Things to do at regionals during off time

[TLuck234]

Originally Posted by IndySam

After competition at Purdue while we waiting for our broken bus to get fixed the team had a great game of HS and Mr.D joined in!

Haha. Very nice. And replying to Don's post, I understand completely what you are saying. The only time we ever play hacky sack would be during times of down time. Which there is hardly any at a regional. Otherwise, we have a lot to do.

[Cooley744]

1. Maggie Moo's Ice Cream @ Florida Regional lol.
2. Sleep
3. Skateboard
4. Work out at hotel work out room
5. Play guitar
6. Youtube
7. Play pranks

[DonRotolo]

OK, Pranks (and singing) are OK - also stuff like waiting for the bus to get repaired (a bus full of FIRST kids and the bus doesn't work? You gotta be kidding, can't you guys fix it?) and after hours. Don't want to come off harsh, but it really burns me when I get to spend 40 hours a week at work, then another 35 at Robots, only to see some kid with nothing better to do than play Motherload.

Why should I alienate my kids and family for six (no, 12 if you include 2 regionals & Championships) WEEKS to help some kids who aren't related to me, and don't even give enough of a *$*$*$*$ to do the work expected of them?

Thankfully for me, I went off on some of the team 2 years ago, and have not had to do that since. I explain my expectations the beginning of each season, and amazingly, these High School Kids actually grow up, accept responsibility and do it. Mostly. Enough, at least. Speaking with many other mentors, I find this to be the rare exception, most teams have a large group of kids who are a waste of time.

So: Think about this, kids, beneficiaries of your Mentors, next time there's something serious to get done - are you helping or $crewing around? If the latter, quit the team, for everyone's benefit.

Don

[mrbob1000]

When not doing anything in the pits?!?!?! visit other teams, sleep in the pit (i dont know how but i can), dance, chill with other teams, think of ideas for my book.

[thefro526]

I don't think I've had downtime at a regional since my Freshman year. If I do have a minute or two where I'm not doing anything I'll usually walk around the pits and gather ideas.

[BJT]

Originally Posted by Don Rotolo

And why do you think that might be?

Teachable Moment: Yes, we are here for fun, but there is so much to be done, don't waste the time you have. Being part of a FIRST team also means that you don't let others carry a load that you can carry instead.

Mentors give so much to the team, how do you think they feel when they see you doing something unproductive during build season or at a regional?

Save your unproductive activities for when it doesn't matter. If you think it doesn't matter at a Regional, you're in the wrong sport, Sport.

Don

Sorry, but I feel pretty strongly about this.


.

Amen brother.

[Josh Goodman]

Practice field it up, rest, eat, work on robot. There is always SOMETHING to be done at a regional. Whether it's working on a robot or cheering, you're constantly doing something. I would suggest eating and recovering during lunch. That's what it's there for.

[Blue_Mist]

Scout, scout and scout some more. Maybe I'm the only one who does this, since this year I've almost always been the lone scout on our team. Not complaining, I'm just more of a Pit Crew/Mechanical person. But back at the hotel, it's time for the annual Davis Swimming Pool Escapade! (Began in 2007 when we inadvertently discovered an unheated pool and dove in anyway. Worst thing was, there was a heated pool about 100 meters away. Meh, it was fun at the time.) During Pit hours, there is almost no free time. And if you have some, move yourself to the stands and match scout! Please don't take up more room in the Pit sleeping. Plus, it's really much more fun to sleep where hot soldering irons aren't dangling over your face.

[Kersten]

during what little free time there is, I pass out buttons, scout, sit because standing gets old, make friends, eat lunch, critique our last performances and see how we can improve for the next match. And one tip-never leave for anything with your operator button on, not even to go to lunch haha.

[The Farmer]

Well, I usually spend my down time (which is lunch, of course) doing pretty much nothing (I lack the coordination and skill that is needed for HS), unless someone asks me for someone...

[lasereyes]

The pit crew gets NO off time. Maybe 5 minutes here and there, and I usually spend those looking at other teams' robots.

Although, once, me and another kid were left behind in the pit at the end of the practice day(we didn't have enough cars to get everyone to the hotel at once), so we ended up playing a networked game of Doom on our 2 very ancient laptops. That attracted the attention of many people passing by our pit.

[BandChick]

Here's what I do with my off time:

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...threadid=66702

[iRock]

Wow...with the little time that sometimes occurs i do see alot of people playing hackey sack but for those who arent so cordinated like me, i just like to walk around and meet new people. There are so many cool people at compitions and so little time to meet them all so i just walk around and talk to people about not only thier bot but where their from and what they like to do besides robots!! haha Its a great way to meet some pretty cool people that share the same interest as you, so go out and be a social butterfly! haha

[Molten]

I completely agree. There is no room for downtime. During regionals, I have been known to skip eating for the whole day. If the pits are open, I am working. If there is a match, I am watching. If there is another team to strategize with, I am talking. If there is time, when you don't have anything to do... Either you must have a team of like 100 people and you literally have nothing to do(in which case, you would have been better off staying home), or someone else is doing your job.

[lasereyes]

Originally Posted by Molten

I completely agree. There is no room for downtime. During regionals, I have been known to skip eating for the whole day. If the pits are open, I am working. If there is a match, I am watching. If there is another team to strategize with, I am talking. If there is time, when you don't have anything to do... Either you must have a team of like 100 people and you literally have nothing to do(in which case, you would have been better off staying home), or someone else is doing your job.

Agreed.