hey guys...
we gotta do it again.
it was so damn fun last year.
everything about it went GREAT I thought..

I kinda think that 99.99% of what we did last year was right on target.
anybody want to change anything up this year ?

I'm not totally stuck on the dates...
but would really like to shoot for: 9/22-23-24

what does everyone think about that?

brant

Ok I'm in Brant, let me know what I can do to help out.
Sounds like a blast..
edited: 4-6-06 at the request of Mr, Shea

I PM'd this to Brant (that's B-r-a-n-t) Figured I might as well share it here.

I'm heading down May 24th and I'll see if anything strikes my fancy. One thing we may be doing is the Canyonlands at Night trip. I think it's $50 a head but it's dinner and a cool boat ride. People can opt-in or opt out if that's too rich for their blood. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Here's the link.

Turns out it's Canyonlands by Night and probably around $59 total.

Let's R-O-C-K. Red Rock that is.

QUOTE (Eric_Shea @ Apr 5 2006, 08:36 PM)

I PM'd this to Brant (that's B-r-a-n-t) Figured I might as well share it here. I'm heading down May 24th and I'll see if anything strikes my fancy. One thing we may be doing is the Canyonlands at Night trip. I think it's $50 a head but it's dinner and a cool boat ride. People can opt-in or opt out if that's too rich for their blood. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Ha, Ha, funny man.. What do you want after a few beers. I fixed now, so hardy,har,har..

Hey this is cool being in the super secret planning place

I too think last year was a hit, and not much if anything needs to be changed.

I will be there the weekend after thanksgiving for a Mtn Bike trip so if I can do anything let me know.

Ferg

QUOTE (Ferg @ Apr 6 2006, 08:28 AM)

Hey this is cool being in the super secret planning place I too think last year was a hit, and not much if anything needs to be changed. I will be there the weekend after thanksgiving for a Mtn Bike trip so if I can do anything let me know. Ferg

thanks giving.... (I think you mean memorial day?)

--------------------------

so is there anything we should do different?

rough ideas (maybe bad)

-change hotel?
-lodging at our dinner spot last year?
-different activities added?
-different driving routes?
-contact our fearless tour guide russ again?
-add to costs, subtract from costs?
-same award catagories?
-help Joe with awards, since he worked his butt off last year?
-John had the river rafting trip from last year?
-make sure that Eric gets a shirt this year, or keep the shirt info secret and exclude him?
-or just keep everything exactly the same?

anybody have ideas?
brant

QUOTE (brant @ Apr 6 2006, 08:14 AM)

QUOTE (Ferg @ Apr 6 2006, 08:28 AM) Hey this is cool being in the super secret planning place  :ph34r: I too think last year was a hit, and not much if anything needs to be changed.   I will be there the weekend after thanksgiving for a Mtn Bike trip so if I can do anything let me know. Ferg thanks giving.... (I think you mean memorial day?) -------------------------- so is there anything we should do different? rough ideas (maybe bad) -change hotel? -lodging at our dinner spot last year? -different activities added? -different driving routes? -contact our fearless tour guide russ again? -add to costs, subtract from costs? -same award catagories? -help Joe with awards, since he worked his butt off last year? -John had the river rafting trip from last year? -make sure that Eric gets a shirt this year, or keep the shirt info secret and exclude him? -or just keep everything exactly the same? anybody have ideas? brant

DOH! I meant Easter...

I would like to see more opportunity for some spiritied driving if you know what I mean...

Ferg

QUOTE (Ferg @ Apr 6 2006, 09:05 AM)

I would like to see more opportunity for some spiritied driving if you know what I mean... Ferg

mustangs are surely spirited vehicles.

So is the plan to still do this in Utah, or pick another "Red Rock" destination?

I know we had kicked around the idea of the 4 corners area...

After everybody headed home last year, I hung out in Moab for an extra day. I met with the charity lady at the place where we had lunch scheduled on the last day. I forget the name of the place, but can look it up. It is right in town, one block off main street. It was not as nice as the river side setting for the dinner the 1st night, but every bit as good as the awards dinner location or the restaurant we had breakfast at on the last day. I think it is a serious option to think about for this year.

