[Lil' Lavery]

I'm not a fan of NASCAR (or much racing in general), but the concept of "restrictor plate racing" has always seemed a little odd to me. And to me, that's what FIRST is doing with these minibots. Locking us into a very specific set of pieces and options, to see who can build the "best" version of the same thing.

While getting the slight edge has always been a part of FRC, the champions have resulted from good design, innovation, quality manufacturing, constant improvement, and quality drivers. It hasn't been something where shaving off that extra 0.1lb or weight or using a slightly overcharged battery was the difference between victory or defeat. And that's what's going to happen with many minibots.

I didn't get involved with FRC to try and build the same thing as everyone else, only lighter.