Food at regionals?

[N7UJJ]

When a team is at a competition, we are not just spectators, but participants. If it wasn't for the teams and their robots, there would be no event. We are not there for entertainment, but because we made a commitment. (Could you see an NBA player bolting from the bench to the snack bar for a drink of water?) We are also there for 6-10 hours each day. Unlike spectators, we can't leave for a few hours for lunch. Many members of the team do not have their own transportation. We're trapped.

I can understand the business considerations that a venue has to make. I also think most of the food sold at such venues is pure junk. Kind of hard to buy fruit or low-fat or anything healthy. Anyone with dietary restrictions would have an especially hard time.

Just as Intel, Microchip and the thousands of companies have supported us in FIRST, wouldn't it be wonderful if we were allowed to eat in their parking lot? Why can't we bring in our own water? Gracious Professionalism could be demonstrated by the venue/food providers.

I sympathize with the moral dilemma of smuggling in water to a venue, but I think I empathies with the smugglers. It may not be right, but …

[nuggetsyl]

Hey guys here is an idea. Someone throw a big tail gate party in the parking lot. I would pay for that. In fact there were threads about this a few months ago so how did you not see this coming.

shaun

[mixmasta321]

Hey all,
Yes, I too disagree with the food policies. But last year our team held a tailgate party out in the parking lot of the motorola regional for our team and another local WI team and it was great! We are planning on doing it again. Its a really good idea for all you firsters out there. I wouldn't know if we would have enough to feed a whole lot of people but it was fine for just a couple of teams. Anyways good luck everybody and we'll see you at St. Louis and Chicago!

[MikeDubreuil]

I went to the BAE regional in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Water sold for $3.00 a bottle by the vendors. Occasionally the pit anouncer would tell everyone that you could get a free bottle of water from him. I only remember this happening once. The second time he announced water avalliable, he actually meant water was avaliable for volunteers.

Here's my real complaint...
IF WE CAN'T BRING FOOD OR DRINK IN, THEN SELL IT TO US!!!!!

The vendors stopped selling food and drink at about 3:30. Just lovely when you're at the event until 8pm. So a thousand people are expected to use a half dozen water fountains? And starve for almost 5 hours.

The event organizers could at least go to the bargaining table with the Verizon Wireless Arena people about the hours of food service.

[Swan217]

FYI all -

Great Lakes Tailgate - http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=24479
MidWest Regional Tailgate - http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=24464
Tailgate Initial Thread - http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=24290

[Stina236]

There's nothing like paying seven dollars and fifty cents for a couple strips of chicken and some salty fries all in a basket at a FIRST competition!!! Ahhhhh... memories!

We always send one of the parents to get pizza at lunch, and then go outside to eat it. At Manchester we had our tailgate party in the Fleet Bank drive-through the second day ('cause it was raining). We also had to smuggle in water to keep us going between meals.

[Amanda Morrison]

I know it's been said before, but I'll say it again: FIRST isn't always directly responsible for this stuff. Who's to say that they haven't gone to the bargaining table to get you cheaper prices on food? Or that they want you to get a coronary from all the cholesterol?

I don't like to be a cynic, but when it comes down to it... there are always bargains made, and by putting our team's $5,000 in every year, I am putting in my faith that FIRST is doing their best at everything they can do. Do I like eating some of that stuff? No, not particularly. And yes, I do understand that a lot of times there aren't a whole lot of options around these rules. But the best we can do is put in our constructive comments, maybe suggest some ideas to FIRST, and learn how we can either work around or improve this rule.

Does anyone have any ideas (that haven't already been posted) that FIRST may be able to try to help out this situation?

[Joe3]

At the NJ regional on Thursday, we sent someone out to go get a bunch of pizzas and then we went out to go eat in the parking lot, like a tailgate. However, later that day there was an announcement that the parking lot was also part of the arena, and bringing food and eating it out there was against the food policy, and that it would be disallowed from that point on. They didnt have much luck enforcing that ruling, but they still made that decision. I think that that was going a little too far. Not everyone wants, or can afford $6 for 3 chicken fingers and a portion of cold, soggy, overly-salted fries. What a bargain.

Did anyone have a similar experiance at any other regionals?

