[cglrcng]

Could the title of the original thread "In Case Paralyzing Snowstorm"

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have anything at all to do w/ some of the responses. 6" of snow in an area not used to & / or prepared for it can be cause for taking extra precautions.....Let the robot wait...It will be there when you return.

I am with the deodorant poster for sure. Top drawer of the largest tool box...on the right, big red container.....Quietly said...No young man, that is not a special lube for the bot...Go use it please (points to the boys restroom).

Please do not risk cheating "the medical golden hour" for any industrial accident possibilities (that could possibly arise), when you may know IN ADVANCE that roads may be impassible for possibly hours or days. Just in case. Think about the emergency personell also who risk life & limb to reach others out there who do not plan properly w/ advanced storm warning as they are busy enough during those times dealing w/ said unprepared non-thinking ahead FIRST like folks. (HotLanta last week, should teach us all something).
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I have been in the same type of situation before (My wife's a teacher mentor FRC/FTC/FLL. And her first year as an FLL Edu. coach/mentor of 2 teams were headed to Flagstaff, AZ a few years ago for the AZ FLL Reg.). She had both of their robots & kits w/ her, and we only live 1.5 hrs west of the competition location if driving 75 MPH (many of the students and parents were already at the competition location)....A realtime whiteout blizzard was happening and the roads were actually very nasty (but still open, w/ snow removal equipt. operating), when we arose that morning for the drive.

We tried driving anyway (mistake 1)...and only made it a mere 20 miles into the trip before enough was enough (and we pulled off into a well maintained truck stop, the last decent services stop for miles), and knew life and limb (mainly due to crazy flying 18 wheelers blinding us w/ slush waves), of not only us, but the other 4 vehicles of parents and children following behind us, was genuinely at stake....The return trip 20 miles back into town took us hours (and breakfast w/ lots of coffee & plenty boredom waiting for equipt. to clear the accidents and roads and deal w/ the ice buildup by then), after that point. (And, we soon found out that at least 20 accidents choked up the highway ahead, not far east from where we decided to pull up and off in that whiteout).

Long story shorter, the 2 teams were helped greatly and provided build kits by the gracious Hosts of the competition (thank you so much CocoNuts!). When we returned home. We quickly e-mailed their code/programs to them w/ help from our FRC programmer son, they both quickly built bots in the meantime and competed w/ short teams, and under the circumstances did very well indeed.

I really hated disappointing her (and those kids & parents), that morning, but saftey is job 1. When the AZ DPS Officer/Parent following directly behind me w/ his wife and kids in his personal van told me a short time later at the truck stop, that "he was pulling off that road with or without me", I felt much better about the decision. (He had heard from other DPS officer friends about the accidents and black ice ahead a few miles further).

Looking back now...I know that I should have never attempted the trip as it was also a pre-warned "paralyzing snowstorm."