[Tsom467]

Hello,

I'm really beginning to wonder what FIRST is thinking. In talking to
the other mentors on our team, who have also been talking to the
organizers of a regional event, we're really trying to figure out
FIRST's rationale regarding their bag-and-tag policies.

We're attending two events – WPI Regional and Toronto Regional. WPI is
literally 15 minutes up the road from the school.. but is not a
bag-and-tag event. Most of the teams attending there are within easy
driving distance. Case in point, Team 190 / WPI, Mass Academy, who is
attending the WPI regional has to pack their robot, ship it to
drayage, have the robot delivered BACK to WPI for the regional. Then
their next regional is a bag-and-tag and since WPI is not, they now
have to pack and SHIP the robot to BACK to their classroom, literally
across the street! The regional organizers have asked FIRST several
times to be a bag-and-tag event and were told NO. Completely makes no
sense. It would make so much more sense to at least make an event
"optionally" bag-and-tag, so team can choose what to do. We also heard
the Brazil team, whose first event is the bag-and-tag Boston event (I
believe) have to bring their robot with them, instead of shipping it.
Who knows what kind of crazy arrangements they're going to have to
make!

We also now have to ship our robot to drayage, have it delivered to
WPI for our regional, then our second regional is bag-and-tag in
Toronto, so we have to ship it back to our school, then take it with
us on the bus to Toronto. Not to mention making sure we can even fit
it on the bus! We have an open question to FIRST also about customs..
what if customs asks to see what we have all packed up? Do we get a
"free" un-bagging? We either do that, or we leave the robot at the
border. Not to slight any volunteer, but we can so see an official in
Toronto getting all uppity because we had to unbag our robot for
customs inspectors.

It's policies like this that really makes me question what's going on
in the FIRST organizers minds. With costs going up, scarcity of money
and sponsors, teams will stop participating. Not every team is a
"corporate" team with unlimited, or almost unlimited, funds.

I have a feeling that this'll fall on deaf ears, regarding FIRST, they'll do what they want even if it sometimes (most times?) makes little practical sense, but I had to voice my opinion.

Rant over…