How are the Goals held down

[rcubes85]

I heard that the goals are held down by Velcro. Didnt anyone that went to the kickoff notice this, or it is held down tight enough such that when these 120 pound robot hit it, it wont be dislogged from the field

[NoodleKnight]

They can be moved with a bit of force -- if you do you get a penalty.

[dez250]

Yes, The goals are held down by industrial Velcro to the carpet. I personally do not expect the goals to budge much during the competitions. When we went to pack the field up after kickoff in Manchester, it took a couple guys to lift each goal and get the Velcro undone.

[cnield]

You would need a lot of force to move the goals. They are held down by Velcro on all surfaces touching the ground.

I believe that this was covered in update 2 of the rules on FIRST's site.

[Billfred]

Yes, The goals are held down by industrial Velcro to the carpet. I personally do not expect the goals to budge much during the competitions. When we went to pack the field up after kickoff in Manchester, it took a couple guys to lift each goal and get the Velcro undone.
I think I managed to yank a few off their base solo.

Still, I highly doubt that you'll be able to knock over a goal unless you're really trying to knock over a goal.

(Alright, maybe the center goal will be a bit easier to do, as it's not all one piece. Time will tell.)

[Mike Schroeder]

I beileve that the Stairs and platforms were held in place last year with The same Velcro and i know there were a few instances where they were moved, so i predict that yes it will happen but i think its somthing that teams are gonna have to compensate for, believe it or not, but Strategy is a rather important part of these games

[elknise]

I don't think they will penalize you if it is an accident if you move the goal. I thought they would have bolted them down somehow, but i do see that it would be easier to fix if all it was held down on was Velcro. Also, how much does a goal weigh? Shouldn't that weight with a couple of tetras on top hold it down?

[dhitchco]

As you've all stated, the "fixed" field elements (the nine goals) are all affixed to the field with Velcro.

Now, do the math. If a tetra weighs approx. 8.5 pounds, then the eight goals weigh about 20 lbs. each (not including the center goal).

With a 100 lb robot coming at you at over XXX feet per second, don't you think that the Velcro will get "accidentally" budged?

But, do the math again. If all bottom surfaces of the goal (about 18 linear feet) are covered with "industrial-strength" Velcro, then the sideways "shear" strength will take a LOT to really move it. Lifting vertically or prying-it up may be possible, but I doubt that a sideways hit will dislodge a goal.

HOWEVER....If you get "under" a field goal or "disrupt" it per rule <G20>, you will get ONE WARNING. If your action changed the outcome of the match, your robot will be DISABLED. If your robot TIPS-OVER a goal, that goal automatically "belongs" to the other alliance.

So.....Sure, the goals will get "nudged". The should stay in place and will likely be checked and reset as needed between matches. But you can't intentionally RAM a goal......I guess that's why the call it "gracious professionalism"

[pakrat]

I don't think too many goals will be moving around on the feild. Velcro can get pretty strong. Plus, most of the time, you dont ram goals, it doesn't profit you a whole lot...

[Jeff Waegelin]

I beileve that the Stairs and platforms were held in place last year with The same Velcro and i know there were a few instances where they were moved, so i predict that yes it will happen but i think its somthing that teams are gonna have to compensate for, believe it or not, but Strategy is a rather important part of these games

The platforms didn't move much, though. I predict the same with the tetras. When they move, it won't be very far at all. I think it'll take a concerted effort to move them far enough to be DQed.