The Loach was a heavyweight robot built by Team Pterodactyl which competed in the 2009 BattleBots Pro Championship.
It was an invertible, octagonal-shaped robot with four externally-mounted wheels and angled front and rear sections. For weaponry, The Loach featured two horizontal spinning discs with five double-ended teeth, referred to as 'Spinning Hammers' on its Builders Database profile.[1]
The Loach in the pits, minus its spinners.
Both discs were mounted so that they could function as an undercutter or overcutter depending on the robot's orientation - a layout not too dissimilar to that adopted by earlier iterations of Victor Soto's BattleBots entry, ROTATOR.
The Loach enjoyed limited success in the Pro Championship, losing both of its matches on judges' decisions against Hugs & Kisses and Agent X respectively.[2][3]
The Loach in 2016.
The robot remains in the possession of captain Bob Niemeyer as of 2016, largely in the same condition as its 2009 BattleBots appearance and with the majority of its electronics still intact.
Bob Niemeyer would later build another heavyweight robot called Pteradominator with the intention of competing in BattleBots: Destruct-A-Thon Proving Grounds in mid-2023.
Robot History[]
Pro Championship 2009[] |
|---|
The Loach vs. Hugs & Kisses In the first round of the Pro Championship Winner's Bracket, The Loach faced Comedy Central-era veterans The Bot Dudes and their heavyweight, Hugs & Kisses. Very limited information on this match is available, though official BattleBots records confirm that both lasted the full three minutes. The Loach lost out on the subsequent judges' decision, its place in the competition now under threat.[2][3] |
The Loach vs. Agent X The Loach would next appear in the second round of the Loser's Bracket, where it fought Agent X. As before, both robots survived the full three minutes according to BattleBots records, with Agent X winning the judges' decision and the match. The Loach was therefore eliminated from the Pro Championship with a 0-2 match record.[2][3] |
Results[]
| THE LOACH | ||
| BattleBots Pro Championship 2009 | ||
| Pro Championship 2009 Eliminated in Loser's Bracket (0-2) | ||
| Winner's Bracket, Round 1 | vs. Hugs & Kisses | Lost (JD) |
| Loser's Bracket, Round 2 | vs. Agent X | Lost (JD) |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 2
| Competition | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Pro Championship 2009 | None |