Rule Changes at off season competitions

[Ken Leung]

Since off season competitions are unofficial events, we get to change the rules a little bit if we want to. I remember for the 2003 game we changed the finals format back to best 2 out of 3 instead of elimination points. There were also talks of making one of the bin 10 points instead of 1, but we never had enough time to announce it ahead of time.

I want to create a thread to discuss possible rule change at off season events that will make the game much more interesting. They have to be feasible of course, and won't create unfair advantage for bigger, more experienced teams.

2 Idea popped right into my head. I believe 1 of them is appropriate, another isn't. Take a look at them and suggest your own rule change.

1. Let robots score balls into goals. This is obviously a very interesting rule change. In fact, it will change the game into a completely different thing. I would've love to see this rule when they announce the game. But I have a feeling teams won't be ready to play such a game during post seasons. It will call for major rework on a lot of robot, and a lot of people are gone during the summer. So, while this is an interesting idea, I don't think it is feasible to apply.

2. Up the weight limit to 140 lbs. I think this will allow teams to add a whole new component to their robot if they want to. They can use bigger chains, bigger wheels, or add another set of pneumatics on their robot. While 10 lbs isn't a whole lot, it can be a matter of life and death for an arm, a winch, or a ball roller. I think with enough ahead of time announcement, this rule can be applied to an off season event and motivate teams to work on their robot during the summer.

What kind of rule change would you like to see at your event?