I may get flamed but I don't really care ...

I would like to encourage everyone to slow down & enjoy the scenery whilst partaking in the Dragon & other surrounding roads this year.

I drive quite spiritedly myself. I do not drive like someone's granny but last year I found that I couldn't ever get on Hwy 28 (which is a requirement to get most anywhere from Fontana Village) without at least one MINI planted frimly up my rear end wanting me to let them pass. Why don't I just pull over you ask? Well, I tried that but as soon as I got back on the road another MINI would come along & start tailgating me wanting the same thing & frankly if I pull over ever 100 feet or so I will never get where I am going. Mind you, while getting tailgated, I was not driving the speed limit myself (NAM site guidelines discourage me from naming the speed at which I was travleing). It got to the point where I dreaded driving anywhere & I just don't see the point in going at break-neck speeds every time I get on the road.

I just wish the attendees this year would not treat the dragon (or surrounding roads) like their own personal race track. Keep in mind there will be over 400 MINIS on the roads in May & I would just like to encourage everyone to slow down a bit & take the time to actually enjoy the ride

 

perhaps you should cc the memo to all drivers/riders on the dragon. it's a public road.....it's going to happen, whether you want it to our not. we ran it last year at MOTD with our Subaru full of camera gear and 'yaks on the roof. The MINI's were quite pleasant (I wasn't pushing too hard with 150lbs up high), but the bikes and a few GM f-bodies were not.

 

If you are constantly being tailgated and flashed to move over, so that you would have to pull over "every 100 feet" you are going too slow! No other way about it.

 

The only people on my bumper last year were MINIS

not true LynnEl. I don't consider doing 70MPH down Hwy 28 going too slow

 

What's the speed limit? Apparently a lot of people do consider it too slow. Maybe your speedo is off. The simple fact is, if it keeps happening, it should tell you something. Or maybe it's the same MINI driving in circles just to harass you.

 

The speed limit is 50. My speedo is right on. All I am asking is for people to slow down because too many think that every time they crank up it is a race to the finish Have you ever been tailgated at the dragon LynnEl?

 

bamatt,

Just drive within your limits. If you are already 20 over the speed limit, the people behind you can wait.

There are many other things to pay attention to than the people behind you, oncoming traffic, wildlife, etc.

It may take someone getting badly hurt, or dying, to make others take note, but probably not, people are generally stupid. (and most can't drive as well as they think)

 

Oy Im going to get run over up there

 

Speed limits vary from TN to NC. I think the Dragon in NC is posted at 30 mph, but am not sure what it's posted at in TN. Hwy 28 after Deal's Gap might be posted at 50. Lotsa people drive Hwy 28 fast in the straightaways.

It's too bad, however, when some people feel their own "need for speed" should supercede all other driver enjoyment of the road.

 

I've never been tailgated. I wasn't asking if your speedo was "on" or mounted right. I meant is it calibrated right?

 

Yeah I think the 50 limit is the stretch where Hwy 28 is straighter. It may be lower if you go away from 129 because it gets really twistie & I wasn't going as fast as I said the whole way but it amazed me that even when I did the bumper riders kept right on me.


Very well said. That is exactly what I am trying to say. There is an awfully lot of great scenery around the dragon & it is just a shame to miss it all (& I'm not taking about when actually on Hwy129 cause you gotta look straight ahead on that road)

 

Yes it is calibrated correctly

 

No responsible MINI owner will force you to drive beyond your limits. I tend to take things slow too. I will pull over when I can, but otherwise I worry about driving safely and having fun, not who is behind me.

 

OK Jen & Trinity will you guys go riding with me when we get there I get to be in the middle

 

We will be your buffer. Youll never even notice the flashing lights and honking!

edit: Maybe we need to have a ladies cruise of the Dragon

 

WooHoo sounds like a plan

 

 

It's an intimidating ride, for sure. The first time one does it, is the worst...fun but it's VERY demanding...seems almost never-ending. What makes it grueling, though, is the on-coming traffic [especially those lcenterline-hugging superbikes] as well as the people coming up from behind and "urging you to go faster or to get out of their way. Well, the "turn offs" are not real MINI-friendly...I mean, who wants to rip out the underside of their car because the curb dropoff is so severe, just to let some speedfreak by? Does THAT mean ya gotta go faster, too, then? Or, does it suggest that EVERYONE remember that this IS a public ROAD and NOT a TRACK, where point-bys are the norm.

I go to the Dragon to drive the roads, visit with my friends and enjoy myself by participating in the MOTD events. I paid a lot of money to mod my car and wouldn't appreciate it much if some dimwit forced me to the side of the road, just cuz I wasn't abusing the highway to HIS liking. I don't know about you, but I plan to drive my car back to Ohio myself...and not to have it flatbedded home.

 

+1 (except for the Ohio part )

WOOHOO cool Cooperation. Chicks rule Synchronized estrogen

 

LOL Craig - you rock...

 

Whatever your taste, quicker or slower, I find it advantageous (if you can) to arrive and drive lots early in the week. When it's less crowded you can be quick, or relaxed and slower, or even find spots to pull off and take photos. The added bonus is that once the hordes arrive you can spend lots of time socializing and seeing MINI's and vendors at Fontana without feeling you're giving up the driving for the social side. I'll be coming in Mon or Tues this year.

Hopefully the vast majority of those at MOTD will be safe and considerate this year. If anyone is nervous about it, I'd suggest come a day or three early if you can. More time for more fun.

 

Well said! I ALWAYS come a day early, for the very reasons you state...less traffic and more chances to REALLY enjoy the ride before the crazies come in.

 

Yeah mmatarella, I got there Wednesday last year & that one day was a no-pressure enjoyable driving day. Unfortunately I can't come early this year. I was just hoping to inspire a bit of courteousness this year is that a word or did I just make it up, if I made it up I kinda like it

 

We were going to have a Ladies on the Dragon Run and Luncheon for charity, but I had a bout of poor health and had to back off from some of my responsibilities at this year's MOTD.

Teresa (bamatt), you don't have to pull over to be passed. Just move over slightly, and you will be passed when it's safe.

The real slow-pokes are the dresser bikes who won't even go the speed limit! I got stuck in a "parade" of 10 Triumphs last year between Deal's Gap and Fontana. I had to keep downshifting into 1st gear because they almost stopped on every fricking turn! I thought a few would tip over!

It's impossible to pass 10 Triumphs. Then there were a bunch behind me, so I pretended I was a VIP being escorted back to Fontana...

 

I hope it works!