Adding Stacey's post to my 1st post so it will be seen to those who are just reading this thread for the 1st time.

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(I'm keeping this post at the top)
Well considering we have to be there early afternoon, and we will have to SIT on 95 (probably) we will leave our place at 7:30am. I want to leave plenty early to allow for traffic and get there plenty early to get a good spot.

REMEMBER to bring radios! Wear a DCMM shirt! If you have a flag bring it!

OK! found a rest stop on 95 South that we can meet at. For those of us who have to come from the beltway down, there is a rest stop (the first one South) at mle 154 a bit south of the exit for Dale Blvd (Rte 784) From my house google maps says it will take about an hour. So I guess we can wait there and meet people at 8:30am and leave there at 9am SHARP...when I say sharp, I will be driving away at 9am! According to Google Maps, it will take 4 hours to get there, and we need to bet on traffic....

PLEASE let me know who's going to meet here, I don't want to leave people! I need a list so we can know how many cars to expect and not leave behind
If you want my cell# PM me.

List o' peeps meeting up:
MININurse
JustJAY
Jeremy1026
sprp85

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Who all is leaving Sunday AM for the World Record Attempt? Where are you coming from? Where shall we meet to make the journey together? From my house it is a 4hr 32min trip. So if we met somewhere around DC it would be about 3.5 hours (plus VA traffic.) Since they want everyone there by 2pm for check in, I would like to be there be 1:15pm just in case. So we would probably be leaving around 8am from Baltimore, 9am from DC-area (just to be on the safe side.) Would anyone like to motor down with myself and (TBD {probably mom}) co-pilot?

 

I'd be interested in case I can't find a good place to stay there.

 

I'll probably be doing the drive just for the day as well. Not sure what time I'd want to leave - probably 9:30am. I don't think it will actually take the full 3.5 hours to make the journey from DC, unless there is heavy traffic or you drive exactly the speed limit the entire way.

 

Just as long as we DON'T take 95 south...I am NOT going to sit on that darn road the entire time....tooooo much traffic...

 

We take 95 only until Richmond(first hr of driving).

 

but that is usually the biggest traffic spot...from here to richmond...up for suggestions tho

 

I would like to come down for it... but I have a Big Brothers event to chaperone on saturday.. and well it is a 14 hr drive.... from my house...

J

 

There's really only two choices to get to VA Beach from DC. Either go the I95-I295-I64 route, or go across the Rt. 50 Chesapeake Bay bridge, and follow Rt. 13 all the way down.

Taking the option involving I95, it took me about 3 hours from Alexandria, VA to VA Beach, VA with no traffic. If you leave DC at about 7 or 8 AM (9 is really pushing it), you should be able to get through the 'mixing bowl' without too much traffic. As for I295 going around Richmond, even during rush hour, it still goes at a decent clip.

As for the other option, I dunno about traffic, road conditions, etc.


-Paul!

 

Yeah, but it's closer than the Dragon, right??


-Paul!

 

I'll be leaving from Fredericksburg. Would love to meet up with a few of you for the trip down. Its roughly 160 miles from Fred. I am not worried about 95 - its the 64 tunnel that concerns me. I often have to travel down to the shipyard and that tunnel is like a box of chocolates.......

 

you sure? you can make a weekend of it..

 

I don't care what route we take, and I personally wouldn't even want to lead it. I'm just checking to see if anyone wants to motor down together, since things go so much smoother when your surrounded by MINIs

 

...Depending on whether we are able to get hotel reservations Saturday night or not. I'll be sure to keep an eye on the forum if we don't secure a room, then you'll have two HO MCCa's in the convoy!

 

We are heading down Sunday, not sure of the time or route-we too are open to suggestions!

 

Okie dokie, sounds like we have some interest for those going down on sunday.

EDITED OUT RANDOM STUFF

This Starbucks is right next to/inside of the "Pike 7 Plaza", not the one LITERALLY a block north!


Penelope, I have to drive through Laurel to get to the Starbucks, if you go down Sunday PM me your address or a place to meet up, and as I pass through Laurel we can meet up to motor to the Starbucks together also.

 

Hear me now and believe me later, if you leave at 9:30 AM, you're *going* to get stuck in traffic from the beltway up until possibly 20 to 30 miles south of the beltway on I-95!!

You might get very lucky and not run into much, but I doubt it!!!!


-Paul!

 

I totally agree with that, but the consensus thus far appears that all prefers to leave later. Perfect world, we are on our way at 9am the latest, which would give us atleast a little buffer to get around the parking lot that is 95.

 

Well, do as you will, but it has in the past taken me over an hour to go five miles on 95 south of the beltway...


-Paul!

 

Sorry Jeremy, I secured reservations in Va Beach for Saturday night, so I won't be coming along with the group Sunday morning.

On a similar but seperate note, has anyone though of a return convoy? ...Just a thought.

 

Not really, we don't really seem to have all the details of the after run stuff planned, so we don't know the timing of the return trip.

 

Ok, so how many people are going to motor down on Sunday. include where you will be picking up the caravan.

Jay and I will be picking it up here at the DC beltway. I know there will be people coming from B-more so we will be meeting you all on the road.

Any rest stops along the way down 95 that we can meet at? Let me know you VAers, since I don't know 95S.

 

Paul!

Having spent some time there recently - some advice from you as to how horrible the traffic can be during the weekend might give some guidance to those who are not planing an early departure on Sunday morning.

And the trip home can be unbelievably time consuming white knuckle driving as well. Lots of traffic coming to a dead halt with no visible reason - especially on 95 north.

 

Sam,

I gave advice above - if folks want to heed it, well, that's up to them. *shrug* Who knows, they might get lucky. i know *I* ain't leaving the DC area at 9:30 though!!

To sum up though, I predict that I-95 south from the beltway to about 20 miles south will be a parking lot, with other random traffic stoppages until you get to Richmond. After Richmond, you should be ok until Williamsburg, but I don't know that area well enough to say what traffic will be like over that way. Maybe someone else reading this thread has better info.

As for the trip home, I actually plan on taking Rt. 13 up, instead of the disaster that I-95 will be on Sunday. I figure it should be an easier and more leisurely drive back up to Columbia, if a bit longer.

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Oh, and Stacey, there's a rest area around mile marker 155 or so on I-95 south. It's (if I remember correctly) about 15 or so miles south of the beltway. There's one or two more further south, but I don't remember where they are.


-Paul!

 

Also just for the people that are planning on staying over or coming down Saturday. We have Harborfest going on. Lots of good events.

http://www.festeventsva.org/

 

Stacey, what time are you going to be leaving? Would I be able to stop by your place on my way down, then we could continue down together picking up the others as we go?