Refereeing

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Originally Posted by DannyB1259

Give the referee's the flexibility to call matches the way they see fit, there's no reason that a match played in one regional has to be officiated the same as a match in another regional.
Danny B

Danny,
We can't allow refs flexibility nor can we allow inspectors flexibility. The people involved have a lot invested in this competition. The sponsors are not likely to shell out as much and have their name on a robot that can lose at the whim of an official. Mentors are less likely to spend all the hours they currently work on the robot if they know there are unknown variables in the refs and inspections. Students are less likely to take ownership of a robot if they know their hard work can be circumvented by an official. I know many refs and know they work very hard because they have to make hard decisions. I know most inspectors and I can guarantee you that we train to make inspections as consistent across the country as possible. I don't want a team to end up at Championships with a faulty robot and have to tell them that the previous inspectors missed something huge. And yes, every year I get the same rant from teams who passed at previous events. Inspectors have to defend the rules as they were last edited. Many teams stop looking at the rules after week one or two and never look at the Team Updates. Those teams will be surprised when a specific item has been ruled illegal or when a game strategy has been ruled as legal in the last update. There were 20 Team Updates last year.

Imagine if you will a 2009 game where inspectors didn't inspect the trailer hitch, or a game like 2010 where refs didn't watch how many robots were in an end zone.