[Tom Line]

To determine the best gear ratio (if you are using a single gearing), determine how far the average "drive" is going to be.

For instance - the average 'drive' in 2010 was much, much shorter than 2011.

Determine a guesstimate of distance for that year. Create a graph of distance over time, and play with your gear ratio to determine the highest ratio you can use that still gets you where you want to go in a reasonable time.

What you will very quickly discover that between 8-15 feet (perhaps the average drive of most games), you can use a very wide range of gear ratios for a very minimal change in time to reach your final point.

There really is an FRC 'sweet' spot around 10-12 FPS that works well in nearly every game.

Two speed shifters are a slightly different matter, and that is why teams that use them can go as fast as 14-18 FPS.