2002--Here we go again

[Mike Norton]

So stop whining, dig in and be the best you can be.

If you don't know what is going on here in New England. There are lots of lay-offs , companys are not doing to good. It was hard enough to get money when times were good.

We are only going to one regional this year. I put in for LI regional just in case we could not get approved to go to KSC. The cost per student to go to FL. is $495. we are staying for one week. after we go to KSC regional we are going to Disney for the next 4 days. If we plan to go to National 7 weeks before. that would cost us in the range of $900 per student and that is if we get the plane tickets. Plus the $4,000 to enter.

We won two completition after the National were over.

We paid $250 to the first one which was held in Penn.
We paid $100 in the second one which was in MA.
these were just like the regional completition.

Why can these people put on a great completition for less money than the ones the regionals put on?

We been around long enough. The game has change from making a great robot to making lots of money to play. If more people push back maybe FIRST will look at making things cheaper.

Like I said in many of my other threads. There are teams leaving FIRST because of all that is going on. That does not make them bad people. They still teach robotics but in a different way.

When we Leave FIRST this might not make a impact now but it might in the next couple of years.