**FIRST** FTC Registration System

[ManicMechanic]

Originally Posted by skimoose

I'm sure FIRST is worried about having too many transient teams like FLL, but if teams can request permanent numbers, don't you think they'll be in this for the long haul?

Not necessarily. Because of the cost and size of robots, FTC, like FLL, lends itself easily to the "5 kids and a mom/dad in a garage"-type teams. Unless the baton can be passed to another adult, these teams tend to last as long as kid of mom/dad is in the age bracket, and fold when aforesaid kid ages out or loses interest. In 2004 (the last year I received the Brandeis survey results), 57% of FLL teams were coached by a parent, and nearly half of all teams were rookie teams. With nearly half of all teams turning over annually, team numbers get gobbled up pretty quickly.

While recycling team numbers could be done, I sure wouldn't want the job! I can see lots of potential for frustration among teams that don't get their choice. Who gets precedence for a number like 38 (our number in the April 2005 FVC pilot) -- the FRC team with the number or the pioneer FVC team? If it's the team that registers and claims it first, what happens if the next year, another team claims first dibs on that number by registering first? And who gets the honor of being team 1337?