Hosting a road meet may seem to be an intimidating and daunting task, especially for someone who's never put together a meet before, but it's not as difficult as it may seem. Some meets hosted by rookies have turned out to be great, while others planned by veterans have had issues pop up (to be fair, sometimes it was out of control of the meet host).
Here's some tips that I've gleaned on how to put on a great meet that will leave attendees happy that they took a few hours out of their day, and in some cases traveled great distances, to attend. Everyone should feel free to add their own pointers.
1.) Pick a meet city/area and topic. Many meets focus on ongoing construction projects and/or newly-opened routes, but this by no means is the only subject on which a meet should center. Old bridges, stub endings, old alignments, old or interesting signage, other forms of transportation infrastructure (locks/dams, railroads, etc.) and many other things are fair game. If it has to do with roads, chances are multiple people will be interested in it. What may seem familiar and boring to you may be of interest to someone who has never been to the area, or only has a passing familiarity with it.
The recent meet I hosted in Ashland, Ky. featured stub endings, new and old bridges, old signage, construction projects and some other interesting matters. A meet in Bennington, Vt. a couple of years ago involved new construction, covered bridges and an unusual traffic light. Last year's Doylestown, Pa. meet featured the new road along with the old bridge at Washington's Crossing, an old bridge abutment and some other features. My meet at Somerset, Ky. several years ago featured a number of construction projects as well as a visit to Lake Cumberland, where the water level was drastically lowered due to repairs on the dam, yielding a number of old roads and bridges that are normally submerged. You get the idea. There's plenty to see at any individual meet.
2.) Pick a gathering spot/meal location. Different hosts prefer different types of restaurants. Some go for the local flavor, some like regional chains, others like national chains. It always helps to be sure if the restaurant has a full and varied menu and plenty of parking. Determine if attendees can leave their cars at the venue or if they will need to move to another location before the tour departs. Also, decide if you want to eat first and then have the tour, or start the tour and eat along the way. Check out the restaurant's Web site for menu options and hours of operation, along with gratuity or separate-check restrictions. If possible, eat at the restaurant to gain an understanding of if it will work for the meet in terms of location, seating, etc.
3.) Scout the meet thoroughly. After you decide where you want to eat and what you want to see, drive the loop to get a rough idea of how long it is and how much time it will take. Check to see if parking is available for any stops you may wish to make. Once you get your tour determined, make it available to attendees ahead of time so they can check out the route. Print copies to hand out at the meet, so participants will know where to go in case the caravan gets separated or one car makes a wrong turn somewhere along the route. Check the itinerary frequently, as construction projects can change things up frequently (closed streets, detours, parking spots eliminated, etc.).
4.) Choose a date and give plenty of advance notice. Some people will pick a date and let the chips fall where they may; others will do some sort of poll to determine a consensus on a good date. Notice can range from one month out (a suggested minimum) to several months away. There is no "right" answer, but some people like to have as much notice as possible so they can plan vacation days and travel plans as necessary. Also, competition for meet dates can sometimes occur. It's not likely that a meet in California and a meet in New Jersey would conflict, but a meet in Ohio and a meet in New Jersey might, especially for people who may be close enough to want to attend both and would have to make a choice.
5.) Promote your meet. Post it on AA Roads, create a Facebook page, announce it on "Roadgeek" or any of the regional Yahoo groups, post it on misc.transport.road, create a Web page on your site if you have one. Allow multiple RSVP channels, since not everyone has Facebook and some who do use FB don't want to publicize their travel plans. Post your details, links to the restaurant's site, tour itinerary maps or narratives, etc. Give plenty of information to meet attendees. Provide a cell phone contact number (privately to attendees if you wish) so they can notify you if they're running late.
6.) Be flexible. Sometimes during a meet tour, someone will suggest an additional site that's along or near the route. This happened during my recent Ashland, Ky./Tri-State meet, when it was suggested that we visit the old tunnel for Ohio 75 (now Ohio 93) at Ironton. It was on the route and made for an interesting addition to the tour.
