Mark your calendars, ladies and germs. The latest installment of NJ road meets is coming and this time, we won't get anyone towed! RSVP any time you like.
Date: August 13
Rain date: August 14
Time: 11:30
Location: Prestige Diner, E. Windsor
Directions: NJ 33 Eastbound one light east of NJ 133 (East from NJ Turnpike Exit 8). If coming from NJ 33 west, use the jughandle (bear right) at Twin Rivers/Cranbury Sta. and turn left.
Itinerary:
After lunch, the day starts with a tour of Interchange 8. Whether it's a guided tour is still up in the air, but I'll do my best. From there we'll head up the Turnpike an exit, checking out the widening construction, and clinch NJ 32. We'll head up to the Traffic Management Center, where you'll be treated to a tour of NJ's state of the art facility that coordinates traffic operations for the entire state! After that, we'll make our way back slowly, checking out along the way some or all of the following: the new NJ 18 freeway in New Brunswick (and NJ 172 roundabouts, perhaps), US 1 overpass construction (amusing error shields), a town-maintained county route expressway, an 18th century bridge at Kingston, little NJ 64 at Princeton Junction, and finishing up with a clinch of NJ 133.
RSVP: E-mail is simplest - webmaster@alpsroads.net. The Facebook page is at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=180200268699957 - you can RSVP there as well.
After the meet: If we can hold it on the 13th, there will be a Trenton Thunder baseball game that evening. You're all invited! RSVP not necessary.
You know I'll be there! Looking forward to it!
As I said on the Facebook page, it's a may be. There is a chance I could be up in New York that weekend.
As my Facebook RSVP indicates, this is a maybe. Hopefully the time and resources are there, considering you gave me over two months' notice.
Yep, as I said, RSVP any time you like, just getting this announcement out there before I forget.
I almost picked August 13 for a potential Williamsport meet, but backed off since it was too close to the start of the Little League World Series.
Well within my range, so I'm in no question.
I wish I could go. Interestingly, I know exactly where this place is despite having spent all of 1 hour in the area. :P
I could bike to East Windsor if I felt like it. Definitely. :)
Wow. Will have to make a definite decision closer to the meet.
Quote from: Roadgeek Adam on June 10, 2011, 12:01:01 AM
I could bike to East Windsor if I felt like it. Definitely. :)
As could I since I already live here. :)
Even though it's mostly visiting stuff I've already come to know and hate (especially Route 18), I'm thinking about joining this as my first meet for this kind of event.
Hey, come for the lunch, stay for the tour (possibly tours), and you can skip the rest if you like. Maybe come back at the end for some baseball.
Will RSVP closer to the meet date; it shouldn't be much of a problem though.
Speaking of which, any date we should RSVP by? I'm thinking of attending both this and New Haven but would rather RSVP closer to the meets.
No prob. No fixed RSVP until I find out about tours.
You better believe that I'll be there (unless circumstances change, of course).
I'm definitely in. I used to live in East Windsor, so I'm really interested in seeing what's new (and if the tour of ops happens, even better!).
Like with New Haven, I have to decide on a route for this meet, and I figured I might as well ask now while I'm thinking about it. More or less the same start and end; I was thinking NY 17/future I-86 to I-87, I-87 to I-287, and I-287 to I-95, ending with I-95 south. Heading back, I-95 to I-80, I-80 to I-380, and I-380 to I-81 (then same as for New Haven). Could also clinch NY 17 if I were to clinch future I-86 heading to or from New Haven; also though about clinching most of I-278 and I-87, but between traffic and tolls in NYC I don't think it's worth it.
http://cmap.m-plex.com/stat/travsummary.php?u=deanej&du=mi&sort=ra
Well as it turns out, I'll be able to attend this (unless something comes up of course)!
Now that both Wausau and New Haven have fallen through, I'm putting this on the radar screen and am going to try to make it. I can still get some of the interstate mileage that I hoped to get with the New Haven trip, but looks like I'll have to forego an excursion on the Merritt Turnpike.
Will let you know closer to the date. Still dealing with an unwell kitty so I will be iffy right up until the eve of departure, but I'm going to shoot for it.
Awesome, HB. I'll re-propagandize the meet shortly.
I'll have to watch the weather, though. Won't be able to do the rain date, just the Saturday. And won't be able to do the post-meet baseball game, either.
And still planning to get some New York route-clinching in on this trip, although no Merritt Parkway excursion this time.
Good morning all, now that I'm awake, and now that we've enjoyed the New Haven meet, it's time to officially announce the 2011 Central NJ Road Meet. (Some of you have been calling this the Trenton meet, but I'm not even sure we'll be entering Trenton! We might, though, by popular acclaim...) Please RSVP through personal message here, or any of my email addresses you may know. Facebook RSVP is also acceptable. Details are at the beginning of this thread (https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=4790.msg104279#msg104279).
