Quote:
Originally Posted by jman4747
So why all the trouble with the championship split? You are literally saying that teams only seeing half of the "top" at one event isn't the main point. That everything else they do outside of it is more important so why do you even care if it is split? How does splitting champs stop them from continuing to do what you say?
The proposal in the previously quoted post has the "top" teams leave everyone else behind to have their own tournament at the same time. The problem is the message it sends to the teams still competing at the official championship events "we don't want you here because #1 we won't have a real champion and #2 because the event will be more fun to watch without you". That is one of the messages it will send. I am responding to the proposal in that post. I don't hold any animosity toward "top' teams and won't unless they did something like that.
FIRST gets more teams to champs and you help more of them at home. How do these things hinder each other?
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Firstly, it seems like the arguments you are presenting are an unfounded assault on every successful team that has a differing opinion that you, when the fact is...
Without them you probably wouldn't even be here. These teams have a massive positive impact in their community and around the world. 1678 wasn't always a winner. A three-peat on Einstein is crazy awesome, and it took some hard work to get to where they are. (By the way, you won a regional in your second year of existence, it took them 6 years) But they were in your position once too, and while I don't know specifically what all the factors which made them a super successful I would hazard a guess that a significant factor was seeing top teams perform, possibly in their first ever champs trip in 2011. They haven't stopped being winners ever since, which inspires me because
it drives people to do better.
Let me tell you a little bit about Canada, and a couple of teams that nobody has really heard of before called 1114 and 2056.
From 2006-2013 (That's 8 years! Or two
full cycles of students.
) Either 1114, 2056, or both were on the winning alliance in
every single event in Ontario. (2006-2011 if you want every event in Canada) They have 17 blue banner wins together. Was there complaining that they won everything all the time? Sure. Did they go sit in the corner and wait for FIRST to add more teams to the championship? Nope. Were 1114 and 2056 an absolute inspiration to the teams that chose to make them inspirations? Absolutely!
1114 and 2056
pushed all of Canada to do better. Not to mention the world. There were some close calls, which forced both the finalists and winners to do even better next time. Look at all the particularly strong teams that have come out of Canada: 188, 610, 1241, 1310, 1325, 1334, 1503, 4334 to just name a few. I want to leave this with you...
People are motivated by close failure, not big success.
What I mean by this is that if you "almost" win, this drives you even harder to do it next time. Winning is a self defined goal.
Take this self defined goal: When I faced the double (then undefeated) pair of
1114/3683 in the semis of GTR-East in 2014. My goal was to take it to 3 matches. Not let them walk away with an undefeated record from the event. Much to my surprise, we won the event.
Sometimes we succeed. And sometimes we "almost" fail, like our very
next event.
My strong feeling is that if more spots had opened for Canadian teams to qualify earlier,
all teams in Canada wouldn't be as competitive as they are today.
But, all that said. Seems like FIRST has made up it's mind, and we will have to do the best with what we have got. Just because they say it is right, doesn't mean it is.