Poll - Legalities

[Ryan Dognaux]

Originally Posted by Steve W

Can a mentor honestly expect a student to hear them say we must follow FIRST's rules but it is OK to break a venues

Yes, they can. If anything, I would only look up to that mentor more for thinking things through and realizing how much money would be saved by not wasting it and planning ahead. A mentor that saves me time and money and gives me the best experience possible is a great mentor.

Originally Posted by Kims Robot

And Im really sorry to dissappoint, but Im human, not a god, I am not going to pretend I am perfect, but I do have a brain with which I try to reason.

Exactly. In my opinion, it's common sense not to pay that much money for food that you could get a lot cheaper somewhere else. If that means you have to break a rule to do it, then so be it. We're not all autonomous robots who are preprogrammed to always follow rules blindly regardless of what they are.

[MikeDubreuil]

I agree with Kim.

I think myself as a mentor I hold a tier based system for what rules I’d like to follow. Whether I follow or break a rule depends upon a choice that I make after weighing the options on my tier based value system.

For instance, I have never violated a FIRT rule that would give my team a competitive advantage out on the field. That means no extra weight, no extra time, no onboard super computers, etc. However, if someone on my team was bringing food or drink into the venue I would look the other way.

Like Kim, I have real problems with the venues that have certain food and drink policies. The Manchester Regional- I can’t stand it. Nothing frosts me more than being told I can’t bring food and drink into a facility when they don’t have food and drink available. Drinking from the water fountain is not an alternative; I might as well drink from the toilet in the bathroom. Those of us with germ phobias prefer reasonable options. The Boston Regional had a vendor always open selling drinks and pre-made sandwiches. I thought that was great.

Sometimes in Boston I will run red lights. Not because I enjoy breaking the law. If an ambulance is trying to rush someone to the hospital and the only way he is making it through the intersection is if I run the red light. Should I decrease the person’s likelihood of survival because I don’t want to break the law? No way.