The Triplet Challenge

[KenWittlief]

Stephen,

I think the spirit and intent of this thread, to start new teams and make it as easy as possible for them, is excellent.

The thing that seems to be getting people fur ruffled is the idea of giving the new team a robot design.

...Offer to have the new team copy everything you are doing next year. Everything...

this goes back to the root of all the philisophical debate here on CD: are we here to get teams to a regional to play robot games, or are we here to show HS students what its like to be an engineer or scientist?

If FIRST is all about robot games then, ok - give then a starter robot, give them someone elses robot so they can compete.

If FIRST is all about the engineering experience, then give them everything else they need to get started, but make them go through the process of designing as much of the robot as they can, themselves.

We already have a default robot in the KOP that can be assembled in about two weekends - it would be easy for a team with 5 students and one adult mentor to assemble the KOP drivetrain, hook up the control system and battery, and you have a basic moving robot platform that can play defense - and you can bolt on other stuff to play offense, add sensors, get fancy with the SW, modify the wheels.... take it in whatever direction you think you can pull off by ship date.

For most students FIRST is the hardest thing they ever do in HS. I think that is a large part of its appeal. If you make it too easy they will not really be engaged by it, and that hook is lost.

For everything else, make it easy: Money, mentors, facilities, spare parts, tools, computers, money, playfield access, shared travel, money - I agree, collaborate on all the rest.