South Dakota 2009? Anyone, anyone?

[Al Navarro]

Black Hills Route (http://www.nationalgeographic.com/destinations/The_Black_Hills/Black_Hills_Scenic_Drive.html)

I did a little surfing today and have to say that Sturgis as a host city holds little to no appeal to me. I can't imagine the wear and tear a big bike rally would put on hotels...and yes, I'm generalizing, but one site I visited had tips on how to navigate through town after you've been drinking. Not my idea of a family-friendly destination.

That said, Rapid City SD to the South looks like it could have some potential.

Rapid City, SD Convention & Visitors Bureau (http://www.rapidcitycvb.com/)

It's only 25 hours from my house!

I maybe we make this a mid-week meet...so people can take off a week and use the shoulder weekends to get to and from the meet.

----

Keep in mind that the Ozarks region has also been proposed as a future national scale meet.

[Boxologist]

tenetively in. sounds like i'll take a month off and go cross country. can't do 25 hours of driving in a day yet. i hope physics changes in the next 2 years!:hurray:

[powderbrake]

Al:
Rapid City itself doesn't have too much to offer. I have been there 4 times in the last 5 years, on trips to Mt.Rushmore. We hunt prairie dogs in central South Dakota, and have made the trek several times , via the Badlands. While the Badlands ( which are about 60 miles east of Rapid City) are cool, the real attraction in the area is the route up through the Black Hills to see Mt Rushmore. You have to go the long way, about 30 miles south of Rapid on the interstate, then turn west on route 36, then Alt16 thru Custer State park, and there are a couple spots where you can see the monument through a tunnel. This is a great route, but the Black Hills region is not that big, and is flat and not so interesting to the east and west. (no offense to the local residents).

http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/570094208_DSC_0509 (Small).JPG

As to the Ozarks , there are some good roads that we ran on a three day tour last year, but we stayed a different hotel each night, and I don't know if people would prefer to remain in one hotel, or to keep moving around. I'll contact you with more details.

[scannon]

Our Miata club went to SD a few years ago. We stayed in Deadwood (which has legal gaming) and made day trips from there. IIRC we made it a four day trip since it was an easy days drive from here. There are lots of interesting things to do in the area with day trips to Devils Tower, some caves, Carhenge, the Crazy Horse monument, Mt. Rushmore, etc.

They are headed there next week but I elected to stay here to attend the British Car Conclave. They are staying in Hill City this time at the Comfort Inn.

[powderbrake]

Our Miata club went to SD a few years ago. We stayed in Deadwood (which has legal gaming) and made day trips from there. IIRC we made it a four day trip since it was an easy days drive from here. There are lots of interesting things to do in the area with day trips to Devils Tower, some caves, Carhenge, the Crazy Horse monument, Mt. Rushmore, etc.

They are headed there next week but I elected to stay here to attend the British Car Conclave. They are staying in Hill City this time at the Comfort Inn.

I defer to scannon, he obviously has more familiarity with the region than I have.

[Al Navarro]

Again, it's all pie in the sky thinking right now.

Gert brought up SD as a possible location, and I did a little research into it.

We'll eventually put it to a poll early in 2008, so the organizers have enough time to plan. The way I see that working is one set of organizers does the event itself, and then the regions work to come up with "to and from" routes/plans.

• South Dakota
• Montana
•*Missouri
• Minnesota

All of these sites could potentially draw from both coasts, in addition to having strong appeal for the center of the country. Also, none are potentially Texas hot in the summer.

[scannon]

• South Dakota
• Montana
•*Missouri
• Minnesota

All of these sites could potentially draw from both coasts, in addition to having strong appeal for the center of the country. Also, none are potentially Texas hot in the summer.



What about Colorado?

It isn't much further from the East coast than SD or Montana and we have some of the best driving roads and scenery in the country. Lots of interesting resorts to base out of that are used to hosting car clubs. AND, although it gets warm, it is a dry heat and it gets cool at night.

I'd be willing to take the lead on a Colorado gathering or help out with SD.

