Regional Championship or Regional Chairmans?

[Billfred]

WARNING: This post may be loaded with excessive amounts of rookie mentality, and is not necessarily the view of team 1293.

Personally, I'd have to side with regional champs. For starters, I helped build the robot this year more than anything else, and I've also been trying (and probably failing miserably, due to my lack of reading CD) to think up some strategies--and regional champions says that your combination of robot, driver, HP, and strategy was the best of the breed.

It's also easier to explain to non-FIRST folks. (Yeah, I know it's hard to believe that said people exist.) If I say my team won the Chairman's Award, the reaction ranges from "Cool" to "Wuzzat?" The term champion, for whatever reason, just seems to be more well-understood.

[Matt D]

I personally would prefer to win the Chairman's Award. I've been on a team that has excelled on and off the field so I've already experienced both. This year, I personally headed up mentoring two teams 1031 and 1422. I also worked on the community service aspect of the team helping with a clothes drive and a bag lunch for day workers thing. I also worked on the presentation aspect, but this is only a minor part (even though I spent more time on it). One of the coolest things at Sacramento this year was having our mentor, Steve Kyramarios, win the Woodie Flowers Award, even though we won the regional. The second coolest thing (at least to me) was tying the national high score (at that time we thought we beat it.)

These are my experiences. I'm not sure about the rest of the team.

[BerserkerSpyke]

I would definately prefer chairmans. (and yes I know the opinon is a little tainted because we won a regional chairmans this year) The real reasons I feel wining chairman's is better:

1. Chairmans is a true measure of your team, not a measure of your robot.
2. If even a small problem occurs in the finals it can cost you the championship (I know, our battery died in the final match last year).
3. Chairmans is awarded after the final match so you have something to hope for even if you lost champions.
4. Chairmans shows that you have made a difference to someone, somewhere... it really feels good.

Overall, I think it is great if you do well at regionals but I hold chairmans at a high level.

[Mike D'Auria]

I would chose chairmen's. 522 has won both regional championship and chairmen's. I think that chairmen's shows how well the actual team is and to me thats more important than having one of our girls win (Although I do love that to.) It shows how well the team works together and that were are a true FIRST team as Collin Fultz said. It's everything FIRST is about. Gracious Professionalism and Cooperation.

[team1852]

THIS POST MAY NOT REFLECT THE OVERALL FEELING OF TEAM 1852.

Personally, I'd be very happy if we won either award. With that said, I see the Regional Competitions as a cumulation of 6 weeks of building our robot ... so I'd say a Regional Championship would be better.

[Billfred]

I'd be glad to receive either honor, but right now I'm more inclined to go after the Regional Championship. Why? With few exceptions, the regional champions tend to draw more press than the Chairman's Award winners. It should be the other way around, but it tends not to be; I blame it on people naturally being drawn to the title of Champion, no matter how many times the emcee notes that the Chairman's Award is the highest honor.

The way I see it, a team that still isn't a household name could stand to get more attention (and thus have their programs reach a wider audience) with a regional championship than a Chairman's Award. That's my theory--if I get a chance to test it, I'll let you know.

[+()c|D]

Chairmans!

It doesn't have to go to the best team, in the competition, but to the team who has worked hard, done all their research, and has great sportsmanship.

Don't get me wrong, both awards are great, but the Chairmans is more prestigious.