7.)Not too long, not too short. Just right.(With apologies to Goldilocks and the Three Bears.) Set a reasonable time frame for your meet. Usually allow about 2 hours for lunch. Few meets ever get started right at the announced time -- and by "started" I mean everyone is seated at the restaurant. Then, make sure your tour is the right length and distance. Make it long enough to be worthwhile, but not so long that it impedes after-meet travel plans of attendees. I've found that a "Gilligan's Island" tour -- a three-hour tour, get it? :-D ) is about the right length. Consider the amount of daylight you'll have for the tour, the desire that some attendees may have to not have to drive after dark to get to their destinations after the meet's over, any after-meet festivities you may be thinking of, and so on.
8.) Have fun! In the early days of meets, an "around-the-table" introduction was necessary so everyone could know who everyone else was. More than one "Hi, I'm Carl Rogers" introduction elicited laughs and/or boos. Now, many in the hobby already know many others personally, but there's always a chance that a new face will show up. Enjoy the food, the fellowship and the main attraction -- ROADS!
I'll be interested to see how others add to or embellish this. These are just my thoughts and I'm sure some of you will be able to contribute other good ideas.
Couple things I have to add:
1) Don't just pick where to stop. Have planned out where exactly you are going to trek to when everyone gets out of their cars and be prepared to take charge and lead everyone there. If you just get out and say "well, here we are at X spot", where to go from there may be self-explanatory... or it may not.
2) Traditionally every meet has a group photo. Plan for there to be a good spot for one somewhere along the tour, and either bring a tripod yourself or make sure someone else will. Also, bring your SEND HELP sign if you have one.
Stickied this topic for you.
To elaborate on #7: Use whatever Google gives you and round up. If it's 10 minutes between stops, allow 15. If it's 20 minutes, allow 30. This covers bathroom breaks, people getting lost, etc. More rules of thumb:
* Quick photo stop only: 10 minutes. Yes, it takes this long.
* Quick exploration (i.e., a stub): 15-20 minutes.
* Walking out on a bridge, etc.: 30-40 minutes, depends on the bridge. Can be an hour or more for a long bridge with a long walk to it, such as the Woodrow Wilson during the DC meet.
* Meet photo: add 10 minutes to any of the above.
You may feel like these are excessive, but meet after meet, I've been within a few minutes of when I planned the meet to begin and end by providing these exact amounts of time for each leg. So trust me, it works. As for lunch, it can be anywhere from 100 minutes to 150 minutes, depending on how willing you are to shoo people along and into their cars.
Quote from: Steve on May 20, 2013, 08:33:08 PM
To elaborate on #7: Use whatever Google gives you and round up.
Which is the exact opposite of normal travels with Google. Usually it overestimates travel times.
But your advice is sound. If you have a large number of people to round up and herd back into their cars, the shortest stop can turn into one that's longer than you expect.
While allowing time for a stop, you will also need to allow for time to corral everyone at the end of the stop.
Quote from: hbelkins on May 20, 2013, 03:38:46 PM
5.) Promote your meet. Post it on AA Roads, create a Facebook page, announce it on "Roadgeek" or any of the regional Yahoo groups, post it on misc.transport.road, create a Web page on your site if you have one. Allow multiple RSVP channels, since not everyone has Facebook and some who do use FB don't want to publicize their travel plans. Post your details, links to the restaurant's site, tour itinerary maps or narratives, etc. Give plenty of information to meet attendees. Provide a cell phone contact number (privately to attendees if you wish) so they can notify you if they're running late.
I'm a Facebook refusnik. Please make FB events page viewable by us non-FB users, rather than use the default setting which locks out non-users. I find it helpful to occasionally check FB pages for meets I'm planning to or might attend, for details that don't end up on aaroads, even if I can't post there and need to RSVP on aaroads or by e-mail.
EDIT: Facebook is increasingly restricting access by non-FB users, even to "public" FB events. For example. non-FB users can read basic event information (which is helpful), but not read any discussions.
Often some meet attendees are on FB but not this forum, so keeping everything on the forum is usually not an option. But at least make sure that the forum gets copies of the most important info, especially late changes to meet locations and times. This has been done with all the meets I've attended, and we should keep doing that.
Don't overthink things. I hosted a Tulsa roadmeet a few years ago, and it took me literally 5 minutes to plan the itinerary. I got to see things that I had never seen before. Everybody seemed to have a good time, and we had a good time at my apartment after the driving (except for one person who was a complete buzzkill).
