[FRC Blog] Pit Set-Up and Trophies

[Hallry]

Posted on the FRC Blog, 10/13/15: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprogr...p-and-trophies

Pit Set-Up and Trophies

Blog Date: Tuesday, October 13, 2015 - 17:27

Pit Set-Up at Events

We have heard from some in the community that they would like to be able to set up their pits during what would traditionally be a load-in only period the afternoon or evening before events officially start. After considering this carefully, and getting feedback from the Regional Directors, we’ve decided to make this a local option.

While allowing early pit set-up has benefits, it also has some challenges, such as potentially increased costs in some areas and additional volunteer requirements. So, rather than requiring all events to do this one way, events that have the interest, can find the resources, and can support this logistically will be allowed to do so. Teams that want to see this happen at events they are attending may want to consider providing a few volunteers for the event or providing other support to make this a reality. Whether or not teams will be allowed to set up early like this will be indicated on the event schedules. Please note this load-in only period usually applies only to Regionals and some (but not all) District Championships, not District events.

We’ll be providing rules later regarding early pit set-up, but they will be what you would expect – such as a focus on safety, only so many team members allowed in the pits to set up, and a requirement that pit activity end at a certain time, no matter where teams are in the process.

Trophies for the 2016 Season

FIRST HQ has the responsibility to be good stewards of the registration fees we receive from teams and the donations we receive from sponsors and individuals. Occasionally, when we see a cost getting out of line with a potential benefit, we need to take action, even on traditional elements of the program.

FRC has traditionally given out duplicate trophies to all teams earning them at events. ‘Back in the day’ the idea was that one trophy was for the team, one trophy was for the sponsor. I don’t know how broadly the concept of a team having a single sponsor, or even one primary sponsor, holds up currently, but I do know that trophies are a significant expense for the program right now.

For 2016, we’ll be making a change. Rather than providing duplicate trophies to winning teams, we’ll be providing one trophy and one wall plaque recognizing the accomplishment. Wall plaques will come in two sizes, 8” x 10” when paired with smaller trophies and 9” x 12” when paired with larger trophies. Teams will be able to order additional trophies and additional plaques if they desire. Just as with the cost to FIRST, the cost to teams of plaques will be less than the cost of trophies.

This was not an easy decision to make, but we feel it was a necessary step to help us keep our costs under control.

Frank

[Rangel(kf7fdb)]

Pit Set-Up the day before is a great change that is sure to help a lot of teams. Now they can get right to it Thursday morning instead of trying to designate who is setting up and who is working on robot.

[Ari423]

If only they had this at district events too. That would make life so much easier. But alas that's the price you pay for more competitions.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Rangel(kf7fdb)

Pit Set-Up the day before is a great change that is sure to help a lot of teams. Now they can get right to it Thursday morning instead of trying to designate who is setting up and who is working on robot.

IF it's implemented at a given event. And that is going to be the interesting part of this. (And then there's the undeniable fact that some teams' load-in comes pretty close to setup as it is.)

I've got a funny feeling that the inspectors are going to be asking for some extra hands during load-in periods.

[R.C.]

I've been pushing for this for years. I'm glad it's been implemented and can garuanteee the CVR regional will allow early setup.

[JB987]

Great idea! Biggest challenge likely to be kicking the teams out at a reasonable time Wednesday evening. Pretty sure we will go with this format at LVR, but will know better after our regional planning meeting this Thursday. I will post our intent asap.

[thatprogrammer]

While I'm excited for the ability to set up pits on wed, I'm really sad to hear that we won't be getting 2 trophies to give to sponsors any more. I can't help but feel that there are ways FIRST could reduce the cost of trophies without this solution.*
*Perhaps a redesign of the trophy?
I'm not an expert on cash flow in FIRST, so maybe I'm just mistaken.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by thatprogrammer

While I'm excited for the ability to set up pits on wed, I'm really sad to hear that we won't be getting 2 trophies to give to sponsors any more. I can't help but feel that there are ways FIRST could reduce the cost of trophies without this solution.*
*Perhaps a redesign of the trophy?
I'm not an expert on cash flow in FIRST, so maybe I'm just mistaken.

