Pittsburgh - August 10th, 2019

[rickmastfan67]

Itinerary complete! Draft one, that is. This will also be posted on the Facebook page for suggestions. Still need somebody to scout, especially the PA 576 area.

Itinerary

Still need to mention that PA-576 is a TOLL highway, so, having an EZ-Pass would be a good thing unless you want a bill in the mail as it's now cashless.

[Alps]

I would not have people pay to take the meet photo. Put the hill climb as an optional pre-meet activity at 10:30, and have the lunch at 11 or 11:30.

[mattpedersen]

I am 95% positive I'll be there at this point, I don't see any conflicting leave requests at work. I likely will come into town on Thursday or Friday, and then leave town Sunday to spend the rest of the week at Deep Creek Lake.

[noelbotevera]

Second draft...complete! I've added some warnings, and chose to add a stop (the Squirrel Hill Tunnel). One again, I'll accept suggestions and make edits where necessary.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nn2wmcgFAHbPlWg4uPzLw-075HChJqiPtzcScl8OqmU/edit?usp=sharing

[rickmastfan67]

Might want to mention the merging issue here:
"Taking I-279 South to the end, merge onto I-376 West."

That has, and always is a very troublesome merge.  I honestly can count on 1 hand how many times I've not had issues doing it, and it's mostly been @ night.

[PAHighways]

I was through the 837/885 interchange just yesterday, and I would chuck the route that takes people out to Becks Run.  It may look short on a map but it takes awhile to get there, and there is nowhere suitable to turn around a caravan of vehicles.

[rickmastfan67]

Just going to throw this out here:
https://www.wtae.com/article/monongahela-incline-to-remain-closed-until-may/27210760

Hopefully, everything will go as planned, but who knows.

[rickmastfan67]

Might want to mention the merging issue here:
"Taking I-279 South to the end, merge onto I-376 West."

That has, and always is a very troublesome merge.  I honestly can count on 1 hand how many times I've not had issues doing it, and it's mostly been @ night.

noelbotevera, it seems you're confused as to where the issue is.

Taking I-279 South to the end, merge onto I-376 West. THIS IS A WEAVE. BE PREPARED TO MOVE FAST. If you do miss your exit, you can exit onto Ft. Duquesne Blvd. (left lane), and make your way through downtown, merging onto I-376 at the south end of town.

That 'weave' you mention there isn't really an issue as there's not too much traffic normally coming from PA-65.  It's the one on the Ft. Pitt Bridge itself (this one).  You have WB I-376 traffic, the traffic from Liberty Ave (which has a 'STOP' sign and merges into I-279 SB traffic just before I-376), & I-279 SB traffic.  And I-376 (now) has default 2 lanes that go thru the tunnel, and those are the left lanes.

So, pretty much, you have to be in the 'right thru' lane on I-279 going onto the Fort Duquesne Bridge so you can merge one lane to the right, so that you can be in the left lane on the approach to the Fort Pitt Bridge so you have less of a problem getting into the #2 lane on that bridge.  Otherwise, you'll be forced off onto PA-837 towards the West End Circle.

[74/171FAN]

Otherwise, you'll be forced off onto PA-857 towards the West End Circle.

PA 857 should have been PA 837.  PA 857 only exists south of Uniontown to the east of PA 43.

[rickmastfan67]

Otherwise, you'll be forced off onto PA-857 towards the West End Circle.

PA 857 should have been PA 837.  PA 857 only exists south of Uniontown to the east of PA 43.

Fixed. lol.  Must have been typing fast and didn't notice that mistake.

[okroads]

Unfortunately, this is on the one weekend I have to work due to a large event in downtown Columbus, so I will not be able to attend.

[Alps]

For a post-meet event, how about a Riverhounds home game vs. Swope Park (Rangers) at their home stadium (Highmark)? On the other hand, the Steelers' pre-season schedule has yet to be finalized, although there is a game to be scheduled the weekend of the meet at Heinz Field vs. Tampa Bay.

Update: https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/05/01/caliente-pizza-best-in-america/

Update2: No, no it isn't.

[noelbotevera]

I guess since I've been silent on itinerary updates, it's time to consider lunch. I've since revisited Pittsburgh (for a ramp festival by the PA/WV line, if you're wondering), and struck out the Strip District. Even at 8 PM on a Saturday night can parking be an issue, even though most famed stores are already closed (e.g. Wholey's). Finally, I'm tempted to toss PA 28 in favor of the mosaic...though I'm not sure how many people would appreciate that.

