The Spirit of FIRST

[gblake]

And now, for our next topic - "Why I hate puppies and kittens" -

[Kims Robot]

My thought at reading the start of this post was that we have all had these thoughts... so for those of you immediately on the attack, think back to your first years, Im SURE there was something you thought was "unfair". Now realize you have gained wisdom and seen so much that others havent, then sit back down and type something NICE.

As for my thoughts, it all comes back to what you think FIRST is about. Is it about winning? NO! Dean & Woodie & Dave have clearly stated that. It is about Inspiration. Is winning inspirational? heck yes. Is building a robot alongside an awesome group of engineers inspirational? Absolutely! Does it really matter in a game that is based more on luck of the draw (partners and such) if you win?? Not really... while it feels great to win, teams competing in FIRST come from all different backgrounds, from all different countries, from all different sponsorship levels, to make all of them compete at the exact same level would be nearly impossible. So lets all just have fun with it!!

I will echo what those here have already said. If it feels unfair, take a step back and learn from them. Two years ago 1511 wrote to Paul, Karthik & Andy B asking "how do you develop such key strategies", and every one of them responded with some amazing answers that we learned so much from. If you really desperately want to build a second robot, ask one of those "fortunate" teams for help... they may be able to lend you parts, help you make things, etc! You will be surprised how much teams that "have" will help those that "have not", all it takes is someone to ask!

[Rion Atkinson]

In several conversations with my previous Team Captain this has come up many times. I respect him greatly, he has helped me grow as an engineer and as a leader in ways he will never fully understand. But many a times have we been looking at pictures of previous years robots to see how things have been done just in case we need them.

At some point he would say "I wish we could do that. I really do. It would be so amazing. And it would make us so much better." We would then sit there for a moment and I would respond "But we can't. We don't have the resources, and our mentors are holding us back." that would get us both thinking. He would typically respond "Your right. So how can we fix that?" I would think for a bit and respond "Well, we know what we have, and we know what we can do. Lets start with that."

What I am saying is that, no, it's not unfair. They are simply taking advantage of the hard work they have done. What right do we have to stop them? I personally like seeing the teams that can do this. I look at them and say "I want to be like them. We will strive to be like them. Lets get started! "

Good luck this season!

[fuzzy1718]

My team has completed seasons with and without a practice robot. Yes there is nothing in the rules about not having one. Yes, it is an ethical dilema that all teams have to face. But if you can look past the ethical roadblock for a second and weigh the advantages and disadvantages, things become a bit clearer. I remember in 2007 when my team had this exact same debate. It was hard for some to see past the ethics, I was one of those people. Due to this some asked others to weigh the advantages and disadvantages, then if it is close add the ethics in. In the end we went with the practice bot for a few years, those were our best seasons. (This past year due to resources we did not, and regreted the decision.) Not only did the inexperianced members have more time on the robot, but it gave the advanced members an opertunity to teach and see how far they have come. Not only did we inspire the new team members, but allowed the old to recignize their own engineering expertise.

Obviously I'm skewed towards the practice bot idea, but notice there was no attack. I have been attacked myself on CD and view it as a hostile place. I think some FIRSTers need to ask themselves "Am I acting like my grandmother is watching?" If the answer is no, then why are you posting in a FIRST forum? (I'm fully aware this is an unofficial forum ) Just some food for thought, that I expect will affect my green dots.

[Akash Rastogi]

Originally Posted by fuzzy1718

My team has completed seasons with and without a practice robot. Yes there is nothing in the rules about not having one. Yes, it is an ethical dilema that all teams have to face. But if you can look past the ethical roadblock for a second and weigh the advantages and disadvantages, things become a bit clearer. I remember in 2007 when my team had this exact same debate. It was hard for some to see past the ethics, I was one of those people.

How is this an ethical dilemma at all?