I doubt this will be allowed at future events. It should not have been allowed at this event and I doubt if Aidian was consulted. If such a change was made officially it would have been communicated to the other events going on as well, and it was not. Sometimes well meaning officials try and "make things better" by locally "adjusting" the rules. In reality, they just create a mess that has to be dealt with later, especially at a Week 1 event
The original design had the plastic ball deflectors about 2.5" off the ground at the center of the bridge, which gives a slope of about 4 degrees. The revised version flips the deflector over and increases the height of the deflector to about 7", increasing the slope to a little more than 10 degrees. That will require more than twice as much energy for the ball to roll up and get trapped. That should significantly reduce the number of balls being caught under the bridge, and make them want to leave more.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wayne Doenges
At the Smoky Mountains Regional the referees alowed one member, from each alliance, to go to the side of the field and signal their teammates if there was a ball under the bridge.
I know this doesn't eliminate the ball but at least you know it's there.
|