2004/2005/2006 Championships: Atlanta
 

It's on FIRST's homepage. The Georgia Dome & Georgia World Congress Center will host the events.

Hhehe I was the first person to post it.:)

Check out the pictures for the center:

http://www.gwcc.com/gwcc/photos.htm#

That's where the pit is going to be.

And pictures for the Dome:

http://www.gadome.com/dome/photos.htm

I ran into the other room to tell Jim before I posted... I *so* could have beaten you :P

Meh.

Edit: (At least it's not Texas. It's not much better, but I did enjoy the time I spent in the Atlanta area.)

Atlanta! Nice city.


What bugs me is....the pits aren't in the same building...again. I sure hope that it's not another horribly long walk from the pits to the competition fields!

it better not be a super long walk because we have it for 3 years now

Man I live for long walks, those were so much fun espically with all the pressure to get the robot there on time

Oh yeah, blame me. :rolleyes:

I'm not sure how I feel about Atlanta, at this point. We'll see...

Start building your powered robot carts. :P

Ok, if the walk is the same distance, WITHOUT THE RAMPS, then it's all good :)

I mean, not total distance, but "Straight line distance." (ie, the ramps took up 4 times the amount of walking than they could have had it been just straight through. :)

If you look at the map (http://www.gwcc.com/images/gwccmap.pdf), maybe we could be in Building "B," and enter diagonally right across. Or maybe building C, and right across that parking lot to a center entrance... And actually, there should be no ramps, cause the pits are in a convention center so that would all be ground level, and if the newer Georgia Dome is anything like the newer Reliant Center, the entrance to the field should be ground level too :D

And a PARK for entertainment? Hmmm... Well if you look at the map of the park (http://www.centennialpark.com/maps_d...alking_map.pdf), it seems like it's really big and lots could be done. I would hope that FIRST sets up some fun stuff do there. And there's an amphitheater, so maybe they could bring back some of the Nationals Party atmosphere as there had been in the past.

Let's *hope* -- that's about all we can do -- that FIRST makes it great, now that they have plenty of time to plan, rather than the rush that Houston was.

Hmm, anyone who has ever been to Atlanta, how's the hotel situation there? Close together? Near the stadium?

carts
 

haha, all set there.

I say, bring it on. Lets see how difficult it can get this year.

It's what we call performance go-kart driving, and its a lot of fun.

See you in Atlanta!

Olympic Centennial Park is a public park, so I wouldn't know that FIRST can occupy it for days on end on its own. I think what they're saying is that there's space for teams to get out into the open and socialize, which was harder in Houston.

The area is surrounded by most of Atlanta's tourist attractions -- CNN Center and the New World of Coca-Cola and the Aquarium. Six Flags Over Georgia is a few miles west of the city center along I-20. It's close enough that teams could manage a trip there if they were interested, but not so close as to be the team party location, I'd think. Still, it's a better park than Astroworld.

There are many hotels in area as well. The Omni and Embassy Suites are both very close to the event site.

I too hope that FIRST takes this extra time to put together a really spectacular show. I have very little faith left after this season to expect or really hope for anything amazing. It seems to me that the days of Walt Disney World and an amazing village and the special attention FIRST would receive are long gone.

o man i know i want to go to world of coke after a long day of robotics. All the drink you could ever want and a whole lot more. Mmmmmmm.

:) I was on the my way up from a trip in Florida when I got the call. I did not realize they would put it up on the FIRST site so quickly.

The walk between the pits and competition field is about 1 min give or take a couple seconds. I'm not sure about the exact distance but it is not more than a couple 100 feet. Also the only "ramps" are short (like 15 ft) 14 or so degree inclines one down from the pits and one up to the competition fields (kinda like a loading dock).

I'll try to keep my excitement to a minimum and let FIRST give out all the info as they see fit.

We will make this the best Nats. ever. Welcome to Atlanta!:D

P.S Don't lose faith M. A lot of thought has already been put into this site and a lot more will be to make it an event to remember.

