301 points! and could have done more

[BleakRNS]

Originally Posted by falconmaster

In defense of Mr. Steve Sanghi no one was required to do this.... its was put out there and teams took it. Take it for what it was worth, a motivating incentive. I am also interested in why everybody keeps saying why AZ is not a hot bed. I have heard this several times already. Based on population density, I think we are a hot bed. AZ has had teams on Einstein several times and AZ has threats every year. Also team 842 is a hall of fame team and 2486 is a major threat for championships chairmans this year. I guess I should not take this view of us too critically, its gives us an advantage at the championships if people are not paying attention to us. Too many times people on CD neglect Arizona and we struggle to get any attention. We are used to it, we have learned to be "mavericky". We aren't Michigan....

Never said Sanghi forced anyone to do this. I was a participant on an AZ team for the last 3 years, and while there are some very good teams as you've mentioned, the regional has been overall historically weak (not as much this year, though). Last year, AZ's average winning score was more than 10 points lower than the world average. Yes, there have been Arizona teams on Einstein, but very few have even reached CMP division eliminations in recent years. Arizona's not being "neglected" in my view, there just hasn't been enough to talk about recently in terms of robots (save a few). Don't get me wrong, I've learned to love Arizona's "mavericky" style. But maybe "mavericky" isn't for the best.