Originally Posted by M. Krass (Post 621374)

I just thought it might be nice to have somewhere to talk about the announced, new events for the 2008 season and the potential for other, as yet unannounced events in other cities. At the Championship Event, three new events were officially announced for the 2008 season.

• Seattle, WA
• Minneapolis, MN
• Honolulu, HI

There's been some discussion about how the Seattle event will affect the existing regional in Portland, OR and, specifically, whether teams from this region would be likely or willing to attend both. Seattle was home to Pacific Northwest Regional before it moved to Portland, so there's some precedent for shifting the location of a regional, but what little I've seen, heard or read about this new event suggests that it's meant as an additional opportunity to demonstrate FIRST to the community, not as a supplicant to what already exists.

I'm interested in what others teams from the northwest think about attending events in both Seattle and Portland. It seems these events will make it possible for a lot of teams to compete more frequently and further improve the level of competition in the region, as previously, the closest competition outside of Portland we could compete in was Davis, CA -- a significant distance away. On the other hand, however, our team would very probably not be interested in competing in both Portland and Seattle, as we've found this season that exposure to other parts of the country can be vital to making a trip to the Championship a justifiable, worthwhile expense.

What's the story behind Minneapolis? FIRST has been pretty weak up in Minnesota in the past, so who's leading the charge to bring more teams to the area?

Hawaii is the new event everybody's abuzz about already, no doubt because it represents a fantastic climate to escape to during dreary, boring March. I'm expecting this event will take place in the final week of events such that it'll be possible to punctually ship robots to and from the mainland. Who're the folks that are seriously considering going to the inaugural event? My team is excited for it and we're already devising the fundraising activities we'll need to have to be able to finance the trip -- and weighing the value since it'll almost assuredly come at the expense of another trip to Atlanta, GA. I'm less excited since I don't like water very much and would be happier being nearer to Disneyland (by attending the Los Angeles regional) than I would be near a beach. :p

Originally Posted by Koko Ed (Post 621390)

Wasn't there a 4th location revealed at the championship?

Originally Posted by Koko Ed (Post 621390)

Wasn't there a 4th location revealed at the championship?

Originally Posted by JaneYoung (Post 621391)

O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A - Oklahoooommmmmmma!

(I think)

Originally Posted by M. Krass (Post 621374)

What's the story behind Minneapolis? FIRST has been pretty weak up in Minnesota in the past, so who's leading the charge to bring more teams to the area?

Originally Posted by M. Krass (Post 621374)

There's been some discussion about how the Seattle event will affect the existing regional in Portland, OR and, specifically, whether teams from this region would be likely or willing to attend both. Seattle was home to Pacific Northwest Regional before it moved to Portland, so there's some precedent for shifting the location of a regional, but what little I've seen, heard or read about this new event suggests that it's meant as an additional opportunity to demonstrate FIRST to the community, not as a supplicant to what already exists.

Originally Posted by Ryan Dognaux (Post 621427)

A lot of Minnesota teams went to the Wisconsin Regional this year, only adding to the greatness of the regional. However, I think with a new regional starting in Minnesota, teams will be split between Minnesota and Wisconsin and will have to make a choice. I'm very excited to see even more teams spring up next year, hopefully as a result of Boston Scientific and Medtronic sponsoring even more teams. They did a great job this year.