"Once upon a time, there was a competition called the Fair Robotics Competition..." -Issac Rife, FRC #33
I think Bag and Tag could get dropped in the somewhat distant future based on a number of things (what if the whole country shifted to mostly Districts and required all district events to be held in the first 4 weeks of the season?), but for now let's put aside that.
Yes, there are well funded and well staffed teams that do exist, and total disclaimer: a lot of the incredibly dedicated mentors alumni, and students of teams like that are regular and/or long-time users of this forum. There are also mentors, alumni, and students of teams that are historically understaffed and hyper-conscious of resource management to ensure long-term sustainability of their team(s).
422 is one of those teams, but they still managed to develop some kind of practice platform. The kids and mentors are just dedicated man. They find a way. The day after stop build day you think they would make contact with their families, significant others, maybe catch up on a TV show, but no. Everyone is blowing up my inbox and chat windows... and I love it. No amount of money or other tangible resource can replace the dedication of the team (but if any potential sponsors are reading I'd love to put a price tag on it for you!
)
I've seen teams with enough money after registration to buy half of a Little Caesar's Pizza find a way onto the field on Saturday afternoon.
Android has an advantage over iOS. The Baltimore Ravens had an advantage over the 49ers. GM has an advantage over Tesla. 1114 has an advantage over 49xx. It's the way it is and the way it should be. Like IKE was trying to say in one of the dozen or so "practice bot morality" threads, FIRST isn't supposed to be fair. It's work. It is hard work. It is a 52 week a year commitment if you want to be the best and it's wrong to lower the ceiling of competition for any reason except safety or something equally crucial.
And people forget that at the end of the day, it's just a game, man. When I have students that end up teaching
me a few things every day, I've already won (as cheesy as it sounds). Besides, For Inspiration and Recognition of Winning and Fairness (FIRWF) doesn't really roll off the tongue.