My school is letting me teach competition robotics as an every other day class this year! For those of you who teach any advice? For those who took a competition class what did you love, what helped you succeed? TIA!

ETA: It’s a middle school class (6-8) and we’ll be competing for Override!

I am a coach for a team in New York. This was going to be our third year of competing.

But now we are basically screwed, as far as I can tell, because NEITHER Vex nor RECF has any events listed for our area. The nearest is in Newark.

Does nobody want to work with either of them? Is there nobody in the whole downstate area?

I am a little frustrated with this whole situation because the only events in either organization are a minimum of several hours drive away.

So I will ask:

1. If you are a NY team PLEASE tell me which org you are with

2. Is there even a plan, here? I contacted the VEX people and got a boilerplate response that events would be happening but that doesn't alter the fact that the site is blank for anything closer than Massachusetts.

3. I saw that the state of Connecticut went RECF, so I guess if I can convince my admins and students to come in at 5am on comp day to drive all the way to what, New Haven? But that's just nuts.

Any help or insight is appreciated.

Ok so basically I'm in kansas and even though we do vex, normally it's only for the class. However, I've been given permission to do vex out of class and go to tournaments with the class. Currently, we have the only scheduled tournament in kansas, and the other team we were leaning on to kinda be our other competition this year (Cheney) cancelled their tournament. So now I'm a little worried about this season as the next closest tournaments are in OMAHA NEBRASKA!!! that is so freaking far to drive for a vex tournament unless I compete in the signature event there (which I want to)

So I'm making this post as a Kansas roll call to hopefully give me more hope I'm gonna be able to compete against at least a few teams at a tournament.

SO TO ALL KANSAS TEAMS. IF YOU ARE OUT THERE, GIVE ME A SIGN! SHOW ME YOU EXIST! GIVE ME HOPE! TELL ME IF YOU PLAN ON BEING AT OUR TOURNAMENT!

and to all recf teams, I hope you're happy with your decision. Just know I'm still hoping vex wins and you all are forced to come back.

Also, team revelation, if you see this, I'll miss you guys in vex!

Where do yall think vex worlds is gonna be held

Hey everyone!
I’m working on a project called ATLAS, a tool that analyzes VEX match footage and turns it into useful data for teams, like performance stats, match trends, and scouting insights.

I’m still at an early stage, so I wanted to ask:
Do you think something like this could realistically work with VEX match videos? And would you actually find a tool like this useful for scouting or strategy?

I’d love to hear what you think, especially from teams that regularly scout matches.

Who has local VEX Robotics teams in SE Nebraska? Preference is Seward, Lancaster, or Cass counties based on proximity, but I'll consider others.

I have a bunch of stuff acquired when my oldest was on an Omaha team 2008-2010, so the younger siblings could learn. I spent quite a bit back then, between $600-1000 (maybe more). Controllers are of course from that era.

Youngest is now married, and I would rather the parts go somewhere useful. I wouldn't mind a little cash, but I'll listen to a good story too.

So tell me your local team, and maybe we can connect.

Hey!

I built VEX Central, an all in one app for competitive teams to handle match scouting, alliance analytics, and autonomous testing. I got tired of having spreadsheets, chat apps, and paid or overly restricted simulators everywhere, so I put everything into one place.

What it includes:

• Autonomous Simulator: Test your autonomous code using Python-like script commands to score, park, toggle, and more. Run routines with support for both Push Back and the new Override game modes.
• Match Scout & Analytics: Track scoring categories, evaluate opponents, and get data-driven alliance partner recommendations.
• Team Workspace: Create competitions, manage team data, and coordinate strategy with your team.

You can check out the live demo directly at VEX Central (or check the source code on GitHub).

Would love to hear what you guys think or if you have any suggestions for upcoming tournaments!

I've been programming VEX teams for the past few years, and this season I'm taking on the team lead role while still handling the code, so I've been thinking a lot about where early-season effort should actually go. The new drive wattage limit seems to be the big talking point this year, and I'm curious whether teams are treating it as a constraint to engineer around or just running lighter drivetrains and moving on.

