[KenWittlief]

When mentors get trophy-eyed there can be many pitfalls. Over the last several years I have personally seen:

- a student in tears at a regional because they made a mistake during a match, and they dont want to drive the robot anymore because they 'let the team down'

- a mentor YELLING at a driver, on the field, after a losing a match "I TOLD YOU TO DO ONE THING AND YOU DID SOMETHING ELSE...."

- mentors get angry and quit the team 1 week before the ship deadline because they didnt like the way the robot build was progressing

- students quit the team in the middle of the build season out of anger and emotions they cant deal with

- sponsors dropping a team because mentors would not let the students be actively involved in the design and build process

yes, there is definately a down side when mentors forget why we are really doing this. Serious trouble!