Timid Drivers

[kjohnson]

I think the best fix for timid drivers is not at the event, but before. Its hard for rookie teams to do but driving practice with/against other robots is extremely helpful. If you have an experienced driver (or your backup) available let them play defense against your primary driver using a previous year's robot. Observing all game rules while playing stiff defense or helpful offense can help your driver learn about the game and not being scared of hurting your robot or someone else's (bumper zone!).

[Katie_UPS]

Originally Posted by thefro526

"A robot can always be fixed - but a match can never be replayed"

--

If someone proves that they're not up to putting the robot where it needs to be, they will not make the cut.

Quoted for truth.

[ehochstein]

Originally Posted by Laaba 80

They used to tell me that, then once they realized I did drive it like I stole it, they changed to "If you lose the match and the robot doesn't come back broken, you didn't drive hard enough."

Haha that is what I tell my drivers now! I was our driver in 2009 when we won the 10,000 Lakes Championship, if I hadn't been told that I think Team Titanium would have gotten a few more empty cells that year >.< I enjoyed driving with you!

[NOV8R]

Over forty years ago as a recent graduate engineer my first job had nothing to do with engineering but a lot to do with driving robots. I flew a jet interceptor and was taught a lot of things that translate into the making of a good drive team today. Such things as situational awareness, acm, startegy and tactics and there implementation. The most important thing that I learned then that I teach my students today is to 'think' not 'react'. There's nothing wrong with reaction and it will save your life in a an emergency. The problem with reaction is predictability. So what does this have to do with driving a robot? This past weekend at a scrimmage our robot was pushed by another robot during a match. So what did our driver do? He reacted and pushed back. If he would have thought and known where he was "situational awareness' he would have realized that he was only a few feet from the key and if he would have instead backed up he would have caused the other robot to commit a foul. Sometimes people see timid drivers as weak. I see them as smart and trainable.

[Vikingtech2054]

Originally Posted by nitneylion452

During competition, there are few things more frustrating to a coach than a timid driver. Often the drivers on my team are afraid to really show what they can do with the controls when on the competition field. I was wondering what some coaches do in the heat of the moment to encourage their drivers to let loose and not hold back?

two words "student robocoach" who can relate to a timid student driver than another student that goes through the same stuff they go through. they understand each other better, and when student robocoachs talk to student drivers i believe it goes better
our team has done it for two years and planning on it this year if it makes a difference.
Through the years we even remember some robocoaches from other teams yelling a bit, just remember its for learning and fun

[akoscielski3]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

Have you tried offering them $5 for every time they bring the robot back broken?

In all honesty, we find constant encouragement helps a ton. After the match, don't talk to them about what they should have done - talk to them about what they did well. That will help to build their confidence, which will in turn make them more agressive. Plus, they'll know what they're doing well, and they'll try to do everything else better as a result.

Or, you could just go the route the father of our main driver suggested the other night... give her a shot before every match. I think he was joking. Or I should say hope

Perfect. This is extremely important! I HATE when people from my team come up to me and ask me why i didnt do this or that. It upsets me and i dont usually do as good the next match. But when they are like "Great job!" I do better the next match.

Important thing also is if you are on a winning streak, don't let it get to your head and get lazy.

I "let loose" once in a 2010 match in midfield. Balls did not pass through to the other sides. However, we needed to replace all the chains.

[jwfoss]

notes from our Drivers Training Manual (pg. 13)

1. Drive it like you stole it
1.1. During the build season you will participate in build sessions, as a result you will develop a sense of ownership. This sense of ownership will cause you to tend to want to be careful with the robot while driving/operating. This is the opposite of what we want to do. The robot is built robust for a reason, be willing to push its limits.

1.2. Your job is to drive the robot to win. The pit crew’s job is to fix the robot and keep it in perfect working order so you can perform your job.

[Peter Matteson]

Originally Posted by wireties

Our drivers have a motto -"Drive it like you stole it!".

I have been saying this for 10 years now to our drivers when they leave for matches. One of our driver requirenments to get picked is utter disregard for the safety of the robot. In 2004 our drive team smashed the robot pretty good to win the Philly regional and we spent all day Thursday at the championship rebuilding it just to be able to play again.

We don't let the drivers hang out in the pits between matches so they don't see what the pit crew goes through when we fix the robot. We fell off the bar at the Championship in 2010 and rebuilt half the drivetrain with our spares between matches without missing a beat, because we prepared for the eventualities of what could happen during that game.

[AlexH]

Be mean to the robot. You can fix it after the match. If it breaks during the match and you were aggressive and affected game flow before it broke, it looks better to other teams than hanging back and not doin anything. But be smart about it, and remember "damage is weakness leaving the robot".

[Tytus Gerrish]

be rid of the timid driver and get an agressive driver.

have a game plan with your aliance.

a coach shouldnt have to say anything but simple directives because the driver should be agressivley folowing the plan.

[Andy A.]

I remind our drivers that the lifespan of a robot is about 45 to 60 minutes of actual match time. Once the season is over the robot is over too, no matter how pristine. So use high gear, use the bumpers, get in pushing matches, hit the walls, take running starts etc. You can usually get away with a lot more abuse then you'd think before something breaks.

Besides, fixing stuff in the pits is fun (although it doesn't really seem it at the time).

[FrankJ]

Broken robots do not win matches.

Colin Chapman (founder of Lotus for you children) felt that a race that did not fall apart at the finish line was overbuilt.

Keith Code (champion motorcycle racer) teaches that you only have so much attention span. So the more you can relegate to reflexes or reaction by practice the more you can spend your limited attention to the unexpected.

Some people will make better drivers than others. Very few natural drivers though. Practice & pre-planning will teach you how much you can push your robot.

[Joe Ross]

Originally Posted by Laaba 80

They used to tell me that, then once they realized I did drive it like I stole it, they changed to "If you lose the match and the robot doesn't come back broken, you didn't drive hard enough." This year, people have started saying "Drive it like Joey."

Depending on what they call an appendage, a broken robot with a part dangling could get a lot of fouls.

[Madison]

The best thing a drive team has going for it at an event is the polycarbonate driver station wall. That thing, with the noise from the crowd, makes it nearly impossible to hear anything going on on the field. We're a lot more careful with the robot when we can hear the scary noises it's making, but when it's on the field, the thing seems invincible.

I don't want for my drivers to break the robot, but I want to be sure they aren't afraid of it breaking. That is, in my mind, where being a team really becomes important. We all have our roles and, for some, that role is to fix the stuff the rest of us did wrong. If students and mentors own their role and are proud of it, the team is stronger as a consequence.