[FRC Blog] Two Championship Survey Results and Path Forward

[waialua359]

Originally Posted by JB987

Can we stop suggesting that IRI would become a substitute for a Championship? Many years there are Einstein teams that are unable to make it to Indiana (just look at this summer's team list to see current examples) and often the drive teams are not the same anyways...

Joe, you bring up a good point.
As it stands, there is no easy way to find a solution to how the Blog suggests about bringing together both the North/South Champs to compete at a later date.
The cost would be enormous for teams to play another weekend at a neutral site, and the students/season are already maxed out.
No matter how creative the solution, it will not address what you are pointing out.

Ultimately, the season would have to be extended. Where? Before the New Year? It certainly cant afterwards. Once you hit May, we are talking about AP Exams, graduations, and other Academic Events that students are obligated to attend. Its not everyone, but enough that many teams would either miss events or certain students would miss them.
The point that FIRST is growing and yet wants to give the same % of students the Championship experience, will not find a happy medium to address having one set of Champions and everyone playing under the same roof. Too many pros AND cons. Is it really too late or impossible to find a venue 2020 and beyond that can hold 800 teams?

I wanted to add that it still doesnt sit well with me that in 2014, we had to choose between VEX and FRC Worlds because we do both programs. Even the VEX GDC said we had a good robot! We still wonder the what ifs had we played at VEX Worlds in 2014 for all of our teams that qualified. Many of our students had wished they could do both.
Our underclassmen are already a little bummed that they wont get to see teams from Canada and Michigan, assuming we would be in Houston in a couple of years.