Centennial Park is good about letting private groups use it; for the past three summers it has let radio stations hold concert series' there (a concert every friday night for as long as it"s warm enough outside.) Even if FIRST doesn"t organize anything for Centennial Park, 1127 (Lotus Robotics) will be playing ultimate frisbee there during lunch and everyone will be welcome to join.

About hotels, there were several new ones built for the 1996 Olympic Games and the Omni Hotel which was mentioned is currently being renovated so it will be in great condition for when all of the rest of you come to see Atlanta.

The only thing I"m afraid of is having the pits on one of the lower floors of the Congress Center. Atlanta is hilly enough where the ground floor on of side of the GWCC is underground on the other side, but even if they don"t have it on the right level in 2004, by 2005 they"ll have had time to get all the issues worked out and know what to do differently.

*Runs off screaming in joy at how many people can go to the Championships next year.*

Shhhhh Paul. Don't spoil the suprises. j/k
This is a pointless post but I'm still high off the news.

Ah.. yes!
 

Well.. this was excellent news for me to wake up to (don't ask). I am subconsciously bracing myself for whatever negatives posts may come, but until then I must say that I am pleased with the decision FIRST has made! This event site is better, IMO, than any of the others mentioned as possible choices, and appears to be well suited for a FIRST Championship Event. Add the fact that I've always wanted to visit Georgia, and I'm 100% happy! Good job FIRST!

As long as we don't have to run a cart up 4 flights of ramps, I'll be happy. I'd rather not be forced to lose weight at robotics.

Atlanta Georgia huh?? Sounds good so far! My freshman year in FIRST was the last year Nats was at Florida, and last year was Texas obviously... and next year is Georgia. Its been interesting but I'm glad to know that it will be in the same place for the next few years, for better or worse. :)

Just because the event site may be able to hold a much larger quantity of people (teams) does not mean that there WILL be more teams at Champs. FIRST has already made it very clear that they will not have more than the approx. 300-350 teams at one single event because anything larger than that just becomes unmanageable.

As much as we'd all love for more teams to be able to take part in the excitement of Champs, the sad truth is that it will not happen.

Well I think they should figure a way to manage it, but none the less Georgia is good news for the florida teams.. We can all drive easily now :-)

We can lop off a few thousands for plain tickets

and atlanta is a ton of fun, Coke Museum, Underground Atlanta, and the like

gewd stuff

Dan

I just hope there are no ramps... I hated those things!!! I look forward to Nationals this year(I hope we can get in)...

To reiterate for those that are still wondering about the walking distance from the pits take a look at the attached pic. Its essentially a flat walk.

Can you say CNN? :D

NICE! I'm glad its a flat walk:) ...

Question though: is there any amusment parks in the area?

Does Centennial Park count? Check the announcement on the FIRST site.

No.

This map shows Greater Atlanta. The competition is located about where the star is found. Six Flags over Georgia, the area's largest amusement park, is located about 15 miles away in Austell, GA. It's on the left, at approximately exit 41 on I-20.

I <3 Atlanta, but maybe that might just be me. But I'm happy over this. THere are TONS of stuff to do there, if you know where to go and such.

*does a happy dance*

Six Flags of Georgia really isn't that far away and it is fun.

So I have mixed feelings about the news.

I wish that FIRST would have a Championship event that wasn't on a coast. It would make it a lot easier on a lot of teams, and I feel bad for those teams in states like Oregon, Washington, California, Montana, etc., who again have to head to the southeast coast to attend. I still have my vote for somewhere in Missouri, Kentucky, and Kansas, where it is central and teams from neither coast have an advantage.

However, I'm sure that Atlanta will be an EXCELLENT adventure as we adapt to the Georgia Dome. Hopefully this will spark a lot more interest in FIRST as the years wear on. Although I must say, it takes a lot of the fun out knowing where the 2006 championships are going to take place. Can you imagine that? 2006? That will be my last year as any kind of 'student' in the FIRST competition, and I can't believe that FIRST has come that far. I'm sure Atlanta will serve as an excellent place for the event - and for those skeptics - we've got three years to perfect it. And then... who knows?

me too...
 