[robolemur1236]

Originally Posted by nukemknight

At VCU there were two places to eat. Both were overpriced but one was worse than the other. I don't know how they managed to get us to pay $3 for a hot-dog but we did. But there was also a sandwich place at VCU. They had sandwich wraps and fried chicken. Their prices weren't so bad but both had fountain drinks for $3. <--Crazy prices.

yeah, but there was a Subway across the street and a deli the other way. we brought many snacks and just had a tailgate party fri. and sat. because we refused to spend $3 for a hot dog.

[galewind]

Originally Posted by Steve W

To finish off, PLEASE do not try and smuggle food etc into venues. When people are caught it sets a very bad example of FIRST. When I have asked people if they have food and they give me their word that they don't, I would like to believe them. It only takes a few to distroy trust for all. Also when it was said that they look the other way when you are caught, this is wrong. The organizers of the event (Volunteers) hear all about it and see the distrust building with the venues. This can cause the venues to consider raising rates for following years which means you pay more. It's all a cycle so lets try and stop the bad by following the restrictions set out by FIRST.

Please understand this:

I cannot survive off chicken fingers and french fries for three days. Everything the arena sold was fried. This is unhealthy for me, and so I had no choice but to bring food in -- or not to eat. I paid $3 for a 16oz bottle of water with a smile on my face, but I CANNOT eat nothing but fried foods for three days. So yes, I smuggled in apples and carrots for myself, and when my students saw even the carrots, they were hankering for something not fried, and I gladly shared.

I'd pay $2.00 for an apple, $3.00 for a tossed salad, etc, but they NEED to offer foods that are not fried. Stadiums cater, in general, to one to three hour events, not full day events like this, and their food selection generally reflects that. In this case everything was extremely unhealthy.

Thankfully, Annapolis has already posted their offerings, and I'm VERY pleased to see that they offer salads there!

[DirtyBird213]

At BAE they did give out free water in the pits, but it went very fast. We do allow our students to leave and get lunch, but most of our kids stay and eat there. We prepare our students and their parents for high prices.I do realize it is high prices to pay, but FIRST has no control over this. For the prices we are paying I just wish it would taste good! The cheesburgers at Verizon were horrible, and they had NO VEGITARIAN meals!!! They did offer a vegitarian dish at the team party which was nice but our vegitarians need to eat the rest of the days too!

[Rich Wong]

Originally Posted by Carol

At NJ, we had pizza delivered to the parking lot on Thursday, which was eaten in the parking lot. Then there was an announcement that the parking lot is arena property and food is not allowed to be delivered there! Very petty on their part. On Friday and Sat. we sent someone out to get pizza which we then ate from the back of the car. No one objected to that, although we were discrete about it - as discrete as you can be wearing such bright-colored shirts. (And we lucked out that the rain stopped right when the pizzas arrived). The rules said you could have food in your car so it wasn't a direct violation.

I have this horrible image of you guys arrested and handcuffed in your bright shirts and pizza hanging out of your mouth!
Then dragged into the arena pits and paraded around to made an example of what happens to people who brake these "serious" rules. Oh... the nightmare.
(don't worry, they are not really police)

[Adam Y.]

This is unhealthy for me, and so I had no choice but to bring food in -- or not to eat. I paid $3 for a 16oz bottle of water with a smile on my face, but I CANNOT eat nothing but fried foods for three days. So yes, I smuggled in apples and carrots for myself, and when my students saw even the carrots, they were hankering for something not fried, and I gladly shared.

Technically you should have gotten a medical leave then. Thats probably what is going to happen with me and water. I have such horrible allergies that I can go through almost two liters of water in a matter of a few hours.

[Natchez]

At the Lone Star Regional, the quality of food for the students is a VERY high priority. We have spent more than 40 hours on this and are still negotiating with the food supply vendor, ARAMARK, about exactly what to have in the lunch boxes. Only time will tell how things turn out but we are really trying to offer a healthy and reasonably priced meal.

As for Reliant Stadium, they do not allow food inside the building BUT they have no problem with tailgating in the parking lot. The only restriction is that teams can not use an open flame. This gives the Lone Star teams a great option for low-cost quality food. Although this option was available at the Championships, it was not well advertised.

As we expand into Reliant Stadium, please keep these small intangibles in mind when making your Regional selection in the future.

Take care,
Lucien

P.S. Did they take all of the water fountains out of the venues?