I won't be
I was originally planning on going to Japan, then my trip got canceled. I didn't have time to rebook tickets from New York to Wisconsin, so I'm instead going to a second event with my "new" team.
And it's a shame, because this regional's looking deeper than normal. Mainly, 111 will be there, and they're always impressive. Last time they were here? They won the event and somehow managed to include not one Wisconsin team!
While out of state talent like 1018 and 216 will be available to them, I bet if they walk away with a medal, there will be Wisconsin or Minnesota (kind of like Wisconsin, but with some 40 year old loser quarterback on their football team) on their alliance. Anyway, you guys need to take tons of pictures of these Wildstang guys. They know how to win and you'll learn a lot whether or not they're on top of the podium when all's said and done.
93, 171, 269, 537 are the Wisconsin veterans that consistently perform at a high level, and none of them show any signs of slowing. 93 and 269 have learned a lot from previous swerve drives, and it's not at all out of the question that they'll make a repeat appearance. 171 has had the most recent success of them all, and you can never count out a team with someone named Andy B mentoring them. 537 won four events in four years from 2004-2007, and there's no reason they can't make a comeback here. Despite their success they're an under the radar power team.
706 had an AWESOME pre-ship video, and while preship videos never tell the whole story (sadly, 118 has not won 4 World Championships), they certainly look to be a very strong team at this event. Pairing them with a competent striker, perhaps with a swerve or mecanum drive, will make them find success. They'll be selected early, perhaps by a certain group of tye-dye fellows who make it to the #1 or #2 slot, and their success is dependent on smart elimination play.
1714 isn't as flashy as 706, and they're a bit harder to see on the field, but they've got a lot of the same systems that 706 has. Perhaps I'm biased, but I think they've made their best robot yet. Though 1714 has never done particularly well at their first event, this robot will break their two year dry spell in Wisconsin eliminations. With the right partner who can supplement them on the tower, they could end up with a different medal than usual around their necks. What's better than medals? MORE MEDALS! Insert joke about their robot being transparent here.
1675 has more experience with mecanum drivetrains than anyone else at the event, and experience on the field has always been their biggest weapon (their drive coach has TWO world championships under his belt). Teams like 34 have demonstrated how a versatile mecanum striker can serve a team well in eliminations, and they're probably one of the only teams at the event known for their defense, which will help them stand out due to the funky qualification system.
Three very up and coming teams for this event would be 1652, 1732, and 2039. 1652 absorbed the remaining minds behind 2970's rookie sensation, and are an underrated team in their own right, producing a robot that helped beat 71 and 1114 in elims last year. 1732 was also on that alliance, but has been more consistent. 2039's started off pretty well, with two silvers and a gold medal in 3 years. Their mecanum creation just might extend that streak.
2826's one of the nicest, most well run teams you'll ever meet, and in just their second year they've turned out a very well machined robot. After the splash that Wave made in 2009, they show no signs of slowing for 2010. If they don't win this event, they'll be all that much more prepared for their second.
EDIT: I forgot to mention a mecanum oriented team that's poised to make a huge splash at this event, 2062. CORE's got a mecanum drivebase with an elevation mechanism capable of suspension just like 2337. Knowing how robust and reliable CORE machines always turn out to be, they should do extremely well in eliminations, giving some bonus support to a "grounded" team like 706, 2826, or 1714 (hint hint hint) in addition to letting teams get an extra bonus point.