How do you find time for sports and robots?

[LaurenH]

Even though this was three years ago, my senior year schedule was like this...

School: 7:25am to 12pm
Internship: 12:15pm to 2:45pm
Track Practice: 3:00pm to 5pm
FIRST
*Mechanical: 5:15pm to 8/10pm
*Software: 8/10pm to 11pm/1am

FIRST and SPORTS are possible!!!!

Learn to do your homework during class breaks, over lunch, and on the bus/car rides if you're not driving. The minutes add up fast. I don't always recommend this, but if your teacher teaches too slowly or goes off on long tangents about their weekend, you can finish some calculus problems or a paragraph or two for your paper between taking class notes.

If your team works heavily with Engineers, they usually don't get off of work until 5pm always, so they didn't mind me coming a little late to meetings. Having the different sub-teams meet at different times helps a lot too (ie: Mechanical and electrical early evening, Software and driver practice later the evening, animation and other teams on the weekends.)

[Vin211]

I recall a while back, during the robotics off-season, I participated on the Varsity Tennis Team. It is impossible to participate in a sport during the robotics season, not only is it a strain on your grades, studies, but also a harsh treatment on your body.

[tkwetzel]

Originally Posted by Vin211

I recall a while back, during the robotics off-season, I participated on the Varsity Tennis Team. It is impossible to participate in a sport during the robotics season, not only is it a strain on your grades, studies, but also a harsh treatment on your body.

I participated in Indoor Track and Field all four years of high school. The only conflict between that and robotics was that I missed some of the saturday build sessions (only the morning) because I would be at a track meet until 1 or 2pm. Half of the inddor meets were on Fridays which did not conflict with the robotics meetings at all.

[doop_forces]

I wrestled and do robotics at the same time for a while, but i had to leave practice early every day to go straight to robotics.

After I realized i needed time for homework, i decided to participate in robotics instead of wrestling

So i guess i dont find time for both

[Arefin Bari]

... That is why I just play sports for fun, not professionally or for a team.

but then again, isn't FIRST a sport? I mean come on now, our championship is nothing less than the super bowl.

-Arefin.

[coreyk]

It is very difficult to engage in any activity other than FIRST, so I'm not involved in anything other than robotics.

You can try playing during the off-season...

Wait. "Off-season"....?

[Franchesca]

I know that sports are very time consuming ... not from personal experience but from watching most of my friends.

In our team, we have a few people that do sports. Two of them, both girls in the soccer team, go to practice first and then come to Robotics. Usually, Robotics is until quite late, so they still have time to make it to the meetings ... and of course they come on the weekends.

Something to consider as well, is that Robotics takes up quite a lot of time for those 6 weeks and if you have lots of other activities to do it might interfere. What I'm trying to say is that you have to weigh the pros and cons and if you can drop some activities maybe you should. If you can't, do the best to manage them all, without killing yourself.

Fortunately soccer was in the fall, but I did miss a few of the fall meetings...i'd come walking in to the once a week meetings starting in november and december and people would be like "Who are you? Who who?"

I had a friend who was on the swim team try to do robotics one year and there was no way he could do both..

[psych0gambit]

Right now, I have that same problem. I do track, fencing, and a bunch of other clubs and now I have to go to robotics everyday of the week. at first i was planning to go to robotics three days and the rest for fencing and track.
But now Im going everyday to robotics right after school instead. I only go to robotics late on Fridays to go to Fencing and Track for a little bit. I chose robotics over clubs and sports because I think that it is more important to me and it will help me a lot more in the future than the clubs and sports. after robotics, I have time after dinner to do homework so thats not a real big issue.

[Matt Attallah]

When I was in high school - I had Football during the fall and that hurt for the fund raising. I'd call up one of the mentors at the time ask them what happened and what can I do to help out. Nothing much more than that.

The short time that I wrestled wrestling came first. It's a team sport where you ARE needed to get points for your team. Robotics was just in the building faze and I made it once-n-a while, but than I just quit wrestling and took up robotics 100% of the time...

[Levin571]

I'm a member of Robotics, community service club, astronomy club, (Varsity) Fencing, etc... and all i have to say is get ahead on the weekends. Usually my day goes like this:
As soon as school ends Fencing, then i got 20 mins for dinner before robotics, after i return do work for a bit then sleep. Usually robotics is enough free/break time for me.

[Bob92]

In high school I was captain of the Indoor and Outdoor track teams as well as the soccer team. I made a deal with my track coach to come to all meets and 50% of the practices as long as I did my required work outs at night. So first was #1 for me.

[Beth Sweet]

Sport conflicts were a big deal for our team this year. Also one that I really didn't expect to encounter (call me judgemental, but on HOT, it just wasn't ever that much of an issue). Team 1504 is basically comprised of the Grand Ledge swimmers and the Okemos wrestlers. To say the least, as a first year team of a lot of athletes, scheduling was interesting, and we ended up waiting to meet until 6-9 pm on weeknights and 10-4 on Saturdays. While sometimes the kids have to miss Saturdays, we're leinient on that if they're doing school activities.

[Whalley]

my track practice ends at 4:30 and robotics starts at 6:00 but it involves a 10 minute commute home from school and a 15-30 minute commute to robotics (depending on traffic and which gate at the base is open) This gives me about 45 min - 1 hour to start homework and eat something. I have to do the rest of my homework after robotics from 9:30 and on

[nehalita]

well, i do:
-robotics
-varsity tennis (1st seed for singles and doubles)
-envirothon states comptn
-6 APs and 2 honors

and they are all going on as i speak...tennis started last week, envirothon's starting next week, and robotics obviously has been going on...and classes don't stop for anyone.

so, i usually go to tennis practice from 2:45-4:00, and catch up with the robot from 4-5pm and go home (robotics is only 2:45-5 so they clash). i'm the only programmer so all i do is go home, write stuff, and test it if we are able to and do some other behind the scene work (editing pprs like the chairman's award and w/e else....). i make it so my presence isn't needed at all times. when envirothon starts up, i'll be doing that every wednesday and tennis games start in feb so i'll be doing that tues/thurs whole day. so basically it'll be saturdays where i'm really active. and ap classes...heh well let's just say i take it one day at a time.

i wish it were easier but everything goes on at the same time. i don't get any sleep though but who needs sleep?