speeding up the ball return
 

our team completed one half of the field and we were testing the ball return with one of the balls from a past competition so that might be a reason but when we timed it, it was about ten seconds. We were wondering if it would be legal to speed it up a bit by hitting it with the trident once its on the track.

Re: speeding up the ball return
 

You can per this Q&A

http://forums.usfirst.org/showthread.php?t=13753

Re: speeding up the ball return
 

sweet. thanks for pointing that out.

Re: speeding up the ball return
 

Just for further consideration, you could do this in one motion, by putting the ball on the return track, but before letting it go, swinging the trident to accelerate the ball along the track, muck like a fishing rod works. Now you would want to swing it in a controlled manner to maintain safety, but that could accelerate the ball rolling in a quicker, controlled manner. Keep in mind, if you hit it, it could fall off the track! see the kick off video, they actually try pushing it a little when the ball gets stuck, and they almost knock it off.

Re: speeding up the ball return
 

I was wondering when someone would post this. I had the thought the other day and wondered myself.

I can only suggest to practice the move. You don't want to knock it off before it goes through the ball counter. It might be hard to recover the ball quickly and get it back on the track, especially if it lands on the field.