301 points! and could have done more

[RyanB]

I feel like this thread is a good place to express my opinion on the competition aspect of FIRST. Let’s begin with the purpose of FIRST and how it applies to these competitions. Nowhere in the FIRST mission statement or vision statement does the word competition appear, with this said I do realize that the competition aspect is a big part of what got me personally enthralled with FIRST alongside being able to do hands on design work as a high school student. Competitions provide many learning opportunities for students such as time management, problem solving skills and an introduction to statistical analysis and how it applies to strategy implementation. All of these skills and more are extremely valuable to companies and increase the employability of students that have been exposed to these through FIRST. I can’t speak for FIRST but in my opinion I think too much emphasis is being placed on winning competitions. When I see the integrity of a HOF team being questioned for strategic implementation completely within the rules set forth by FIRST, it makes me uneasy about the direction we are headed in. I understand the urge to win and who is involved (students, sponsors, parents, schools), but I also believe that students are being engaged and inspired regardless of the amount of banners they receive.
I wasn’t at the regional, I don’t know exactly what happened but we are getting a pretty good depiction from both sides on the decision process and what those decision led too. It seams both alliances wanted to win and decided to do what they thought would win them the competition and the challenge set forth by a sponsor. With regard to defense itself, there is nowhere in the manual that sais defense must be played. Defense is a strategy that many teams employ and has been deemed by many to be a big part of the game, that doesn’t mean it has to be.
These are expressly my opinions and I do recognize other viewpoints made on this thread as valid concerns, and as such I though it important to also express my opinions on the matter.