[EricH]

Not all rookie teams are even in a position to fundraise enough to buy a Kitbot at this stage of the game. In fact, I would say that you're in the 1% or so that are. If I was a rookie, and saw that I could get a frame or $450, what would I go for? Probably the $450--not realizing how hard it is to build a custom drivetrain.

What FIRST is doing is, they are forcing the rookies to take a drivetrain and work with it during the season.

Maybe some of the rookies are doing that in the offseason. Well, I don't suppose that those rookies can repurpose some of that material into, oh, I don't know, superstructure? How about spare parts?

You're not wasting money. You're building inventory. And if your programmers don't have a testbed working by the time the real robot is handed over to them 2 days before bag, that's their problem. Practice robot, anybody?