What are the new regionals?
 

So I'm just posting because I saw, Dallas Regional, Washinton D.C. Regional, and New Zealand Regional...are there any other new ones to expect for 2009?

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Those are the ones.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

I would love to see a regional in ether Binghamton, NY or in Ithaca, NY. FLR is great, but it's hard to compete with all of the Rochester area teams.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Oh, okay, cool then.::) Thanks.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

well, since this question has been answered, here is a good question. what regionals can we expect in 2010? any guesses

mine would be a Utah Regional and a West Canada (Calgary/Edmonton) Regional
I also wouldn't be surprised if there was a regional in North Carolina or Tennessee.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Where do I look to find more information on the new regionals? In particular, where would I find the dates for the Washington DC regional?

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Regional dates aren't usually announced until the fall. Sometimes there is early information available (say, from a venue's schedule) but we usually don't know for sure until FIRST publishes the list. It's been in September sometime, usually.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

I doubt the dates will be finalized until early fall, at which point you can find them on the FIRST website when you have to decide which regional you want to go to. Most school districts haven't realized 09-10 calendars yet, and the regional planners have to plan around those calendars.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

You can always count on the Boilermaker Regional being on the last weekend of Purdue's spring break (so March 19th-21st in 2009).

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

I remember in Panteras President's Circle Video , the said a Mexico City Regional 2009 was going to occur , does anyone know what happened to those plans ?

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

One would think, that with so many teams in the Midwest that were unable to get into an additional regional, that perhaps somewhere down the road, Madison, WI could be added. Your thoughts ?

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Because of how the midwest is growing with numerous teams, I heard instead of creating a brand new regional, might happen for 2009 but will more than likely come in 2010 is to expand the Colorado Regional into a double regional with two fields..so we'll take over the entire Ritchie Center instead of the Magness Arena:) , traffic control of the venue still has to be figured out....but yeah, I was told by some of the people from the ColoradoFIRST committee while volunteering as a Safety Adviser for the 2008 Colorado Regional.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

If there was an event down there you'd have to deal with equally tough Pennsylvania teams and the Rochester and Buffalo teams probably would come down there as well.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

A secondary message in the regionals announcement was to increase capacity at existing regionals. In my personal experience, Detroit needs that badly - but also in my personal estimation, that would require moving from Wayne State to another venue.

Any speculation on which regionals might get larger?

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

Connecticut tried doing a double regional this season, so put them on the shortlist for expansion. New York will also likely try for double field status corresponding with Dean's new homework. GTR has a history of two fields, and I can see Long Island eventually moving over to the Nassau Colesium should it need to. The advantage of holding it next door compared to Hofstra is that the Colesium can have two fields on the ice if the pits are in the basement expo space.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

It is my understanding (ie I'm not sure) that the Drexel Gym, long host to the Philly Regional, will be unavailable (under renovation) next year. I have no info on the replacement venue, but seeing as the Drexel Gym is probably the smallest venue in FIRST, it is a pretty safe assumption it will be bigger.

EDIT: Maybe the Armory will be ready for us next year.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

While space has it's obvious advantages, the Coliseum is quite a bit more expensive than Hofstra. If you have a spare half million to loan us we'll be glad to move next door.

More likely for Long Island is a moderate increase in the available pit space for teams by moving some of the pits to the old Hofstra gym next door. We still want to make sure everyone gets at least 11 matches.

Re: What are the new regionals?
 

I have also heard that turning MN into a 2 field regional is a possibility. I believe the goal for MN is to add another 20-30 teams next year which would give us 70-80 in MN alone. I'm not sure what the venue setup would be for such an event, and most of it is really rough speculation, but it is a possibility.