I have to say that I have mixed feelings too. It'll be really close for my team, but part of the fun of competitions is the looooong bus rides and hotels and stuff. Since we went to the Peachtree Regional (near Atlanta) this past year and drove back and forth to it everyday, we'll probably do the same thing for the nationals to save money. I'll miss the really long bus rides and all the fun we have at hotels. :( Oh well...like most of ya'll have already said...as long as there aren't any ramps...I'll be happy! :)

~Jessica~

There are a few of us veteran FIRST people helping with the Atlanta event and we plan to make it a great one. I wish I could give more details but I'll let FIRST come out with the info when they are ready. The walk is short- going through the loading docks- and the Dome and Convention centers are really nice. Please keep posting your concerns and questions so that we can address them during our planning. This will be a great year :).

Abd don't forget kiddies, take M.A.R.T.A. it's smarta. :D

"Take MARTA to see the cows" Hmm.... maybe Atlanta wasn't such a great idea :yikes:

Congratulation Atlanta! - Great Job FIRST
 

Congratulations to Atlanta,

You must of had an awesome presentation to come out on top of two previous hosts (Orlando, Houston).

I think Atlanta will be great logistically - Major hub for airlines, infrastructure to handle masses of people, Indoor Arena and Pits, loads of stuff to do and see besides the competition.

Now if FIRST can get Coca-Cola to be the "Official Drink" of FIRST Robotics :p

Thanks to the FIRST staff for getting this information out so soon!

uh oh...

Same weekend: From the GWCC website calendar!

Apr 15, 04 - Apr 18, 04 SEMCO/Atlanta Home Show GWCC

edit: Looks like building C is taken by this event! PROOF

hehehehe!!

We are dragging our advisor down there!! He is in his Xth year of rebuilding his house!! lol

Umm.. I think not, considering that Pepsi's Aquafina is already sponsoring an event on the grounds of the venue...
Might be an issue!!

Now if the event can be sponsored by Dew!! :D :D :D :D

Pepsi actually is sponsoring something in Atlanta?? That amazes me, considering Coke practically owns this town. You never see Pepsi stuff ANYWHERE.

~Tom~

SWEET!!! I Live in Atlanta!

Plenty of Room
 

Looks like the Pits are in BUILDING "B" thanks to the picture posted by Skyman9000 earlier in the thread. So the Home Show will just bring more people to see "Our" competition.

P.S. - Real Men and Women Drink "Coke";)

Bring it on...
 

While I was unable to make it to TX this year, I am planning on attending the Grand Championships in 2004.

I am looking forward to Atlanta.

This is a step in the right direction for FIRST. While it was a risk going with a sight for 3 years, I think it gave them the negotiating power to swing the best deal possible.

I am psyched.

Joe J.

Exact same thing I was thinking...you just beat me to it.:)

Atlanta could be cool. Next year will be my junior year, and I didn't participate freshman year because I wasn't able to. I'm a little bummed that FIRST won't be returning to Florida - I've heard such good things about those competitions. Still, I think we could have a lot of fun in Atlanta. And I know it's been said, but I'm glad we don't have to deal with those ramps again.:D FIRST in Atlanta...let's hope this is the beginning of something great.

And how much does a drink of "Co' Cola" cost in the Georgia Dome in downtown CokeTown ? :D

Atlanta is a great city to hold this. With MARTA nearby, transportation shouldn't be a big problem. CNN is right down the street, as is the AJC. Coke, Centennial Olympic Park, Underground Atlanta, Phillips Arena, Georgia Tech (where you can visit our good friends and mentors Anne and Jeremy from the RoboJackets-- shameless plug :]), and Turner Field, among other places, are just around the corner.

Of course, I'm biased because I live here. I am ECSTATIC to hear that you all will be here for THREE years. This means I will get to meet all you CD people.

