Bedford High School is about to make history, again, as a group of students are building their first high-tech robot.

Since early January, the Bedford High School FIRST robotics team has been working everyday getting their machine ready for competition.

FIRST is a worldwide robotics contest founded in 1989 by Segway inventor Dean Kamen of Bedford. Teams build robots that compete against one each other accruing points in a multitude of ways.

On Jan. 5, the Bedford High School team, also known as Red Storm Team 509, received a kit provided by FIRST that includes batteries, a controller, motors and other assembly parts.

Since then the team has been working at breakneck speed to get their robot ready for the regional competition at Verizon Arena in Manchester on Feb. 28 through March 1.

The 26-member team is made solely of freshmen and sophomores as older Bedford students are on the FIRST team at Manchester West.

“This is the first time we’re building our own robot and it’s completely from scratch,” said Peter Murphy, team adviser.

Murphy said FIRST is not just about science and technology. Other aspects of the team include publicity, fundraising, Web site development and cheering.

“Anyone can find something they like and everybody has something to contribute,” he said. “It is a yearround effort.”

Tenth-grader Harry Potter is one of three captains on the team and loves helping all members work together to complete a larger goal.

“It’s really fun being a part of something that’s bigger than you,” he said.

Murphy said one weekend during the six-week building time, a instructor from MIT will visit Team 509 to give hints and tips for their robot.

The team got a head start recently after receiving a $10,000 sponsorship grant from its sponsor, Insight Technology Incorporated in Londonderry. Students took a tour of Insight’s facility to better understand what the company does and to see that there are high-tech jobs close to home.

“FIRST is a great organization that gives students the opportunity to work as a team to design, build, test a robot and meet deadlines and budgets while having fun. These students are our future engineers and program managers,” said Ken Solinsky, president of Insight Technology.

Faculty adviser Gene Blank said FIRST is a great opportunity for students to get a head start on careers.

“It gives students a leg up over other college candidates,” he said. “Top quality engineering schools recognize FIRST.”

Tenth-grader Joel Sinofsky’s favorite part of the team is building the 5-foot tall, approximately 100-pound robot.

“This thing is one big robot, how cool is that,” he said. A new game is created each year for the competitions. This year’s game is called “Overdrive,” and will have two teams of three robots work together on a 27-foot by 54-foot field.

The field is set up like a race track with red and blue lanes. Over the start/finish line is a metal frame, 6-feet, 6-inches high with red and blue bouncy balls sitting atop the frame. Teams can score points in many ways by knocking the balls off and carrying them around the track.

“This year’s game is pretty interesting and we’ll have to design our robot for it,” said Murphy.