Quote:
Originally Posted by Holtzman
It's important to try and separate yelling at someone because they are angry, and yelling so that someone hears you. I've been both a student drive team member, and a field coach. As a student, it was very beneficial to have constant stream of clear and concise instructions in game. It's critical for the field coach to be heard. 2 minutes is a very short amount of time, and at the highest levels, you cannot afford to lose a single match because of miscommunication. It gets hectic in the drivers box so sometimes voices get raised. This is rarely due to anger, but caused more by adrenalin and the need to be heard.
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This. I remember getting looks when coaching 1618 in 2008, when visibility was a challenge depending on your player station location. I would often hustle to the end of the player station and shout commands back to the drivers to get them past other robots (
or not) or help them time the turn.
I know 2815 makes it a conscious decision for college student coaches, as we feel the leadership experience is important for them as well. I've filled in a couple of times when a college student wasn't available to coach, but by and large we've stuck with them. Historically, we've spread the drive team wealth at human player more than anything.
Having said that, I wouldn't mind the second coach making a comeback. Beyond any tactical benefits, some years the raw process of getting the robot, cart, and driver station positioned and set up quickly and safely starts to get right on the limit of what four humans can do. An extra set of hands on troubleshooting the driver station or stage equipment would be valuable. (And with the removal of the alliance station box on the carpet, I don't know if it'd really be a space penalty.)