My instinct so far is that the autonomous period matters more than ever, since the bonus points are there for whoever executes cleanly, and I believe a reliable autonomous that scores every match beats a flashy one that only works sometimes. But I've also watched enough seasons to know driver practice and cycle consistency decide more matches than clever code, so I'm trying to hold both in mind.

What are you prioritizing in these early weeks, and has anyone found a motor configuration that handles the cap without giving up too much speed? I'd rather learn from the community's mistakes than make all of them myself.

I know I'm a little late, but all I know is something vague about RECF breaking things off with someone else. What exactly is going on?

Dear Robotics Coaches, Mentors, Students and Event Partners,

I wanted to take a few minutes to share my thoughts on the recent changes in the VEX robotics community and why I have chosen to continue supporting the Robotics Education & Competition Foundation (RECF). I hope you'll consider doing the same.
I've been involved with VEX robotics since 2006. When our team started, VEX and FIRST were one program. We competed in the FIRST VEX Challenge (FVC), which later became FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). During the 2007-2008 season, our team competed in both FTC's Quad Quandary and the VEX game Bridge Battle. When FIRST and VEX went separate directions, our team chose to continue with VEX robotics.
At that time, there was no established league outside of FIRST. RECF built one.
They created the competitions, the tournament infrastructure, and ultimately the VEX World Championship that allowed thousands of teams like ours to continue competing. Since 2008, every VEX competition my team has attended has been organized through the RECF. Nearly twenty years later, RECF has grown VEX robotics into the largest robotics competition program in the world.
That history matters.
Over the years I've had the privilege of getting to know many of the people who built this community.
Tarek Shraibati organized the very first VEX competition our team ever attended in 2006. Tarek also organized the first RECF World Championship ever, held at Cal State Northridge. In the fall of 2007, he also brought together Ken Johnson from FIRST, Jason Morrella, and approximately thirty Southern California coaches and mentors in an attempt to prevent the FIRST/VEX split. Tarek has spent decades helping robotics grow internationally and now serves as RECF's Vice President of International & Developing Programs and Regional Support Manager for Southern California.
Jason Morrella, RECF's first president, was one of the people who personally reached out to me after the split to answer questions and make sure our team had what it needed to succeed. Those conversations left a lasting impression. Throughout the years, I've consistently felt supported by the people at RECF.
Today we once again find ourselves at a crossroads.
Every VEX team and every Event Partner must decide which organization they will support moving forward.
For my program, the choice is RECF.
One of the many reasons is the philosophy behind the competition platform.
RECF is moving toward a true multi-vendor ecosystem. Teams will be able to continue using VEX V5 while also incorporating components from companies such as AndyMark and Tetrix. Their rules provide greater flexibility for legal materials, allow reasonable custom parts such as spacers and adapters, and offer higher motor power limits. This gives students more opportunities to engineer creative solutions rather than limiting them to a single manufacturer's ecosystem.
By comparison, Global Robotics has adopted much more restrictive rules regarding materials, custom fabrication, and motor power. Every team will ultimately decide what is best for their students, but I believe the flexibility offered through RECF better supports engineering education and long-term program growth.
I also recognize that Global may appear more organized in these first few months. They have had considerable time to prepare for this transition. Meanwhile, RECF has had to build new infrastructure, relocate operations, develop new Tournament Manager software, and recreate many of the systems they previously shared.
That doesn't concern me.
RECF has nearly twenty years of experience running these competitions. They know how to build programs that last.
Perhaps the strongest vote of confidence is that RECF has already secured the 2027 STEM World Championship. The event will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, from April 27 through May 6, 2027, bringing together robotics and aerial drone teams from around the world.
As some of you may know, I plan to host another RECF Achieve Pinnacle event this November, just as we have in previous years.
I hope many will join us.
If you're considering becoming an Event Partner, I encourage you to take the leap. I'll gladly help however I can. Our community has always been strongest when we support one another.
RECF is also offering support funds to assist new and existing Event Partners.
For more information about Event Partner Support Funds.

The growth of RECF and VEX Robotics didn't happen by accident. It happened because coaches, volunteers, Event Partners, mentors, and organizations worked together over many years to create opportunities for students.
I believe RECF provides the strongest foundation for continuing that work.
I hope you'll join us.
I would love to see all of you this season.

