Penalizing mecanum wheeled robots durring alliance selection.

[pabeekm]

This year, the robot's drivetrain didn't matter to us nearly so much as how the robot was being driven. This was probably our biggest selection factor; I asked scouters specifically to note great or poor maneuvering (especially around defense). We even used our first pick as 2nd seed at North Carolina on a 44th seeded box bot, just because they drove very well. Likewise, plenty of drivers at champs proved that mecanum was no hinderance if utilized well.

Discriminating against robots for particular attributes should not be done if they can hold their own on the field, period. Unfortunately, teams with such attributes do have to prove themselves to overcome doubters, and even then, the tiniest of concerns might be enough for alliance captains to discredit them.... it's really unfortunate, but it happens, whether you're a mecanum bot, rookie team, or had no intake this year (cries in corner).