Here's a question. At some meets, there are lots and lots of places to stop - a bridge here, a highway stub there, a neat sign right around the corner - often so many, that some attractions have to be drive-through only. Other times, like if the primary purpose of the meet is to drive a brand new stretch of freeway, not many places stand out as a good place to stop.
Do any of you have a rule of thumb for how many stops to make?
Quote from: getemngo on April 23, 2014, 08:39:50 AM
Here's a question. At some meets, there are lots and lots of places to stop - a bridge here, a highway stub there, a neat sign right around the corner - often so many, that some attractions have to be drive-through only. Other times, like if the primary purpose of the meet is to drive a brand new stretch of freeway, not many places stand out as a good place to stop.
Do any of you have a rule of thumb for how many stops to make?
Not really. However, if there is a good vantage point for a feature such as a bridge, a stop there is always a good idea unless that stop requires the use of "the worst urban street in the world" to get there.
No there isn't. However you should take into consideration how many people are attending/number of vehicles. Some stops may not have available parking and you may need someone to stay back to make sure no issues arise.
Other items you don't have to showcase an entire area in one meet. For the early pittsburgh meets we did one feature or geographic area at a time.
Quote from: Brandon on April 23, 2014, 09:38:02 AM
"the worst urban street in the world"
I can't be the only one who read that in Jeremy Clarkson's voice.
Quote from: Takumi on April 23, 2014, 06:19:24 PM
Quote from: Brandon on April 23, 2014, 09:38:02 AM
"the worst urban street in the world"
I can't be the only one who read that in Jeremy Clarkson's voice.
It would be as I meant it. Had you been to the Saint Louis meet, you might have met "the worst urban street in the world" as well. It's a street, but barely an alley, yet riddled with potholes big enough to swallow a Nissan Armada. My poor Dodge Caliber barely stood a chance other than the fact it's small enough to skirt the worst of them.
One idea, which worked out pretty well at the 2008 Oklahoma City meet, is to plan a main tour but keep some ideas for "special features" afterward. Upon returning to the initial meetup site after the main tour, those who would prefer to head home or return to their hotel can bow out, and if anyone wants to continue, you can discuss what they'd like to see. One night after the main tour, several attendees asked for information about interesting bridges nearby, so we did an evening tour down to McClain County for some bridge hunting. We also did some of Route 66 by request after the main tour the second day.
This might work better if you are having the meet in a city you are intimately familiar with, such as your home city, because if someone wants to go bridge or alignment hunting, you will probably already know of some potentially interesting sites.
Quote from: Brandon on May 20, 2013, 10:27:26 PM
While allowing time for a stop, you will also need to allow for time to corral everyone at the end of the stop.
I think this is a good idea. I was in a motorcycle rider's club a few years back including people of widely varying riding abilities and comfort levels. Some were comfortable constantly speeding, others rode slowly due to lack of confidence, others (like me) preferred to go just slowly enough to enjoy the ride, roads, and scenery. Invariably, everyone would be together at the beginning of the ride in the morning, yet it would take close to a half hour for all of us to arrive at the designated lunch stop, and people often split off mid-ride to do their own things and it was difficult to keep track of. By the end of the day I was often riding by myself or with only one or two others. Maybe it's just the way that particular club was run.
Being that I attended my first meet this weekend, I'm kind of pumped to plan one of my own, but knowing me that will likely die off as I get back into the routine of going to work and so forth. I'm certainly a rookie on the forums. On my way home, however, I was thinking of places locally I'd like to show off, and was kind of dismissing them: "Surely every roadgeek has seen Breezewood," "Surely every roadgeek has seen the Park-And-Ride at the end of I-70 in Baltimore..." I suppose I need to stop being pessimistic, however, I couldn't think of any places other than "popular" ones. But, as you say, those not from the area may not have been to places.
Quote from: tckma on May 31, 2016, 10:27:05 AM
Being that I attended my first meet this weekend, I'm kind of pumped to plan one of my own, but knowing me that will likely die off as I get back into the routine of going to work and so forth. I'm certainly a rookie on the forums. On my way home, however, I was thinking of places locally I'd like to show off, and was kind of dismissing them: "Surely every roadgeek has seen Breezewood," "Surely every roadgeek has seen the Park-And-Ride at the end of I-70 in Baltimore..." I suppose I need to stop being pessimistic, however, I couldn't think of any places other than "popular" ones. But, as you say, those not from the area may not have been to places.
