Delmarva Meet for March or April 2014 - Brainstorming Ideas

[hbelkins]

I learned a lot about meets by attending those that Adam and Jeff hosted.

[brianreynolds]

I'm a little bit late to the discussion, and my contributions might be received as unwelcome "wild cards".  I hope not.

I just read this entire thread for the first time, then read the tutorial on hosting road meets, also for the first time.  Everything said in the tutorial is good valid advice, but there are other options not covered.

The idea of two-day meets has faded or fallen into disfavor, but I don't know why.  The "National Meet" in Pittsburg a few years ago was great fun, with organized evening activities (Pirates game, boat ride on the river).  The Indianapolis meet was really good too, Day One for new I-69 south into Kentucky, Day Two for the old National Road west into Illinois.  Not everyone was along for both days, and that's OK.

The discussion so far has been that a Hampton Roads meet would collide with a Delmarva.meet.  Maybe it doesn't have to.  If both were scheduled for the same weekend, it would double the draw value for me.

Laura mentioned the possibility of starting a bit earlier than usual, maybe 10 AM, and getting in a couple hours before lunch.  I would like to endorse this option.  It worked very well for the meet in Michiana.  We met at a classic old very-early 20th century bridge, explored some abandoned alignments and a brand-new route, then went to lunch.  Not everyone participated in the early portion, and that's OK. 

A two-day meet, with optional segments each day, would allow individual participants to choose what is of interest, and what their personal time constraints would allow.  It doesn't have to be one-size-fits-all.

[oscar]

Laura mentioned the possibility of starting a bit earlier than usual, maybe 10 AM, and getting in a couple hours before lunch.  I would like to endorse this option.  It worked very well for the meet in Michiana.  We met at a classic old very-early 20th century bridge, explored some abandoned alignments and a brand-new route, then went to lunch.  Not everyone participated in the early portion, and that's OK.

One reason why I like meets to start with lunch is that if some people run a little late, they might have to rush their lunch but at least they can connect up with the rest of the group before the group hits the road.  Laura's suggestion has the advantage of giving the stragglers a second chance to connect with the group.  Up to her whether to let stragglers try to join the pre-lunch tour in progress, or tell them to just go straight to the lunch place.  If I were hosting, I'd lean to the latter, to minimize the hassles of trying to coordinate with the late arrivals at the same time I was managing the pre-lunch tour.

The discussion so far has been that a Hampton Roads meet would collide with a Delmarva.meet.  Maybe it doesn't have to.  If both were scheduled for the same weekend, it would double the draw value for me.

A double-header meet would have to start on Friday (which means for most people taking another day off), or end on Sunday (a problem for people going to church that morning, or who want to use Sunday as a travel day so they can get to work on Monday).  Even before I retired, I was sometimes OK with multi-day meets (like the Chicago national meet of 2008, Thursday evening-Saturday evening, with Thursday and Sunday as my travel days), but that's just me and some others.

[hbelkins]

Laura mentioned the possibility of starting a bit earlier than usual, maybe 10 AM, and getting in a couple hours before lunch.  I would like to endorse this option.  It worked very well for the meet in Michiana.  We met at a classic old very-early 20th century bridge, explored some abandoned alignments and a brand-new route, then went to lunch.  Not everyone participated in the early portion, and that's OK.

If this was the meet that featured the lunch at the sporting goods store in Edwardsburg, then I drove up just for the lunch that day. This was before I got into making multi-day trips to attend meets. It was raining that day, and there were some real concerns about flooding in Kentucky that day. I drove up to Edwardsburg via I-74 and US 31, then back after lunch via basically IN 29, US 421 and I-65.

In fact, the first few meets I attended, I just came for the lunch and didn't do the tour afterwards.

If the construction projects in the Lexington area that I expect to start next year actually do begin, I'm planning on doing a tour-lunch-finish tour meet for that one. And as I alluded to in your roadtrip post, I've toyed with the idea of doing a western Kentucky meet that would be a loop tour that would include lunch en route. If the US 68 Kentucky Lake bridge goes to bid later this year and construction gets started next year, this would be a good meet since it would allow us to drive over the replacement span for the bridge that got taken out by a ship last year.

[brianreynolds]

A double-header meet would have to start on Friday (which means for most people taking another day off), or end on Sunday (a problem for people going to church that morning, or who want to use Sunday as a travel day so they can get to work on Monday).  Even before I retired, I was sometimes OK with multi-day meets (like the Chicago national meet of 2008, Thursday evening-Saturday evening, with Thursday and Sunday as my travel days), but that's just me and some others.

Hello, Oscar.  I wanted to be there, but I was not able to make the 2009 Chicago meet because of family obligations. 