And I haven't yet gotten to see the Cows. I'm actually looking forward to that. Stop making fun of me! Stop it now! :]

I hope you all will have as good a time coming to my hometown as I will seeing you all here. FIRST spends three years in the ATL! W00t!

*bouncy* :D :D

I, for one, am intensely stoked. I really like Atlanta... and the fact that I'll be in Gainesville for the next 3 yrs, whether I'm on a team or not, will be terribly convenient. For now, I can definately see myself at the next 3 championships... but only the future can tell exactly...

::does a happy dance::

Excellent.

I didnt care where it was as long as it wasn't Disney.


I wont be with a team next year, or the year after Im assuimg, but I'm going to find a way down to Atlanta the next few years just to be there. From what I've read a majority of the hotels in the good part of downtown are all in one centralized location and under 10 years old. (Thanks 1996 Olympics!! :p) The walk doesnt matter, but hey its the championships. It is going to rock anyway

Thought I would add a little something. Atlanta has tons of Krispy Kreme donuts for those with a sweet tooth :).

Team #538 Dragon Slayers is about 3 hours outside of Atlanta so we'll be there in full force I'm sure.

Six Flags Over Georgia (an easy bus ride from the GA Dome) is a pretty darn good theme park. In terms of thrill rides, it blows Disney out of the water. It has 8 awesome roller coasters -- and thats just the ones I can remember off the top of my head.

At least we have the dates in time to plan around them! Can I get an amen?

Good and Bad...
 

I have mixed feeling too- It will be tougher for the West coast teams attending an East coast Championship.

But Altanta is a huge hub for high-tech companies. This mean sponsorships and funding for FIRST. Also the pool of FIRST volunteers can be enormous.

The best reason for me: I can drive to the Championship!
:D

This is going to look like a random question (which it basically is), but how's the food in the Dome? As long as it's better than Houston's food...

It's been over a year since I saw the board at FIRST which has the little pins in it for all the teams but I believe that a large majority of FIRST teams are on the east coast of the US. Hence why most of the considerations for places for nationals were in the east.

I'd also say that Atlanta is a great choice for international teams as the Atlanta airport is one of the major US hub's for international travel. Atlanta also happens to have the busiest airport in the world which should mean it's fairly easy to get a plane flight.

Matt

I'd hate to tell you but I doubt the food situation is going to get better. Do you actually think there is any place located in any convention center that gives decent food for decent prices?

Atlanta
 

I also have mixed feelings about Atlanta......
I have wanted to go back to Disney ever since they announced that last year would be in Texas, i just prefer the disney orginization, but as for giving Atlanta a chance, i am much more willing
I personally, will be attending a National Youth Gathering in the Georgiadome this summer, so i'll do my best to check out the walk from the pits to the dome 4 everyone, if there is anything else anyone would like me to try to look for, just let me know, i'm sure i'll have plenty of time down there;)
look forward to see everyone in atlanta next year
OO--and i'm sure they will have plenty of space for teams, this gathering that i am going to will have about 20,000 kids there, so they should have plenty of space, plus i can check out how the geogia dome staff works :D

Below Grade & Kitty Corner Concerns...
 

Jeremy,

I am excited about Atlanta but I know that many many folks are worried about the ramp issue and to a lesser degree, the distance to the pits.

Getting inside the dome building is one thing, getting to the field you have to play on is another.

How sure are you about this (especially the flat walk)?

Is the playing field on ground level? Many of the fields I am familar with have the field in a hole, below grade.

How long do you estimate it will take to get from one corner of the football field surface to the opposite corner?

I am not complaining, I am just asking.

Finally, I don't think it is spilling the beans or stealing FIRST's thunder to put our minds at rest on these issues, but you will have to decide what Gracious Professsionalism requires in this instance (especially if FIRST more or less made you swear on a stack of bibles not to devulge any such details).

Thanks.

Joe J.

And another thing...
 

Hey I have another question for those in the know...

Is the Peachtree Regional likely to move to the week before the Grand Championships and to be hosted inside the Georgia Dome (a la the Lone Star Regional & the Reliant Dome)?

