Getting to the 2008 Honolulu Regionals doesn't require breaking the bank

[waiakea11]

Of course all said and done, some of the hawaii teams will have to deal with the shipping issues. I know of a couple of teams (like ours) that might be heading to seattle the week before...but yeah...the sooner you book your flights, the better rates you willl get, and as soon as you can sign up, you should.

[Kirk]

Where were you able to find $119 - $149 each way to HNL? The best I can find leaving the West coast is $200-$250 each way from LAX. Leaving the 27th and coming back on the 30th.

[TKM.368]

It will be hard to purchase really cheap fares since they are often last minute. For example, ATA.com had one way fares from LA and Oakland for $124 and $129, respectively. There are a few problems, however, with getting such fares. The prices quoted above were only on sale for four days (Friday-Monday) with travel completed by December 14th (off-peak). The Hawaii Regional is during Spring Break which I suspect is peak season.

[rainy846]

can anyone fill me in one the shipping prices?
Even thought FIRST pay for between Regional shipping fees, we still have to pay for getting it to the first regional and getting back from the last regional.
So can any previous Hawaii teams share some numbers regarding shipping partly across the pacific ocean?

[Alan Anderson]

Originally Posted by rainy846

Even thought FIRST pay for between Regional shipping fees, we still have to pay for getting it to the first regional and getting back from the last regional.

It's the other way around (at least it was for the 2007 season, though there's no guarantee that FedEx will do the same thing next year).

Originally Posted by The 2007 FRC Manual, section 4.9.1. The FedEx Express Freight Donation

FedEx Express Freight will ship your crate to the Regional of your choice. FedEx will then ship it back “home” as the second benefit. You cannot substitute your shipment home for a second Regional shipment.

If your team is registered to compete at the Championship, FedEx Express Freight will also ship your crate to the Championship and back home. NO SUBSTITUTIONS.

[TKM.368]

Originally Posted by rainy846

can anyone fill me in one the shipping prices?
Even thought FIRST pay for between Regional shipping fees, we still have to pay for getting it to the first regional and getting back from the last regional.
So can any previous Hawaii teams share some numbers regarding shipping partly across the pacific ocean?

As a Hawaii team, we are also wondering what shipping costs are going to be since FedEx has always taken our robot from us and brought our robot back to us for free. Now our robot will have to be flown between regionals back to Hawaii at our expense at a price we do not know.

For mainland teams, as I read the 2007 manual in 4.5.8.3

5) U.S. teams not using the donated/free FedEx shipping for your initial event:


Mail a copy of your receipt to FIRST right away so it arrives within 4 days, addressing the envelope as below, using all capital letters. The properly addressed verification must arrive within 4 days.

You could then use the free FedEx shipment TO the Hawaii regional and then FedEx will take it for free from the Hawaii regional either back to your school or else to the Championships. Be careful because FedEx (and possibly other shippers as well) may not be able to get your robot to Hawaii in time if you are competing in a Week 4 event.

Plans are still being worked out regarding what company is going to be storing the robots in Hawaii since the drayage companies on the mainland which do that job do not exist in Hawaii. With that, we cannot determine what cost (if any) there will be to store the robots and get them to the event here. We're hoping that it's a donation from the local companies.

[Cory]

Originally Posted by TKM.368

Be careful because FedEx (and possibly other shippers as well) may not be able to get your robot to Hawaii in time if you are competing in a Week 4 event.

I would say be mroe than careful. Odds are your robot will not get there on time. I believe I remember seeing last year or the year before that robots being shipped to back to back regionals in different timezones only made it on time like 25% of the time or less. This isn't just any regional either... it's an island.

If you are planning on attending a week 4 regional and then Hawaii, if you want your robot to be there when you get there, you will need to pay extra for expedited shipping. In the past, I believe robots are required to be at the drayage facility by Tuesday. So at most you have 3 days time to work with, maybe less if the shipper doesn't pick the robots up Sunday (which they probably don't).

This caused us to have to drop out of the Great Lakes Regional last year, as it was back to back with SVR. We looked into expedited shipping and it was nearly half the cost of the regional, at somewhere around $2000, for nothing but the crate and the robot. Odds are shipping to Hawaii is way more expensive than the continental US as well.

[Chris Fultz]

Originally Posted by Budda648

I'm sure teams like 234, 233, and 25 would definitely consider this regional since they've travelled all over the US in recent years.

Why, it hasn't even been brought up.....

Gotta go, appointment with the travel agent ......

