Team WItch Doctor
We're best known for competing in our skeleton jackets and top hats with our vertical spinner, Witch Doctor. We've been competing on BattleBots since 2015 - over a decade! Witch Doctor recently celebrated its 50th battle at BattleBots FaceOffs.
We started as a team of just 4, and have since expanded to 10 members as BattleBots has grown. We're based in South Florida, with teammates across the country and even Canada!
Andrea Gellatly
Andrea first learned about robotics as a high school freshman, and quickly shifted her path from artist to engineer. She now has over 20 years of experience in combat robotics, winning a number of national titles. Andrea has presented for a variety of audiences, including VEX Worlds, Kennedy Space Center and the Pentagon. She co-founded the non-profit Spellbound Bots, and most recently created RoboClash Kits to help young BattleBots fans build their first robot!
Andrea has also worked as a research and development engineer focusing on medical devices for upper extremity trauma for 11 years and has been awarded several utility patents. She received her BS and MS in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Miami.
Mike Gellatly
Mike grew up aspiring to be an engineer since he was very young. He has developed a wide range of fabrication skills, such as CNC machining and TIG welding. He has been building combat robots since 2005, winning various national titles in multiple weight classes. In his spare time, he builds and competes across Florida with his drift car.
He is currently developing robotic surgery products, after working in orthopedics for 10 years. Prior to entering the medical device industry, he developed a 3-wheels vehicle for Scorpion Motorsports. Mike received his MS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from the University of Miami.
Paul Grata
Paul began his exploits into engineering during high school, attending the engineering magnet program and participating on the FIRST robotics team at Miami Coral Park SHS. He attended Florida International University, earning a bachelors in mechanical engineering while holding the position of Vice Chairman of the student chapter for ASME over two years. Since graduating Paul has continued to pursue his love of robotics and technology, at various times mentoring FIRST and VEX teams while discovering a passion for the design challenge combat robotics offers and the interconnected nature of mechanical design and marketing.
Be it through the design of medical devices as a profession or the integration of electro-mechanical systems for consumer goods and 3D printing for cosplay uses Paul continues to explore the boundaries of design and manufacturing philosophies.
Christian Chiriboga
Chiri competed on Battlebots with Team Mohawk, before he realized that he would look great in a suit jacket and top hat! Although he is the lone non-engineer on the team, a decade of robot building and tinkering has allowed him to contribute a different perspective. Can’t let the engineers have all the fun!
Kat SHarp
By day she designs circuit cards for jets, by night she works on combat robots - because I guess avionics isn’t exciting enough! Kat is an Electrical Design Engineer specializing in ruggedized fiber optic communications. She started building combat robots in 2011 while she was studying engineering at USF.
Steve Sharp
Steve has been dubbed “Safety Steve” for his watchful eye, although we’re not quite sure he makes us safer. He is an electrical engineer working as a systems engineer designing and building RF direction finding equipment for SAIC Army Intelligence Systems. He has built combat robots since 2008.
Rick PEase
Rick was picked up from the pits of Power Wheels Racing and has thrown his hat into the ring to be a part of the Voodoo Pit Crew. Rick also has an extensive FIRST Robotics background!
Kurtis Wanner
Kurtis hails from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada and has been building combat robots since 2003. He founded and still organizes one of the longest-running combat events in the world, Kilobots, and also operates FingerTech Robotics - an online store dedicated to designing and manufacturing parts and kits for combat robotics. FingerTech's Viper starter kits have helped more than 4500 new builders get their start in the sport, and FingerTech has sponsored over three hundred combat robot events around the globe.
Kurtis is also the co-founder of Saskatoon TechWorks, the city's first makerspace; Executive Director of The Maker Nucleus Foundation; Producer and Lead Curator for Maker Faire Saskatoon; and co-creator of SPARC.tools. As a long-time fan of the Witch Doctor team, being a part of the Voodoo Crew is the feather in his cap! Er... top hat!
Andrew Rudolph
Andrew was part of Sporkinok in the 2020 season, and has extensive experience in FIRST Robotics. He works for an Audio, Video and Lighting integration company working on some of the biggest entertainment projects in the world. We first met Andrew through his work producing @makerfaireorlando and on the Power Racing Series track!
Brett Heininger
Brett Heininger, our newest team member, is a FIRST alum and focuses on producing video content for the team's media platforms to take viewers on a behind-the-scenes ride through the build process. He works in Machine Vision eCommerce.
Skeletony
Skeletony joined the team in 2021 and has been the team's hype man ever since. He is currently living in Las Vegas at the BattleBots arena, overseeing the Witch Doctor pit for BattleBots Destructathon!