pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

Can someone please tell me why they cut the tubes???? I even saw him cut a spoiler after a match, which didn't make since, because the team never got the chance to remove it them selves. I'm just looking for some clarification.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

the way i see it: Three Reasons:

1) they take the keepers out so that they can keep the match moving. Sometimes robots don't want to release their beloved keepers, and the ref must "convince" them to do so.

2) the cutting of spoilers (and i guess it could go for ringers too) is that those toroids, for some reason or other, should not have been counted due to penalties or other events.

3) It drives the crowd wild! they love seeing the ref cut those things open.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

I'm not sure "love" is the correct word. I think the emotion the audience feels when they see a ref cut up a keeper is closer to "I could have used that to go sledding!"

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

I found it rather odd that the head ref has a knife set or whatever it was.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

yea they did the same thing for the first match at BAE, I don't think i saw it done for any other matches. I think it was just more for show then anything practical.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

He cut 3 of our tubes at GLR.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

I was not at this regional, so I cannot speak as if I know the entire reasons for cutting the innertubes, but from what I understand, it seems that the innertubes were cut because it was easier to do that than to take them off the spider legs or out of robot's manipulators. If that is the case, I must say I am astonished to see FIRST do something like that. If it was done out of laziness, as it seems it was, I am astonished that first would allow that to happen. It only adds to the partially true sterotype that Americans are lazy which completely goes against FIRST's goals.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

I was at this regional and I was a volunteer for field reset. The robots on the field were doing a pretty good job at deflating these things let alone the head ref doing it with a pocket knife. It was a nightmare trying to keep the field going with ringers getting poped left and right. There was one match where one robot popped 7 tubes and several other occasions where at least 5 went. All I could say is "why did first choose these tubes".:)

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

That would be our Keeper being cut off (Team 326). It was the first of two tubes he cut off of are robot, the ruling we were giving was that the Keeper was apparently still on the robot. I don't know if you guys can see that. The Second time was a spoiler that was hanging on the black rubber piece on the spider arm. To add insult to injury, he gave us the tube back, we hang it in our pit as a reminder that he can put keepers on during auton.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

They're like greased lightning on melting snow! Anyways, They're ~ a dollar a piece, and if FIRST blows 15 dollars a regional in order to run the matches faster and make the refs feel good, I don't really care. The tubes seem to have a limited life span anyways, so consider that they killed it quickly, instead of letting it slowly die alone, on a cold, lonely rack.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

i hear ya, same thing for FLR.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

I agree a few dollars per regional is worth it to let the ref's let off a little steam. And Ron Webb is either the best or one of the best ref's in the states who gets a lot of grief because he calls matches to the book with no exceptions. I cant wait for tomorrow where hopefully he is the head ref of the Detroit regional again.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

If it really makes the regionals go faster, then I'm not complaining. Besides 15 dollars a regional for one year is really nothing. It just seemed odd that they would let the refs do that.

Re: pic: Deflating the tube (the easy way)
 

come on... just let a man be a MAN! tell me you wouldn't gnash things as much as you could given the chance.