A Recycle Rush Reflection

[Caleb Sykes]

Originally Posted by Squillo

If FIRST wants the BEST robots/teams at Champs (often given as the rationale for allowing #1 to pick #2), then why let a third robot "tag along" merely by the luck of being drawn? (Or worse, because they happen to be "friends" with the #1 alliance? Like the old "popularity contests" in for grade-school student government.))

Emphasis mine.

I disagree with a couple of things in your post, but this one flat-out confuses me. If the best two teams at the event are not picking the team that they think gives them the greatest chance at winning the event, then I have absolutely no clue how they managed to build the two best robots at the event.

I have never seen a case of the highest seed picking a team just to let them "tag along" for the ride to champs. My guess is that you have seen a case where the one seed picks a team they are familiar with because they trust the team to be useful contributors to their alliance. For example, there are generally a couple of teams at each event that I don't trust, primarily based on past experiences with them. Even if one of those teams had a slightly better robot than a team I am familiar with, I would want to partner with the team I am familiar with because I know that we will work well with them.