HEY ROOKIE TEAMS!!!

[IraJason]

All I can say is, as long as you had fun and learned from your mistakes, don't worry about it! You now know what went wrong and can be prepared for next year. Being a rookie is all about learning the game, seeing how it's played, and having a fun time doing it all, no matter how well you do. What should appreciated is that your team went from nothing to building a functioning competition robot and getting sponsors to go along with it! I would say that being able to do that, and having the greatest time possible with not only your team but other teams along the way, is really important, and besides your mentioned set backs, it looks like you achieved that!

As for your sponsorship issue that you mention, having a bunch of local businesses is always a good start! Due to um... unforeseen... circumstances, my team only has our school district sponsoring us for this year. If you already been able to reach out into your community and show them the benefits of FIRST, then you're already on your way in terms of sponsorship and creating a strong bond with your community.

Don't let a few bad experiences ruin the fun that you and your team must have had during the past 6 weeks of build season and during the Regional itself. Try to think of it differently... now you have a goal for your team. You have something to look forward to building up next year and doing better, and showing everyone else the true potential of your team. If you just give up now, you'll never be able to prove that, and miss out on all the amazing experiences that FIRST has to offer.

Just remember that just because you didn't do the best this year doesn't mean you can't come back next year and beat everyone! Just keep working at it and eventually you will become great.