2016 FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship Info and Updates

Hello FIRST Tech Challenge Teams!

Can you believe that Super-Regionals have begun? I don’t know where the time has gone, but I do know that at FIRST HQ, we are getting geared up for the 2016 World Championship.My team and I are very glad to be able to tell you a little more about some of the changes we have made to our favorite event of the year. We’re excited about these changes, and we hope you are too!

Today, I wanted to share with you a day-by-day breakdown of some of the things we’ve been working on.

Before you arrive– Every invited team will receive a link to our Experient Badging and Hotel Reservation Site. Please make sure to go through the badging process for every member of your team. This will save you a TONof time at Registration. We thank you, and so will the people in line behind you.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016 – Early Bird Check In will occur at the Registration Area in Union Station from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. This line will move very quickly, because I know you all will have followed our ‘before you arrive’ advice and pre-badged your team. While one adult is registering the team and collecting their badges, the rest of the team can proceed to their pit area, where they can begin to set up.

*A word about the Pits – a few of you have asked, and I’m sure a lot of you have wondered about the size of the pits at Union Station. We’ve made the decision to go with a 9’x9’ pit area, with a 10’ height limit. We know this is smaller than you would like, but, a smaller pit size means the aisles can be a little larger, and larger aisles are better for the safety and comfort of all of our attendees.

**The pits will close promptly at 8:00 PM on Tuesday. The practice fields will not be open, the competition area will not be open, and the FIRST Café will not be open on Tuesday. We will have security in the venue, but please, don’t leave your valuables behind.

Wednesday, April 27, 2016– The mall area is closed for construction, and we know that poses a problem for teams who planned to eat at one of the food vendors there. We have three solutions:

1.    Box lunch order forms are already available. Boxed Lunches must be pre-ordered no later than 4/25/2016. Wristbands and preordered meals will be available in the FIRST Café. There are vegetarian and gluten free options available.

2.    Food Trucks! There will be a variety of food trucks parked on 20^th street to cover the lunch break each day.

3.    Delivery! Union Station has graciously agreed to allow restaurants to deliver food to the venue. Teams can order lunch for delivery, meet the delivery person in the Hotel Lobby, and bring the food back into the pits.

New this year: We are happy to tell you that on Wednesday afternoon from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM, we’ll run a ‘Crowd Favorite Pit Design’ competition. Every team will receive a ballot, and we want every team to vote for ‘best pit design’. We hope that teams will leave some students in their pit area, to answer questions about their design and act as team representatives, while other students wander through the pits and check out the displays. We’ll collect the ballots, and announce the winner on Friday.

Thursday, April 28, 2016 – Prepare for a full day of matches, followed by the FIRST Welcoming Ceremonies, at the Edward Jones Dome, beginning at 6:30 PM.

Friday, April 29, 2016 – Friday is Tiara Friday at the World Championship. Don’t forget to pack your Tiaras, and wear them with pride.

Friday afternoon we’ll have our Judged Award Ceremony at the Peabody Opera House. We will present our Judged Award winners, our Compass Award Winner, our Promote Award Winner, our Volunteer of the Year, and the Crowd Favorite Pit Design winner. We hope you’ll accept our invitation to attend this event at the glamorous Peabody Opera House.

Saturday, April 30, 2016 – Saturday is Suspender Saturday (a tradition we began last season). Bring your tricked out suspenders and showcase your style!

Qualification matches will run for several hours on Saturday morning, immediately followed by Alliance Selections. We will break for lunch, and start our Semi Final matches at 12:30 PM. We will present our Competition Awards in the Grand Ballroom after the competitions. The pits will close at 4:00 PM on Saturday, which will give teams plenty of time to make their way to the FIRST Closing Ceremonies and Finale, at the Edward Jones Dome, which begin at 6:00 PM.

I’ll continue to keep you updated with our plans as they continue to unfold, and don’t forget to visit the FIRST Championship Web Sitefor more information about the event.

Go Teams!

JoAnn Halloran

FIRST Tech Challenge Program Manager