@Dreadnaught1031 I hope by fun things you do not mean new parts such as the gyroscope.
I think it would be extremely unfair if new, useful parts were sold at the event we've all been preparing for. In my mind, it defeats the purpose of preparation. I would hate to buy a gyroscope, for example, at the Dallas competition and then be scrambling the entire day trying to implement it into my robot.
I don't mean to be rude but this is a great fear of mine.
By all means, I would greatly appreciate parts being sold at Dallas.
If Dallas is the most convienient way for Vex to sell parts, even new ones, then by all means I think it's perfectly fine to release new parts at this time.
-Andrew
Although there is some temptation to stick a cool new part on your robot at the last minute, the best robot you'll have at the competition is almost certainly the one you brought with you. Though you may do a bit of tweaking on your robot and programming, major modifications at the last minute usually put you in a worse spot than before. Putting away your cool new parts to enjoy at home will make your experience more relaxed; I wouldn't worry about all the other teams "getting ahead", because not many other teams will want a major overhaul at the last minute, either. The rare team that successfully implements something new deserves their success, but also pays a price -- more risk, more stress, and less chance to "hobnob" with other teams. Some people like taking a chance at that rare success, but I'm not one of them. At the moment, "Enjoy" is higher on our priority list than "Award."
-Yolande