Womens Compeition Variations on field

[Mr. Mac]

Everything we do in OCCRA is criticized and we've come to accept it (and expect it!); some tell us the game is too rough, others tell us it's too tame. Some say we give out too many awards, some say not enough. Some say we were stupid to play alliances, some think it's the best thing we've done so far. Everybody is entitled to their opinion. We listen to all suggestions and try to reach consnsus on a plan that seems most likely to advance us toward our mission. We were told by most people last year that they didn't want the Womens' Tournament to be held as late this year, but they also wanted to start OCCRA later in September and most people wanted a longer build time before the first tournament. Furthermore, we were told that having a totally different game for the young ladies required way too much engineering in the short time allocated. With Thanksgiving vacation coming a week later this year, we decided to simplify the modification process by keeping the game the same and just changing the ball size. This meant little or no chassis modifications would be needed. To give the young women more time, the rules were announced by e-mail, at tournaments, and by an official posting on this site) over 3 weeks ago. We figured that would give a nice long design and prototyping period with 2 weeks of fabrication time. Gender equity studies have shown that guys tend to jump in and take over in co-ed projects (like OCCRA). We want to give our young women the chance to shine! Finally, we want to encourage all of you to keep expressing your opinions. That's why we put together the survey that each team was given at the county championship. We will publish the results of the team surveys in a few weeks before our December wrap-up meeting.