[Boxologist]

IF all goes according to plan THIS eastcoaster would be continuing on past SD after the gathering. it may be possible to set something up the following week or weekend Skip.

[Al Navarro]

You know, what the heck, Jon...if we're going to go that far, we might as well try a coast to coast, right?

---

FWIW, I would tow out to any meet that far, effectively serving as a support vehicle for anyone from the East brave enough to try and leg it that far in a Se7en.

[slomove]

Ah, now we are getting somewhere :d

I missed this thread so far. Well, the South Dakota idea just came because it is so smack (almost) in the middle and because it promised to be more interesting than e.g. Kansas.

But I like especially Wyoming, also Colorado or Montana as well. Something like Minnesota would be more of a problem for most of the West Coast folks at about 2000 miles one way. But then, from e.g. Roanoake to Casper is also 1800 miles. I just can not see somebody tow 3600 or 4000 miles for a few days meet.

For myself I could imagine towing somewhere 3 or max. 4 days in 400 mile per day increments while enjoying the scenery and attractions, pootle around in the Seven at the meeting target place for 4 or 5 days and tow back in the same fashion on a different route. That makes it obviously another 2-week trip but that is O.K. with me.

If that would become just a mad dash of a towing marathon :ack: I would probably rather decline.

Gert

[slngsht]

If I'm gonna drive past the mississippi river, might as well go to Montana :lol:

[Davemk1]

If I'm gonna drive past the mississippi river, might as well go to Montana :lol:

We have the room for you. The state's population is less than 900,000 in total and the distance form the eastern boarder to the western boarder is the same as from Washington DC to Chicago..............in other words it's huge and empty.

If the event was centered in the South West part of the state you could see both Yellowstone and Glacier national parks. Yellowstone is about 1 1/2 hours south from Bozeman and Glacier about 5 hours north. There are wonderful places to stay and lot's a first class driving with the only other thing on the road being cows or elk. I'm an active member of our SCCA club and I'm sure we could arrange for an autocross event to be held during the time of the event. We've got a few national class drivers in the area and the events are fun and fast.

If folks would like info on roads or places to stay I'd be more than happy to supply whatever you all want/need. I don't want to be too pushy so if the group is interested let me know and I'll do some leg work and present you all with some info.

One closing thought................a group of Sevens going over Beartooth pass early in the AM would be over the top fun.

Dave

[Boxologist]

You know, what the heck, Jon...if we're going to go that far, we might as well try a coast to coast, right?

---

FWIW, I would tow out to any meet that far, effectively serving as a support vehicle for anyone from the East brave enough to try and leg it that far in a Se7en.

those are my intentions at the moment. as it stands now. to chicagp or north indiana in one day. get a hotdog and some pizza in chicago. Yes, i will do this. and then go in smaller chunks till i get to the destination. there are too many national parks that i never had the chance to go to, and i plan to make amends for that. and what better way then with a 7. I am actively considering a trailer. i'll have to get in touch with Loren about that and what type of hitch to consider.

just looking at my North America atlas made the decision easier. SD is 2/3s the way there, so i may as well go.

What i am debating, and timing of the season really does play a factor in this, is what the return trip will be. i would like to hit Grand canyon NP, but i expect national 7 meet 2009 to be in the summer, and there is no way in desert that i will go into hell in the summer. no wait, i think i have that reversed. even with the tops, and going to the bigger radiator, oil coller and possibly apollo tank i'm not sure i want to risk getting stuck in 110+ degree long hauls.

figure 2009 will be a big wash for at work already. i take my vacation in one lump, come back for a week of work, and then go some hernia surgery for another couple of weeks off.

edit: i'm seeing alot of good banter. eventually there will have to be, as Al like to refer back to, a "Skyline" type meeting where ideas can really get hammered out. even a conference call will suffice. there are a lot of different ideas and goals being floated in this thread and i beleive that the sie of this meet will allow many of them to be actualized.:grouphug:

[Al Navarro]

Oh Jon, don't fool yourself...Skyline East 2006 was just the starting line....a mere side of the road/barroom conversation...to sort out the 7-7-7 meet it was a lot of phone calls, a lot of emails/posts, a lot of in person meetings, a few recons, etc. But this thread is a good start.

