I was just reading the team update, and the change to <G19> disallows stored energy mechinisms, correct?
Correct!
You can find alot more dicussion about that here
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=88835
Actually, partially correct.
You have to store the energy after deployment, or use the stored energy for latching onto the pole. But other than those two cases, yes.
Yes, but the energy stored after deployment still has to be generated by the Tetrix motors, so if you are maximizing their power output already it is far less useful. The take-home message is that the only energy that can be used for climbing at all is energy generated by the two Tetrix motors after DEPLOYMENT has finished.
<G19> doesn’t say “after DEPLOYMENT has finished”. It just says “after DEPLOYMENT”. That gives a little bit of room for interpretation, perhaps leaving open the possibility of saving up some energy in a spring after DEPLOYMENT has started and before the MINIBOT goes on its way.
This is true, but you are rapidly approaching the area where one ref will allow it and another won’t.
Tread carefully when peering between the lines of the rules! I’m looking at a way of spinning up the motors during deployment, ala an old fashioned gyroscope, but I’m pretty on the fence about that being legal. I certainly won’t bet the farm on it…
There is an obvious amendment to the OP’s statement that nobody has directly and bluntly noted. It disallows stored energy on the minibot that is used to propel the minibot up the tower.
Stored energy can still be used for other functions on the minibot as well as anything you desire on the hostbot.
Should be taken for granted, but if someone was reading this thread hastily and out of context, who knows.
So, from that interpritation, you could use stored enegry to hold your minibot to the pole?
Could we use it to play that Super Mario song when he goes up the flag pole?
Wouldn’t be that hard to devise a device to do that. And yes. Think a surgical-tubing spring that locks onto the pole when a device was triggered.
Simple question… Who here is thinking of going outside of the 12x12x12 box that your minibot is allowed to be in? If so… good luck! 
I just want to remind teams that there is a size limitation, and no where in the rules does it state that the robot may go outside of this size limitation.