I would never say "every". Many people can 'see' Breezewood via aerial and street car views, but haven't experienced it. Many have said they avoid it on principle, so they've never actually seen it either.
If you were to plan a meet, you can always put out a survey asking people what they would like to see. If you have time for 3 stops, and there's 6 possible areas of interest, see what potential attendees would like to stop at. Something like a Breezewood could conveniently be on the way between two stops. If there's route clinching involved or an interesting sign, those items will take care of themselves simply while on the move.
I can say I'm about 90 minutes from Baltimore and never seen the I-70 Park-and-Ride. And I've only encountered Breezewood because of the much more interesting abandoned PA Turnpike tunnels, which would interest quite a number of people.
So, never say never. Sites that some of us see every day or every week will always be a first-time experience for someone else!
^this^ Yeah I once saw Breezewood in person, even stayed there overnight-in 1977 as a 7 year old child on a trip from Michigan to DC. I can't tell you that I remember much about it other than swimming in the pool at the motel and watching the traffic on one of the two Interstates wrap around the side of a mountain and disappear way off in the distance. If I were ever to go to a road meet in PA, I would like to see that again as an adult-as well as the abandoned turnpike tunnels that Jeff was speaking of. I've never seen the I-70 park and ride either.
Also bear in mind that road meets can be social events as much as sightseeing tours. Some people may well show up even if they've seen things before simply because they have friends who will be there, or because someone who they want a chance to meet in person will be there.
The shifting of the community over time is also such that even if a road meet was held in a particular area before, you may still attract attendance from people who were unable to make it to the last one or were not yet active in the community at the time it occurred.
I have another suggestion for the tour portion of meets:
Designate a lead vehicle and end vehicle, then have everyone else inbetween. Hopefully this help in the corralling of roadgeeks.
^ Was this an issue this past weekend?
Quote from: Hot Rod Hootenanny on April 22, 2018, 10:22:30 PM
I have another suggestion for the tour portion of meets:
Designate a lead vehicle and end vehicle, then have everyone else inbetween. Hopefully this help in the corralling of roadgeeks.
Past attempts to form convoys have failed miserably, especially when there are one or more traffic lights along the way to hang up part of the group, or some drivers get impatient with slower-moving members of the group, or some vehicles need to make quick "pit stops" in addition to the ones planned on the tour.
Clear directions are indispensable. Ride-sharing helps too, to minimize the number of cars. And extensive sharing of cellphone numbers.
Quote from: froggie on April 23, 2018, 01:03:40 PM
^ Was this an issue this past weekend?
It sure was....the whole group got lost twice. It didn't help that the directions had a lot of ambiguities and didn't mention how far we'd be travelling on each road. On one part, half of the cars, myself being one stopped at a spot twice.
^ Agreed with Oscar on convoys. Unless roadgeek convoys are able to get the same deference given to funeral processions (or the meet is in a very rural area with zero traffic), I don't think the follow-the-leader approach would be preferable.
But just providing clearer directions might not necessarily be the best answer either. I think it would be helpful to have the map coordinates for each stop–which should eliminate any ambiguity as to where we are to reconvene, particularly in areas where addresses, mile markers, and other landmarks aren't available. Attendees can still try to convoy if they'd like, but at least if they have a definite location for the next stop, everyone should arrive at the same point eventually, regardless of missed traffic lights, unexpected bathroom breaks, or other unforeseen circumstances.
Then that brings up the issue of when the host arrives at a planned stopping point and when he or she makes the call to officially move on to the next checkpoint. Perhaps the best solution here would be for the host to get everyone's cell number at the beginning of the meet, start a group text message (BCCed, if anyone's concerned about privacy), and just provide quick updates along the way–like "Arrived at Stop 1" . That way, if an attendee is delayed for some reason, he/she won't waste time going to stops that the group has already visited and left.
Yeah, I attended a meet where people quickly got separated. The cell phone idea is a good one. If someone bails on the tour, the host can confirm and the group can move on.