Just curious.

We almost decided last year to go to the TX regional and the just stay on for the week for the Championships. We decided not to only because we didn't want to take our kids out of school for that long.

This year however, our school's spring break is the week of the Championships. This may tilt the scales toward making a go of the GA regional -- if it is at the same facility as the Championships and if it is just one week prior.

So... ...do tell.

Joe J.

Re: And another thing...
 

Taking that one step further......
I'm curious what the regional schedule is going to look like next year. Does anyone know when it will be released? Does anyone have an "inside info" about it now?

Remember, don't share if your not comfortable, Like Joe mentioned above: I don't want to pressure anyone into revealing things they shouldn;t...

In addition
 

On the whole, I'm very excited about going to Atlanta. It's a great city and I have wanted see it for a long time. Congrats to FIRST for negotiating a long-term deal in a prime location that has the potential for major media exposure and a lot to do for the students.
I too, at this very early stage, have the same "two building" questions Joe does. In addition, the thing I really didn't like about the Houston set up was how it affected judging and team members in the pits. I hope we can provide a solution for this over the next three years.
We made the decision in Houston to leave team members in the pits at all times to be available for judges. This means that two or three students were not able to be with the team during our matches which detracts somewhat from the team experience. Instead they watched the big screen in the Astrodome and we kept the cell phones open for them to hear. Still, knowing we had some of our seniors (the most experienced who can best tell our story), at their final event, having to sacrifice to that extent for the team, was a little uncomfortable to me as a teacher advisor.
I know other teams that left their pit empty for up to 45 minutes at a time, around each of their matches, in Houston. This obviously led to some "missed opportunties" for teams to tell more of their story and accomplishments to the judges, which is a huge part of what FIRST is all about.
I'd be very interested to hear a judge's point of view on how the two building set up worked for them, whether or not they found more empty pits than usual, if they were able to find their way to see match play as much as they wanted to, and what their suggestions are for improvement.
This may seem like a minor point, but I think, given some creative problem solving, we can work at providing the kind of judge-team interaction we are accustomed to seeing at regionals for the championship as well. What are your thoughts?

I was thinking...whats the capacity of the stadium/surrounding area? If it's big enough, would it be possible to eliminate the even/odd qualification system for next year and just let everyone go?

While I don't doubt that the stadium could hold everyone in FIRST two or three times over, I think that the real limiting factor where Championship attendance is concerned is not the venue at all but the available staff to run the fields and the rest of the event.

That said, they could give us the biggest stadium on Earth, but until FIRST finds some way of getting more people involved in the running of this event, either by bringing on new staff or otherwise training volunteers, the size limitations will remain.

I do hope, however, that staffing problems can be addressed.

What if every kid on a first team was required to bring at least one Vouenteer! "Drag your'e parent to FIRST day"! What an idea!


Less sarcasticaly speaking, I think the people who DO voulenteer to help out at FIRST events are amazing, and very kind to donate their time, but we need more help! What if the city of Atlanta put out a "call" via local news for people to come out and help!

Dan,
I think you were closer to the mark the first time.
What if every team had at least one adult mentor volunteer?

Re: Re: And another thing...
 

RUMOR has it that the Regional Schedules will be ready the end of July, or beginning of August. Hopefully to be announced shortly thereafter....

Bravo, to FIRST for getting the teams information earlier than in the past. Its great for all those teams who plan ahead and get all the travel logistics out of the way.:rolleyes:

Although that would be amazing, I'm sure that the vast majority of teams lack the man(or woman)power to provide an "extra" mentor. It's just one more plane ticket that team would have to buy, one more hotel room and one more mouth to feed if you know what I mean.

