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[Brandon]

^ 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.

[cl94]

^ 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? 

[Nikolai]

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.

[briantroutman]

^  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.

[cjk374]

^ 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? 

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!

[Nikolai]

^  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.

[vdeane]

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.

[tckma]

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).

[bandit957]

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.

[cl94]

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.

[bandit957]

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).

[Brandon]

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.

[TheHighwayMan394]

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.

[vdeane]

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.

[hbelkins]

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.

[bandit957]

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?

[Hot Rod Hootenanny]

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.

[Alps]

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.

[hbelkins]

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.

[Rothman]

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.

[hbelkins]

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.

[Rothman]

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.

[hbelkins]

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.