I asked the charity lady about hotels. She recommended the Gonzo Inn. So, I stopped by to check it out. It is 1 block off of main street, near the Brew Pub where we had the awards banquet. Also, it is right acorss the street from the liquor store. The person at the desk gave me a tour. It is a very nice place. Probably the best in Moab. They have a small banquet / meeting room we could use. I am not sure about the rates, but I expect it will be a little more than the motel we had last year. Still, I think it is worth considering.

A night time dinner cruise or a raft trip sound like fun. I don't have any suggestions, but I can tell you which river rafting company NOT to use.

The drive that some of us took to Dead Horse Point was a very good one. Highly recommended. There was a planned Sunday morning drive to the Canyonlands Overlook that never happened. Maybe we could try to do it this year. I thought the picnic lunch was excellent. I suggest we use the same provider again, if needed. I could drive through Arches National Park 1000 more times and never get tired of the awesome views.

Contacting Russ is an excellent idea. Last year he did not get involved until that last minute. Ask him if he has any good ideas about what we might want to add to our itinerary.

Last item - I will make sure there is at least 1 extra t-shirt available for Eric's hot wife. Maybe a special one that says "I think your 914 is sexy".

Hey Guys
I think if everyone can agree on the proposed dates, they should be announced to the rest of the group. this way people can start making summer plans.

:insert cricket chirping sound here:

ok...
I'll chirp in

I like the dates
(because I have races the week before and after and can't do much else for dates that month)

so I'm a yes vote for the dates.

anybody else care to vote?

if we get majority agreement I think we should announce it as greg suggested.

John how do those dates work for you?

brant

Sept 22/23/24 is cool with me.
First day of Autumn, Rosh Hashanah and a New Moon for maximum stargazing.

Those dates are good with me too. Just a reminder, I'm going to be in Moab next week for 3 days biking, I may have some down time to do any scouting, ect. So take advantage of me, give me a job to do.

Ferg

Dates work for me.

Dates Work

Shall we announce?

I think we should announce.

Ben,
Eric,
Joe,
anyone else need different dates?

brant

Detail my car. I want Elvira to be as clean as your white one was.
Or . . . . if you have time maybe you could check out the Gonzo Inn and any other motels that look like they would be a good host location for us to use.

Dates work for me.

If we need to get together a planning committee, I'm game.

I agree that most everything worked out real nice last year, and knowing what we know now, I think we can make it even better than last year.

I sure hope so because I have decided to put my resources towards RRC in lieu of the LaJunta event next month, so let's make it worth my while!

If you've got some time Ferg, it might be worthwhile to check out the hotel John had mentioned and see if they might be able to do a group rate and see if they might be able to block out some rooms for those dates. That is probably the first big hurdle we need to tackle. Getting Russell involved early too is probably something we need to do as well.

I would vote for doing maybe the awards banquet at the same spot we had dinner at the first night - that was great!

I am really looking forward to this and looking forward to driving my 914 this year instead of a Jetta!

OK, so on my list.

Gonzo Inn (i'll take some pics, and do some talkin)
Picnic area (i'll take pics of any nice locals, by river, shaded ect)

and finally and most important, start looking for a proper car wash in town

Ferg.

dang Ben...
going to miss you at lajunta.
but we will drink a beer for you!

ok.. lets announce the dates guys
that way we can get it into peoples busy calendars before they fill up.

should we start a thread?
brant

Sure. Why not. DO IT!

Has anybody contacted Russ yet?

You know I wanted to go, but the timing is not good (moving that weekend) and I can't swing it financially...

So I decided I would plan on the RRC for sure come September and offer my services again. It sure was fun and will be more fun now that my car is driveable.

Let me know what we need and what I can do - maybe the same as last year? Whatcha think guys?

Let's start a thread (Brant), get it stickied and keep riding people like we did last year and the way you (Brant) have for the LaJunta event.

So if they can't make it, they sure will feel bad about it.

I saw Russ twice driving his 914 while in Moab, both times I was not in my car, (on bike, or walking) tried to flag him down with no luck. I met one of his BLM coworkers on a trial, and told him to say Hi from Ferg at the 914 club...

I scouted a couple of places for a park/picnic setting.... Old town park was just a little north of town, just before the road we turned off to do the Moutain drive loop. Nice park with big trees, (shade) grass, volley ball net ect. Lot's of place to park as well. It can be reserved. I also did some looking at some river locations, but that may prove to be tricky, lot's of nice pull off/camp spots along 128 (road along river) but those could be full of campers ect at any given time.

