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As to extra days...
This would add an immense expense to each competition. The cost is usually the same whether you are doing anything in the venue or not. If you book it you are paying by the day/hour for the use of the hall and electrics, security, clean up, etc. I would suspect that any of the midwest venues we use would be in the neighborhood of $30k+ a day with east coast being even higher. I know at the Midwest Regional, the site is cleared on Saturday evening with the bigscreen, speakers and cameras packed before the video crew can go home. Add to that the sheer numbers of volunteers who need time off. The Motorola volunteer staff (non-robot team) for Midwest Regional is enormous so I suspect other regionals are equally staffed.
As to the food issues, I agree that food is an issue. Part of the deal on the venue includes getting the concession people some profit. So that makes it neccesary for there to be no outside food. OK, so place and order and eat outside if you can, but some events are fundraisers for the home team or the local schools so use your own judgement and support the locals when you can.
As to parts, there was a requirment to document the cost of parts and matierials and not exceed a certain amount. I think that would keep the design more equitable and hold teams to more real world constraints. I know there are mechanical guys who will disagree here, it does add to the workload.
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Good Luck All. Learn something new, everyday!
Al
WB9UVJ
www.wildstang.org
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Storming the Tower since 1996.
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