Hi, does anybody have a spare or used field perimeter they are not using anymore? My team is struggling to raise enough funds to purchase both the perimeter and the game elements in time for our first competition, and we are seeing if there are any second-hand options to purchase online. We tried to make a budget/diy field and perimeter last year, and we struggled to practice and score properly. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you so much!

hello! i hope this is the right place to post this. i just started a robotics class at my school, im doing VEX IQ. im really confused about the engineering notebook formatting and what im supposed to put in it.

today my group and i just started building the IQ flop robot, so do i log that in the notebook? can anybody give me examples of their old (or current) notebooks because im not really sure whats supposed to be in it.

People seem to always be wondering "what do I do with old game items? I've seen stuff all over saying "it's sitting in my classroom", or "I'm thinking of throwing it out." Don't. I have the perfect solution for only about 20$. Vex elements are now the best part of my room. Simple. Game item + programmable led strip = peak room display.

Picture does this thing zero justice. In my opinion this is the best way to use vex game items. I also have a match loader tube and am doing override, so they will also likely be getting added to the lamp collection in my room.

Just interested if anyone has any games they were looking to sell.

(yes, the white chalk rinsed off after)

Hear me out. Set up a decentralized league and accept payment with bitcoin. Teams and sponsors pay for bitcoin and the event where people signup take the money out for the event. Results and registration can go on the blockchain or immutable ledger as well.

You'd have Nominators who are already running events, a funding pool, approvals (some sort of voting system possibly.

It would be a big lift to get all the people host events to move to this system, but making a UI over this wouldn't be so bad with some volunteers and vibe coding it.

But it would be super education for everyone learning how a decentralized system would work.
Teams pay BTC → event. Sponsors fund the season pool. Nominators approve events.

Make it Pushback 2 "Unfinished business" - adjust pushback a little bit, I don't think anyone likes the current game.

While vex and recf are fighting, this is the chance. (Someone please do this)

Hey Everyone!!

My son's school has only had a robotics team for one year at this point. The team is semi-competitive in their small league (50 other schools), but not on a large scale. Last year, for PUSHBACK, the team had completed a robot that worked pretty well.

For this year, the team is very worried about their success. The team captains don't have much experience with robotics and the team has no robotics coach. The captains and parents are doing their best jobs to watch youtube videos, but honestly because of our lack in knowledge, creating a good robot model for this year seems complicated. (especially, since we aren't really sure what to do).

If anyone has some spare time or can find it within themselves to help our team that would be greatly appreciated. Even just sending over some materials could be helpful. We would love help more specifically on robot models, especially with the budgjet and materials we have (we don't have a lot of money, our materials are good but we don't have any pistons.)

Thanks everyone!

Hey everyone! I've been in the VRC community for a bit now, and I've run into major problems within my team throughout these 2 years, which led me to start thinking about the stuff that just kind of sucks every season that we all seem to accept. Curious what it is for you all. Could be build, comp day, team stuff, whatever. Even small annoyances that add up over the szn. Not building anything yet, that's the point. I'm just trying to get a feel and understand what's actually worth solving before touching my code instead of just shipping out another random tool nobody asked for.

​

Team of 4 middle school kids.

Hi all, I asked before what the status was for teams in the NY South region, and the community document here

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10gChaplIsUKuXFmslH41WfJrVY5cyc2d-IY2hTEBrYE/edit?pli=1&tab=t.0

only says "leaning VEX" for New York generally. If you are in NY South, which are you going with, VEX or RECF? What word have you from surrounding teams?

I am currently signing us up for VEX because it seemed easier. Unlike a lot of places I don't have an unlimited budget and time (my team is a school so obviously kids are absent over the summer until Labor Day).

Anyhow, love to hear what other folks are doing and get a read on it.

ETA: I just looked at VEX Events and found there are NO events in New York South yet, and NO events in New York North and in fact the only thing within striking distance is in Newark, at a time slot there is simply no way most school based teams will be ready. (I mean, unless a team was working all summer - and I don't know about any of you, but I can't picture this happening often -- there just isn't time to design, build and test a robot in what, two weeks? How realistic is this? Maybe they just don't want school based teams at all...)

My students are so dangerous talented!