[Jon Stratis]

Just this past weekend, our 5th year team made it to Championships for the first time. That gave us a unique opportunity during our post-competition team dinner to talk about how far the team has come in the past 5 years, and all the milestones we've had all the way.

We started out talking about the first year. How myself and a few other mentors first met the faculty adviser. The original plan/timeline we had for meetings and how quickly that went out the window. Meeting in a barely heated garage (in Minnesota!). How we somehow managed to cobble together an arm to pick up tubes... and how it had about as much chance of picking up a tube in a match as a human player does of scoring a tube on their rack on the far side of the field this year. Mostly, the phrase "We didn't know what we were doing" came out of our mouths a lot.

But then we moved on to our second year. Things were better. And the third year, and the fourth, and the fifth. Every year, there was something to talk about that was better than the last. They key to keep in mind is constant improvement. Even those teams that have been around 20 years have room to improve.

At the end of every year, we do multiple reviews. First, the mentors get together and talk about the season. What went well? What didn't? What changes do we make for next year? Next, we get the whole team together and have an open conversation with them. The students have different views, and we ask them the same questions. We talk about what they need to do to give us mentors the proper direction, so we can help them move the team towards the ideal they want. Finally, we ask the students to get together on their own and ask the same questions. Sometimes students don't feel comfortable criticizing teachers/mentors/authority figures, at least not to their face. This way, we can get those thoughts and feelings (if there are any) out in the open and dealt with anonymously.

Again, the goal is constant improvement. Take a look at where the team is now, and decide where you want to be at the same time next year. Then work backwards and figure out what it will take to get there. Not everything is possible, so don't shoot for the moon. Only 6 teams from each regional cam make it to Championships, and as you saw this year, the competition can be very tough.

You said your robot was not well designed for the task. A good goal might be to have a robot that can successfully play the game, even if it's not the best. To accomplish that goal, you would first need to work on your strategy meeting at the beginning of the year. Towards that end, in the pre-season, we've pulled out past years games and spent meetings talking about them. We walk through the games and talk about what a winning strategy might be, and what a winning robot might look like. At the end, we head over to thebluealliance.com and watch some videos from Championships that year. How close were we? was our idea represented in some form on the field? What were the important aspects of each robot that year? Once you know what you want to build, you have to set up your schedule for success. Plan your meeting times accordingly. ensure you have enough time to get things done, and set milestones along the way so you can give your drivers time to gain a little experience.