Change of motel and/or overall location for the 2018 Gathering.
[QUOTE=JohnnyB;504037]As it looks like a lack of interest for the arboretum it is cancelled
I'll be heading west on the blue ridge and thru the park heading back north
Great rally great people great time.
Looking forward to next year hopefully at a different hotel[/QUOTE]
Hi Bro, it is going to be hard to find a motel that is as clean and well maintained for the price as the Best Western, and to me, there is no place quite like Maggie, although perhaps we are running out of ride possibilities. I like the Fontana Inn (Fontana, NC) at the Fontana Dam and the start of the Dragon ride at Deals Gap, but at $133 +/- a night, it is a mite expensive. (However, Sevierville & Pigeon Forge activities are less than 70 miles away.)
I think we should poll the interest for another motel or another location while you have trikers available to cast their neigh or yeigh vote, and get some kind of immediate overall consensus as to what to do next. If you have the dinner we talked about, it might be a good topic to discuss over dinner. Either way, it would be nice to have plans in the works for the next gathering before the close of this gathering.
Sorry about the long distance advice, but it is what it is! I would rather be there on a trike!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Best regards,
Chaplain Dave
Long distance communication!
[QUOTE=JohnnyB;504232]As I'm leaving now I'll throw this out
Oak Park Inn -waynesville price pretty much same and within walking distance of downtown[/QUOTE]
[CENTER][B]I hate being stuck here with input for what is going on there!
I like being where the action is! [/B] [/CENTER]
That said, I like to instill sanity and order in what I do, therefore I ask if there is someone there who can take charge of what Johnny B threw out yesterday? Should we change to another motel or hotel in the Maggie area? If so, which one? Should we opt for an entirely new gathering watering hole? If so, where?
I would like to see some conclusion to the above questions BEFORE our TT gathering for 2017 is history. If nothing can be concluded, then I strongly suggest that we stay in the same town and at the same motel next year. An open discussion of the issue on the Forum should not be necessary - and will not be necessary - if the issue is addressed now. I pray that someone there will pick up this ball and run with it! AMEN!
Irma is raising havoc with gas availability and travel to and from Florida. A friend in Daytona spent 2 days on the phone trying to find a motel and ended up with a motel in northern Georgia! But traffic is already such that he is not sure that he can get there! So if you are headed south, take your time, and go west to go south! 5 out of 7 tracking patterns for Irma show the hurricane heading north along the coast line and following I-95, I-75 and I-26.
Ironically, the Tri-Cities area up here in Tennessee is in Irma's cross-hairs, and that is where Sara and I live! I have been praying for everyone else, but I guess we need your prayers also.
Be safe and be blessed!
Chaplain Dave
A change of venue for our 2018 Gathering
[QUOTE=bikerbillone;504338]I'm with you Brother Dave, and I'm quite willing to go wherever in 2018, but at this late date it might be difficult to grt a consensus. Perhaps letting it ride until the 2018 gathering and have a meeting? Just a suggestion, maybe Zook will chime in with a thought since this is his forum.[/QUOTE]
I tend to agree with you, bro. Many trikers have probably already left for home and/or our getting ready to leave with Irma pressing everyone's schedule. I wish the venue topic had came up early on when everyone was present, it is probably a dead issue now.
I agree that during the 2018 Gathering we should hold a town hall type meeting to discuss the issue and have spontaneous active and personal feedback from everyone.
I see 2 important issues here, one is the ride issue, the other is the "out front" meetings that go on every evening. Personally, I look forward to our evening meetings as much as I do for the rides. Our evening meetings seem to thrive wherever we gather, so a 2018 rendezvous for us at Maggie is not a bad thing. It is not as if we MUST go someplace else!
I understand why those planning our rides are ready to go someplace else for our Gathering, they are running out of idea's for rides. On the other hand, I see many trikers taking off with other trikers to create their own rides, not because they don't like the group ride, but because they want their own ride with their friends.
I feel we have a GOOD thing going thanks to Zook and Marge, and I would like to see the essence of our Gatherings continue. What essence? It is the heart felt emotion that comes from our attending triker Gatherings with those who have similar interests and those whom we can like & respect, have great talks with, have great fellowship with, take great rides with, and develop great memories with.
Folks, thanks for the memories! It is not the location but YOU who makes me want to come back next year!
Chaplain Dave