In looking at the Trenton Thunder schedule, the team is in Harrisburg on 8/13...bummer. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/schedule/index.jsp?sid=t567&m=08&y=2011
In fact, the Lakewood Blueclaws and the Camden Riversharks are all out of town as well. However, the Somerset Patriots, who play right off of I-287 and US 46, will be home that night, playing the York Revolution that night. Tickets start at $7. Just a thought.
Thanks Rob, they've changed the schedule since I first posted! I know you meant US 22 when you typed 46. But that is indeed very convenient to the meet, so that's where we'll head!
Thanks for bailing me out on the mistake, Steve! I was a little tired when I typed it, and I should know better, since I've driven that stretch before. The Patriots play in a nice ballpark, and are managed by Sparky Lyle (former Yankees closer and 1977 Cy Young winner, for those who didn't know). It's Indy baseball, but hey, it's still baseball!
Although not on the official itinerary, the US 206 Hillsborough Bypass is currently under construction. It's going to be a super-2 with a grade seperation at CR 514/Amwell Road. It is not too far out of the way from New Brunswick (via CR 514) where can we bridge the gap between New Brunswick and Princeton (via CR 518 from US 206 and then connect with NJ 27 to check out the Stone Arch Bridge in Kingston).
In planning for my possible attendance at this meet, I'm going to attempt to recreate the route I had planned for the New Haven meet, which I didn't get to attend. Basically this will involve me spending Friday night in the Norwalk, Conn. area.
So, what is traffic usually like on a Saturday morning on I-287 westbound/southbound (Cross-Westchester, Tappan Zee, NY Thruway, then south into New Jersey and all the way around to the Turnpike?)
Google and other mapping sites/apps generally estimate a drive time of between 2 and 2.5 hours from Norwalk to the meet site. Of course that's under ideal conditions. Would there be anything on a Saturday morning that would cause significant delays?
Looking forward to this meet. I may miss lunch as I will be taking a friend to PHL airport around 11:30, but that'll allow me to get up to the Diner/Hightstown/East Windsor area around 12:30.
Belkins - in general there isn't anything too alarming at that time, unless there's some unusual construction activity going on.
Well, an accident on the Tappan Zee (https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ND98pbYBqPUf28acTRBgqQ?feat=directlink) can cause major delays at pretty much any time.
H.B., you aren't going to have a problem on Saturday morning on that route. Friday afternoons are another story...
Steve, how are we doing ticketing for the Patriots game? Are you going to order group tickets and have us pay you, similar to what was done for the Hockey game several months ago?
We'll figure that out when we get around to it - I'm not preordering anything.
Somerset averages 5368 per game in a stadium that holds 6100. The game might sellout, but that's a chance we'll take, I guess.
Last game I went to in June was pretty full, but we had no problem getting 8 front row 1st base line tickets for $13 a piece.
Worst case, no baseball. I'd rather not make people commit in advance, since I'm hoping to maximize the number who I can persuade!
One more work week to go! We have over 20 RSVPs already, so there's a chance we could break the record set in Baltimore! I'll make sure we have plenty of room for everyone, and look forward to seeing everyone there!
Well, two of the three friends I mentioned are definite nos. Still need to extract an answer from the third...
Just a friendly reminder that we're going to have a packed day on Saturday, so I'm starting a half-hour earlier than most meet lunches - at 11:30 - plan accordingly! I've worked the meet so that the featured Interchange 8 SPUI is the last stop - if you can't attend the whole meet, you might want to consider arriving at 11 or earlier so you can check it out yourself. It's just one light to the west on Route 33.
If I have to be there by 11:30, then I'll be coming down Friday night. I'll go back up north Sunday afternoon.
What time do you plan on leaving the diner and getting on the road?
Seeing that the start time of 11:30 AM has been emphasized, in order for me to accomplish my other purpose of the trip (route clinching), I will have to check out of the motel and hit the road around 8:00, so as not to be late.
As far as any post-meet activities are concerned, I might forego the baseball game, and visit a friend in Waterbury, CT instead (I will find out for sure on Thursday night). Again, that raises a couple of questions. I want to check out CT 8 in that case, and, according to Google Maps, it will take me three hours to get to his place. Is that a valid time estimate? Does I-95 in NY or CT get congested on weekend evenings? Also, what is the current eastbound toll for the George Washington Bridge?
As of last meet, the EB toll for the GWB is $8 without EZPass.
When I went on I-95 home after New Haven, there was a lot of traffic but it was moving at 65 mph.
I'm out. You guys have a good time.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on August 09, 2011, 08:36:34 AM
What time do you plan on leaving the diner and getting on the road?