It also seems the Mon Incline was down for maintenance when I was there, so for now the pre-meet will probably be the Duquesne Incline.

Some options I've considered:

-Butler St. in Lawrenceville (too far?)
-Eat n' Park locations (haven't seen a map for those)
-Homestead area, especially The Waterfront (it's a mall)
-Station Square (depends on how many attend Mt. Washington...if it's 8+ this'll probably become lunch)
-Any Primanti Bros in the area

Postmeet options:

-Kennywood (cheaper tickets too!)
-Monroeville Mall
-Nike missile sites (I know of one in Coraopolis and another between Plum and Murrysville)
-Bridge tour (West End, Three Sisters, maybe McKees Rocks?)
-Tunnel tour (Wabash, Armstrong, Liberty...Fort Pitt is easy to get)

Note: Due to high school finals, I probably won't be posting as often. I'll review the forum + Facebook as needed, but mightn't respond.

[rickmastfan67]

It also seems the Mon Incline was down for maintenance when I was there, so for now the pre-meet will probably be the Duquesne Incline.

https://www.wtae.com/article/monongahela-incline-to-remain-closed-until-may/27210760

It should be back up online by the time of the meet.

Some options I've considered:

-Eat n' Park locations (haven't seen a map for those)

https://www.google.com/maps/search/eat'n+park/@40.4609031,-80.0471626,12.25z

That shows all the Eat'n Park's close to the Downtown area.

[noelbotevera]

I've done another poll reset for postmeet activities. I'll tally up the votes on here and Facebook, and whichever wins gets a spot on the itinerary.

[Alps]

I've done another poll reset for postmeet activities. I'll tally up the votes on here and Facebook, and whichever wins gets a spot on the itinerary.

Post meet doesn't need to be as structured. You could have two suggested events and let people decide from there.

[noelbotevera]

I've since refined the itinerary to include the tunnel mosaic and the "parkway" portion of Bigelow Boulevard, replacing new PA 28. I'm not sure how parking in downtown Pittsburgh is - especially during a weekend - but it seems that parking is provided along the streets, and the area by the beginning of Bigelow does have a fair amount of parking. I've also included post-meet ideas, chose Homestead as lunch, and included estimated time stamps for each stop.

[rickmastfan67]

noelbotevera, the Mon Incline just reopened today, so that idea is still good to go.   (& the power outage was fixed fast, lol.)

https://twitter.com/LizKilmerWPXI/status/1126819659800547328

[cl94]

I'm going to downgrade my status to "questionable" for this meet. I'm leaving for a 9-day trip to the Rockies four days after the meet, so I don't think I'll be able to swing a long weekend in Pittsburgh. I'll definitely be there in spirit!

[Alps]

Just a heads up that this meet will be held the exact same weekend as the Steel City Con, which is scheduled to be held at the Monroeville Convention Center, which is directly across from the Monroeville Mall.

Our nerds are better than their nerds.

[hbelkins]

Just a heads up that this meet will be held the exact same weekend as the Steel City Con, which is scheduled to be held at the Monroeville Convention Center, which is directly across from the Monroeville Mall.

Our nerds are better than their nerds.

We have at least one nerd amongst who used to be a frequent vendor at Steel City Con until their fees went way up.

[CanesFan27]

Just a heads up that this meet will be held the exact same weekend as the Steel City Con, which is scheduled to be held at the Monroeville Convention Center, which is directly across from the Monroeville Mall. I have decided to move the hotel I was looking at away from there and back to the Pittsburgh Airport/Robinson Township area.

Somehow, I think the meet- if it occurs - will survive.

[jpi]

Just a heads up that this meet will be held the exact same weekend as the Steel City Con, which is scheduled to be held at the Monroeville Convention Center, which is directly across from the Monroeville Mall.

Our nerds are better than their nerds.

We have at least one nerd amongst who used to be a frequent vendor at Steel City Con until their fees went way up.

Yes and that was me and no I am no longer a vendor there but it is a fairly big draw and yes the meet will survive with this event going on, I am still a 75% yes on attending the meet.

[Alps]

My notes have an entry, "PA 130 embossed shield on old alignment near old 993 text sign". I don't see any old alignments near PA 130/993. Any idea what this note might be?

[rickmastfan67]

My notes have an entry, "PA 130 embossed shield on old alignment near old 993 text sign". I don't see any old alignments near PA 130/993. Any idea what this note might be?

My guess would be somewhere in Turtle Creek maybe?