RDU Meet-July 30, 2022

[A.J. Bertin]

I wasn't originally planning to cast a vote because I didn't think there was a good chance that I'd be able to attend this, but the more I think about this meet, the more I want to see what I can do to attend it.  There are other meets this year that I am trying to attend as well, and if this one is spaced out far enough from other meets I want to attend and from other things I'll have going on in my life, it might be possible for me to attend.  (I've already got a travel itinerary in mind if I can make it.)

I voted for the two earlier dates in July.

[JoePCool14]

Any obligatory stop at 11 foot 8 plus 8?

I did not even know that existed until you posted it.  It is probably worth mentioning in the itinerary whether I can easily include it or not.

Literally the first thing I thought of when I saw this thread was 11 foot 8+8. It's obligatory if you're going to Durham.

[Laura]

I'm really interested in this meet and voted for the 17th and 24th!

[roadwaywiz95]

Am waiting for the actual opening of I-885 before considering any tangible options (I voted "other"), but this is on my radar. 

[74/171FAN]

Am waiting for the actual opening of I-885 before considering any tangible options (I voted "other"), but this is on my radar. 

I was not planning on officially picking a date until there are further updates on that.

[Alps]

Am waiting for the actual opening of I-885 before considering any tangible options (I voted "other"), but this is on my radar. 

I was not planning on officially picking a date until there are further updates on that.

Still "June 2021". Let's say the date is June 30. If they don't announce it until mid-June, that doesn't leave us enough time to plan. I would suggest give us a tentative date.

[74/171FAN]

Am waiting for the actual opening of I-885 before considering any tangible options (I voted "other"), but this is on my radar. 

I was not planning on officially picking a date until there are further updates on that.

Still "June 2021". Let's say the date is June 30. If they don't announce it until mid-June, that doesn't leave us enough time to plan. I would suggest give us a tentative date.

I am attempting to contact NCDOT to see if there are any updates on this.  I will schedule a tentative date by May 1st.

[CanesFan27]

An item to consider - Governor Cooper today announced that nearly all restrictions - specifically capacity at restaurants, etc. - could be lifted by June 1 - with the exception of the mask mandate.  https://abc11.com/politics/cooper-expects-to-lift-most-restrictions-except-masks-by-june-1/10534505/

Personally, I'm fully vaxed, and I would be comfortable if a restaurant lunch does occur.   Brier Creek may be a good area for access to 885 and 540.

[74/171FAN]

I have decided on a tentative date of July 17, 2021.  Note that I will be fully vaccinated within the next couple of weeks.

Personally, I want to stick to the BYOL affair to save time, but we can still discuss meeting up at a restaurant.

[A.J. Bertin]

I have decided on a tentative date of July 17, 2021.

Is this firm enough of a date where those of us who need to request time off from work in order to attend can do so with little chance that the meet will be held on a date other than July 17?

[74/171FAN]

I have decided on a tentative date of July 17, 2021.

Is this firm enough of a date where those of us who need to request time off from work in order to attend can do so with little chance that the meet will be held on a date other than July 17?

As long as nothing changes with the opening of the East End Connector, I would say so.  That is part of why I filled out the contact form on NCDOT's website last night.

[Alps]

I have decided on a tentative date of July 17, 2021.

Is this firm enough of a date where those of us who need to request time off from work in order to attend can do so with little chance that the meet will be held on a date other than July 17?

As long as nothing changes with the opening of the East End Connector, I would say so.  That is part of why I filled out the contact form on NCDOT's website last night.

Unfortunately, because we can't predict the future, we'll all be hoping it opens in time. I'll be there anyway.

[Roadgeek Adam]

I'm considering this meet for the main reason that I could use it as an excuse to knock out some stuff I wanted to do on a cross country trip (photograph the entire Charlotte Lynx system, lots of Amtrak stops and roads) so that trip's run from BUF to ATL is simpler.

I'm going to spend 100% of the time complaining about the weather most likely, but whatever.

[74/171FAN]

The response I received from NCDOT last night:

Hello Mr. Moore,
East End Connector will not be open to traffic in June 2021. The contractor is completing final construction items throughout the project before they place the final layer of asphalt. I am unable to give an exact date of opening right now. Although the entire project will most likely not be 100% complete by the end of the year, we do expect the connector from NC 147 to US 70 (I-885) to be open to traffic by that time.
Please do not hesitate to contact me again with any questions or requests for updates.
Kind regards,
Liam Shannon, Resident Engineer

Basically, this meet is officially postponed.  Obviously, we will keep checking for updates and go by that.  I know this could now come in conflict with AJ's Outer Banks City Meet, but we can discuss that as we move forward.

