Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Looking forward to cheering with 33's signs :)

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

how about 12 michigan teams on einstien?

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

I don't like the idea of 12 Michigan teams on Einstein - of course I am a bit partial to having another state in the fray.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Honestly, I kind of don't like that idea either. We've already played with each other. The MSC was completely amazing, but I'd rather have a totally different experience at St. Louis. 11 teams in our division from Michigan, but over 70 from other places around the country (world?). I can't wait to play with those teams now! There's definitely some great teams outside of Michigan that will definitely create an alliance that is a force to be reckoned with on Einstein.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Would you settle for 12 Michigan teams on Archimedes :p

Say hello to Team 440, The Suspects, imported from Detroit!

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

I would REALLY have a problem with that. It shows how district has really allowed teams to improve over the weeks and it should try to be implemented in other areas. Not all of us can afford 3 events before St. Louis.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Not all of us can even afford 2 events before St. Louis...

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

I dislike this because, as a team from not michigan, it's not going to happen.
Team 931 won't let it =)

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Yeah that too!

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Let me clarify to teams outside of the Great State of Michigan, that the majority of us cannot afford to attend 2 or 3 Regionals either. However DISTRICT events are far less expensive compared to Regional events.

The number of teams in Michigan are far greater than every other state (except California). The affordable District system is ideal, especially for MI.

Sure, we get more experience, and for a lower price. Perhaps other states will soon get the district system as well.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Yeah hopefully they can expand it to other states and even regions but alas, nothing has happened in 3 years. Yes, districts are cheaper but I'm sure all of us would love to pay the price you do for the time you get on the field.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Who do you mean when you say "they"?

The discussions I'm aware of haven't yielded any visible results, but they are not "nothing".

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

I dont think everyone is as big a fan of the district model, I think this is the difference between folks who have played FIRST since its early days, when regionals were sparse and spread out. It gave us an opportunity to meet new people from different regions.

Now what everyone seems to care about is getting practice time on the field so they can get better on their robot. I don't see how that helps the students grow in any way or form. I for one am glad to have been a part of FIRST when we used to be at Disney and traveled to various locations for regionals. We had good sponsors but we fundraised our way to all those locations. Same as the team I currently mentor. Each student fundraises enough money to pay for their trip.

Anyways back to Archimedes - i think theres a lot of sleeper teams in this divison. It will be good to see some non-powerhouse teams in competition and get to learn about their strategies.

Scouting is going to count for tons in this division and overlooking any team in this division would be a mistake, we have the most underrated divsion and also the division with the highest # of teams that have won a regional. This will be a deep division without a doubt outside of the well known teams.

C ya all in a week.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

#1 Teams are still allowed to travel to other areas and compete. The only restriction is that a non-Michigan team can't compete here, but there are still many other regionals you can travel to.

#2 I would suggest that anyone who believes that the success Michigan teams enjoy is a result of the district model is certainly not a student of history. Perhaps you should talk to teams like 67, 469, 33, and 217 and see what their take is...

#3 Let's not turn this into yet-another discussion about districts. There are many many threads about that.

I look forward to seeing a bunch of new teams again. Good luck everyone.

Re: 2011 Archimedes Division
 

Team 1912 is super excited about Archimedes! We were in this division in 2007 and loved it. See you guys in 6 days..

ARCHI-