[indieFan]

For those of you that are interested in going to Hawaii, be aware that while the airline tickets may not be as expensive as expected, the hotel/motel prices and food prices will be much more than you thought.

indieFan (who was there during Thanksgiving)

[wendymom]

Ms. P of the Pink team has already approached the idea of several Florida teams chartering an airplane to get us there. That would be way fun. Between, pink, 79, 1902, Ramtech, SPAM and others we could fill a jet no problem.

[Madison]

Originally Posted by wendymom

Ms. P of the Pink team has already approached the idea of several Florida teams chartering an airplane to get us there. That would be way fun. Between, pink, 79, 1902, Ramtech, SPAM and others we could fill a jet no problem.

I'd love to know more about what you've found out about chartering a plane. We, too, have been considering how effective it might be to charter a jet in the future for teams from nearby to make it to the Championship, for example. We paid nearly $15,000 in airfare this year and doing that year after year is killing us.

[TKM.368]

Aloha fellow FIRSTers!

There is a lot of preparation taking place with regards to the Hawaii Regional next year. Many things are still up in the air, but being worked on as we speak.

The date of the regional has already been announced to be a Week 5 Regional (had to get a volleyball tournament moved to accommodate the event). It doesn't seem usual to announce the date beforehand, but it was announced in a press release by our Governor, so the word is out (not to mention the goodies the Hawaii teams passed out had the date as well). This hopefully is helpful for everyone out there with regards to planning.

If enough 'real' interest is shown, perhaps the regional can have up to 48 teams. If, however, it doesn't seem that enough teams are going to be making the trip, then the regional might only be for 32 teams. (Time to get excited people!)

One of our current members is going to be maintaining the Hawaii Robotics website robotics.hawaii.gov. More information should be available after Dean Kamen comes to visit Hawaii on May 14th (feel free to stop by the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of Hawaii at Manoa at 4pm if you just so happen to be in Hawaii on that day).

Hawaii has more hotels than motels which might be problematic. Hopefully a hotel chain will step up as a sponsor of the event and will provide a package deal for teams coming out here. Fortunately, Waikiki is just a 10 minute drive from the competition venue. There is TheBus (Route 4) which goes from Waikiki to the University of Hawaii if teams wish to utilize this method of transportation.

There's been talk of a luau for the team social - but actually, many people don't care too much for luau food like poi and pit-roasted pork. It would be helpful to hear what you folks think. Thinking Friday night might not be appropriate for the Team Social as well and perhaps Wednesday night or Saturday night would be better.

That's all I can think of for now (much of which is repeated information - sorry). We'll keep you updated when more information becomes available. Again, any comments you might have will definitely be taken into consideration.

[GaryVoshol]

Originally Posted by cire

Is there a danger of the robot not making it to Hawaii / back to the states in time if your doing a regional the week before or after the Hawaii one?

Originally Posted by TKM.368

Aloha fellow FIRSTers!

There is a lot of preparation taking place with regards to the Hawaii Regional next year. Many things are still up in the air, but being worked on as we speak.

The date of the regional has already been announced to be a Week 5 Regional (had to get a volleyball tournament moved to accommodate the event). It doesn't seem usual to announce the date beforehand, but it was announced in a press release by our Governor, so the word is out ...

And given that Week 4 is Easter weekend next year, that could further complicate the shipping. At least with the Championships a week later next year, there should be enough time to get the robots back from Honolulu to Atlanta.

Hmm, you think FIRST will offer volunteers an incentive to go?

[Jeremiah Johnson]

Originally Posted by GaryV1188

And given that Week 4 is Easter weekend next year, that could further complicate the shipping. At least with the Championships a week later next year, there should be enough time to get the robots back from Honolulu to Atlanta.

Hmm, you think FIRST will offer volunteers an incentive to go?

Oh man... that would be awesome! I'm already saving up in case my team doesn't go next year.

[waialua359]

Originally Posted by GaryV1188

And given that Week 4 is Easter weekend next year, that could further complicate the shipping. At least with the Championships a week later next year, there should be enough time to get the robots back from Honolulu to Atlanta.

Hmm, you think FIRST will offer volunteers an incentive to go?

FYI, we never had a problem with shipping.
Our robot this year went from Hawaii on Tuesday (ship day) and arrived in NJ by late Thursday via FedEX.
Coming home from Vegas, it left on a Monday and got to us by late morning on Wednesday.
I really wouldn't worry about it. FedEx does fly directly to Honolulu.