Clash of Objectives.

[Sam_Mills]

Originally Posted by Alan Anderson

I don't understand what you're trying to tell us either. You say it like you're disagreeing with him, but you haven't clarified what your disagreement is.

It's that the case he makes against winning is self effacing. It's like saying "I love to go on solo road trips but I hate driving and being alone."

To say you're inspired by competing but not inspired by trying to win is complete nonsense. It's the same thing.

If he's trying to make the tired point that any team that is "all about winning" doesn't understand the goals of FIRST and is doing their students a disservice, then I disagree wholeheartedly. I'll paste in something I posted to Facebook on the day of the double CMP announcement:

One of the favorite memories I have was in 2013 when 254, a team we've all been inspired by for years, picked us on the Archimedes field to play in eliminations. For a few hours that day, we got to scrape at the greatness reserved for only the best of the best. For a few hours we had the hope of becoming world champions.

It didn't matter that to me that we lost, because for a few hours we got to walk down a narrow and hallowed path. The chance to do it again is something that drives anyone who has had the opportunity to be there. It genuinely saddens me that future students in FIRST won't get the chance to know this feeling.

People say it's not all about winning, and they're right. It's about trying. But if you're not trying to win, to be the best that there is, then why try at all?

You will never be able to convince someone to try their hardest for second place.