3081 is excited for 10K this year. We had a ball at WI (wow, I don't even have to try to make bad puns now), and are prepared for 10,000 Lakes. Wisconsin had some tough competition, and we were happy to be in the top 10 for most of the weekend and the top half for the whole thing. Our final ranking was our best ever in a regional despite the intensity, so look out, Minneapolis.
In all seriousness, I hope 10K will be free from the problems that have plagued other regionals - inconsistent reffing, auto issues (timing of hot goal and disabling), pedestal lighting, etc. It'll be interesting to see how the regional plays out with 525 and 3018 not around. It was a pleasure to play with 3018 in Wisconsin (heck, we played with AND against them in different matches!), and I'll miss that opportunity with 525, considering we took home a blue banner with 525 at our side in 2012 and played with them in two regionals in 2013.
With 525 and 3018 unable to attend 10K due to the event being full, it does raise the question of when MN will have five regionals. From what I understand, this is due to a lack of available volunteers. I'll have to change that after I graduate.
I'm personally most excited to see 3313 and 2052 - teams with consistently well-designed and well-made robots I'm going to enjoy the opportunity to play with/against.
Hopefully we won't have Thursday rule updates this week. It doesn't give teams or referees enough time to adjust accordingly. I even think Tuesday pushes it, but that's another rant for another day. The refereeing at Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday was like night and day - as a result, the gameplay was, too. The play always gets rougher throughout a weekend just like in sports, but it's the referees' job to be consistent and not let things fly once they start happening. Otherwise, we don't know what rules will be enforced on Saturday in eliminations. Granted, the referees have far too much on their plate this year, so I'll cut them some much-deserved slack.
Overall, I expect this to be a fun event with plenty of surprises in store. Who will win the RCA? What wildcard slots will be generated? How will teams who played in previous regionals (or who haven't and planned for the rules released January 4) adjust to whatever changes come out on Tuesday/Thursday/some other day that could have been earlier?