Regarding distances...Gert, Montana is over 2000 miles and nearly 34 hours of driving from NJ. But I'm up for it. I didn't buy the trailer because it looks good in my garage. I would do much the same as you...or haul ass cross country on one of the legs just to get to the great wide opens or home. I'd have to talk to my wife. I'm sure we'd lose some folks from both coasts at those distances, but that is to be expected. Getting to the meet would be at least a 3rd of the fun...I remember how for 7-7-7, we'd start to see more cars and/or trailers the closer we got. That whole "ever meet a perfect stranger and know he was a brother" thing.

I definitely think we'd do a 4 or 5 day thing next National. Perhaps Cooke City (good hub for Beartooth Highway) for 2 nights. One night in Yellowstone. Then head up to Glacier for 2 more? Though some of us have records in the National Parks system :d (I've got that warning letter somewhere).

What I learned about a national is that it takes a small group of people to be SUPER PASSIONATE about the meet. And perhaps even one person to take it on as their primary non-work/family focus...oh, for about a year. Also, the organizers have to truly want to go to the meet area.

I think wherever the meet is held, there should be one uber-road as a target — with one goal of the meet to let Seveners get to experience it. The non-parade at the Dragon, as well as the early morning blats, were really special drives for me and I think the others who participated. To try and do that sort of thing again on a road like the Beartooth...:hurray:

Again, keep the suggestions for centralized meets coming and we'll put it to a vote in Jan 2008. That will give people time to do a recon, figure the $$ out, and announce the meet at least a year in advance.

[WestTexasS2K]

I like the idea of Yellowstone and Glacier park. I have never been there but have always wanted to go. I could kill 2 birds with 1 stone.

I would be infavor of anything withing 2000 miles one way, that has some awsome roads and beautiful scenery to soak up. The appeal of winding mountain roads sounds like alot of fun.

Remember I am from west Texas, anything that protrouds from the surface for 100' is considered a mountain:) If there is a curve in the road every ten miles it is considered a winding road. So I will have to defer to folks that live in more interesting roads than Texas.

I did a little googling and found this. http://www.caranddriver.com/bestroads/road11/colorado/san-juan-skyway/ It is listed as one of top 8 all American roads.

I found this website that has a good interactive map with details about the scenery and roads. It has a show all of the All American roads (red stars) and then scenic roads. http://www.byways.org/explore/

[stevet]

tenetively in. sounds like i'll take a month off and go cross country. can't do 25 hours of driving in a day yet. i hope physics changes in the next 2 years!:hurray:

Don't be a wuss, Box, you've got an SV :d

[Al Navarro]

Another thing...

The thing about a "national" meet, IMHO, is to get as many cars there as possible. More cars, more visibility, more tires to kick, more stories to hear (you know, I just heard the one about John Gault's fire incident!...recounted via Ken G. at Lime Rock), more scenery for the non-parade (Sevens in my windshield, in my mirrors, out the wazoo), etc.

When the Automobile journalist interviewed me down in Robbinsville, he asked "How many cars did you need to commit to the event to make it worth it?"

To which I honestly replied "Well, I really wouldn't have cared if just the guys from the Skyline meet came out. But then when got to 30 handraisers, and Michael D. started talking about getting 50 or more....I knew it would be bigger than that."

I think 50 cars should be the target for any national meet. We had 61 at 7-7-7, and that was on the East Coast. Heck, we had 10 just at LRP. And I'm sure we'll get close to 25 if the Mid-Atlantic guys do a regional meet at VIR in 2008. So why not 50. Man I'd like to think we could pull 100 cars sometime in the future. Every single damn Seven in the country should go to the USA7s National Meet.

---

[SFX: Al getting off soapbox and going back to his day job.]

[drew...]

Well if everybody at 7-7-7 would come to South Dakota I'd guarantee there'd be 62. Still kicking myself for not being able to make 7-7-7!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Boxologist]

the sooner a date/location and expected budget for participants is established, the higher the turnout would be. if members of teh mother club were considering coming over for LOG next year, another USA meet may entice returnees even after the difficulties of Southwest 2005. food fof thought.

