[jeffreym]

We are a rookie team and have been trying very hard to follow the letter and the spirit of the rules but I am very frustrated over the battery and charger issue. I thought it was cleared up per FRC Q & A #376 that explained 1 battery per bot at a time but unlimited batteries waitinmg in the wings. We calculated that we would need 8 batteries to get through a day of competition and we would charge them all up overnight with 8 of the 1 amp chargers (we would buy 7 more like the ones in the kit). Well, we couldn't find any of the chargers to buy anywhere. When I contacted FIRST, they told me don't worry, there would be a rule change to allow last year's charger or the equivalent. That never happened. So we are left with batteries that will get us through the first day of competition but with the charging capacity to recharge only one of them. All of that at a considerable expense to our rookie team. With a reasonable charger, it all could have been prevented and at a much lower cost to the team. Now I am more confused than ever. Can we use more than 2 batteries or not?