It is true that only a limited number of people would be able to take in all of a two-day meet, but the same could be said of a one-day meet.  A two-day meet (and possibly two segments each day) could offer choices.  Participants could opt in or out of segments based on individual resources, time, and interest.

Options are good.  Complications are bad.  Ultimately, the hosts should make the decision. 

[Takumi]

I dare say that Hampton Roads itself has enough points of interest that it could be conceivably turned into a two-day meet. I joked the other night in the chat that I could create a meet just looking at bad signage in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and Suffolk.

[froggie]

I joked the other night in the chat that I could create a meet just looking at bad signage in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and Suffolk.

In part because it'd take on a full day just to drive to it all.


Back on subject, I can see where there would be some appeal to having back-to-back meets on adjacent days in adjacent regions.  But I think Oscar's spot on regarding the disadvantages to this, especially for those who travel longer distances to attend meets (which is the norm moreso than the exception).  To use yesterday's Burlington meet as an example, of the 11 attendees, only 3 of us had what was less than a 3-hour drive to get there (or get back afterwards).

[Duke87]

Yeah, but Vermont isn't exactly a population center. A two day meet would be more appealing if you did it in a place where more people are semi-local. I believe the planned NYC meet next year will be like this which is dandy because there are plenty of us within a few hours' drive and also plenty of other things to do if someone non-local wants to make a full vacation out of it.

The other thing is, you have the option of attending one day but not both if that better suits your schedule.

As for the specific case here, I'd definitely be up for Hampton Roads on Saturday and something else further north on Sunday.

[froggie]

Vermont may not have been the best example, but it's the first one I thought of since we just had it.  As I recall, we've had both SEPA and Raleigh meets where the majority of attendees came from several hours (or more) away.

[hbelkins]

Vermont may not have been the best example, but it's the first one I thought of since we just had it.  As I recall, we've had both SEPA and Raleigh meets where the majority of attendees came from several hours (or more) away.

At Pikeville, I was the only "local" there and I was two hours from home. Next closest was Michael Summa, about 3 1/2 hours away.

[SSOWorld]

Vermont may not have been the best example, but it's the first one I thought of since we just had it.  As I recall, we've had both SEPA and Raleigh meets where the majority of attendees came from several hours (or more) away.

At Pikeville, I was the only "local" there and I was two hours from home. Next closest was Michael Summa, about 3 1/2 hours away.

When I did Wausau, the closest anyone not me was 1 hour away (Appleton) with a couple from 3-4 hours away (Milwaukee and Chicago).  The reset were from 6+ (some because they'd have to swim otherwise.   For the Dubuque one earlier this year it was more of a local mix (1-3 hrs away) with a handful from further out. because of the proximity (I kind of liked it better since I didn't have to overnight).

[brianreynolds]

The other thing is, you have the option of attending one day but not both if that better suits your schedule.

As for the specific case here, I'd definitely be up for Hampton Roads on Saturday and something else further north on Sunday.

Me too.

At each of the two-day meets I attended, there was some measure of attrition along the way.  The second day was attended by roughly half the number as the first.  However, in both cases, I enjoyed the second day every bit as much as the first.   

The number of attendees is an obvious way to measure success, but not the only way.  Sometimes, less is more, especially for the host.  Herding a few cats is easier than herding a few dozen.

[Laura]

The other thing is, you have the option of attending one day but not both if that better suits your schedule.

As for the specific case here, I'd definitely be up for Hampton Roads on Saturday and something else further north on Sunday.

Me too.

At each of the two-day meets I attended, there was some measure of attrition along the way.  The second day was attended by roughly half the number as the first.  However, in both cases, I enjoyed the second day every bit as much as the first.   

The number of attendees is an obvious way to measure success, but not the only way.  Sometimes, less is more, especially for the host.  Herding a few cats is easier than herding a few dozen.

I never considered this idea before, but I really like it. It makes the most sense to me for the Hampton Roads Meet to be on the Saturday and for Delmarva to be on Sunday. I know this favors the northeastern crowd, who would be heading in that direction on Sunday anyway. Unfortunately, this setup would not favor the southern crowd, and would see an increased drop in numbers from those people.

I guess if Froggie and I set dates for a double meet and there was a huge attendance drop for Sunday, then the Sunday Delmarva portion could just be postponed for a Saturday in the future. Unless you are super opposed to this idea, Froggie?

Mike was talking a little about this proposed meet in the truck with me Saturday [Oct 19].... He mentioned a number of things that would be appealing from a traditional meet sense, including the dualization of 404 (which, from what I understand, is sorely needed).