[slomove]

Something about the timing.....

I had to pick Summer for PNW2007 (first plan was July and that was moved later to end of August) because many people originally interested (including myself) could not go in September. October becomes anyway too late in northern areas.

A certain disadvantage of Summer is just the high season. It is more difficult to find places that will accommodate a large group and few hotels are willing to give group discounts because they will sell their rooms anyway and a group reservation carries some risk for them (i.e. the whole group may cancel). But I think it can be done, even for 30 or 40 people.

Theoretically there should be more traffic in Summer but that is probably limited to weekends/holidays/major attractions. On our tour we had minimal or no traffic everywhere except the last day (Sunday before Labor Day on roads leading to Clear Lake).

Gert

P.S.: Cody, WY (http://www.codywyomingnet.com/attractions/)might make for a great central location....right in the middle of Yellowstone, Beartooth Pass, Bighorn Mtns....everything close-by

[slngsht]

For those of us with kids, there is no choice but the summer :(

[slomove]

For those of us with kids, there is no choice but the summer :(

Yeah, you are right.....my son is now well beyond that age. But, on the upside such a Rocky Mountains location may be a way for us to partially combine a Se7ens event with family vacation (http://www.7dranch.com/) :)

Gert

[slngsht]

Yeah, you are right.....my son is now well beyond that age. But, on the upside such a Rocky Mountains location may be a way for us to partially combine a Se7ens event with family vacation (http://www.7dranch.com/) :)

Gert

Forwarding to wifey right away. Can never plan too far in advance :lol:

[Al Navarro]

From the people I talked to, early July (like, around the 7th...:d ) is better than August...August is the truly peak season.

I have to stop fantasizing about the 2009 meet, or else it will soon become an ALL ENCOMPASSING OBSESSION...not that I know anything about that sort of thing.:lol:

[powderbrake]

The desert is HOT in the summer. Here is a pic of the dash of my vette, top down, 6:14 pm, near Hoover Dam, on the trip to Monterey for the Concours D'Elegance at Pebble Beach. 119 degrees. It was too hot to touch anthing that was metal in the car.

Why was I at Hoover Dam on the way to Monterey?. We were hitting the Imperial Palace car museum in Las Vegas. And then the Petersen and Nethercutt car museums in LA, and then a cruise up the coast highway to Monterey.



http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1366517080_IMGP1266.JPG

[scannon]

Hoover Dam is a LOOOONG ways South of Montana and S. Dakota. It never gets anywhere near that hot up North. 100+F days are rare even in Colorado although we get a few of them in the Denver area each year.

[powderbrake]

Hoover Dam is a LOOOONG ways South of Montana and S. Dakota. It never gets anywhere near that hot up North. 100+F days are rare even in Colorado although we get a few of them in the Denver area each year.

I agree. I was referring to boxologist's reference to the desert in the summer. The desert being the Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California area.

However I have been in 100 degree weather in the summer in both North and South Dakota and Wyoming. That won't stop me from attending something in those states.

[xromad]

Well, if you decide on the Black Hills area, I'm sure some of us who live closer could be talked into running out and scouting roads/hotels/dining/etc...

One note: While I would be perfectly happy to do nothing but drive, fill the gas tank, drive, fill the gas tank..... Some of the wives, and most of the children will require at least some ability to enjoy other parts of the experience. There are LOTS of great roads around Mount Rushmore, as well as lots of very interesting things to see.

Mount Rushmore,
Crazy Horse Monument
Custer State Park
Jewell Cave National Monument
Devil's Tower
Wind Cave National Park
Badlands National Park

Not the same as the Tail, but that is kind of the point too. Different!

Either way, count Brenda and I in with both feet!

Also, as you said, quite a ways off still, but you should pick a date (1 Oct 08 might be appropriate) to close discussion and make a decision. Then the rest of us have roughly 9 months to save our pennies and figure out how we will get there.

Brent