Also checked out the gonzo inn, very very nice, and IMO gonna be too nice, talked at lenght with the group reservation lady, cheapest room at group rate is still 115. with the suites at 145. Place I stayed was very nice Adventure Inn, but I think was only 20 rooms and no pool for kiddies. but was very clean, locally owned, and very cool owners. I talked with them a little about it, but not sure if it will be big enough if the event grows this year.

Ferg.

I'll check in with the place we had dinner (first night) last year, as a place to stay. I know it will be a few more bucks, but the lady at the desk had told me that they occasionally run off season specials for under $100 a night. Can someone please post the info of who to contact there? (ben?)

has someone started a thread yet?

The place is called the Red Cliffs Lodge. It would certainly be on the top of my list for accommodations, but I am skeptical of a sub-$100 per night room rate. But if anyone can make it happen Gre...I mean...TROJANMAN can make it happen!

The discounted rate would be $140, but they are booked up for that weekend right now. he said that they do get cancellations though. They even have mini cabins available.

my gut tells me that because we are catering to a 914 crowd, we should try to keep expenses in line with last year (ie: affordable)

roughly
70 bucks for the event
90 for the hotel
most meals included.

but heck maybe I'm wrong...
what do you all think?

brant

I think the $100 barrier is one we do not want to cross.

Entry fee should include as many meals as possible, and still remain under $100. IIRC the only non food item we spent money on last year was to pay Joe a few buck for the awards. Shirts were separate order items. I know some people paid for the printing of the maps out of their own pockets.

Whatever Host Hotel we choose, the price per night should also be under $100. I don't want to scare anybody away.

Whatever we do, some people are still gonna bitch that it cost to much. Gas, food, hotel, etc. do all add up. Even so, I have never heard anybody say that it was not worth every penny after an event was over.

All we can do is make the best choices possible. Anybody is welcome to join the planning committee if they think they have a better idea. I know I will attend, no matter what it cost. All I can say is 'Fuch 'em, if they can't take a joke'.

$140 a night is too much money. At that price, I think that it would knock some people out (possibly myself ).

I'm with John in that I think we need to stay under $100 bucks for the entry fee and for the cost of the room (per night).

We did it up pretty good last time as far as meals, etc was concerned, just don't expect that fancy map this time 'round because I no longer have access to that "equipment."

The rooms at the Aarchway Inn were nice, and I had no issues, but I realize that a few folks did, but I would still have no problem doing the Aarchway Inn again this year. It was perfectly acceptable in my opinion.

Archway works for me. the fact that it is not right in town makes for a nice caravan of 20+ cars.

i just called the other place out of curiosity.

We can continue to look at other avenues. There are quite a few places to stay in the area, but the Aarchway was pretty accommodating and the amenities weren't too bad either.

Has anybody been able to get a hold of Russell? I forgot what his username is.

We should prolly start getting the hotel thing in order soon for reduced rates. When I was there in march, I got the impression that things were starting to get booked for Sept.

Ferg.

i think the plan was go full force after the holiday and WCC

let's have a to discuss

Aren't most of us are going to be at the WCC?
If we can find time in Portland, we could all have a meeting.

let me know if you want/need it for this year...
same if you want changes or have other ideas

oh... if you want/need an event info page here on the site (like last year) with online registration form, lemme know too (gimme info on what you want on it)

I just got off the phone with The Archway Inn


They have new owners this year and things have been "improved"
all of their renovations should be done by september, including: new carpet, bedding, etc......
their breakfast now includes biscuits and gravy, and eggs (an improvement from last year)
their group rate did go up $10 from last year (it was $80 last year), but i was able to talk her back down to $85 + a 9% tax
She is going to block off 25 rooms for us. We can add more later if necessary.

Our contact is "Candy" and just mention the 914Club
She is also going to give us reserved parking. i am sending her a pic from last year, so she knows where we want to park.

