New York City Regional Location and Week Change

[Brian Maher]

Originally Posted by ollien

I'm honestly kinda sad that it's not in Javits. The reason I was so inspired in FIRST was to see our robot in a huge venue. I haven't personally seen The Armory, but the 38 team capacity really puts me off.

I could care less about the rest. I just hate to see NYC downsizing so much. 66->38 is huge. (granted it was 50 before it went up to 66, so the team count might go to 50 at most, but even so.)

To show you an alternative perspective:

24/66 = 36% of teams in playoffs
24/50 = 48% of teams in playoffs

I can speak from firsthand experience to say that smaller events present more opportunities for less competitive teams to have on-field success, which often translates to off-field inspiration. While FRC clearly isn't all about winning, these experiences, including simply being chosen for a playoff alliance, can be incredibly meaningful and motivating to students.

I have not been to a regional of more than 50 teams, so I cannot comment on the impact of the grandeur of a large regional like NYC, but I would like to point out that there is value in smaller events.