California District Proposal

[IKE]

Dealing with administration:

As getting administration excited can be difficult, it might be worthwhile to get some quotes comments from some of the long term FiM venues. There was one principle or Administrator that asked to speak at one of the events I attended. This was the second year for the event.
He said something to the effect that the previous year he was unsure. He had never seen an event before. When he watched the playoffs Saturday afternoon, it literally brought tears to his eyes. He had never seen his gym so alive before. There was crazy uproar during key matches. There was singing and dancing from 30+ schools that clearly were competing but also a common family. There were opponents helping each other get ready for the next match.
Other quotes I have heard from administrators: I got to meet political leader XYZ and or industry leader XYZ and give a speech to the same group as them. I got 30 different school districts to come and see what my school had to offer.

In Michigan, we have a lot of venues that have now been doing it for years, and there is a lot of pride the venue administrators take in their event.

It might be good to ask the leaders of other districts for a "reference list" or administrators that might be good spokespersons. Often those on the inside can come across as giving a sales pitch where as someone with equal position can help discuss concerns at the same level.

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On the negative:

We also have some 1 hit wonders. I think "floor damage" concerns are one of the primary causes for a venue to not want teams back, though you would have to talk to the FiM management for reasons they don't go back to a venue. I know at least a few of them were dealing with floor damage concerns. Though that is not the only reason.
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Another item on venues. FIRST really does follow a field of dreams "If you build it they will come" trend.
What I mean by this is within a region, you may want a couple "stretch" venues that might not be the center of the current population. Once a new venue arrives, the local area tends to start a lot more teams. The proximity gives them a cheap option to play at (no hotel), and nothing gets people as excited about a FIRST event as seeing it live. While I would not make every venue remote, it might be a good idea to target a couple areas that could use a shot in the arm.