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Wow... You all just amaze me at how near and dear this Nationals (sorry, um Championship) is to your hearts. While Nationals are something to look forward to, is it because they are "Nationals", or because they are held at Disneyworld? Would everyone have the same passion in their hearts if FIRST originally held Nationals in Nebraksa and they were still there?
Personally, I agree with Andy B. that Disney is overrated. I also feel that it is ironic that BattleBots is hosting a competition right down the street in Orlando at the other (IMHO) greater theme park.
To be able to compete in Regional competitions with robots of such high caliber (regardless of which Regional) is an opportunity that 99% of the students in the United States will never have. All FIRST students (and adults) should be thankful for the events that we are able to participate in, regardless of where they are held. FIRST is about learning and establishing a repoire between students and professionals in technological fields that would normally never be accessible to them.
The original post in this thread was whether or not pre-qualified teams should be able to compete in Regionals. Posts have already stated yes, for the simple reason that the Regionals will give these teams "practice". Any pre-qualified team at a Regional will certainly try their best and learn from their experiences. I would hate to be a spectator and watch the "Championship", only to see a team perform poorly, not because of their robot's inept capabilities, but because they never had the opportunity to learn how to drive it.
While our country is in a great time of need, and wars are being fought, we are here at home arguing about what's fair and what's not fair. I've read posts about teams grumbling because they're only receiving $6000 this year and not $50000, and I've heard FIRST is biased towards certain teams for one reason or another. The rules have been issued, and for this year, we have to live with them.
Life is not fair, nor will it ever be. If you think that because you cannot pre-qualify to go to Florida is not fair, then try explaining your case to the thousands of families who lost their love ones on Sept. 11, 2001. At least you have another chance...
Respectfully,
Dave...
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