[dodar]

Originally Posted by Oblarg

Obviously not, but there still should not exist field elements which cannot be simulated by a team with limited funds. "Funds are easy to get" is not a valid excuse; like it or not, believe it or not, there are teams who do not have a large amount of resources, and placing the blame on them for having limited means rather than on FRC for designing field elements which can't be constructed without access to a metal shop with a skilled welder is nonsense. Having limited resources is a burden enough - you don't need to compound it by denying those teams the ability to accurately test their mechanisms, to boot.

Moreover, even with a fair amount of resources, the pyramid was a pain. We went to a full-sized practice field in Virginia about a week before build season ended, and even their professionally-made pyramid was having problems.

You do realize that having limitations and learning and finding ways around those limitations is one thing the FIRST build/competition seasons are about, right?