[MrJohnston]

I am confused about the concern about the "shortage." I certainly understand that Vex and AndyMark are the "go-to" retailers for a lot of FRC items, but there are a lot of other folks who sell things such as pneumatic tires... Before responding here, I simply did a search on Google and found four or five different places to purchase such tires.... I glanced at one and it seemed to have all the other hardware needed for them...

Besides, even if there were a world-wide shortage of them, there are other options... Tank treads have been discussed on CD and are certainly viable. And, yes, there are options besides the Rhinos from AndyMark... Even so, could you play with a hard rubber tire (such as 8" traction tires from AndyMark)? Sure.... Okay, the hard rubber would not compress quite as well as pneumatic tires and not "bounce" over some of the surfaces as cleanly, but they could be used to cross all the hazards just fine - though I wouldn't want to go quite as quickly as I would with the pneumatic tires....

If worst came to worst, create a robot with a little different focus... A robot, for instance, operating with mecanum, could go under the low bar; open the portcullis, sally port and drawbridge; and navigate the cheval de frise. Of course, you might have to construct a manipulator or two... A mecanum robot could be fast, agile and have a perfectly good shooter... It could also climb just fine.... So, you could have a short robot with a mecanum drive system that primarily cycles between your secret passage, under the low bar and shoots at the high goal. As secondary functions, focus on opening the more difficult defenses and make sure you can climb. If needed, you could also cycle to the neutral zone to pick up boulders.

Do I think mecanum wheels are ideal? No. In fact, they would be one of my least -preferred wheel options for this game. However, with a little creativity, you could have a very competitive robot with them - or quite a few different drive systems. Heck, it might even force you to find a niche in the game where nobody else really fits and gives your alliances a competitive edge....

I've only been in FRC for five years, so I certainly don't know "everything." However, one thing (of many) I have learned is that you can't afford to get too attached to any one idea. Sometimes, they just don't work out - supply, lack of engineering expertise, too much weight, not enough space, etc.. Sometimes, you just need to take a different course. It's part of the game.