[mathking]

I think Al's advice to get some rest is sound. As is Jason's to tone it down. Let at least a couple of days go by and relax a bit. The build season is stressful and the end of build season is really stressful. Throw a bunch of snow days in and its worse.

To me it seems obvious that there was some confusion among members of the GDC as to what the changed rules meant in terms of having to ship your robot or not. The initial response to the question about withholding an entire 40 pound robot clearly indicated that at least someone on the GDC thought bringing your whole robot was OK.
Question:

If a robot with no battery or bumpers weighs less then 40lbs. Could the team ship just the bumpers? and keep the robot under the withholding allowance?

Answer:

There are no requirements on what is included or excluded from the WITHHOLDING ALLOWANCE. Please see Team Update 11 for added clarification.

The question asked was very direct, and given the answer it was entirely reasonable for teams to assume that withholding their entire robot was OK as long as it did not exceed the weight limit. It may be that the initial responder did not closely read the initial question, that the GDC changed their minds, or that the initial responder was overruled by the majority.(EDIT: ... or that other issues prevented a completely clear answer and they were being as clear as the law allows...) I am confident that no one on the GDC was trying to intentionally frustrate or disadvantage any of the teams.

I don't think it is at all fair to assume/assert that teams or individuals were trying to gain an unfair advantage. It's not like they were trying to slap a ball into the goal with their hands in a World Cup qualifying match. (I know, cheap shot at Thierry Henry...) It was an honestly asked question. How often do we preach on Chief Delphi not to assume the meaning of a rule just because it was that way in the past?

But even if you were planning to bring a less than 65 pounds robot fully assembled this is not the end of the world. If you were planning to keep back the whole robot, you can disassemble your robot and put it back together on Thursday morning. More than one team under the old rules has come to a competition with a bunch of aluminum, some gear boxes, chain and wheels and built their robot from scratch. The most important thing I would tell you is have a <u>plan</u> if you opt for this course of action. Once your robot is working the way it is supposed to, disassemble the major systems. Make a plan for how you will reassemble it. You might even practice reassembling it before you get to competition (if you are not one of the week one regional teams). When we have had to perform one of our "catastrophic redesigns" we plan everything out in advance so that when we actually start working the workflow is as fast as possible.