Quote from: briantroutman on April 23, 2018, 02:50:26 PM
^ Agreed with Oscar on convoys. Unless roadgeek convoys are able to get the same deference given to funeral processions (or the meet is in a very rural area with zero traffic), I don't think the follow-the-leader approach would be preferable.
We joked about getting a hearse for the next meet and calling it a "funeral". That's an advantage in a state like Illinois where funeral processions can go through a red signal. Of course, it would work like the ambulance in Cannonball Run until we got found out by the cops.
Quote from: Brandon on April 23, 2018, 07:40:15 PM
Quote from: briantroutman on April 23, 2018, 02:50:26 PM
^ Agreed with Oscar on convoys. Unless roadgeek convoys are able to get the same deference given to funeral processions (or the meet is in a very rural area with zero traffic), I don't think the follow-the-leader approach would be preferable.
We joked about getting a hearse for the next meet and calling it a "funeral". That's an advantage in a state like Illinois where funeral processions can go through a red signal. Of course, it would work like the ambulance in Cannonball Run until we got found out by the cops.
Hmmm...that's an idea for my next meet. Anyone willing to let us crash their funeral? :-D
Quote from: briantroutman on April 23, 2018, 02:50:26 PM
Perhaps the best solution here would be for the host to get everyone's cell number at the beginning of the meet, start a group text message (BCCed, if anyone's concerned about privacy), and just provide quick updates along the way–like "Arrived at Stop 1" .
For the Columbus meet I sent a Facebook group message to everyone present, which I used to announce detours on the fly. It also enabled cross-vehicle discussion of the sights as we passed them. And if anyone were to get lost/delayed, they had a way to message the entire group at once.
^ That would achieve basically the same result, but the downside would be that those not on Facebook (including me) would be left out. I think SMS would cover the broadest possible group. Almost everyone with a cell phone, regardless of platform, should be able to receive text messages.
Additionally, some car infotainment systems have integrations allowing text messages to be read aloud–I'd imagine far fewer would have such a feature for Facebook Messenger.
Quote from: cl94 on April 24, 2018, 12:46:47 PM
Quote from: Brandon on April 23, 2018, 07:40:15 PM
Quote from: briantroutman on April 23, 2018, 02:50:26 PM
^ Agreed with Oscar on convoys. Unless roadgeek convoys are able to get the same deference given to funeral processions (or the meet is in a very rural area with zero traffic), I don't think the follow-the-leader approach would be preferable.
We joked about getting a hearse for the next meet and calling it a "funeral". That's an advantage in a state like Illinois where funeral processions can go through a red signal. Of course, it would work like the ambulance in Cannonball Run until we got found out by the cops.
Hmmm...that's an idea for my next meet. Anyone willing to let us crash their funeral? :-D
My mom had a big blue '87 Olds Custom Cruiser station wagon when I was a teenager. One year our HS girls basketball team went to Baton Rouge for a state playoff game. We went to BR via US 61 from Vicksburg. We led the 9 car convoy all the way...and it was amazing how many people going north on 61 were pulling over because we looked like a funeral procession. It was awesome!
Quote from: briantroutman on April 24, 2018, 02:57:25 PM
^ That would achieve basically the same result, but the downside would be that those not on Facebook (including me) would be left out. I think SMS would cover the broadest possible group. Almost everyone with a cell phone, regardless of platform, should be able to receive text messages.
Additionally, some car infotainment systems have integrations allowing text messages to be read aloud–I'd imagine far fewer would have such a feature for Facebook Messenger.
Yeah, there are pros and cons to each method. I chose Facebook because everyone is identified by name in the conversation. If you expect that most of the messages will be from the host, text messages might be better.
Using Facebook Messenger is also an issue for those who are on Facebook but don't have the apps installed on their phone. Whenever I check Facebook on my phone, I just use the mobile website, but Facebook restricts the viewing of messages to get people to install Messenger. I'm pretty sure there's a loophole (at least there was, since I've used it) in requesting the desktop site, but that can be cumbersome. Any messages someone sends me on Facebook wait until I get home (or to my hotel) to my computer.
I kind of think this would be an issue no matter what platform was chosen. I have people who prefer to talk to me on Google Hangouts, but I don't check that as often as Facebook Messenger, and similarly, my messages to them via Messenger go unnoticed for longer periods of time. Then, since I'm also a Waze map editor, I'm on Discord, because they switched from Google Hangouts about a year ago.
