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Re: FRC Blog -2014 Administrative Manual Sections 1-5 and Something New
People seem to be trying to look at ways teams can "bend" this "new" rule.
First, as Frank indicated, this isn't really a new rule... all you had to do in the past was contact FIRST and ask for an exemption. They'd send you an e-mail basically saying "Yes, you can unbag for such and such an event. Record it in your B&T form, lock it up at the end, and show this e-mail to your inspector." So this is nothing new, it just wasn't very widely known.
As for bending it... please, lets stop trying to lawyer things here. The intent is pretty clear. No working on the robot when demoing it. Yes, you can plug in batteries. Yes, you can attach your bumpers if you need to. I would even say you can download code, if it's needed for the demo (but specifically NOT to test new code). But if a "reasonably astute observer" looks at you and thinks you're working on the robot, then you're doing something wrong. When thinking of a reasonably astute observer, just imagine Big Al standing in the crowd, and only do what he would allow you to.
Trust me, all of you pointing out these "cheating" edge cases don't want FIRST releasing a version of the rules specific enough to satisfy you. Can you imagine how it would go? There's no possible way for them to come up with a comprehensive enough set of rules without causing issues for some teams. Imagine if they stated something like "You may not utilize any tools on the robot while it's unbagged". Well, what if you need to attach bumpers to avoid putting holes in the wall of your primary sponsor's main lounge? What if you have a clasp holding your battery in place that needs to be unbolted just to get a new battery in place? Just use some common sense, and worry about your team, not what other people may inadvertently do.
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2007 - Present: Mentor, 2177 The Robettes
LRI: North Star 2012-2016; Lake Superior 2013-2014; MN State Tournament 2013-2014, 2016; Galileo 2016; Iowa 2017
2015: North Star Regional Volunteer of the Year
2016: Lake Superior WFFA
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