Registering all Championship Attendees

[Tom Line]

Was today's email blast the first notification of this requirement to register all your attendees, or have I just been lost in the depths of the build season? I called our head mentor and he had seen it in today's email, but this is literally the day before travel for most teams and if this is the first time they've sent out the requirement, that's pretty poor timing.

[MrForbes]

It was mentioned in an April 15 email, also.

[waialua359]

I had heard about it somewhere (can't remember) prior to the April 15 email to teams. I believe because of a free shuttle service? That can get participants between the three different events going on in the city.

[ScoutMom700]

I have seen it a few times. We did ours a while back.

[Tom Line]

It was mentioned in an April 15 email, also.

See? This is what happens when you're still going to robotics every day leading up to championships :)

[MrForbes]

Here is the text of the email, it's dated 17 April on the usfirst.org page

New this year! Attendee Registration: FIRST is requiring that all Championship attendees (students, mentors, spectators, etc.) register for the Championship event. Attendee registration grants participants access to activities and event transportation. We encourage you to register your team members in advance to save time when you arrive on-site at the Championship. You can complete attendee registration here:
http://registration.experientevent.com/showrob152/DefaultTeams.aspx

[JPopham]

I heard about it first on April 4th, but from another team. It seems it was made pretty clear when you use the FIRST housing, because it is done through the same site. Although, I think teams who got housing on their own, might have missed it. Coconuts 2486 helped me out big time, by letting me know. Its pretty quick once you do the first registration.

On another note, we did not do FIRST housing because our school district won't work with the company, they only work with the hotel directly. I know FIRST tries to help us out with this, but I am not sure we are the only school district in this boat.

[cadandcookies]

Yeah, I think I ran into this when I confirmed my volunteer registration in early February. I can see how you might miss it if you aren't booking through FIRST's system though.

[Nate Laverdure]

Any guesses as to how this will be managed at the event? Will casual attendees and unaffiliated spectators be stopped and asked to register? I can't see how this could be done in a welcoming way.

[BrendanB]

Any guesses as to how this will be managed at the event? Will casual attendees and unaffiliated spectators be stopped and asked to register? I can't see how this could be done in a welcoming way.

I've been searching around and I can't find anything that shows me where to go for just a regular Championship spectator. I've found links for Invited Guests, Deans Lists, Volunteers, etc.

[Rjmartin127]

Any guesses as to how this will be managed at the event? Will casual attendees and unaffiliated spectators be stopped and asked to register? I can't see how this could be done in a welcoming way.

I was wondering the same thing after a member of my old team told me about the whole registering thing. I hadn't heard about this until last Friday with plans to go down on Saturday. I emailed the FRC Teams email and asked " If you are just visiting one day (Saturday) and are not affiliated with a team (ie. Alumni, extended family), do you still need to register? And if so where?" and got this response,

" FIRST is requiring that all FIRST Championship attendees register for the event. This includes all team Mentors/Coaches, student team members, and general spectators. Registration grants attendees access to participant-only activities and event transportation. Additionally, registration adds to the security of the expanded event. You will be required to have a badge to gain access to Championship activities. Please note that attendance to the event is free to the public.

You may find helpful Spectator information, including registration information, here: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/first-championship. Spectators will be required to register onsite. We will have three registration booths set up at The America’s Center ( directly outside Hall 3, Union Station (at the Registration Office between the Midway and the Ballrooms) and the Renaissance Grand Hotel ( at the Registration Office outside the Landmark Ballroom)."

TL;DR There will be onsite registration for those who wish to just come in off the street.