Future First Championship News

[Thad House]

Originally Posted by KeeganP

That post shows the winners and finalists of each division, and what region they would likely be assigned, had there been 2 venues in 2014 and 2013. There may well not be an even distribution of the winning teams from last year at the two venues -- but there would be an even distribution across the entirety of both championship events.

What the post shows, is that the strongest teams last year would have all been at Detroit, and thus the Detroit event would have been a stronger event than the Houston event.

And I could tell you that would basically always be the case. Detroit would get Ontario and Michigan, plus many strong teams from NE and MAR, and many more.

Houston would get California and Texas as their strong teams, plus a good amount of teams from the south, and most likely the PNW.

Sorry if this hurts anyone, but Ontario and Michigan are stronger then California and Texas, at least in the tier right below the elite. Maybe when California and Texas go to districts this will change, because they do bring up the middle, but for now Detroit would probably have greater depth.

[cgmv123]

Originally Posted by Andrew Lawrence

While we're talking venues, the new Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara is awefuly nice...

The roof it has is so nice you can't even see it, hear it, feel it or even be protected from the weather by it...

[Arpan]

From the perspective of a mentor for a team that has attended Champs once in our seven year history( back when I was a student):

Yes, the FRC World champs are a wonderfully inspiring thing for teams who attend - It is incredible to be able to play with 2056 in one match and try to stop 67's full court shooter in the next. Yes, it would be wonderful if more teams could attend, and yes, it is terribly expensive for teams on the coasts to travel to champs as-is.

However, splitting Champs into two drives FRC away from it's 'varsity sport for the mind' model and risks losing much of what drives at least my team.

My team's students are - and always have been- driven to be the very best.
Teenagers are competitive people. They don't want just want to play- they want to win. The drive to win is what pushes my team and my students to keep learning and improving, year after year after year.We find the best - teams like 254 or 1114 - and try as hard as we can to emulate them.

That's something you don't see in Science Olympiad or Debate team or any other "academic sport". It's unique to FIRST.

The reason that finals in St. Louis have the energy that they do is that, after all our weeks of work, we're finally going to see who the best of the best are.

Splitting champs will probably not impact anything quantifiable. The scores at the top across events might be similar. To a volunteer that visits Houston and Detroit, the events might even seem the same.

However, the opportunity to find out who's robot really is the best in the world and recognize them as champions will be gone and will take one of the most important intangibles that drives teams to succeed with it.

[smart1]

I don't speak for my team this just my opinion. Having Muscular Dystrophy and not being able to play sports, Frc gave me a way to compete, the whole sport for the mind thing. When I got go to atlanta as the driver in 2010 competing (well playing)along side the best of best was such a rush. But when I watched the finals (still can't believe 469 lost) That Inspired me to help my team build the best robots they can. Prior to 2011 if we didn't qualify at 1 regional we would get on the waitlist for champs. In 2011 my first year as a mentor we went to 2 regionals for the first time and won 10,000 lakes with 525 and 3642 at championships we got picked for the first time ever but got beat in the quarterfinals. The fact that to go championships we had to earn our way in gave the team drive, 2010 was the last time we didn't make eliminations.

[lemiant]

Originally Posted by Jared Russell

The ideals that are held by myself and by many of the longtime FRC mentors and volunteers whom I consider friends and colleagues are bigger than FIRST, and we will find (or make) another vehicle for them if we are forced to.

My thoughts exactly, Jared, thank you for putting them so eloquently. I've been a FIRST fanatic (both as student and mentor) for 7 years now, and I suddenly have no interest in returning for the 2017 season.

[dlavery]

I suspect that the full, complete extent of this story has yet to be revealed.


-dave





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[Navid Shafa]

I just got off the phone from lodging my first formal complaint. I was recommended to send an email as well, I will be doing so shortly as I wait for FedEx to come pick up our crate...

[cgmv123]

Originally Posted by Cory

But you can only balance it with fringe cases. You can't split half the Michigan teams between Houston and Detroit. You'd have to pick teams that are on the border of right between the two locations. You are going to see a competitive difference between the two events, at least until more locales get districts to help them improve that way.

The events may not be equally competitive, but at least teams will have an equal shot at winning a half-championship numbers-wise!

To balance event numbers, FIRST may have to send teams to the Championship that's further away from them. (Houston is actually a few hundred miles farther than Detroit from St. Louis, but I suspect that due to the large concentration of teams in the Midwest and Northeast, Missouri teams will be sent to Houston to avoid overloading the Detroit Championship.) So much for reducing travel costs.

[Eugene Fang]

Originally Posted by cgmv123

The roof it has is so nice you can't even see it, hear it, feel it or even be protected from the weather by it...

No worries. It won't rain in California.

[Siri]

Originally Posted by cgmv123

It won't be strictly geography. There will be an attempt to balance both events.

By attendance, not by strength. Unless HQ intends to put FiM, Ontario, NE FIRST and/or MAR in Houston, this list doesn't change much. I put the Capitol Region and Illinois in Detroit (Missouri in Houston), but that would only move a handful.

EDIT: Yes, what everyone else said. Jeez, you guys are moving quickly. Also, that's "her post" [my post].

[Yipyapper]

Man, at least FIRST had the courtesy of waiting until I was done as a member of a team to ruin everything.

[efoote868]

Originally Posted by Yipyapper

Man, at least FIRST had the courtesy of waiting until I was done as a member of a team to ruin everything.

We know there are lots of questions for us to answer. We will be working hard on many details in the months to come, and as that process takes place, we’ll share additional information, so please stay tuned.

The sky is not falling. The details are not settled. We don't have all the facts. Take a deep breath, it'll be OK.

[Cory]

Originally Posted by efoote868

The sky is not falling. The details are not settled. We don't have all the facts. Take a deep breath, it'll be OK.

One interpretation of that second quote is that "the details" amount to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

[bduddy]

Originally Posted by dlavery

I suspect that the full, complete extent of this story has yet to be revealed.


-dave





.

Are you talking about the "what", the "why", the "how", or all of the above?

[Siri]

Originally Posted by efoote868

The sky is not falling. The details are not settle. We don't have all the facts. Take a deep breathe, it'll be OK.

Considering they've announced specific venues and dates, I'd say all the details people are upset about are probably settled. I'm in full agreement with the other statements, depending on what your definition of "OK" is. <Glances up at the sky.>

Also, Aye to that Jared/Cory for union president motion.