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Unread 21-04-2003, 21:50
DougHogg DougHogg is offline
Robot-A-Holic
FRC #0980 (The ThunderBots)
Team Role: Coach
 
Join Date: Jan 2002
Rookie Year: 2002
Location: S. California
Posts: 324
DougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud ofDougHogg has much to be proud of
Actually a number of "great teams" discovered "opponent agreements" this year. (I have no personal knowledge of any teams doing so at the Championships. I was way too busy.) Some very helpful people thought it was great. In fact in my survey (flawed because I mistakenly allowed multiple votes), about 30% of votes were in favor of the idea. The fact is that the rules favored it. The answer is to change the scoring so that we are all operating on the same rules.

When I was a kid, I remember adults sometimes letting the kids win at Monopoly so they wouldn't get upset. Of course, later when the kids realized this was happening, they didn't like it--they wanted to win for real. Well a scoring system that rewards dominent teams for giving points to the loser, is like letting the kids win at Monopoly. Sooner or later they realize that they didn't really get their points on their own merits. Then the whole practice becomes patronizing and a not-so-subtle slam on the capabilities of the newer teams.

Hey, yeh, I am part of a newer team, but I am grown up now, so I can take it if we lose. In fact I will use that experience to learn and to make our robot better next year.

If we want to see the end of "opponent agreements", then we need to get rid of a scoring system where you get double your opponent's score. Otherwise, don't be surprised if some teams "discover" this "hidden layer" in the game again next year.
__________________
FIRST Team 980, The ThunderBots
2002: S. California Rookie All Stars
2004: S. California: Regional Champion,
Championship Event: Galileo 2nd seed,
IRI: Competition Winner, Cal Games: Competition Winner
2005: Arizona: 1st seed
Silicon Valley: Regional Champion (Thanks Teams 254 and 22)
S. California: Regional Runners Up (Thanks Teams 22 and 968)