If you make one take one. Let's make First clean.

[nicholsjj]

Paper air planes have become part of the FIRST culture at Championships. It is understandable that students sitting in the stands the entire day will extra time and paper will engineer paper air planes. The feat of having an air plane scale the pyrmaid during Einstein was rather impressive. Now on to the only problem I have with them, after the event.
I was able to stay in the stands after the finals were over and talk to some other volunteer friends for around 10 min. When I finally stood up to leave there were two glaring things that I noticed in all of the empty isles, air planes and trash. This had to hurt the entire image of First in the eyes of all the event staff working at the Edward Jones Dome beacue we as a community left it a mess.
I want to challenge all of the students/mentors/parents on teams to make sure we keep First clean at the Dome next year. I am sure that some did teams did a fantastic job but there is some major room for improvement.
For students, I have one extra challenge for anyone that makes a paper air plane. If you make one take one out of the dome with you. If we all do this we can help the staff clean up our mess and make the image of First even greater.

[CENTURION]

I'm totally with you on this. I like the paper airplanes because they're fun and all, but the mess they make is pretty terrible. The ones down on the floor can be swept up easily enough, but the failed ones that end up in the stands are not so easy to clean up. FIRST teams should clean their area before they leave anyway, that definitely falls under Gracious Professionalism.

[CalTran]

Also, *preps a soapbox*
STOP THROWING THEM ONCE THE EINSTEIN CEREMONY BEGINS, please.
*steps off soapbox, goes about usual CD business.*

[Billfred]

For students, I have one extra challenge for anyone that makes a paper air plane. If you make one take one out of the dome with you. If we all do this we can help the staff clean up our mess and make the image of First even greater.

Also, *preps a soapbox*
STOP THROWING THEM ONCE THE EINSTEIN CEREMONY BEGINS, please.
*steps off soapbox, goes about usual CD business.*

These. I think they're fun (even if I wore my safety glasses in the stands and still got a Killer Bees antenna dinged by one), but let's keep it classy.

[CENTURION]

Also, *preps a soapbox*
STOP THROWING THEM ONCE THE EINSTEIN CEREMONY BEGINS, please.
*steps off soapbox, goes about usual CD business.*

Definite +1 on this.

An airplane on the field during a match would be very bad, and one going anywhere on the stage while someone is speaking is just plain rude. You can't really control where they go, so any plane thrown during the ceremony could land in those places.

[Doc Wu]

Paper air planes have become part of the FIRST culture at Championships.

You say this like writing it makes it true. It is not part of FIRST culture, whatever that means. It was unsafe. It is deliberate littering. It was in poor taste and bad manners and reflected badly on the organization.

Want to make FIRST clean? Just don't do it.

[neshera]

First, check out this thread:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116462

We just shouldn't be doing this at all. Yes, it's fun, but there are actually some really negative things about the paper airplanes, even worse than the cleanup issue. Read the thread above. Thanks.