One other thing I was thinking about with the size of the Championship... Right now we have divisions of roughly 71-73 teams, so each team only gets 6 matches. I don;t think FIRST wants to limit that anymore more, so teams feel they get thier money worth and so you get some variety of scores for a better average. The only way to make the championship bigger is then to add more divisions and logically, that would mean making 8 instead of 4. That would give you a 600 team Championship (if the pits can hold it) ...But the issue is then volunteers like many people have said but also, the number of avalible frequencies on the IFI equipment. This is an issue i have never seen discussed, each field currently uses 8 channels, 8x5=40, the max channels on the oi/rc set up. 8x9=72, which means IFI would have to design a new field controller as well on top of any modifications to the robot controller. So no matter how big the venue is, the control system is another limiting factor to the size of the Championship.

what i want to say dan is many people from team 250 volunteered at nationals this past year in texas. i myself, volunteered on archimedes on friday and saturday, and also on einstein on saturday, i am only in highschool too. along with that i still worked with ym team and still had aton of fun seeing everyone and getting to participate with my team and also on the fields with first. so this doesnt mean someone all ready there with a team cant go and help out even if its just for an hour or for the whole time.
~Mike

Re: Re: And another thing...
 

From what I know (ie, heard from someone in FIRST), is that they do not want a regional back to back with nationals as it was this year, it caused a lot of hassle. They said they would never do that again, and would probably be planning about 2 weeks between the last week of regionals, and championships.

I'm happy about the location, it's sure better than Houston, but I though Disney would be better IMHO.

I give it a thumbs-up.

nay sayers
 

Too any Nay Sayers out there I just have one thing to type: If Alanta handled the SUMMER OYMPICS, I think a small robotics competition will be cake.


That city knows how to entertain people.

Re: Below Grade & Kitty Corner Concerns...
 

In answer to your question I am 99.99% sure about the flat walk. I already mentioned the two short loading dock style ramps but those are not even worth caring about. The playing field is on same level as the pits (ground level). As far as the walk across the stadium, I am not quite sure how long it takes to walk. Its about 1.5 the size of a football field on the floor.

I was at Houston and believe me when I say this is a lot better for moving back and forth with the robot.

Lastly, I do not think that the Peachtree Regional will be held in the Dome. As for it being the week before the Nats. we will just have to wait and see when FIRST releases the dates.

I would never say anything I did not believe FIRST would mind me sharing. Even if I tried I'd probably disappear before I could talk.:D

<edit> Contrary to one of my previous posts I think the walk from pits to field is about 2-3 min (nearer 3). I guess I just walk really fast:) </edit>

Holy XXXX, I can't wait!!1! :D:D:D

Looks exciting. Hopefully I'll get to make it down there next year. As has been said before, the fact that Atlanta beat out two former Championship hosts bodes well for the future. In my mind, it appears Atlanta has most of the benefits Houston gave us, with few of the problems. I can't wait to see what FIRST and Atlanta have in store for us!

i dont know about the rest of y'all, but im just excited that it's gonna be somewhere warm, and they didnt schedule it for the silverdome or anything!!! anyways, wherever it is, im sure that they'll make it unforgettable, they always find a way to!!!

Hey, yeah atlanta sounds exciting. I read a rant online about no matter where you are going you always end up stopping in atlanta on the way there. If you are flying from San Francisco to Hawaii, you some how stop in Atlantas airport. (They are a major delta hub for those who are curious.) Anyways, both myself, and another guy on my team are Lutheran, (protestant Christian church) and the national lutheran youth gathering for the ELCA is being held in about 15 days in atlanta, at all the same venues, so i'll take lots of pics and scout stuff for anyone interested. From what I already know its a great venue to have stuff at. And whichever team was offering an ultimate frisbee game, heck yeah! ultimate frisbee is the best. Obviously the people that live there can help better with most stuff, but i'll discuss how the hotels were etc when i get back.

I cant wait untill nationals, but i'm kinda upset about the whole atlanta deal. our team is so close to atlanta. oh well for the traveling. i would have to say that it is better than a 20 hour ride to Houston!

yeah, that would be the end of all things good in FIRST. Sure, it's only like, what, 10 minutes from where we build our robot, but the silverdome SUCKS! Now, Ford-Field isn't that bad, but Michigan blows in the first place. The weather is unperdictable and random. Nobody wants to have nats here, and for good reason. How about a west-coast nats huh? Isn't it warm over there that time of year??

