Indiana going to Districts for 2015

[Danny Blau]

As reported by the IndianaFirst Twitter account and Facebook, we'll be going to districts for the 2015 FRC season!
https://twitter.com/indianafirst/sta...35846049259521
More details as they are announced.

Danny

[cadandcookies]

Very exciting news! Good luck in 2015!

[PayneTrain]

Something something wow can't believe Indiana managed to get to districts before [insert larger area here] this is so unprecedented /s

Of any candidate for the switch, it makes a LOT of sense.

[Samwaldo]

Just out of curiosity, anybody know details of team population/density in Indiana? X # of teams per sq. mile?

[dodar]

Originally Posted by Samwaldo

Just out of curiosity, anybody know details of team population/density in Indiana? X # of teams per sq. mile?

According to FIRST there were 63 FRC teams in Indiana last year and Wikipedia says Indiana is 36,418 sq. mile.

So that would come out to be .00173 teams/sq. mile.

[SoftwareBug2.0]

Originally Posted by dodar

According to FIRST there were 63 FRC teams in Indiana last year and Wikipedia says Indiana is 36,418 sq. mile.

So that would come out to be .00173 teams/sq. mile.

The PNW district covers about 150 teams and 170,000 square miles, giving about .0009 teams per square mile. This is about equal to each team claiming an area of land that is 33 miles by 33 miles.

[tickspe15]

Originally Posted by SoftwareBug2.0

The PNW district covers about 150 teams and 170,000 square miles, giving about .0009 teams per square mile. This is about equal to each team claiming an area of land that is 33 miles by 33 miles.

The teams/square mile metric does not tell very much about a states ability feasibility for running districts. It doesn't matter how many teams there are, what matters is how the teams are distributed throughout the area. In pnw there are definate areas with a greater density of teams, namely the Seattle area. What matters is that the district has areas of higher density.

[Ernst]

Originally Posted by dodar

According to FIRST there were 63 FRC teams in Indiana last year and Wikipedia says Indiana is 36,418 sq. mile.

So that would come out to be .00173 teams/sq. mile.

I'm seeing 52 teams from Indiana that competed in the 2014 season, which gives .00143 teams/sq. mile.

[Dunngeon]

Originally Posted by dodar

According to FIRST there were 63 FRC teams in Indiana last year and Wikipedia says Indiana is 36,418 sq. mile.

So that would come out to be .00173 teams/sq. mile.

But, why? 63 teams would mean that a lot of them get into the final event /District Championship. Why not just run a single regional or combine them with a different region to up team count? 63 seems dreadfully low for a district system

[GearsOfFury]

My understanding is that it won't be just Indiana, but Indiana and Illinois combined.

[Chris Fultz]

This is Indiana alone.

The State CHP will be a smaller event than the other larger districts.

We are excited that FIRST has agreed to this model for smaller Districts and will be working with FIRST to make it successful.

[Jim Zondag]

Congrats to Indiana on making the switch. You will not regret it.

[IKE]

Originally Posted by Chris Fultz

This is Indiana alone.

The State CHP will be a smaller event than the other larger districts.

We are excited that FIRST has agreed to this model for smaller Districts and will be working with FIRST to make it successful.

Michigan may have been the first state, and MAR the first region, but I suspect that the "Indiana Model" may be the most replicated in the future.

[DonRotolo]

Good news folks. More plays for everyone!

And for anyone not really excited and happy about this, I only ask you to wait until next season is over before offering your judgement. Despite the several imagined problems, the reality is so much better than what you are used to. Trust me.

[Nick Lawrence]

This is fantastic. There's a good network of people in Indiana to make this work. Happy to have a much more cost-effective way for our students to be inspired.

-Nick