They've already shrunk the size of the trophies once [cue massive complaints] and removed participation medals from the equation (for participation pins in the KOP).

Also, I'm willing to bet that most sponsors have more wall space than trophy case space, which makes a plaque a tad easier to handle.


Here's the thing: All those trophies have to ride the semi for all the events that truck is covering. So on top of the cost of the trophy itself, you have to include the cost of transporting it to up to 5 (6?) events before the one it's supposed to leave the truck at. And the trophies can be rather bulky and awkward. So if there's a plaque instead of a trophy... I suspect I can stack 6 events worth of plaques into a space previously occupied by 2-3 events worth of trophies (or smaller). Means more space for other important items.

[Nathan Streeter]

In my opinion, the pit setup change is very good and long overdue (although irrelevant to our team in districts) and the trophy/plaque change is reasonable. I'd prefer that they make the second trophy a plaque than they shrink the trophies again... see below.

Originally Posted by EricH

They've already shrunk the size of the trophies once [cue massive complaints] and removed participation medals from the equation (for participation pins in the KOP).

It is amusing that our 2006 Granite State Regional Winner trophy is decisively larger than our more prestigious trophies from more recent seasons... and saddening.

[Sperkowsky]

This setup thing sounds great just doubt NYC will be doing it with the high cost of venue time.

Also with the trophies I always assumed one was for your room and the other was for the schools trophy displays. The plaque sounds cool though.

[AllenGregoryIV]

Very positive changes, I like having two trophies because we have two schools but actually they end up both sitting in our lab most of the time anyway and reducing the costs is a good thing. Love the pit setup the night before. Now we should be able to see some even cooler and more functional pit spaces.

I like that they are looking back over old rules/traditions and seeing what still makes sense in the current FRC world.

[Jacob Bendicksen]

Originally Posted by AllenGregoryIV

I like that they are looking back over old rules/traditions and seeing what still makes sense in the current FRC world.

This, absolutely this. There are wonderful traditions in FIRST that should stick around forever, and there are some things that need to be rethought as time goes on. The trophy setup is absolutely one of them, and hopefully we as a community can keep thinking of improvements to make FIRST more current, innovative, and able to reach as many people as efficiently as possible.

[Jon Stratis]

Originally Posted by EricH

IF it's implemented at a given event. And that is going to be the interesting part of this. (And then there's the undeniable fact that some teams' load-in comes pretty close to setup as it is.)

I've got a funny feeling that the inspectors are going to be asking for some extra hands during load-in periods.

This is what really worries me... events that implement this need additional volunteers on hand to handle it. And events that don't need additional volunteers on hand to handle all of the teams that complain/refuse to accept that this isn't a universal thing. It's going to be painful for a year or two while everyone figures it out and adjusts schedules as needed.

[dag0620]

Originally Posted by Ari423

If only they had this at district events too. That would make life so much easier. But alas that's the price you pay for more competitions.

An earlier setup time for teams in a district event isn't possible for the most part since the venue is still being set up before the traditional team arrival at 5pm on Day 1.

[sanddrag]

Finally. I've waited years for this change on pit load in and setup. I actually proposed it in a Frank answers Fridays submission a long time ago, and to Frank personally in a face to face discussion many months ago. While the response took a while, they really are listening!

I'll reserve judgement on the trophy issue until I hear whether or not Long Beach and Ventura will have Wednesday night pit setup. ;-)

I'm not sure of why pit setup needs more volunteers, but if that's a barrier to doing it, by all means let us know and we'll find the volunteers.

I am curious how much trophies cost though. And how many do we really go through in a season? 1500? At $50 which I think should be absolute top of the mark for these, that's $75,000 per year. Not insignificant, but also not a gigantic cost considering the scale of the program, and an annual operating budget in the several tens of millions per year.