IMHO, parents and school boards will be a lot more nervous about sending their kids to Atlanta than to Disney. At Disney the spare time kids had is confined to the park which is essentially an Island unto itself. Many schools and parents feel comfortable with sending their kids to Disney (our school as canceled all other trips except the ones to Disney). The Atlanta site has no such boundaries and it will be very difficult to keep kids out of downtown areas at night were they should not be. Most people in this forum spend most of their time with the robot and therefore this is not a big problem, but for large teams that have many students that do not work on the robot and will be looking for something else to do will get into trouble. FIRST needs to think about the safety of the students as the schools have to think about the liability issues associated with such a trip. The liability for trips to Disney is very low compared to other places, downtown areas have the highest perceived liability, especially a site that has had fatalities during events in the past. You may think it is no big deal to go to Atlanta but your schools may have other ideas.

Ok then lets hold it in Alaska thats on the west coast.:D I never new heading east or west would affect the climate.

If people are going to get into trouble location really will not change whether or not they will get into trouble. They will find trouble where ever they go.

I don't think that's remotely true.

A large city like Atlanta exists with the understanding that its citizens are responsible for themselves and their actions. That's why the nice folks there are allowed to cross the street. If they get hit by a bus, it's their own fault. With school sponsored trips to Atlanta, the teachers are responsible for their students and their behavior. The potential for injury in an unguarded environment may be enough to keep many teachers from giving their students freedom to explore.

Walt Disney World, on the other hand, is designed with the express purpose of occupying a person's attention the entirety of their visit. While an individual is still responsible for their actions, the potential for injury is less. When was the last time you crossed a street while at Walt Disney World? Outside of the hotel access roads, I've never once had to cross a street. Teachers can rest a bit easier knowing that the entire staff of Walt Disney World is their to make sure their students don't get into trouble or get hurt.

There's an enormous difference.

Re: 2004/2005/2006 Championships: Atlanta
 

So... I just thought about this..

Does this mean that they are going to fix the spelling of Georgia on the FIRST interactive map?

I think they are definitely required to do so now!!!

And, come to think of it, did they originally misspell it on purpose cause they knew?? Or is/was it just a coincidence??

:ahh: :ahh: :D

I know that our mentors found comfort in the enclosed enviornment at Epcot. I did not enjoy Houston as much as Epcot, but I am looking forward to what is in store for us at Alanta. :)

My friend and I were mad in Houston because through the whole time we were there and after all the stores we went in we did not see one 10 gallon hat...

sounds good
 

well although epcot and houston were both great, i think atlanta will be just as great as the other too, if not better. It looks like most places to stay will be near the arena (hopefully walking distance), that way we can hang out with the other teams easier (houston was pretty tough with all the diffrent hotel districts). im looking forward to it, and hopefully my team will make it there this year.

-dave

team 987, quite frankly the best team in Nevada, heh

Hah...I see those here in town...All the time...Plus the Wrangler jeans and boots and huge belt buckles...




My mom was telling me how much hotter it's going to be in Georgia than it was in Houston...But I don't think it was very hot in Houston...So I'm not worried about it...But I live in CA so I'm kinda used to sunlight...

i'll have to go to your town and buy them...

I wish you all would get some common sense and understand that the bombing was a freak event. Fatalities happen at all sorts of events at all sorts of places. Because there was a bombing once does not mean it will happen again. And, if you think about it, it is more likely that a place that has not had such a freak event will experience one in the near future as compared to one that has.

Downtown Atlanta is hardly a dangerous place. Yes, your kids won't be roped off by fences and buildings themed to be kid-sized with rides and whatnot everywhere, but if you instruct them not to wander alone and to stay on the larger streets and in visible areas, they will be fine. FIRSTers, for the most part, are intelligent kids and they probably won't get into any trouble.

And if I hear one more person quote the Centennial Olympic Park bombing as a reason that Atlanta was a badly picked venue, my head will explode. (Because they had better not be okay with it when the venue moves to a city with a marathon in three years, because there have been fatalities at those events, too.)