The only sure way to work this would be group SMS texting, but that has its own issues.
And announcing ANYTHING on-the-fly would be problematic due to distracted driving. On the last (and only) roadmeet I attended, I was alone in my car with three dogs, having originally planned to attend with a passenger. I could have taken on passengers, as there was considerable car-switching during that meet IIRC, but I did not know anyone and did not realize that was an option. Plus, I was afraid my dogs would be less than friendly (which was an irrational fear; they just bark a lot with new people for a few minutes and then calm down).
I'm having a blast working on the Cincinnati itinerary, and there's no way it'll be just a "3-hour tour." So far, it comes out to 7 hours, but I can remove or add stops. I'm multiplying Google times by 1.5 to give people time to pee, poo, and get snacks along the way.
The itineraries on the roadmeets I've been to were much longer than 3 hours and I think some were 7.
Quote from: bandit957 on August 08, 2019, 10:59:50 AM
I'm having a blast working on the Cincinnati itinerary, and there's no way it'll be just a "3-hour tour." So far, it comes out to 7 hours, but I can remove or add stops. I'm multiplying Google times by 1.5 to give people time to pee, poo, and get snacks along the way.
The itineraries on the roadmeets I've been to were much longer than 3 hours and I think some were 7.
5-6 hours is fine. A general rule of thumb is to allow half an hour at each stop, more if there is a lot of walking involved.
Quote from: cl94 on August 08, 2019, 04:04:22 PM
5-6 hours is fine. A general rule of thumb is to allow half an hour at each stop, more if there is a lot of walking involved.
My itinerary actually has pretty many stops, but a few of them are just for a really old sign. Most of the waypoints are just drive-thru.
I've developed a method where we start with the nearest stop to the restaurant, then go to the nearest stop from there, and so on, until we're done with the stops. This lets us see more stops early in case we run out of time. Since it was proposed as the Ohio meet, I'm doing Ohio stops before Kentucky stops (of which there are a few).
Quote from: bandit957 on August 08, 2019, 04:33:48 PM
Quote from: cl94 on August 08, 2019, 04:04:22 PM
5-6 hours is fine. A general rule of thumb is to allow half an hour at each stop, more if there is a lot of walking involved.
My itinerary actually has pretty many stops, but a few of them are just for a really old sign. Most of the waypoints are just drive-thru.
I've developed a method where we start with the nearest stop to the restaurant, then go to the nearest stop from there, and so on, until we're done with the stops. This lets us see more stops early in case we run out of time. Since it was proposed as the Ohio meet, I'm doing Ohio stops before Kentucky stops (of which there are a few).
That's fairly typical. I tend to run mine in a loop, starting near the parking area for the extra vehicles, and looping back to there to end. That way, we're the furthest away nearest the midpoint of the tour.
Quote from: cl94 on August 08, 2019, 04:04:22 PM
Quote from: bandit957 on August 08, 2019, 10:59:50 AM
I'm having a blast working on the Cincinnati itinerary, and there's no way it'll be just a "3-hour tour." So far, it comes out to 7 hours, but I can remove or add stops. I'm multiplying Google times by 1.5 to give people time to pee, poo, and get snacks along the way.
The itineraries on the roadmeets I've been to were much longer than 3 hours and I think some were 7.
5-6 hours is fine. A general rule of thumb is to allow half an hour at each stop, more if there is a lot of walking involved.
Yeah. I think the 3-hour rule only gets brought up because of how overly vocal HB has been for years about that. Don't make it like 10 hours, but 5-6 is fine.
3 hours basically dates from when lunch was always at noon and people left around 5. These days lunch at 11 and wrapping sometime between 5 and 7 is more common.
Quote from: TheHighwayMan394 on August 08, 2019, 06:16:16 PM
Yeah. I think the 3-hour rule only gets brought up because of how overly vocal HB has been for years about that. Don't make it like 10 hours, but 5-6 is fine.
I will definitely admit to that. After too long, my attention span begins to wander. Plus, I usually have a hotel reservation made somewhere a couple of hours away for that night and am not a fan of driving after dark, so I typically like to be on my way to that destination in time to make it before the sun sets.
