Why is FRC Kickoff when it is?

[BrentJ]

Hi

Being new to FIRST I was wondering why kickoff is annually the 1st weekend in January?

Is this because of how it fits into the school term?

Reading a number of posts about days lost to snow I was wondering why kickoff is in the middle of winter?

Can any of the older members please explain the history behind this?

Obviously the dates have to be set a couple years ahead to book regionals etc.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by BrentJ

Hi

Being new to FIRST I was wondering why kickoff is annually the 1st weekend in January?

Is this because of how it fits into the school term?

Reading a number of posts about days lost to snow I was wondering why kickoff is in the middle of winter?

Can any of the older members please explain the history behind this?

Obviously the dates have to be set a couple years ahead to book regionals etc.

That's how they started, and that's how they continue. However... Every 5-6 years, they move it to the second weekend in January to avoid New Year's Day. I'm guessing that either next year or the year after, that'll happen.

It's better than it was. It used to be that everyone had to send representatives to Manchester... in winter...in the state whose motto is "Live, Freeze, or Die". (Not really on the motto, but close enough.)

I think the reasoning is partly: not during summer, because everyone is occupied, so that leaves fall (most people still haven't settled into their courses) and winter/spring (college students are readjusting). Winter was chosen to allow everyone to compete before school let out.

[ATannahill]

Dave has hinted that next year kickoff will be the 9th.

[Kevin Sevcik]

Originally Posted by EricH

That's how they started, and that's how they continue. However... Every 5-6 years, they move it to the second weekend in January to avoid New Year's Day. I'm guessing that either next year or the year after, that'll happen.

It should have been pushed back to the 2nd weekend this year as well. It came early enough this year that colleges were still closed down here, so we had to move our local kickoff from a local university to a paid facility. At significant cost. So I'm fairly certain they'll be moving it to the second weekend next year to avoid similar annoyances.

[Brian C]

We've (my son and I) have been involved with FRC since 1999 and I'm sure there are others with better explanations but FWIW.

I think that FIRST does kickoff right after the New Year in order to do couple of things:

Get them focused on something immediately upon returning from a holiday break. It avoids some of the "post holiday blues" some people get and helps cope with a bit of cabin fever.

For much of the country winter is a time of finding things to do indoors.

I nelieve the idea is to get the build part of the season over BEFORE the weather starts to improve to the point where people want to spend more time outside.

From our experience I think there is no "perfect" time to have kickoff as it will always impact your schedule. I work a 12 hour rotating shift schedule and during build season my wife rarely sees me as we work with 2 FRC teams.

Just my 2 cents, your mileage may vary.

[Jon Stratis]

Just my two cents as well... Since this event is school sponsored, for students, it should be done during the school year. Additionally, it isn't reliant on good weather (like football teams are), so you don't really need to do it during the summer. You want to avoid the typical holiday (family) times as best you can - Thanksgiving and the last half of December (and all of summer). Finally, with 6 weeks of build, 5 weeks of regionals, and 1 week of national competition, you have (roughly) a 3-month season of activity.

If you started it around the first day of school for most kids (school districts vary), that would generally be around the beginning of September, which sticks the end of the season right around Thanksgiving. So most of the fall is pretty much shot because of the holidays.

If you go for a January start, then the regional competitions fall in March - a lot of schools have spring break during March. It can certainly make a lot of sense to attend a regional during your schools spring break. The kids don't miss class, which is good (although i think i can hear the groans from students from here!).

If you pushed the start of the season back much more, you might get spring break during the build season, which could be good or bad, depending on how many people want to get out of town. But pushing it back also means pushing back the regionals and the national competition, which puts them much, much closer to the end of the school year and finals. How many parents will let their kids take a trip to Atlanta the weekend before finals? How many schools will let the kids go on a school trip to Atlanta the week of finals?

So in short, i guess I'm saying there are problems with the season regardless of when you have it. Logistically, i think starting it in January makes the most sense, but you do occasionally run into weather delays. Making up time on the delays you hit, however, is a rather important ability to have in the "real world", as no project can finish without hitting a few snags or delays.

[abeD]

If I'm not mistaken...

I think in 2004 or around there FIRST actually let everyone ship a couple days late due to some really nasty weather up in the northeast.

[Matt C]

Originally Posted by abeD

If I'm not mistaken...

I think in 2004 or around there FIRST actually let everyone ship a couple days late due to some really nasty weather up in the northeast.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_A...izzard_of_2003

It was 2003.

[Rick Wagner]

Originally Posted by Matt C

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_A...izzard_of_2003

It was 2003.

Thanks. I had forgotten about that!

[EricH]

2004 was parts missing from KOPs for weeks. That was the last time it's happened. It's also the last time the ship date was extended.

So in back-to-back years, the ship date was extended, but it hasn't happened since.

[waialua359]

I am happy that next year it may be January 9th.
That's 6 more days than this season of ample rest before we dont get any.

Its during our christmas vacation from school.
The last several years, we lost a week being at school anyway.

No schedule will meet everyone's expectations, but at least something to look forward to NEXT season.

[GaryVoshol]

Because the competition season has been extended to 6 weeks for at least the last 2 years, that pretty much limits when kickoff has to be. Else you're pushing the Championship into May.

This year it would have been nicer if kickoff could have been Jan 10, simply because many schools didn't open up after break until the 4th. But it wouldn't fit into the schedule - Atlanta is scheduled more than a year in advance and can't be moved. Unless you want a 5-week build ...

edit: I just looked at the GWCC site, and FIRST is scheduled for the same week in April for 2010. That likely means only 5 weeks of competition next year.

[Al Skierkiewicz]

As Gary has stated above, simply add in the six weeks of build, a few weeks of rest for First staff and prep for regionals, then a few weeks of regionals (some of which will occur in spring break for schools to allow travel without missing school) and then an early spring Championship so that students have time to prepare for finals, graduation, prom, etc. When Championships were at Disney, it coincided with Disney's Science month promotion and a lull in other activity that made travel cheaper and hotels available. And since winter keeps many people inside, this is a perfect activity to bring people together while indoors. And it allowed FLL to have the fall but that's another story.

[Brandon_L]

I coulda sworn last year the ship date was delayed about 2 days, I don't remember what for but I remember shipping the bot, then logging onto CD and seeing the delayed shipping date and face-palming myself...

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Brandon_L

I coulda sworn last year the ship date was delayed about 2 days, I don't remember what for but I remember shipping the bot, then logging onto CD and seeing the delayed shipping date and face-palming myself...

Nah, it wasn't. It was probably a hoax. Or a misunderstanding. It's only been delayed twice, as previously noted.