Also I think that we will all be comfortable to meet in a restaurant by that time as well.

Thank you Alps for giving me motivation to check on this.

[roadwaywiz95]

Thank you for looking into this for us. In addition to a completed I-885, doing this meet next year will mean another year of progress on the 40, 440, and 540 projects so there will be more to see there as well. Always look on the bright side of life. 

[A.J. Bertin]

The response I received from NCDOT last night:

Hello Mr. Moore,
East End Connector will not be open to traffic in June 2021. The contractor is completing final construction items throughout the project before they place the final layer of asphalt. I am unable to give an exact date of opening right now. Although the entire project will most likely not be 100% complete by the end of the year, we do expect the connector from NC 147 to US 70 (I-885) to be open to traffic by that time.
Please do not hesitate to contact me again with any questions or requests for updates.
Kind regards,
Liam Shannon, Resident Engineer

Basically, this meet is officially postponed.  Obviously, we will keep checking for updates and go by that.  I know this could now come in conflict with AJ's Outer Banks City Meet, but we can discuss that as we move forward.

Also I think that we will all be comfortable to meet in a restaurant by that time as well.

Thank you Alps for giving me motivation to check on this.

Thanks for this update!  As far as my Outer Banks meet is concerned, I'm nowhere near ready to officially announce the date, but I am planning on having it either April 23 or April 30, 2022.  You can certainly schedule your Durham meet whenever you'd like, but as long as you are not planning on hosting it at the end of April, there won't be any conflicts... unless you decide to host it during a time frame that's close to mine and would force potential attendees, who want to attend both, to choose one or the other.  I'm not sure how many folks that might impact, but it's something to consider.

As for me personally, it's not likely that I'll host/attend two separate meets in North Carolina in the same year... so I'll probably pass on attending the Durham meet if it's held in 2022.  But who knows.

[vdeane]

Another alternative would be to schedule both meets for the same weekend and have a roadmeet double-header.  It's not unprecedented, and the locations aren't far from each other.

[A.J. Bertin]

Another alternative would be to schedule both meets for the same weekend and have a roadmeet double-header.  It's not unprecedented, and the locations aren't far from each other.

That's an interesting thought.  If Mr. Moore is interested in hosting his Durham meet on, say, the Sunday after Outer Banks, that's cool.  The dinner portion of my meet will be held in Elizabeth City, so if there are attendees who want to attend both (including wanting to be at the dinner portion of my meet), they would just have to plan on driving from Elizabeth City to Durham between Saturday dinner and whatever time on Sunday the Durham meet starts.

[Alps]

OBXRDU!

[CanesFan27]

I may do something late summer regardless of 885's status.

[74/171FAN]

I may do something late summer regardless of 885's status.

I am personally thinking about heading to Charlotte to at least so the Monroe Bypass.

[hbelkins]

Another alternative would be to schedule both meets for the same weekend and have a roadmeet double-header.  It's not unprecedented, and the locations aren't far from each other.

That's an interesting thought.  If Mr. Moore is interested in hosting his Durham meet on, say, the Sunday after Outer Banks, that's cool.  The dinner portion of my meet will be held in Elizabeth City, so if there are attendees who want to attend both (including wanting to be at the dinner portion of my meet), they would just have to plan on driving from Elizabeth City to Durham between Saturday dinner and whatever time on Sunday the Durham meet starts.

There is, indeed, precedent. Froggie hosted a Hampton Roads-area meet on a Saturday several years ago, and then Laura hosted a Delmarva meet up the road in Salisbury the next day.

OBXRDU!

He played for UK several years ago. Don't know what happened to him.

(Referring tongue-in-cheek, of course, to former Wildcat Lucasz Obrzut.)

[74/171FAN]

Linking to the I-885 thread so we can revisit this in December.  (https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=13255.msg2646086#msg2646086)

AJ, you can put this on the calendar for 2022.  We can discuss further via PM on whether this fits with your Outer Banks City Meet or not.

[1995hoo]

Regarding the 11foot8+8 bridge, take note there are a lot of restaurants and pubs right around that area, along with a decent amount of parking. Some of them that were there in my Duke Law days (1995 to 1998) are still around, too–a lot of us liked Devine's.

[jpi]

Hi Everyone, sounds like an interesting meet I would like to check out but I am planning on hosting my first central PA road meet in 4 years on Saturday April 23, 2022. I will be doing more scouting next month when I am back in the York\ Harrisburg area.