Aarchway Inn - 435-259-2599 - Fax: 435-259-2270 - Toll Free Moab Lodging Reservations: 1-800-341-9359

We should probably start a check list (feel free to add and edit)



hotel - DONE

friday afternoon drive - need route
friday night dinner - BBQ at the hotel?

saturday lunch (Greg)
saturday drive - need route
saturday dinner - On the River (B.Martin)

sunday breakfast
i think we can skip a sunday drive

Other Stuff:
Awards
Shirts
Sponsors
Registration Fee

maybe due a sunday morning car show and give the awards away at a group breakfast. this is one way to get the group together one more time before heading home.

another idea (to save on cost) is to host a barbecue in the parking lot, or pool area of the hotel on friday night. Friday, because a few people missed last years dinner on the river because they were driving in late. it's a great way to have a meet and greet on the first night also.

i know the hotel has at least one grill available, and if necessary, someone from colorado could probably load one on one of our support vehicles. they have a conference room available if the weather is bad, everyone could drink without having to worry about driving, and we could probably bring a keg or two. We can send GINT to Costco to get the burgers and buns.
More than likely i will be bringing the Expedition, so i will have room for ice chests.

Ok...
My hibernation is over
I'm finally back and will start carrying my weight.

1st: Jeroen,
I would really love and appreciate the opportunity to use that art work again this year if you are willing. I think we should do a shirt or hat or something... so when we figure out the details, I'd really appreciate it!


2nd: also a thank you to Jeroen,
as soon as we nail down the entry fee, I'd love to do an online registration thing again. My wife made me promise to keep my name and address off of the WWW, so I'll figure out the details and definitely be greatful if you help set up the registration page again. (details will come in a week or two)

3rd: Greg,
thanks for doing the hotel foot work.
I'm absolutely certain we are going to need some type of box lunch again.
you don't have to... but if your willing do you want to call them again?

4th: I guess since all of the folk are playing and having fun at the WWC those of us that are still around can snag all of the jobs we want in their absence....
lol... anyways... Ben, would you be willing to call the river place that we had friday dinner at last year. I'm really thinking that we should go there for saturday dinner instead this time around. If they are not booked solid can you set up the reservation. If its something you really don't want to do let me know. I can't say for certain how many we would bring, but I'll bet its at least 25-30

5th: I think I had better take a job.
I'm happy to do registration again, and coordinate the applications, money stuff.
I'll be honest, I really don't care to solicit the prizes this time around... but I don't know if anyone else is up for that?

6th: Greg again. Man! I love the Bbque Idea! I shouldn't be a dictator. We can see what others think.. but I love it! It seems to me that we could buy beer with the money we saved on a restaurant. Plus, its casual and promotes chatting... It also might help us keep our total entry fee the same or even lower. I love it! Maybe Russ even has a gas grill that he would bring over and save us from trailering one out of state?

Speaking of Russ
I went through the old thread and got his contact info.
I just sent him an email and invited him over hear to the planning thread.

Yes Brant. I will make the res. for Sat night at the Red Cliffs Lodge. Not a problem.

If Brant doesn't want to be a dicatator I will. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Greg has a...well...GREAT idea! BBQ at the hotel on Friday night would not only save $$$, but for all of Greg's aformentioned reasons is perfect. I would say the decision has been made.

BBQ is a great idea...... I thinnk Ben couldbe a great dictator, ALL HALE BEN....

Is everyone heading up Friday morning?

feels like we are rolling now.
Brian, we left colorado as a group at 4am (or some such time) and caravan'd there friday morning...

Also, Brian has graciously offered to help out with door prize solicitation.
if anyone wants to give him a hand.. I imagine he would be happy for the help.

our task list is getting better:
---------------------------------------------
hotel - DONE
saturday lunch -DONE
saturday dinner - On the River DONE
Registration- DONE

friday night dinner BBQ at the hotel- Only needs shopping and details

friday afternoon drive - need route
saturday drive - need route
sunday breakfast?

Awards
Shirts
Fee
map?

feels like were half way there!
brant

Who do we need to contact regarding shirts, or hats, or both?
Who is going to organize the awards?

john (vegasracer) has always done a great job with shirts in the past.
not sure about hats
brian, why don't you some research on a license plate frame (shouldbe cheaper than a plate, and maybe we can include with the registration fee.

maybe something like:

Red Rocks Classic 2006

914's Rock

Or maybe a custom license plate (plastic, like the dealers use)
i would plan on a run of 50. we could probably sell leftoves on the club site.

I was just thinking about the shirts, since I don't know how long it takes to produce them. I will do some research on the frames....
Another question regarding awards....Is someone working on those? Why do I ask these questions... It always = Trouble....