Using New Radios at 2024 Off-Season Events

The new VH-109 radios from Vivid Hosting were successfully used at the 2024 FIRST^® Championship event. Thank you to Vivid Hosting and WestCoast Products for donating the radios and technical support to ensure this success! And thank you to the teams, volunteers, and FIRST staff who made the experience a positive one. 

We’re excited to announce that we’re enabling the use of the VH-109 radios at 2024 off-season events occurring after July 8 to help more teams and volunteers become familiar and comfortable with the new technology prior to its use in the 2025 season. 

There is a setting in the Field Management System (FMS) that will allow either the existing Open Mesh radios or the new VH-109 radios to be used. FIRST Technical Advisors (FTAs) will be trained on how to make this selection. Note that the entire event must use one radio or the other; they cannot both be used at a single event. 

To use the new radios, the participating teams will need to obtain radios (either by using the radios from the 2024 FIRST Championship, purchasing a radio, or borrowing a radio from another team) and the event host will need to rent an access point from Vivid Hosting by completing this form (note that this form is external to FIRST). Details for how to swap your Open Mesh radio for the VH-109 radio can be found on the Vivid Hosting webpage from the 2024 FIRST Championship.