Regionals on Sunday
 

Well, since New York gets all the fun in being the only regional thats on a Sunday. Do you guys like this idea, maybe one regional per week on a fri-sun schedule.

Therefore all of the national FIRST audence will be watching robots compete for a particular regional.

ie: Week 1 New Jersey
week 2 Florida
week 3 Midwest
week 4 Davis Sacramento
week 5 GTR

something like that. and if were going this far, why not make nationals a 4 day event, (in my opinion, it's easier to attract an audience on a Sunday rather than a Saturday.)

so what do you guys think?

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Gah!!!!!!!! No!!!!!!!!! Sunday is when I get to catch up on homework and laundry! Please no! Cuz if the regional is on a Sunday then I just won't do my homework and laundry! (;))

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

As much as it's a touchy subject around here there are churchgoers in FIRST and having FIRST on Sundays is a not so hot idea. Keep it as is. It's fine.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

I think Sunday events would hurt you for judges and other volunteers. Many of the judges are probably paid by their company on Friday and then volunteering on Saturday, giving up one personal day. Asking them to give up the entire weekend would probably hurt judge recruiting overall.

Keep the Thursday - Saturday schedule, except where it is not possible.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

One a personal level, Sunday following a FIRST competition is my day to reconnect with the world outside of FIRST and with my family. It is also the day I get my head set for re-entry into that thing called my job on Monday. As it is, when we travel back from Atlanta, we lose some of that day in travel and Monday still comes along just like clockwork. :)

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

No. Please No.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Next year having Florida with two fields will be complicated enough as it is, to push it to a Friday-Sunday schedule would throw off the flow of things. There is going to be a need for more teams next year at Florida anyway so you wouldn't want to discourage any teams from attending.


The Thursday, Friday, Saturday system works great as it does right now, why fix something thats not broken?

I vote no.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

As much as we all would like to extend the FIRST experience to as long as possible, the current schedule happens to work perfectly for most people. We (and a ton of other teams) usually travel back home on Sundays, and use that day to catch up on rest/homework/family/whatever. I think a 4-day FIRST event would be beyond the point of exhaustion...especially in Atlanta where most of us average quite a few miles a day.

This is all besides the fact that teachers/administrators hate us enough for missing 3 days of school, one extra day could be the breaking point.

-No L

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

In the interest of not failing out of the University of South Carolina on attendance (driving back from Florida and Maryland and whereever else takes time!), I'm siding with the no crowd on this one.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Oh come on. Another day per regional would be SO much fun. I vote yes.

Jacob

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

having regionals would be difficult for teams that travel from long distance b/c sundays are for recovery, homework, and chores... and it takes time to get home

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

He's not saying another day for regional, he's suggesting that one regional a week be held Friday, Saturday, Sunday...instead of the traditional Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

ooo, that works...yeah that would be better...well, maybe... yeah, it works

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Yeah, I just read back. Thanks for the correction.
But I still think that a 4 day regional would be a lot more fun.

Jacob

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Sunday=Catch up on homework day. I can't imagine coming home from Davis on a Sunday night at like 10pm with probably nowhere nearly finished with my homework.

It would be nice to not have to miss a day of school and not have to make up tests and quizzes during the little spare time I get, but the current schedule isn't broken, why fix it?

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

I would have to say no to regionals on Sunday. It really is a much needed day to relax and get ready for the normal week. Plus, you won't be able to change any regionals that are already scheduled this year. They have been predetermined months in advance with payments and schedules already made at the facility. That would just be a nightmare to change if you tried.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Big NO!!!!

As a volunteer I need Sunday to rest. I am still exhausted from this weekend. Some volunteers and teams do more than 1 regional and have travel to take care of. We need down time before going back to work or school.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Many teams travel back from regionals and don't arrive until the early hours of Sunday morning. Buzz, for example, drives back from Chesapeake and often arrives beween 2 and 3 in the morning. I can't imagine getting back at that time and making it to school the next day with homework done. I can't even imagine staying awake through the next day. The school would not give us the day off, and if a lot of team members were absent the next day, the school would not be pleased. I just don't see this working on a large scale.

I'm with the no's on this one.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Was the NY regional originally scheduled for Sunday or was it delayed due to the ice storm?

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

From what I can tell (Have never been to the NYC regional), but that this is an odd year. Perhaps they couldn't get the Jacob Javits center for thurs-sunday?

Just guessing.

Jacob

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

Quite honestly. . . FIRST doesn't have ENOUGH money to run an extra 4th day for the event. . . Think about the liabilities and cost to run the place. Stick to what we have already and go efficient with it. I agree that it may be more fun to have 4 days event but it is already grueling exhausting for lot of FIRST-goers and visitors for the extra legs.

-Josh S.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

For us, the closest regional is 6.5 hours away by bus, and the next closest is 9 hours away. We usually leave right after the awards ceremony on Saturday to drive back, meaning we get home between 2:30 and 5:00 Sunday morning. Without the rest of that day to recuperate, no way would any of us (high school or college students) make it to classes on Monday!

I say keep it the way it is -- Thursday-Saturday works just fine.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

there not going to do a 4 day regional.....its just not going to happen. I mean what would be the point anyway? 2 days of practice?

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

It was originally planned for Friday, Saturday, & Sunday from the start.
Reason was, they could not get access to the Javitt's center on Wednesday night to do setup because of a scheduling conflict.
This was the next best thing.

I would of liked to attend on Sunday, but I'm sure people who did think the good decision of the new venue made up for the not-so-good Sunday tradeoff.

Plus, I know of many folks who were able to go Sunday because they were competing on Saturday. Kinda cool you can hit 2 regionals in one weekend that way.

I don't know if it will ever happen again (like I said this was a fluke cause of a scheduling conflict) but I think it has both good and bad aspects to it of course.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

The Javits was only available on Sunday.
Reservations were made months ago.

***
For the sake of argument, lets me do the math:

Days for a normal regional-
Travel on Wednesday
Practice on Thursday
Qualifiers on Friday
Finals on Saturday
Travel home on Sunday
5 days (3 work days and 2 weekend days)

Days for a the NYC Regional-
Travel on Thursday
Practice on Friday
Qualifiers on Saturday
Finals on Sunday
Travel home on Monday
5 days (3 work days and 2 weekend days)

No difference in the number of days for most people.
:)

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

The difference here is that many teams would arrive home late Sunday night or early Monday morning and have very little sleep and no time to get ready for school the next day. However, the school districts would not allow them to consider Monday to be a field trip day because they had arrived home by the time classes began. Sunday provides a perfect time to get caught up on your life and get some sleep. Monday couldn't be used for that purpose.

Re: Regionals on Sunday
 

yea I definitely side with the no's on this one. We use Sunday as a travel day, making sure we get back at a reasonable hour so people have time to relax and get things done before Monday brings us back to the daily grind. If we competed on Sunday it would be frowned upon by the schools and businesses we're associated with as well as the fact that it wouldn't give us a day to relax and recuperate. So I say, no, the way it is is fine.