Yes indeed. There's a good amount of stuff to see from a traditional meet sense. We were looking at the central part of the peninsula, where 404 is, and have accumulated lots of good ideas for meet routes and stops.

[froggie]

I'm not averse to the idea if there's enough of a "following".  Timing of when to hold the meet is still very much up in the air though, between winter weather, my retirement preps, planned leave, etc etc.  At this point, would also like to hold out for more daylight plus more visible progress on the Midtown Tunnel project.

[brianreynolds]

I'm not averse to the idea if there's enough of a "following".  Timing of when to hold the meet is still very much up in the air though, between winter weather, my retirement preps, planned leave, etc etc.  At this point, would also like to hold out for more daylight plus more visible progress on the Midtown Tunnel project.

Regarding daylight hours, I agree.  In the spring, later is better.  In the fall, ... well, you can do the math.

[Alps]

The other thing is, you have the option of attending one day but not both if that better suits your schedule.

As for the specific case here, I'd definitely be up for Hampton Roads on Saturday and something else further north on Sunday.

Me too.

At each of the two-day meets I attended, there was some measure of attrition along the way.  The second day was attended by roughly half the number as the first.  However, in both cases, I enjoyed the second day every bit as much as the first.   

Part of the challenge I face with the NYC National Meet is making the second day different enough that it draws the same crowd. That means more than just different roads or a different side of the river. This may be where I debut the "road rallye" style of meet, where cars have cryptic directions that need to be solved, questions answered, and scores to beat. Another option is to do a walking trip or a transit day pass on the second day. The Indy meet had one day that went in a long loop to Evansville, and another that stayed around the city.

[froggie]

Metro-North to Poughkeepsie and the Walkway Over The Hudson?

[froggie]

Laura, if I did Hampton Roads on 3/22, would a Delmarva meet work on 3/23?

[Laura]

Laura, if I did Hampton Roads on 3/22, would a Delmarva meet work on 3/23?

Yes it would!

[brianreynolds]

Laura, if I did Hampton Roads on 3/22, would a Delmarva meet work on 3/23?

Yes it would!

Can/should I mark this on my calendar?  Are you ready to commit to these dates?  I am really looking forward to this.

[froggie]

I've penciled in something for the 22nd, whether it be DC or Norfolk.  Can't commit yet, but I'd say it's pretty likely.

[hbelkins]

Now that Froggie has scheduled Hampton Roads for March 22, I'm looking forward to the details of this meet. If my tax refund come in time, this is very do-able for me. I just need to figure out how much ground I can make westward on Sunday after the Delmarva meet and if I need to plan to be off work on Tuesday as well as Monday.

[Duke87]

At the moment it's looking like I will be skipping Hampton Roads but attending Delmarva. Were it not the weekend before Nashville I might consider both.

[SSOWorld]

The other thing is, you have the option of attending one day but not both if that better suits your schedule.

As for the specific case here, I'd definitely be up for Hampton Roads on Saturday and something else further north on Sunday.

Me too.

At each of the two-day meets I attended, there was some measure of attrition along the way.  The second day was attended by roughly half the number as the first.  However, in both cases, I enjoyed the second day every bit as much as the first.   

Part of the challenge I face with the NYC National Meet is making the second day different enough that it draws the same crowd. That means more than just different roads or a different side of the river. This may be where I debut the "road rallye" style of meet, where cars have cryptic directions that need to be solved, questions answered, and scores to beat. Another option is to do a walking trip or a transit day pass on the second day. The Indy meet had one day that went in a long loop to Evansville, and another that stayed around the city.

Perhaps a good thing I intend to buy a week-long pass

A challenge with NJ Transit (esp the trains) is that week-long passes only go for the calendar week. and I don't see the option for busses. (I would prefer to avoid busses in the area.  DISCLAIMER: I can't make any assumptions not knowing the area

Metro-North to Poughkeepsie and the Walkway Over The Hudson?

hmm - a nice thought (I did miss the Poughkeepsie meet held back in (2009).  Are NY commuter trains frequent enough to allow for flexibility? (also I did the plan on MTA's site and it looks like 2 hr one way (1:47 to be exact) and fare of $17 from GCT.)

anyway - back on topic...

Laura, if I did Hampton Roads on 3/22, would a Delmarva meet work on 3/23?

Yes it would!

I would love to do these - but having committed to NYC, I can't do this one (or these two ) as I'm saving vacation time for the former.  I've also already committed to Starved Rock (IL - Day trip), and considered St Louis, but it's not likely that I'll go to that one.

[Laura]

Awesome. Mike and I will be scouting this meet over the coming weekend and will post an itinerary shortly afterwards.