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Originally posted by M. Krass
I'd really, really, really like to see the event return to Walt Disney World next year.
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First off, I wouldnt. We were playing in the most advanced and the newest dome in the nation. Awesome venue and awesome atmosphere
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The pits felt 'dirty' to me. They were on the field of the Astrodome, which has the look of an old, abandoned building that hasn't been used or cared for in ages. . . maybe because that approaches what it actually is. The floor was uncomfortable and dirty and being surrounded by tens of thousands of empty seats was depressing. Whatever energy there was from students and teams was sucked up into the emptiness of that huge building.
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The pit was going to get dirty anyway. The astrodome is an american legend and it was an honor to work in there. It may have been empty this year, but when you have a stadium that seats 60,000+ filling it is hard to do.
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The walk from the pits to any of the fields was atrociously long, and getting out of the Astrodome felt like taking a stroll through a dungeon.
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Actually, myself and many other drive teams felt a build up of excitment and adreniline through our trips up the ramps in the astrodome...the disney world background made the championships seem a bit "kid-ish" if you know what I mean. It was time for a change and time for FIRST to "Grow up" out of that kid stage.
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The fields, which should be the focus of the event, were nondescript and bland. They were all sitting on another dirty, sterile floor, backed by depressing gray drapes, and they lacked the same presence and feeling of importance they had in Florida. Beside it's location in the center and it's lighting rig, there was nothing special about the Einstein field, either.
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I guess thats what happens when you have a budget
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I left early on Saturday, so I didn't go to the party that evening at Six Flags Astroworld, but I was under the impression that it was nothing more than access to the park with the general public and a catered meal from the park. Thankfully, at least, FIRST did start selling discounted tickets to the private event on Friday night and I was able to attend that. I found the atmosphere to be very, very different here than it had been in previous years, marked by rude, inefficient, uninterested employees and very little that made me believe I was at a FIRST event. At Epcot, Disney made a great effort to spruce things up for us, decorating the park and making the party something exciting and special. At Astroworld, I got a strong impression that we weren't welcomed there and that the employees (and by proxy, the park) didn't want to be working that night. It felt forced.
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The security sucked, but the atmosphere and getting the chance to hang out with friends from other teams was good enough for me. I hardly even rode any rides but I still had a great time.