FIRST ROOKIE ALERT/Kickoff/What to do when you get your Kit of Parts/How to get Additional Parts/Plan Ahead
Greetings Rookies:
What if you can’t make it to your scheduled Kickoff?:
If your team signed up to pick up your Kit of Parts at a local Kickoff and your team’s travel plans have fallen through, you can ask another team in your area to pick up your Kit for you during the Kickoff. You must provide FIRST (in Manchester, NH) with a Surrogate Kit Pick up letter. Details are available at the bottom of the Local Kickoff Page on our website. http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/local-kickoff-information
What to do once you get your Kit of Parts:
FRC teams have 48 hours after receiving their kit of parts to inventory the kit and report any missing/damaged parts. ONLY your team Main or Alternate Contact can access the replacement parts request link in TIMS so make sure now that one or both of them will be available then to complete this form. Once this request is submitted you cannot make changes to it. Replacement parts will be shipped to the Shipping Contact listed in your team’s TIMS record.
How to get additional parts:
Starting January 9, 2012 FRC teams may order additional elements of the Kit of Parts using the 2012 FRC Kit of Parts FIRST Choice system. Parts are limited so you will want to visit the FIRST Choice system http://usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/first-choice now to learn how it works and to decide what your team will order on January 9th.
Plan ahead:
Now is a good time to visit the http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc website in order to become familiar with the resources available on line. Click on Game & Season Info in the left hand navigation bar to find the competition manual, team updates and more. These pages will be invaluable during the 2012 season. Team updates are official messages from the Game Design Committee that concern the 2012 Game and Season. You MUST assign someone from your team to visit this page http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc/team-updates twice weekly (Tuesdays and Fridays) during the season in order to keep on top of any changes.
Save yourself some trouble:
Rookie teams from last year suggest you hold strategy meetings NOW. In your first year, is your team’s top goal to be competitive? Do you want to allow students to lead every part of the team and learn from their mistakes? Is it important to include your team sponsors in every decision? These goals might be mutually exclusive. If you’ve discussed and prioritized your team’s goals before kickoff, you’ll save valuable time during build season.
The most common message for Rookies from established teams is: In your first year, build a robot that plays ONE part of the game well. Nothing demoralizes a team more than a robot that just sits on the field match after match. You can reach for more in years to come.
We’re here to help:
If you have any questions, please contact Team Support at [email protected] or 1-800-871-8326, “0” – they are eager to help you during this rookie season!
Go Rookies!