A new era for FIRST.....and mixed feelings

[LauraN]

Originally Posted by nuggetsyl

I am not trying to take anything away from the rookie or 2 year teams out there but i really do not like the way first is treating teams that have been around for many years and has taken first to the next level. Hell beaty (71) would have not made it next year if they didn't win this years national whats up with that. I hope first sees that they are steping on older teams and stop.

You have an excellent point: we owe a million and one thanks to the older teams for, in many cases, making FIRST what it is. But should we "discriminate" based on how long your team has been around? If you think about it, FIRST's goal is to inspire students, right? And no one can participate on a FIRST team as a student for more than four years (with rare exceptions). So what's the difference between a four-year team and a five-year team? FIRST isn't catering to teams, it's catering to students on those teams. I think there's a big difference.

I apologize if this offends any of the older teams. I don't deny that you've done many great things for FIRST. But students on rookie and second-year teams, if anything, are in greater need of being inspired.

All these problems with nationals are being encountered because FIRST just keeps growing at an alarming rate. And that can't be anything but a good thing, right?