Apologies for the rant.

As a fellow Atlantian, I can't help but sympathize with you. The Olympic park bombing never even crossed my mind when I chose to attend Georgia Tech, which is in Midtown Atlanta and approx. 5 blocks from the site. Being afraid of the crime in a large city is something to take seriously, but I'm afraid that FIRST has not yet grown large enough to be comparable to the summer Olympics.

~Tom~, who wonders if he were friends with these people and invited them to visit, if they would come or if they would be too scared.

The championship could be in a swamp infested with flying insects, and it would still rock the world :D

It would be nice if Atlanta was a bit closer to New York, though.. :D

yea
 

i think they should move the championship to pensacola florida

did you know that 150 beachgoers are killed by coconuts each year? thats 10 times the amount of people killed by sharks.

Yeah lol.. or south florida would be cool too.. :-) we have a big airport err.. a couple of them hehe.. ok mayb its not a great venue but its really warm


Atlanta is an amazing place and I'm really excited to be going there.. I'm not worried about " bombings " or anything.. especialy because they caught that guy lol.. and hate to break it to you.. FIRST evens I don't believe are on many terrorists hit lists.. Not to say there is no need for security.. just there is no need for worry

If peeps worry to much, just takes the fun out of things, no matter where nationals is its gonna amazingly awsome as long as peeps make it amazingly awsome I can't wait its my senior year and I'm pumped


Dan

if people really wanna have something to worry about, the odds are exponentially higher that someone will get hurt from an accident involving one of the robots or working with tools then a bombing happening. No one overly worries about those problems. You take the preventive measures neccesary to keep yourself safe while working on your robot and you use common sense. Anything else is outta your control. Same goes for nationals. You have security and common sense and things will be fine.
-Eric

yes there has...

O yeh and u guys must go to the varsity and get my fav a Jumbo FO and get a gooood brain freeze.

(That's a Jumbo Frozen Orange, by the way. It's essentially an orange slushy, but it tastes more like a cup full of melted Creamsicle, mmm...)
I would also advise one meal at The Varisty that included a Frozen Orange and at least one hot dog, but be careful, one of the reason the food tastes so good is that the amount of grease in it is so high (one meal is probably enough to lubricate every moving part on your robot.)

As someone who lives literally a block away from the famous Varsity, let me assure you that it can also lubricate parts of your own body, and not just your robot if you catch what I mean. ;) Not suggested food right before a match!

~Tom~

so would this place be equivalent to a hard rock or the cheesecake factory or something?
~Mike

No.

My guess is that's it's something that serves greasy, cheap food that caters to college students on a budget.

There's a place in Pittsburgh called "The O" that's much the same. A large order of french fries occupies an entire tray on its own.

"O" lol...OK sounds kinda like a ma and pa place, quick and easy with cheap food that is addicting... I guess my team will make a stop there when we go down.
~Mike

It's a city landmark. And some of the greasiest food in the city.

ha-ha...it matches a quote from a movie... "you eat 1 lb of meat in a hamburger, but then boom, you gain 4 lbs of pudge in your hips..." ha ha, sounds like some good food though.
~Mike

You ppl are sad .... and its frosted orange and you have to use a spoon at first to drink/eat it .... after about 10min you can drink one I was drinking one once during our brain storming session on building our robot ...... umm also with the Jumbo FO you want a Gloryfied burger which has like everything on it .... which is gooood. Yeh its like a landmark usually when the president comes to ATL and has time to eat he goes there .... also its not a small place if you were wondering. It has both curb service and inside service here is a link and turn your speakers on when you go to the site.... http://thevarsity.com/ at the site also click on locations then downtown..... has sum pretty interesting info on how much stuff they serve.....

May be thats better ^^^ for the guy below :D

not trying to be mean here but please hit the spell check button at the bottom before you post your next post, i had to re-read some sections of this post multiple times, please use standard English, it helps us all.
~Mike