Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Voting I do belive would b a good idea, but chances are, Championships would be held in Detroit or Californi most of the time. It would maybe make for larger crowds which would be a good thing.

I do agree that the Dome food was extremly expensive, but if you just walked over to the CNN Center prices were decent.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Well, this will be my second year in robotics and i got to go to nationals last year. Atlanta seemed to be pretty nice and is basically as optimal as it gets for a venue. Other than Atlanta, i would like to see a championship in Indianapolis, Detroit, Salt Lake City, or in my backyard. I would have considered New Orleanes because they have a great venue also, but with the recent events, robots are not what New Orleanes needs right now.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Maybe I'm missing something... but other than for reasons of location, why exactly would anyone want to go to detroit?

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Ditto for Indianapolis and Salt Lake City. :)

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Yeah, but at least those two don't have such a bad reputation.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

heres a crazy idea....how about FIRST increases the registration by say 500-1000 dollars more a year. approx 1000 teams multiplied by the additional thousand would be 1,000,000 ( yess a million dollars from just a registration fee hike) dollars, add in a few sponsors who would gladly foot the bill as well as state and govenrment. Thus FIRST goes scouting and finds the ideal site...one with plenty of hotels, plenty of nightlife, and plenty of all around entertainment, and FIRST BUILDS A FULL TIME ARENA TO HOLD NATIONALS.... one that will be able to accomodate the 500+ teams who usually attend plus pits, and seating. heck, FIRSt could even during comepetition maintain their own bus schedule to each hotel. and it wouldnt be totally out of the realm of possiblity either..

maybe im just whacked, but this would seem to solve a lot of the present issues...however i am open to other points of view.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

Except... FIRST just raised registration fees.

And $1,000,000 won't give you enough money to lease the land, and erect a tent. It costs multiple hundreds of millions of dollars to construct stadiums.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

As a Michigander I resent this, and although I live an hour north in Flint. Detroit is still a nice city and the area has really cleaned up the past years with the Detroit Pistons winning a Championship in basketball and having what will hopefully be a third year in a row going to the Finals. Plus considering that the Pistons and Detroit Red Wings are both at the top of the division and conference, and league. Theses venues have brought a lot of money into Detroit the past years and has been cleaned up. Also you have to consider that Superr Bowl XL (40) is held at Ford Field which is home to the Detroit Lions. It is a brand new stadium built i believe 4 years ago. And just a few months ago across the street from Ford Field is Comerica Park which is home to the Detroit Lions and the 2005 All-Star game.

I know i might sound like that I am showing a biased opinion base on sports but the venues and money that detroit has brought in, in the past years would make it a great place for a FIRST Championship.

Know Im not saying this because it is only an hour away but because the facilities of Ford Field and Tiger Stadium and being just across the street, makes a great place to have enough parking and area for Pits.

Rumor has it that Detroit wants to be on the bid for the next summer olympics. Know I know this is a longshot but with everything this city has done, it has gotten cleaner and looks as good or even better then some large cities that already hold FIRST events.

And i wouldnt rule out if it was in Detroit what would happen for the party that is held for the teams. Detroit is a city of music and would be cool if FIRST could get a performer. There are many place to go and eat near and far. Hotels are not a problem, because of the recent events that they are holding. With all the sports venues in Detroit I believe it would make it an excelent place to hold a Championship.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

DUDE....I WANNA DO THAT!!!!!!....Check out "Freedom of the Seas" a new ship from Royal Caribbean....It might work...convert the ice rink in to the playing field!!!... :D

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

QE2 all the way baby!!!...we could use the fancy dining room!

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

well i didnt read all the posts so if u see ur idea dont be mad, but i say we should have the regionals either in new jersey, florida, nevada :rolleyes: , or we could over sees to some international place. :ahh: what if FIRST decides to have a thing out to sea using boats to provide competition and sleep areas for the teams. this would be good for the water challenge.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

To minimize the cost of travel somewhere in th middle of the nation seems like the best idea. That way a reasonable bus trip can get your team there and you don't have to fly. If you put it on a coast then half the country is forced into higher transportation costs.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

If it was in the central US (and I mean CENTRAL), most teams would have equal travel costs, but bus trips would be kind of hard...that's over 24 hours of continuous driving. I'd be willing to bet that MOST teams would opt to fly in that case, which would dive the overall cost for teams up.

Championships in Hawaii would be fun, though really REALLY expensive travel too

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

I dont think anyone mentioned this...but what about holding a championship in DC? DC is our nations capital, and historically it is beautiful and educational...as far as venues, i dont know, but i know there are lot of hotels in the area...i dunno, just a thought.

Re: Championships location from 07 and onwards
 

I think that they want the location to be more centralized to make traveling "more fair" for everyone no matter where they are located. I think the championship event should stay in Atlanta. Atlanta is definitely big enough, the area is great and they have plenty of hotels within walking distance. It is a great place overall and I don't think their is any need to change the venue. I understand that the contract with the Georgia Dome will be up after this year, but can't they work out another?

GO 1403!!!