Up & Over was a middleweight robot which competed in the 1996 US Robot Wars competition. One of six machines entered into the event by Bob Schneeveis, it reached the Semi-Finals of the Middleweight Face-Off tournament, where it was eliminated after accidentally pinning itself off the arena floor against Traxx.[2]
Up & Over's initial Face-Off victory - against Scorpion - was among the battles highlighted in the American Robot Wars 1996 VHS.
Design[]
Up & Over was a four-wheeled robot with a predominantly wooden and square metal tube construction. Sharing its 'drivetrain module' with Bob Schneeveis' 1996 walker Rex, it was armed with a front electric lifting scoop, paired with a large open 'box' at the rear. The scoop, complete with a left metal tube 'hook', was intended to turn other robots over into the 'box', theoretically trapping them in place. However, the weapon was unable to demonstrate this feature in combat, while its positioning often caused Up & Over to topple forwards as soon as it tried lifting opponents upwards.[2]
Both Up & Over's scoop lip and 'box' base were made out of composite honeycomb panels, a feature also shared with Rex. As shown in its official photo, the scoop proved liable to getting damaged easily, amplifying its lack of durable armor or protective coverings for its internals.[2]
Robot History[]
1996 US Championship[]
In the 1996 Middleweight Face-Off championship, Up & Over faced Scorpion in the first round.

Up & Over lifts Scorpion
Initially, it was rammed and smacked repeatedly by the tail of Jerry Burton's machine, but survived relatively unscathed. Up & Over proceeded to hook and turn Scorpion onto its side, while simultaneously pushing it into the upper-left arena flipper. As the scoop reached the vertical position, Up & Over began overbalancing, its rear wheels and 'box' being monentarily lifted off the floor. It held Scorpion in place regardless, causing the latter to take multiple strikes from the arena hazard.[2]
While briefly pushing Scorpion further, Up & Over could not find enough leverage to place the former inside its own 'box'. Gradually, it lowered Scorpion back onto the floor. Almost immediately after, it began a second lift. Up & Over again pushed and held Scorpion on its left-hand side, taking direct hits to its front wheels from the flipper paddle. Finally, after inching forwards and lowering its weapon mechanism, Up & Over turned Scorpion onto its back to secure a knockout win.[2]
- "...the money was on Scorpion trashing Up & Over, but in Robot Wars, the unexpected happens... all the time!"
- — Paul Vallis as Up & Over topples Scorpion (American Robot Wars 1996)
Up & Over progressed to the Face-Off Semi-Finals, where it was drawn against Traxx. An extra panel had been attached behind the 'box', to function as a secondary ramming plate.
While raising and lowered its scoop mechanism in the opening seconds, Up & Over was slow to get away as Traxx approached and attempted to push from the side. A tentative exchange gave Up & Over the chance to take advantage of Traxx's recurring overheating issues, nudging, then lifting Daniel Goff's tracked machine onto its side. Up & Over hooked and bent Traxx's left track guard in the process, but not without once again tipping itself forwards. Unable to flip Traxx completely over, Up & Over lowered its scoop and pushed the former towards the corner.[2][3]
Up & Over next tried to chase Traxx as it regained mobility, but stopped, lifting itself up before shuttling back and forth across the corner. Another tentative chase ensued, in which Up & Over turned, lurched towards and eventually drove into the side of Traxx again as it stopped short of the upper-right flipper. This time, it successfully turned Traxx over, though the invertible Traxx scuttled away after a few seconds.[2][3]
As before, Up & Over was slow to follow its opponent, struggling to move consistently opposite the flipper paddle. To compensate, it positioned its rear ramming plate towards the evading Traxx, then drove the plate underneath as soon as the latter became immobilized again. Up & Over slowly turned around to repeat this attack with its scoop. However, while the robot tried to reposition itself, the lifting mechanism jammed into its 'fully lowered' position, which was enough to lift Up & Over's wheels off the floor. Neither robot was able to show mobility for several seconds, until Traxx shot backwards as its drive motors started cooling down again. Up & Over, still pinned by its own weapon, was nudged aside by Traxx before being officially declared to have lost by knockout. As a result, it was eliminated from the Middleweight Face-Off in its only Robot Wars appearance.[2][3]
Results[]
UP & OVER - RESULTS | ||
1996 US Championship | ||
Middleweight Face-Off Semi-Finals | ||
Round 1 | vs. Scorpion | Won |
Semi-Final | vs. Traxx | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 1
- Losses: 1
Series Record[]
Events | Up & Over Event Record |
---|---|
1994 | Did not enter |
1995 | Did not enter |
1996 | Middleweight Face-Off, Semi-Final Entered with Gutrip Entered with Rex Entered with Big Shot Entered with Lorena Entered with Yo Mama! |
1997 | Entered with Gut Rip Entered with Razor Back |
Outside Robot Wars[]
For more information on Bob Schneeveis' robots outside of the US Robot Wars events, see Lorena.
References[]
- ↑ 'ROBOT WARS ® Photos', US Robot Wars website entry on Up & Over (archived May 2 1997)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 'UP & OVER', Team Spike website (archived)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 'Robot Wars 1996: Traxx versus Up and Over (Middleweight Semi-Finals)', Andrew Lindsey (YouTube), uploaded January 2 2019
External Links[]
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