Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

but there were some things I saw last weekend at Alamo that I suspect happens at other events that needs to be addressed.
1. I saw some teams brought cheerleaders to the event. It's great that you get the school involved and they add atmosphere to the event but please if they come don't have them doing maneuvers at the side of the field. It's very dangerous.
2. Please don't play on the ramp at the end of the event. It's not a toy and it could flip up and you could really get hurt.
3. I have no idea why but every event I go to people insist on going down into the field area where they don't belong. If you do not have a drivers button, a media pass or are a volunteer of any sort you are to stay out of there. Especially when you come through the back exit where there is a big old sign saying it's off limits. You are not allowed to go down onto the football field during a Cowboys game (without SEVERE consequences) why is it ok to do it here?
4. Why oh why do people insist on running through the pits? You may need your robot fixed but if you flatten and hurt someone I would certainly hope they would take priority over robot since your carelessness. It's too crowded in the pits to be running don't do it!
5. I saw several teams having to carry their robots to the field. I think it would be an awesome thing to do if a veteran would help them out with an extra cart (if they have one. One of those furniture movers might be all that's needed). Not only is it unpleasant to have to carry a 120 pound robot from the pits to the field but it can be dangerous as well). Who knows? It might attract the attention of a judge and get you a GP award.

While having a good time is the main reason we are at the event please be mindful to not do things that can ruin a good time by doing silly things that aren't necessary.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

May I add another?

Yelling "ROBOT!" does not make it okay to run over someone escorting a group of VIPs who may not know to leap out of your way instantly. (And exactly why should they?)

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

I saw similar things at GSR. There were kids with capes on in the pits. Ummmm safety hazard? yes. loose clothing is not allowed no matter what. great team spirit but not in the pits please! No one wants people to get hurt. The first aid kits aren't there to be used all the time, just for emergencies. Not trying to be ,as Koko Ed said, "a stick in the mud". i agree with him on in this situation.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Quoted for truth. You're announcing your presence for other people's safety, not as a demand that people make a path.

On the other hand, teams quite often cause problems by standing outside their pits in the aisle talking, strategizing, or working on their robots. Especially working on robots. Pit space is limited, yes, but aisle space is even more limited and a lot more people are using it.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Not only that, but everyone is always yelling robot. You'll hear it a thousand times a day if you're in the pits. Everyone gets desensitized to it to some degree, and shouting it louder doesn't help.

Call out 'Robot', sure, but if someone isn't 'hearing it', give them a gentle tap on the shoulder. They've probably heard you but don't realize they are in your way.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

I think yelling Robot coming through is fine. If someone doesn't hear you, tap their shoulder. Disagreements?

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

This one annoys me to no end. Why do teams feel they have to bring EVERY STUDENT down into the pits? If you're not working why are you there? Is it part of your strategy to block other teams from getting to and from the field? Because that's what you're doing. Send them up into the stands to watch matches and scout and strategist and whatever and leave the pits to those who have to do work on the robot.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Maybe it's just me, but I've seen quite a few people outright ignore those who shout "robot", simply out of spite for the fact that it's shouted too loudly, and too frequently. I have also noticed that politely saying, "Robot coming through, excuse us", goes a very long way.

People in the pits hear loud noises all day. They're bombarded by power tool noises, queue people ordering them to the field, music from the field, cheering from the stands, etc. The last thing they want to hear is the word "Robot" projected as loud as possible, 3 feet from their face.

Try being polite when moving your robot. You might just surprise people into listening to you.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

There's nothing wrong with being a stick in the mud. There's nothing wrong with caring about the events that you participate in and that you want to help shine. There's always something wrong with selfish carelessness.

Not sure why the new teams don't get the word about building or buying robot carts to transport their robots. So much of this was discussed last year at the end of the regional here in CD. I'm sure that it was discussed by the event planners, too. It should have been.

There is no reason for the pathways for the robot to and from their pits to be blocked. Not at the Alamo Regional.

I'm scratching my head over the bridge play, though. Not cool.

Edit: Ed, I think some of what you are seeing with the students in the pits - is the young age of the teams at the Alamo. I think a lot of what you are seeing is that. Also - At the BEST competitions, there is a Spirit break and teams bring their cheerleaders and drumlines for the Spirit break. At BEST Regional level, teams bring their cheerleaders and school bands to the event. A lot of the Texas teams are also BEST teams. There could be some crossover at a FIRST event. My opinion is that the event planners should be aware of the problems of crowding the floor around the field and they should plan for it. After the Alamo last year, I was very frustrated with the crowd situation. I thought about events that I had been to where the crowds were huge and happy/excited and the one that came to mind was IRI. Even in a high school gym that did not have the space that the Alamo venue has - there is not that crowd issue. The teams maintain - themselves - very well. I think that is key and I also think the event planners are key - in managing the crowd behaviors.

Some guidelines could easily be developed.

Jane

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

It would have been tough to tap me on the shoulder as I was facing them and trying my best to move my group over before they ran us down. The aisles were HUGE and they had plenty of room. They were returning from a match, not late for one...not that that would be any excuse. I don't like apologizing for rude teams to a major university's engineering department dean.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Same thing at KC, except at Greater Kansas City it was those superfan suits (Basically a full bodied spandex suit that goes from your feet and covers everything including your head.) I'll give some of them credit for wearing safety glasses over the suit ::safety:: , but still, I'm fairly certain it violates the same reason as to why I'm not allowed to walk around in full tint safety glasses. Having never worn a superfan suit, I'm not qualified to talk about the visibility from within one, but I can imagine that if a piece of spandex is covering my entire face, visibility is limited.

Here's to hoping some of the things mentioned in this thread change and the next 5 weeks of competition are more safety inclined.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

I think safety Captains sometimes focus on safety glasses and clean pits and don't realize that this goes into after regionals too. You don't have to be building something to worry about safety. DON'T PLAY ON THE BRIDGES!!!!

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Kids being kids.
We told them to stop.
It just shouldn't be done in the first place.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

This is something I think we can and have to fix and yes furniture movers with a bit of rope is all that is needed. Some sort of cart should be a requirement to compete not just a strong recommendation (http://frc-manual.usfirst.org/viewItem/6#4.2.2). If a team falls while they are carrying their robot through the pits it would be horrible. We require that you don't have sharp edges that might cut someones hand but carrying a robot through the pits is allowed and that might break someones leg.

Re: Not to Be a Total Stick in the Mud
 

Oh yeah, that reminds me. We should probably encourage teams to use gloves too. Carrying that weight that long with bare hands has got to be brutal. I mean some of those kids were stumbling by the time they got to the field and I'm amazed no one fumbled a bot to the floor.