We had the same problem in 2002 and 2003. Like Billfred said, it is possible to get the money (notice he, nor I are saying anything about it being easy).
My suggestions:
1. Go to every business, company, etc you can get to and see if you can get a donation. I'm pretty sure it's tax deductable so it's good for them too, plus you cant forget to mention all the advertising they would get at competition with their logo and name on your bot.
2. Try to set up a tag day at some local stores, they bring in some decent money.
3. See if there are any grants you can get your hands on
I hope you guys can get in. In all honesty though, an inactive year can actually help. It gives you time off to learn how to do things better and experiment a lot with robot building. Plus you get a whole year of free time to get the money for the following season.
If any teams out their do go inactive this year, and would like some suggestions on how to keep busy, email me at
foleymoley327@yahoo.com. My team was inactive for 2 years and we did a bunch of stuff to keep ourselves busy and building. I would be happy to share with any inactive team (or any team for that matter).
Good Luck!