Swerve advice

[Al Skierkiewicz]

I am torn between telling you one thing and suggesting something else. Crab is very hard to learn and takes lot's of practice to get it right. It is easy to blame joysticks, gamepads and even programming but it is practice that is the real key. We have used crab several times in the past, when the game required it. Our drivers spend a great deal of time with coaching to get proficient. They need to be seeing the moves in their sleep. Practice requires driving with other objects on the field, other robots and moving devices that interfere with driving. It takes lots of team work to make these simulations real.
That being said, I usually recommend against major changes to robot design once a team has significant practice with the robot they currently have. If you change to tank steering, you need to be able to give your drivers sufficient practice to learn the new methods. If this is your second regional, you might want to think about how your drivers will react in pressure situations when you change the drive system. If they were drivers for you last year, and tank is what they trained for last year, it might work to your advantage to make the change.