2013 Upstate NY Road Meet - Binghamton - August 10, 2013

[Dougtone]

This wasn't posted here, yet there's been a Facebook invite for a while for the Binghamton meet.  Anyway, the meet is being hosted by Dylan Lainhart, but I am having a hand in getting the meet announced and can take RSVPs (e-mailing me at dougtone@gmail.com would be dandy if you need send me an e-mail).

It's time for NYSDOT's biggest summer project: Kamikaze Curve! Join us in sunny Binghamton, New York, for the first of what may be many roadgeek meets around this project, slated to be finished in 2019, which means 2025.  There will be other sights to be seen as well in the Binghamton area as the meet goes.

Lunch would start at noon. The Park Diner's an excellent place, not just a diner. It offers a beautiful view of the mighty Susquehanna River at Rock Bottom Dam, from which you can see NY 363 cross over itself.

The Park Diner is located at 119 Conklin Ave.; Binghamton, NY 13903.

EDIT: ***LUNCH LOCATION CHANGED***

Lunch will now be at CyberCafe West, 176 Main St., Binghamton, NY 13905, immediately east of Beethoven St and Laurel Ave, across the street from Bates-Troy (a dry cleaner), between the fire station and Wendy's.  Main St. is signed as NY 17C.

https://www.facebook.com/events/145268798959707/

[hbelkins]

I had hoped to come to this but can't, since I have a conference in Louisville the first three days of that week and a wedding in Maryland the following weekend. I will try to make a future Binghamton meet as the project progresses.

[jpi]

Can't make this either, especailly since I will be at same wedding in MD the next weekend, I will probably be working some O.T. the weekend of this road meet. Have fun guys!

[Duke87]

I will be there. The question is whether I shall do it as a simple day trip, or get a room for Saturday night and do more with it.

[vdeane]

Definitely a day trip for me.  My trip back is only two hours, and that's going a little out of my way.  My trip down, going a lot out of my way, is three.

[empirestate]

I have no idea yet if I'll be able to go, so I'll just bump myself into this thread to remind myself as it approaches.

[Dr Frankenstein]

This may conflict with my vacation and/or preparation to attend a wedding. Mayyybe.

[getemngo]

Never been to a New York meet before. But it so happens that I'm probably heading from Michigan to New Hampshire the weekend of this meet, so perhaps I'll need to make a detour here. Odds are slim, but greater than zero.

[PHLBOS]

I'll be down in Ocean City, NJ that weekend, so I will not be able to attend.

[Duke87]

Looks like I will be doing it as a day trip, which will mean bouncing as soon as the tour concludes.

[Dougtone]

It will be kind of a day trip for me.  I've been debating whether to go to Scranton after the meet or to head back up to my family's cabin between Oneonta and Cobleskill after the meet.

[Janko Dialnice]

As I have posted on the meet's FB page, I won't be able to attend, since I have to work. My boss won't be back in the office until the 12th, so I still have to cover the server maintenance.

[dlainhart]

Hey everyone, I'm popping in to make last call for RSVP (not including safety factors).

My entire world has been flipped upside down approximately five and a half times since I announced the meet, and I am basically throwing this together in the next three days. Given that it's been about two or three months since I last called the Park Diner and that's been on my to-do list (along with scheduling a dental cleaning) for approximately all summer. Now that my world is safely spinning on the correct axis at the correct orientation and I've glued myself back together after a spectacularly messy breakup, I might be making a last-minute change-of-locale for lunch. By "last-minute," I mean Thursday, Friday if I mess it up.

AS PROMISED, I CHANGED THE LOCATION ON THURSDAY AT NOON. Scroll down for details, or at the least be at Cyber Cafe West, 176 Main St, Binghamton, NY 13905 at 12:00 PM, Saturday August 10, 2013.

Either way, I'll need a headcount from here, and I'll be taking a headcount for the meet event on Facebook. If you could, it'd lower my blood pressure a bit to reply in both places. Until now, I've been paying attention exclusively to the Facebook event.

@getupngo: It would be lovely to meet you and welcome you into the fold. You should come, especially if this is your first Upstate meet.

RSVPs can also be emailed to dlainhart@gmail.com.

[empirestate]

Looks like it will be New England for me instead; going up there for the MacDowell Colony's medal ceremony on Sunday.

[dlainhart]

***LUNCH LOCATION CHANGED***

Lunch will now be at CyberCafe West, 176 Main St., Binghamton, NY 13905, immediately east of Beethoven St and Laurel Ave, across the street from Bates-Troy, between the fire station and Wendy's. Contrary to the name, this is Binghamton's primary Westside outpost for artists/bohemians/eccentrics/hippie scum. I spend a lot of time (and money) here and I can vouch for its excellence. The location is on NY 17C, Main St at Beethoven St (more precisely, Main St at Laurel Ave).

The pronunciation of Beethoven St as [bə'þoʊ.vn̩] ("buh-THOW-ven" with the middle syllable as in "throw" but without the "r" part) has died out, but the pronunciation of Leroy St as "luh-ROY" is going strong, still roughly substitutable with "LEE-roy", but more frequently as you get to the older end of Lurroye St between Front St and Buhthowven St.

Lunch features an excellent selection of wraps, platters, sandwiches, coffee, beer, coffee drinks, espresso drinks, beer, egg creams, Italian sodas, wine, soft drinks, and beer. Did I mention they have a fantastic beer selection?

Here are directions to Cyber Cafe West from the Park Diner. Follow these if you end up lonely at the Park Diner–you won't mess these up and you won't spoil the fun of the tour.

***LUNCH LOCATION CHANGED***

[empirestate]

I'd expect "luh-ROY", as it matches the name of the town and village in Genesee County.

[dlainhart]

Thanks to all who came. I'm glad people enjoyed it despite the thrown-together chaos that ensued.

Sure didn't expect to be in the ER the next morning. That's luck...

[Janko Dialnice]

Sorry that I missed this meet. I know the signage will be gone soon, but I have enough memories of passing through there as a kid (from Scranton to Mygatt Street or Endicott and back), and the signs there have been well photographed.

I also hope that you are doing better, Dylan.

[empirestate]

So, how did the meet go? There are obviously stories!

[vdeane]

We went around Kamikaze Curve about a million times.

[empirestate]

Anybody get a photo? Was Dylan's hospital trip related to meet activities?

[Duke87]

Dylan's trip to the ER was unrelated to the meet.

As for photos, here's one courtesy of Doug:

Mark Sinsabaugh, Michael Temme-Soifer, Chris Jordan, Keith Thomas, Valerie Deane, Leigh Koven, Anthony Costanzo, Dylan Lainhart, Chris Curley, C Patrick Zilliacus, Doug Kerr, Timothy Forbes

[hbelkins]

Doug didn't have his Fathead?

[Alps]

Doug didn't have his Fathead?

The Fathead was still on Kamikaze Curve.

[dlainhart]

My ER visit was approximately 10-12 hours after the meet. The time in between consisted of a nap, five shots of gin, a shot of Wild Turkey 101, a pint of Yuengling, hideous pain, profuse vomiting, and another two hour nap, upon which I woke up with the vague idea that I should probably be in the emergency room, so to speak. I was back twelve hours later, as the antibiotics killed everything but the staph.