[Michelle692]

It definitely depends on what the sport is. We have two members who run cross-country, so it doesn't conflict too badly (though one is my co-captain, which makes it a bit difficult at times) but we are supportive of them, because that is what they want to do. They just come to meetings as soon as practice is over. However, my co-captain is planning not to do cross-country next year because of robotics.

Personally though, I had to quit competitive gymnastics for robotics. There are some sports that are impossible to do along with robotics. In my case, there simply were not enough hours in the week to do 20 hours a week of gymnastics practice, and do robotics (and homework, for that matter!) so I had to quit at the end of my sophomore year (I did do both gymnastics and robotics for the first 2 years, but that was because I only had practice 16 hours a week). Even though I knew it would come down to that eventually, it was still the hardest decision I have ever had to make.

So, I think it really depends on the sport, but also what your role on your team is. On our team, our public relations person also runs track, which obviously does conflict a lot- but she just does a lot of the work at home to make up for her not being there. However, that would not work if you are a builder, for example.

We lost one member this year who decided to concentrate on her sport. I wish you luck in whatever your sport is, and I hope that you can find a compromise that allows you to continue to do both.