Being Proactive About Paper Airplanes on Einstein

[mrnoble]

This is my team's first trip to champs. I just got hit in the head three times by planes thrown by Stryke Force, who is sitting behind my team. Two of my students also got hit. I've instructed them to wear their safety glasses. I've also spoken to a set of parents from the offending team, who said "it's not our kids" and to their mentor, who called it "innocent fun". I know protocol normally forbids calling out specific teams for behavior but I'm pissed, and I don't mind if they want to smack me down in this forum for calling them out. When sitting in the stands is more likely to result in eye injuries than working on robots in the pits, something is wrong. Next year I'll watch Einstein on the live feed instead.

[Carl C]

Originally Posted by Alex2614

Watching Einstein isn't all that much fun when you're being pelted in the back of the head every minute with poorly made paper airplanes.

Time to start packing an umbrella!

[FiMFanatic]

Perhaps while teams wait, each can nominate one plane thrower and they can set up a controlled competition off to the side somewhere.....

If not, the plane tossing and paper dumping needs to stop - we are not 5 year olds.

[pmangels17]

Out of curiosity, how many people have brought this up to the requisite people in charge of the event, who are in a position to make a change? I feel like the only way to make a change is to demonstrate that enough people are opposed to the practice that it needs to stop. (I'm not saying that this hasn't been done yet, I'm just genuinely curious).

[Mike dennis]

It is really disappointing seeing the paper airplanes on the stream.

[Rombus]

I'm in the stands and just got hit by this! Ridiculous!

https://imgur.com/a/lEKZz

<edit> using Imgur link since I can't resize it right now</edit>

[IronicDeadBird]

Originally Posted by XaulZan11

Interesting that they announce to everyone to turn off wireless on their phones, but say nothing about airplanes. I guess if people feel strongly about this, contacting/complaining to FIRST may be a better idea.

Wireless from phones can interfere with the field, if planes were being thrown onto competition fields FIRST would smack it down in a heart beat. There is a difference between tolerating something and being on board with something. FIRST might tolerate the paper airplanes and all the extra clean up they have to do because the crowd gets "bored" but that doesn't mean behind the scenes they are okay with it. I'd be interested in hearing more volunteers and staff voice what opinions.

[mrnoble]

Just stared down a 50-something "adult" from team 1665 who was throwing not airplanes but wadded up balls of paper at the back of people's heads. Yeah. Tell me it's kids being kids, again.

[Jardanium]

I personally am the most disgusted at the airplanes made from torn apart spectator programs. FIRST most likely paid a lot for these programs, and I think it's pretty disrespectful to just rip them apart and throw them.

[maxnz]

Originally Posted by IronicDeadBird

Wireless from phones can interfere with the field, if planes were being thrown onto competition fields FIRST would smack it down in a heart beat.

I did see on the stream one airplane that landed on the field after a match when people were switching out robots and defenses. They can land there. Also, don't forget the match last year that people have referenced where a ref had to remove an airplane just before a match started.

[Botwoon]

The darts people are throwing down from the upper levels are downright dangerous. I was sitting underneath a ledge in the stands during Ein finals and still had one arc down, glance off my eyeglasses, and STILL hit me in the eye with enough force for it to still be noticeably bloodshot and very sore now, several hours later.

Seriously. Stop throwing those darts.

[synth3tk]

I sat with a team that I'm friends with during Einstein and saw one of the students in the row ahead of me almost get her eye poked out. Seriously, this thing had to be less than an 1/4" from her eyeball. She held her face for a good minute and I was expecting to see blood once she moved her hands.

Thankfully it didn't do any long-term damage, but the mentors of the offending team would have gotten hell from me if a trip to first-aid was warranted.

Another student also had a plane hit the top of his head with a very audible thud.

These things are legitimately dangerous and getting way out of control. "Kids be kids" is all fine and dandy until it starts seriously impacting others (literally and figuratively). Just because FIRST won't address it directly doesn't mean you should do it anyway. You know it's a safety hazard, be better than that.

[wilsonmw04]

This year was my first year on the floor. Before this year, I saw airplanes as a not very classy thing that FIRST did when it got bored. Now I see it as a dangerous practice that needs to stop. First, it distracts those on the floor. I know I was surprised by multiple planes that were hits or near misses while on the floor. How can the drivers, coaches, and refs staff wholly focused on the match while getting pelted by trash? Second, they are dangerous to those on the floor. Several of my team members were hit in the head, neck, hair and shoulder areas with planes. Someone was ever hit with a paper "throwing star." It was apparent that the goal of some was just to try and hit someone on the floor with something. Thankfully, we were all wearing safety glasses. These planes are not made from notebook paper. They are made from the heavy glossy stock of the pamphlets and guidebooks. it is not a trivial thing to be hit by them.

FIRST, Please, stop throwing airplanes.

[bobbysq]

I got hit with someones resume. I plan on sending an email saying that our team would be happy to take him!

[Wayne Doenges]

I saw planes being thrown during speeches and matches. If people are bored by these than why are they in robotics in the first place?