Quote:
Originally Posted by logank013
So basically, the conversation now is about the volunteer base? So would MN like to go to districts if they had the volunteer base of Michigan? I can't believe how many events they have in Michigan and the fact that they have enough volunteers to keep up. So would you then be a district supporter if MN had a better volunteer base? I'm just curious.
|
The volunteer issue is one thing and over 3 or 4 years could be addressed.
The bigger issue to me though is keeping it loud. Last year, Minnesota had 4 regionals. The two Duluth regionals are held under one roof, with 123 teams last year in the DECC. The Minneapolis regionals are held in two buildings next door to each other again with 123 teams last year.
Both of those events get real media attention. The local papers and television stations do stories on the events every year. In Duluth, one of the local teams has partnered with the newspaper to put a wrap over the paper during the event so everyone who gets a paper knows what's going on at the DECC that week.
That's not loud, that's
LOUD.
Minnesota would lose that going to districts.
People talk about how districts are awesome because teams get two plays where they'll see maybe 60 or 70 different teams across those events. But in Minnesota there's already 122 other teams at these double regionals. It would be a step backward for teams in Minnesota.
Not to mention, we've had Chinese, and Turkish teams at Minnesota events. We've had the Hawaiian Kids out. We'd lose those international and long distance participants if we went to districts.
Quite frankly FIRST should be using Minnesota as a model for the rest of the program, not trying to move Minnesota away from what is currently the loudest program in the world.