Make sure you are reporting this! This is NOT OK and if the senior event staff are not aware of it going on, They cant fix it. This goes for you too @JohnFogarty. AFAIK there is no requirement for that at the practice field.
I’m not sure how he has any authority to keep you from editing your program. Per my understanding First in general is super relaxed about programming, the only aspect of a robot to allowed be worked on while not at a competition (venue, specifically) after bag day, apart from withholding allowance. Its like adjusting chain tension or tightening a bolt.
Would you need access to the field to do this? maybe in the future have a calibrate camera button on your keyboard.
The recalibration process may have involved being on or near the field.
Yea, that’s why I asked if it did.
There was an intense tread a couple of years ago about HQ’s decision to impose age restrictions on volunteer positions. I’ve wondered since whether that’s make filling positions any more difficult than it’s always been.
When we got home this weekend I made sure to send an email along.
Hopefully things will be improved.
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I wonder if this thread is going to cause a few potential volunteers to re-think.
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Almost all of my interactions with FRC volunteers have been just excellent, dating back to 2001.
The two times I’ve had negative interactions were both with Safety Advisors.
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He told us that we could not have a field element in our pit that we could totally have in our pit – I told him that if the event staff came and told me to remove it, I would require justification from the rule book; they never did – but he came back that night after pits closed and removed it himself. I demanded it back the next morning (not from him, but from the venue staff) and said that I would be calling the police to report a theft if I didn’t get it back ASAP…and got it back. The event staff apologized and said that we were totally in the right, and he was not.
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The second (years later) told my student that she should be wearing gloves when using the hobby lathe we have in our pit. My student corrected her, at which point she got snarky and loud. So I corrected her, and she said that she could have us removed from the venue. I told her to get out of my pit and not come back. She got out of the pit and did not come back, and I’ve never seen her since.
Two negative instances in almost twenty years means that my interactions with volunteers are almost overwhelming positive–and they are.
On a side note, a prank or a practical joke is just a way of bullying someone and then using peer pressure to get them to laugh about it when it’s all over. I’ve never liked them, under any context, for any reason.
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Ah yes…let me just de-glove my hands on a lathe…
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Yeah, I know negative volunteering experiences have already spurred people into volunteering that otherwise may not have!
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“Be the change you wish to see in the world”
-Mohandas Gandhi
Yeah, I know negative volunteering experiences have already spurred people into volunteering that otherwise may not have!
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I think this comes down to delivery, social awareness and commitment to helping resolve the issue more than anything. The big thing I take issue with is when the volunteer in question tells the team something is wrong, then doesn’t take serious effort to resolve the rule in question (and quickly–you’re stealing a team’s second most precious resource (time) when they lose opportunities to do things like practice matches, use the practice field or upgrade their robot). If you’re going to make a team do work, you need to put in work too. If you’re a volunteer who doesn’t know how to solve the problem but going to tell a team they’re not compliant, you’d better figure it out or find someone who can help them all the way through it step-by-step.
I do the same at our events, but at the drivers meeting a similar message is stated about the volunteers. It seems to work out.
And as an inspector I’ve asked “how many cups of tears were shed building the robot?”, I normally get a smile. One year I got “None, but we did use 10 gallons of sweat”. I think little light hearted banter is fine, but I always make sure we both know it’s not serious.
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Most volunteers are absolutely incredible people. However there will always be THOSE people. Remember folks, if you’re volunteering YOU ARE NOT above the law just because you have a name tag.
I had an experience with a volunteer week 2 where they came over to queue us for our match. They said to us, “If you don’t start moving your robot to the field now, I’ll do it for you”. NEVER say that to anyone!
If you ever have a problem with a volunteer I encourage you to take down their name and report them to a volunteer coordinator or any Regional/ District official. In most cases, these incidents are never reported and that needs to end. The teams are the customer and the #1 priority.
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If your defense of a bad volunteer interaction is “Volunteering is hard” then you are part of the problem.
I’m not sure this is actually a bad thing.
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If someone really wants to be a FTA, they should show up and actually do the packing. Like many activities in life, reading about it is a poor substitute for doing it.
No reservation needed - diligent, detail-oriented volunteers are always needed at teardown. Just show up, go to the FTA, and say “how can I help”. If you really want to take on a puzzle, say “I’ll pack case 24”.
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Is there a rule mentioning that an entire alliance can only show up to the practice field once? It was super inconvenient for us when we could only practice for 15 minutes and after that, not only us, but our entire alliance could no longer practice even though the practice field was completely empty. Our alliance partners wanted to practice after they fixed up their robot and we wanted to practice early enough to where we could fix anything before elims so we were forced to sacrifice one of the robots practice time.
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I’m a key volunteer (Field Supervisor) and hesitant to post here but I think that it’s important students and mentors know that we do read these! I’m also an alum so I absolutely understand the student perspective.
There are some volunteers who would be more effective in other positions. I urge mentors to listen to their students concerns and set an example by expressing their own. Mentors, please advocate for your teams. Everyone should know who to find at events to discuss poor volunteer interactions. Talk to the event coordinator, volunteer coordinator, or regional directors. Use the Non-Medical Incident Report! While I understand the concerns of retaliation it is better than not having a pleasant experience. The more you formally document a behavior the more FIRST can actually do something about it, like reassigning someone or asking them not to return.
“They’re just volunteers!”
We are just volunteers and we know what we’re getting into. There are long conference calls and training videos weeks ahead of time. We spend our own money on transportation and lodging. We use PTO days, take unpaid time off, or miss classes. I fully understand that this is part of it. I do it to myself and don’t hold it against anyone.
These events are long and I have had instances of getting a little grumpy. In my position I am working with students, mentors, and other volunteers. I’ve admittedly snapped at students and mentors alike. I am human. I have also always made it a point to track those people down and apologize. It is not acceptable to project my stress onto others and this is something I focused on stopping. It’s a personal growth thing even outside of FRC. I’ve also been more mindful of my personality. I can be silly and sarcastic but I understand that I’m working with people who do not know me or my humor. I hope other volunteers reading these posts learn to be mindful. I also hope that any team I work with (looking at you HVR and NYC) know that if I or my reset crew ever do anything problematic you can approach me.
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As far I can tell, having checked through every single manual I could about practice field policies. There is not one written.
Please ensure you send your concerns up to GAFIRST. I am sure something can be improved, they have been very responsive to my prior emails on other issues and voicing this concern is important to having it resolved for the future.
Sorry I didn’t spend more time talking with my drive team explaining not to yell “robot”…that’s just one more of many things we need to work on.