mr google u say u don’t care what they do… yet ur keeping tabs on their previous employees?
for the record i dont particularly like what was done this season either (in fact, i hate it, but like u i recognize that it isnt all recf’s fault)
Robotics used to be a small world and I was a big player in it. I knew almost everyone at one point. I never sought out insights or dirt on IFI or RECF but when personal contacts got let go, eh - they tend to want to vent to people who would understand.
Should have stuck to that.
hindsight is 20/20 
makes sense ig, but that doesn’t really justify how unprofessional it looks for you to call them all out in a public forum for high schoolers and college kids lmao. just email them or smth
Cody is not the first person to do this, there are plenty of alumni on here who still jump in now and then to see how the program is doing. The point of the forums is to have discussions. Sometimes they explore deeper grounds than just robotics, but that doesn’t mean that we can not share our thoughts on them. You improve through criticism, not complements.
Personally I agree very much with what Cody said. During the town hall I heard the phrase “students wanted…” many times. This really stood out to me. I never saw any public posts or emails from RECF asking students what they would like for the season, nor did I ever see anyone post on the forums asking for online competitions. The only things I have heard students and mentors say is that having worlds in April is too impractical and that it should either be delayed or cancelled. Not to point fingers or anything, but a lot of the comments regarding online competitions in the video sounded very scripted. Getting the opinion of the 3 or 4 students that beta tested the online competition definitely shouldn’t determine that large scale of a decision, especially when those students were clearly privelaged with relatively rich robotics teams (dont @ me 148).
I was incredibly impressed when Dan sent out a post in March asking teams what they wanted eliminations at worlds 2020 to look like. The fact that they based a decision on community input rather than what they thought was best is exactly what we need more of in vex. Was disappointed to see that decisions relating to how to get around covid-19 were not shared with the community first.
same here
and like i mentioned, i dont disagree with cody, just how he went about saying it
I think its great that recf is trying so hard to get us the season we cannot have this season. that said, there are some major improvements that could be made, and recf would do well to listen to the community response (which they seem to be doing, given the nature of this topic, so good on them.)
@DanMantz who pays for the development of the game and game kit of parts? RECF or IFI?
Also, how many teams will be allowed to attend the in-person worlds event?
Arrash,
I agree that this is a fair point. This is exactly why when we announced the Live Remote competition I said we were looking for feedback and why I started this thread. We are reading and evaluating all the feedback we are getting from here and elsewhere. And it has really helped with some decisions.
All, I would like to note that the direct feedback we are getting from the RECF VEX Robotics community (coaches and EPs) is different than many of the comments on this thread. The remote options have been received very favorably. Now I understand that this can change once more details are shared. I do want to make the point again that the RECF community is much larger than just this forum. But I will never disagree that the some of the most passionate members of the community are on this forum.
Dan
@DanMantz So we’re ignoring the hard questions again?
The RECF and VEX Robotics both pay for the development of the VIQC and VRC games. VEX does pay for the prototyping of game elements.
We allocated approximately 3500 spots for the 2021 VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas. This was the original plan. We have plans to host a smaller in person event depending on how the global pandemic continues to impact travel and in person events.
Dan
Thanks Dan. (20 char)
As another “adult hanging around throwing my 2 cents into discussions”. I think the RECF has done a good job with the live remote head to head. There are clear flaws, like teams not having a field, or only having 1 field for multiple teams. None of those flaws are easily fixed however, putting together low cost field plans online is the best/ only real solution.
I strongly disagree with the “just dont have a season at all” solution. There are a lot of countries around the world who have COVID relatively under control and could potentially do in person events over the next 6 months. There are many countries and especially some states where that isn’t the case and
- new online challenges
- virtual skills competitions
- virtual head to head competitions
All give teams options to do something over the next year without risk.
The RECF reacted relatively quickly in giving teams an opportunity to have some semblance of a normal season wherever it would be safe to do so. I honestly wonder if the RECF has considered keeping around some of the new competition types for the future because they could be very useful for teams in low density areas. (islands in hawaii with <10 teams would probably appreciate being able to compete with a team in alaska etc etc)
The RECF already planning to do some divisions at worlds virtual is good. Its difficult to predict where the world will be in April but its almost certain there will be at least some regions of the world where travel is not easily permitted.
Idk, maybe my internal beliefs about how we need to respond to COVID-19 are seeping into this argument, I strongly believe that any half-measure to defeat COVID will fail and that a total lockdown was and still is the right solution.
That’s a politically charged opinion that should not enter this thread but it is something I want to acknowledge.
I also believe that remote play will not be worth it to most. The arenas, the lights the music, all the people, the stage, the whole thing is important to the feeling of success and triumph that teams can have in these events. Without it I personally would not have been interested I feel.
I worry that a negative experience this season could repel teams from competing in the future and I have to weigh that against a cancelation with extras.
It is possible that the country is in a much better place COVID-19 cases-wise by the time worlds happens. I sure hope so.
I still assert that financial pressures are at play. They kind of have to be. Regardless it is what it is, it’s clear to me that the core decisions have been made in private and this is what VEX is going to be this year, so I guess we have to deal or bail. That’s fine.
@Ethan5956F is correct about this being a MS/HS/College issue. It’s your guy’s competition season not mine. If this is what people want, so be it. But if it was my season I’d have serious complaints.
I would still amp up the online challenges and skills. The RECF can still do that with the remaining time.
A total lockdown until a vaccine is out, tested, proven to be safe and nearly perfect at effectivity, made affordable for all, and somehow taken by literally the entire population?
I agree with the “was.” It was the best approach imo to flatten the curve. However I’m not sure it still is the best approach for the current situation
I wrote a post and deleted it before submitting. I can’t get into my COVID view given the PC politics on these forums. I would get banned again.
pm me if you so choose. I guess you’d have to take my word for it that I won’t report you. But I won’t. I would be somewhat interested to hear your reasoning
Discord: Cody#0785 (20 char)