By 1:30, hopefully even by 1:15 to start the tour, so that we can return in the 5:30-5:45 window.
Do you have any recommendations for roads in the region to check out that aren't on the tour?
Quote from: dlainhart on August 11, 2011, 10:58:57 PM
Do you have any recommendations for roads in the region to check out that aren't on the tour?
If you have the time, take a ride on the NJ Turnpike between Interchanges 6 & 9. Even if we travel some of that on the tour, ride it before/after the meeting, just to take in all the construction that has been going on.
Rt. 29 from 195/295 into Trenton if you want to go thru one of NJ's two relatively new 'cut and cover' tunnels...one of the few tunnels in the area that features a full passing zone within the tunnel. The SB side out of Trenton was left open to give a nice view of the Delaware River.
Some things I dropped from consideration due to time:
CR 55 bypass of Freehold (Halls Mill Rd)
NJ 33 freeway that converges to a Super 2 and has blocked EB off/WB on ramps at Howell Rd.
Viewing Turnpike construction from various side road overpasses (where you can get out and stop for photos)
Side view of the NJ 18 Raritan River bridge (similar to US 1) from old 18 to the east
Any of the untolled Delaware River bridges (almost all trusses) - specifically Trenton Makes, Calhoun St., Washington's Crossing
NJ 32 clinch (short route between 130 and Turnpike exit 8A)
US 206 bridge at CR 533 south of Princeton (another early 19th century stone arch, but no place to park enough cars for a stop)
Well, I want to thank everyone for showing up. We had a great time and saw everything that was planned. It was another very well-attended meet, but no one got seriously lost :| and we set a new record for post-meet dinner attendance! (Not like that matters, it's just neat)
The infamous group shot:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm7.static.flickr.com%2F6141%2F6043679982_277409d8b8_z.jpg&hash=8d05d5958466dd9d152f928a9bd799924934890f)
And the rest of my photos from the meet:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/iccdude/sets/72157627434203700/
So glad everyone had a good time. I honestly think Tiger Jane (our sick feline) just didn't want me to go. From us thinking Wednesday evening that she might not possibly live until the weekend, or we would have to make one of those irreversible decisions, she has rallied. She's eating again and seems to be acting as normally as she has been the last few months.
She's having good weekends, followed by not-so-good weekends. A look at the calendar tells me that the Watertown meet coincides with one of her regularly-scheduled not-so-good weekends, but we'll see.
Plus, it sounds like I would have been swimming back to Kentucky today.
Adam just couldn't let the "SEND HELP" sign go haha.
Hey Steve - it wasn't very hard to find you >:P
Quote from: Master son on August 15, 2011, 10:26:31 AM
Hey Steve - it wasn't very hard to find you >:P
Right. But some of the other people are hard to ID, especially with so many people in the shot, including some who seem not to be meet regulars. Any chance we could get a caption?
Quote from: oscar on August 18, 2011, 05:53:10 PM
Any chance we could get a caption?
Of course. My apologies for not including it in the original post.
TOP ROW from left to right:
Keith Thomas, Michael Temme-Soifer, Al Kotchi, Mike Tantillo, Ray Martin, Chris Mason, Doug Kerr, Adam Moss (with the infamous SEND HELP sign), Steve Alpert (kneeling), Scott Davis, Adam Winkler's father, Adam Winkler, Dylan Lainhart, Kevin Brownlie, Kevin Brownlie's father, Laura Bianca, John Housty, Jon Deane, Anthony Costanzo.
BOTTOM ROW from left to right:
Leigh's girlfriend/wife/fiancee, Leigh Koven, Jeff Taylor, Ian Ligget (me), Michael Pruett, Robert Sargent, Carl Tessier.
I'm gonna add some unfortunate news–the Prestige Diner had apparently went downhill as of late and has apparently closed its doors for good (apparently there is/was a sale pending).
I'm just gonna say that despite the meet turnout (no less than impressive, as stated before), the food was NOT that memorable–and I'm not sure if I will miss it (and the diner).
I'm also gonna add that they left the website up and running...
Quote from: kevinb1994 on July 08, 2020, 06:30:47 PM
I'm gonna add some unfortunate news–the Prestige Diner had apparently went downhill as of late and has apparently closed its doors for good (apparently there is/was a sale pending).
I'm just gonna say that despite the meet turnout (no less than impressive, as stated before), the food was NOT that memorable–and I'm not sure if I will miss it (and the diner).
I'm also gonna add that they left the website up and running...
Interesting. It was a diner and it was close. That's all it had going for it. :)
It wouldn't be the first meet restaurant to close... it wouldn't even be the first for a meet that happened in 2011!
