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Originally Posted by Koko Ed
Hershey Centre (GTR West up to 2013) the only arena setup that got it right far as I'm concerned. They put it in the middle of the arena instead of slamming tight up one side. The seperate pits work fine though waterever the heck is under that bridge badly needed to be cleaned up. It smelled like something died under there
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The Hershey Centre is good: thousands of comfortable seats, and room for up to two full fields on the arena floor with plenty of space for queues and good (but long) sightlines. It's a hockey arena, which accounts for its capacity, and the smell in certain corners. When the event takes place on ice, the floor can be too cold for comfort; when the floor is drained, the concrete is fine. Ever since the renovations several years ago, having pits in one of the practice arenas has been very convenient, without disrupting the local hockey schedule too much. There's sufficient room for over 70 teams in this configuration. Ample parking is right outside the venue, and is free.
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Originally Posted by AJCaliciuri
I've been to the majority of Regionals in Canada and the venue I like the most is the University of Waterloo.
They have the pits in the same large gymnasium as the field, separated by the giant projection screen, making the walk between the stands and the pits very short. They have loading doors right into the pit area. The food court is maybe a minute walk away from the gym.
The loading area is in a small parking lot, which can be problematic, but is the only issue I have with the venue.
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Waterloo is nice, because the pits are right beside the field, and the steep angle of the seating makes for a good view all over the arena. It would make a very good district venue...but it's at the lower limit of capacity for a regional, mainly because of the very limited space for pits. You can cram 30 teams in there, but with compromises on pit and practice space. The seating is composed of old-fashioned folding bleachers, which aren't the most comfortable things all day long, and external power is needed for the pits.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrTechCenter
To be quite honest, I don't really like any of the three NorCal regional venues.
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The SJSU Event Center isn't fantastic. The proximity of the main pits and field is nice, but the auxiliary pit is poorly ventilated and quite confined by comparison. It needs about 150 more seats, but they can't be unfolded (because the field wouldn't fit—it's already quite tight), or can't be usefully occupied (because they overlook the pits).