In the immortal words of Styx: "The time is drawing near..."
We're only 81 days away from the roadmeet to end all roadmeets. How long before the roadmeet should I make reservations at the restaurant? I know I have to wait until after I know how many people are showing up, but that time will come.
Also, should I make reservations for slightly more than that number in case someone decides at the last minute to show up?
Quote from: bandit957 on March 09, 2020, 09:54:10 PM
In the immortal words of Styx: "The time is drawing near..."
We're only 81 days away from the roadmeet to end all roadmeets. How long before the roadmeet should I make reservations at the restaurant? I know I have to wait until after I know how many people are showing up, but that time will come.
Also, should I make reservations for slightly more than that number in case someone decides at the last minute to show up?
Around 30 days.
Add confirmations from here with the maybes from FB and twitter (then subtract duplications) and request that number for seating. Seldom do roadgeeks show up unannounced at meets.
Let's say you have 12 yeses and 6 maybes. About 45 days out, call the restaurant and tell them you're expecting to have a group of about 15-20 people on the meet date. If the restaurant can't accommodate it, now you have enough time to find one that can. Unless the number changes dramatically (suddenly you have 26 yeses, for example), you can wait until about a week out before you give them a "final" number. So about 15 days before the meet, make one final announcement and ask all of the Maybes to please commit yes or no for a head count. If that gives you... let's say 19 yeses and still 2 maybes, tell the restaurant you're expecting 20 people but there could be up to 24. We've had meets where a few people just couldn't fit in the room because we underestimated.
Every restaurant that I ever dealt with was very understanding. I'd call and tell them that I was expecting a certain number of people but that number might be subject to change, and I would call them a day or two out with as firm of a number as I could obtain. Even if I didn't have a definite count, I'd call them, and I would tell them that there might be a couple more people show up. I was always told that it wouldn't be an issue.
As an aside, if I do another Pikeville meet, we'll have to find a new restaurant. Reno's Roadhouse, site of the lunch for the first two meets I did there, has closed. I've actually given some thought to hosting something once the new section of US 460 opens at the state line, since construction on the segment between KY 195 and KY 80 is well underway.
Quote from: hbelkins on March 12, 2020, 03:44:15 PM
Every restaurant that I ever dealt with was very understanding. I'd call and tell them that I was expecting a certain number of people but that number might be subject to change, and I would call them a day or two out with as firm of a number as I could obtain. Even if I didn't have a definite count, I'd call them, and I would tell them that there might be a couple more people show up. I was always told that it wouldn't be an issue.
As an aside, if I do another Pikeville meet, we'll have to find a new restaurant. Reno's Roadhouse, site of the lunch for the first two meets I did there, has closed. I've actually given some thought to hosting something once the new section of US 460 opens at the state line, since construction on the segment between KY 195 and KY 80 is well underway.
I was under the impression that Pikeville was doing better economically.
Quote from: Rothman on March 12, 2020, 04:20:40 PM
I was under the impression that Pikeville was doing better economically.
It is. There's been quite a bit of development there. A Texas Roadhouse opened in Pikevill a year or so ago, and I suspect it may have hurt the regional chain (Reno's.). The locations in Somerset (also the site of a meet I hosted years ago) and Prestonsburg have closed as well.
Quote from: hbelkins on March 14, 2020, 05:15:26 PM
Quote from: Rothman on March 12, 2020, 04:20:40 PM
I was under the impression that Pikeville was doing better economically.
It is. There's been quite a bit of development there. A Texas Roadhouse opened in Pikevill a year or so ago, and I suspect it may have hurt the regional chain (Reno's.). The locations in Somerset (also the site of a meet I hosted years ago) and Prestonsburg have closed as well.
I heard the Jerry's in Prestonsburg closed. My mother hated that place, but we ate there a couple of times since her sister's family loved it.
Not sure if any Jerry's Restaurants are left. There was one in Mt. Sterling, but it closed and was torn down to make room for a Steak 'n' Shake.
I loved their strawberry pie. Ate many a piece at the Morehead location when I was in college. And I was in their birthday club, so I got a free meal every December when I was growing up.
MODS: Might want to split some of this ancillary discussion off into one of the restaurant threads.