Our team is currently trying to figure out how to get rookies more involved/give them more opportunities during our off-season competitions. We usually go to 2 competitions per off-season and bring 2 robots to at least to one of them. But due to CalGames being cancelled and limited spots at our other competition being only able to bring one. We’re currently struggling to balance rookie inclusion and our other goals like testing new drive team and pit candidates with veterans for the new season. We have 5 pit slots which we plan on having 2 veterans full time in (only people that know software / the entire mechanical), and swap in 2 rookies+ 1 veteran pit candidate every 5 matches or so. Same for drive team, refresh driver operator and human player every 5 matches. Any ideas on how to give rookies more opportunities or new roles that will do so?
- Swap rookies through pit more frequently-- every 2 or 3 matches rather than every 5, depending on how many rookies interested in pit you have (2 slots open for rookies rotating twice in 10 matches at a comp is only 4 rookies). You can stagger them if need be.
- Have them match and pit scout. Ideally they are talking to other teams and learning from or forming bonds with those teams.
- Get them to cheer in the stands, stands is likely where most of them will be for most of comp. Make sure to rotate everyone in stands out/take a break every so often-- it gets really boring to sit there for hours on end.
- If you’re rebuilding your robot or upgrading parts of it, one good way to get your rookies to care about the bot is have them work on it (we’re rebuilding right now because original performed poorly, we want to train them, and we want them to enjoy doing robotics work)
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