[Jarren Harkema]

Rookie here, so my observations might not be as keen as some. Our team went down to the Southfield tournament in Michigan as spectators. A few major things stuck out to me.

If you can't shoot the ball accurately in auto, don't even bother trying. It is painful to watch 3 robots miss in succession, and have to watch them for the first 30 seconds of teleop just trying to grab the balls and get them to a goal so they can start cycles. If you don't shoot at all, don't even start with a ball.

If you miss a high shot, don't waste your time trying again, shove it in the low goal and move on. I saw many teams attempt 3-4 times before humbling themselves and pushing the ball into the low goal. I was surprised at how inaccurate the throwing mechanisms were.

If you have to park to shoot, you will get pushed. As soon as a robot begins lining up, an opposing robot is right in its way, shoving, pushing, doing anything to mess up your shot. Teams that can shoot while moving have the best luck at avoiding defense. In addition to this, having to lower an intake arm, or the like, in order to shoot, slows you down.

Human Players, if a robot has the ability to catch from you, please toss the ball into the robot rather than onto the field.

Finally, I was surprised at the number of teams who didn't have a secure hold on the ball. Simply spinning or getting rammed from the side was enough to dislodge the ball. This was very apparent during lining up for shots.

Pickup systems, whether it be roller bars or el toro, aren't created equal. They have to be done right to be effective.

That's my observations, I hope I didn't come across as too condescending. I'm sure I will eat some of my own words as I'm coaching our drive team next weekend.