UTC: The perfect combination of old school mixed with the new

[Andy Grady]

Hello everyone!

Upon returning from the UTC New England Regional this year I had some time to reflect on the happenings of the weekend. I must say that with the new venue, and the quality of competition, this regional turned out to be one of the best competitions I have ever been to.

The reason for this? A winning combination which I feel that future competitions could benefit from.

With its new venue in the Connecticut Convention Center, UTC had a feel of a huge event. Upon walking in I was instantly reminded of Atlanta and the Championship event. The facilities were brand new, the space was huge (had about as many escalators as are found in the convention center next to the Georgia Dome), everything was top notch. The large space allowed for Vex and FLL competitions to take place as well as other little sideshows. It was an excelent diverse experience. The true charm however you could find through the doors to the competition area.

The playingfield area had your field with a set of bleachers on each side...as opposed to the U-Shaped Arena setup that most regionals have grown accustomed to. The result was an electrifying environment that frankly I haven't seen in a long long time. Being down by the field for the tournament and being surrounded by the sounds of loud cheers and feet banging on the bleachers gave me chills. It was a very intimate setup that tended to captivate the croud alot more than a large arena would. It was amazing because instead of just hearing the involved teams in the match cheering and being loud as I have found to happen at the past UTC competitions in the Meadows or at the BAE Regional event, everyone who wasn't involved was picking a favorite and going nuts!

It would be nice to see more events following this trend...I'm already excited for next years event as a result.