As a newer (this is my second year) mentor to FIRST and a former athletic coach of 10 years I have the following comments about scouting databases:
1. These efforts are noble and all that are trying to share honest information are to be commended an praised as it is evidence of noble competitors. However, this may not be the best use of resources.
2. ANY such database is at the mercy of those who provide information. Even those who are trying to be honest may be overly optimistic or pessimistic.
3. Having coached high school students for more than a decade, I have never put much stock in scouting reports from home field practice sessions. (All of my teams were champions when we were the only ones on the field). I've coached basketball, football, baseball, and now robotics. In all instances what a team can do on "game day" is the only truly important information. Things change when the lights go on, uniforms are worn and crowds cheer.
4. Some teams perform better in the clutch than others. Some exceed expectations. Some allow pressure to lead to panic. Some are better at collaborative strategies than others. Some allow egos to override alliance building. No one knows any of this before it is witnessed on site at competitions. Information about robots alone, without knowing about these essential performance and interpersonal skills, is inaccurate. Let's not forget that ANY machine will only perform as well as the humans who control it.
5. Thus, in my humble opinion, utilizing your resources to prepare for on site competition scouting during practice and regular rounds would be more valuable then collecting a HUGE amount of information that may or may not be accurate even if the team is truly trying to disclose a plethera of accurate information.
6. Rather than scouting databases, sharing methods for on site scouting is, perhaps, a more important endeavor. In addition, we should share more info about collaboration and alliance builing techniques - you know - PEOPLE skills. Lastly, let's understand how hard the job of the drive team is. These few are the ones scrutinized for the work of up to 100 people in some cases. Seeing some become mad and frustrated with drivers is LUDICROUS. Let's use our efforts to learn more about proper treatment of people so we allow them to feel comfortable enough to perform at their best. Who's up for creating that database?
Rich Kressly, Advisor
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