Learning Experiences

Attending the mini-regional turned out to be a very good thing, since we learned a lot about how the game this year works.  We were originally planning to have fabric on the top of the robot that would catch balls that were returning to the field (see our "About Breakaway" page for more information), but after seeing that only about two or three goals were scored per alliance per match, we decided that it would be better to go with a solid top.  We are now mounting Plexiglas onto the top of the robot.  We also learned that it will be very important that we go over the bumps straight, since many teams who hit them at an angle flipped over.  We also understand the importance of the lifter, since we could easily double our score within the final 20 seconds of play if we lift correctly.  All this will help us greatly in the actual competition in April.