agamemnon.

Results

Wins/Losses

• Wins: 2
• Losses: 2

Series Record

Events	Traxx Event Record
1994	Did not enter
1995	Did not enter
1996	Middleweight Runner-Up (Face-Off) Middleweight Melee
1997	Did not enter

Outside Robot Wars

Traxx in BattleBots

In 2001, Traxx was rebuilt for Season 3.0 of Comedy Central's BattleBots, this time armed with sidewards firing hammer at the back. In this form, it reached the Round of 64 after beating both GoatHammer and WindChill respectively, before being defeated by THWAK! at that stage. Traxx was also intended to compete in Season 4.0, but withdrew due to technical difficulties.^Citation?

See Also

• Traxx (BattleBots)

External Links

• Traxx on the archived US Robot Wars website (archived May 2 1997)