I'm just a bit intrigued by the fact that a thread on this forum from 2011 was revived. LOL
Quote from: A.J. Bertin on July 08, 2020, 09:39:56 PM
I'm just a bit intrigued by the fact that a thread on this forum from 2011 was revived. LOL
As am I. It's quite the necro when one considers that it's a road meet from almost a decade ago. :-D
Quote from: kevinb1994 on July 08, 2020, 06:30:47 PM
I'm gonna add some unfortunate news–the Prestige Diner had apparently went downhill as of late and has apparently closed its doors for good (apparently there is/was a sale pending).
I'm just gonna say that despite the meet turnout (no less than impressive, as stated before), the food was NOT that memorable–and I'm not sure if I will miss it (and the diner).
I'm also gonna add that they left the website up and running...
Having been past there recently and frequently (not admiring the new west Route 133 to US 130 north signs with Clearview), it's becoming an IHOP.
Quote from: vdeane on July 08, 2020, 08:54:35 PM
It wouldn't be the first meet restaurant to close... it wouldn't even be the first for a meet that happened in 2011!
The restaurant from the most recent Richmond meet closed not long after the meet, as did the entire chain.
Wow, was this the most-attended road meet of all time?
Quote from: webny99 on July 08, 2020, 11:16:33 PM
Wow, was this the most-attended road meet of all time?
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
Quote from: signalman on July 09, 2020, 03:35:32 AM
Quote from: webny99 on July 08, 2020, 11:16:33 PM
Wow, was this the most-attended road meet of all time?
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
The 2010 Baltimore meet (about 30 people) and the 2014 St. Louis meet (also about 30 people) were probably the most-attended road meets ever. Another meet that had a lot of attendees would have been the 2016 York PA meet (maybe around 25 people?). I wasn't at the Shamokin Dam meet so I don't know how many were there.
Quote from: signalman on July 09, 2020, 03:35:32 AM
Quote from: webny99 on July 08, 2020, 11:16:33 PM
Wow, was this the most-attended road meet of all time?
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
Sure they are. They're at the restaurants. They're in the cars. They're at the sites, learning and taking pics. They're even in the group photos. If they're there, they're part of the group.
The restaurant where I held my Somerset, Ky. meet several years ago (Reno's Roadhouse) is closed. I also understand that the Reno's in Pikeville, where I held both meets there, is closed.
The restaurant in the sporting goods store at Edwardsburg, Mich., where a meet was held several years ago, is also closed. I think the entire store is closed, in fact.
Grizzly's in Duluth where we had our meet lunch in 2016 closed after being bought out to expand the neighboring car dealership.
Quote from: vdeane on July 08, 2020, 08:54:35 PM
It wouldn't be the first meet restaurant to close... it wouldn't even be the first for a meet that happened in 2011!
Roadhouse 66, which hosted the 2011 C-bus meet, changed names in 2018, and then was sold in 2019 (now is a sports bar)
Quote from: A.J. Bertin on July 09, 2020, 07:25:47 AM
Quote from: signalman on July 09, 2020, 03:35:32 AM
Quote from: webny99 on July 08, 2020, 11:16:33 PM
Wow, was this the most-attended road meet of all time?
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
The 2010 Baltimore meet (about 30 people) and the 2014 St. Louis meet (also about 30 people) were probably the most-attended road meets ever. Another meet that had a lot of attendees would have been the 2016 York PA meet (maybe around 25 people?). I wasn't at the Shamokin Dam meet so I don't know how many were there.
(I didn't realize I had misplaced my statement, within quote boxes, till seeing Froggie's comments below)
Between lunch, the US 20 presentation, and tour; 2018 NE Ohio meet had 25 attendees.
Quote from: Hot Rod Hootenanny on July 09, 2020, 10:33:22 PM
Between lunch, the US 20 presentation, and tour; 2018 NE Ohio meet had 25 attendees.
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
Checking meet photos, by my count, the Susquehanna Valley meet had 30 but that number does include chaperones, significant others, and the daughter of an attendee. York had 26 including the same.
Quote from: baugh17 on July 10, 2020, 06:57:44 AM
Quote from: Hot Rod Hootenanny on July 09, 2020, 10:33:22 PM
Between lunch, the US 20 presentation, and tour; 2018 NE Ohio meet had 25 attendees.
No, Central Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin Dam) had a larger turnout. I have heard that the first Baltimore meet had a large attendance, (around 30 IIRC) however, I was not there to confirm that. Also, it's debatable whether one counts the father chaperones and significant others as attendees or not.
Checking meet photos, by my count, the Susquehanna Valley meet had 30 but that number does include chaperones, significant others, and the daughter of an attendee. York had 26 including the same.
Baltimore was at 33.
Baltimore, IIRC, was larger than Susquehanna Valley. Both had cases of people who were not present for meet photos....for example, I was only present for lunch at Susquehanna Valley.