I've seen these signs before. Your first year, and during the "relax" time, you feel strange. You find it odd when you have free time, sleeping in sounds weird to you, as does going to bed before midnight. You will continue to have memories and talk about the competition months after it's gone....

Your diagnosis: You're hooked on FIRST.

Great to hear, because as your first "offseason" starts, your work has barely begun! It's now time to do many things, especially as a rookie, and the number one thing you need to do is work on your team organization. Get the team leaders and mentors together, and talk about what was good, what was bad, and what needed to change based on how you did things in the build season and the competition. Write it all down. Think of how you can be more efficient, how much time to allot to things you never thought of alloting time to.

SEARCH FOR SPONSORS. You just completed your rookie season. You know what FIRST is, and that FIRST works. You've seen the metamorphosis amongst the students on the team, and how they are affected by being on the team. SHOW THAT TO YOUR POTENTIAL SPONSORS. I cannot stress that enough. You've developed a strong mechanical base, now you need to build on the business side of the team. Money is huge in FIRST. Though it doesn't mean everything, it is always useful to have.

Prepare for offseason events! Look around your local area for offseason events your team can attend in the fall. Not only is it a great way to start the team again for the new school year, but it also lets the new students get a little taste as to what the competition is about. It helps get them excited. It's also a great way to train your drivers/see who is the best at driving. If you are financially able to, attend more than one offseason. They help tremendously.

Talk to local successful teams! Ask what they did to be successful, and build around what they do to work for your team. It's rare to find a 100% original idea in engineering. Much of engineering is taken and reused over and over. We don't reinvent the wheel each year, but we improve on it. See what works, then change it.

Go team member recruiting! You have a robot in hand, and that's the coolest thing most high schoolers are going to see! Show it off, talk about the exciting competition! There's even an award for teams who Inspire the most Engineering in the world. (can you guess what it is?)

And most of all: Have fun! Go outside, see your families! Remind your neighbors you still live next to them. Go swimming, take a hike, see your house in the daylight. The season is over, and even people like me need to take a break from FIRST. Don't worry, you'll know when you need to come back.