Caravan to MOTD 5 on Thursday Morning May 3rd.

Remember your Radios!! Channel 7 subchannel 21.


People who are going:
MDSBrain w/ Krolyat
Carlos and his lady of Solar Solutions
J A Blazer
Obssesive
defylogik
mty_mini
CarlB
UKCoopeR w/ copilot

I hope this meeting spot works for everyone. Can't wait too see everyone half asleep and super anxious to head down.

With suggestions of folks so that we can make this easy and work I have made 2 meet spots.

#1 For those closer to this meet spot.

Starbucks
10251 Old Georgetown Road #8
Bethesda, Maryland 20817
(301) 896-0178

Meet Time: 5:00 am - THATS RIGHT!!
Starbucks opens @ 5. I'd like to roll by 5:30.
With the drive to Fontana for the Welcome Dinner @ approx. 10 hours I'd like to plan for 12 hours. This gives time for food, potty and gas stops.

Try not to drive Carlos of Solar Solutions nuts with your tinting questions k? . He'll be driving down with us.

Last minute items can be picked up @ the Giant accross the street which is open 24/7.


#2 Meeting Spot BREAKFAST - this is to accommodate folks driving from VA and points along the route. If folks in MD want to meet here as well thats fine. I just want to have fun and get there in a timely fashion.
Cracker Barrel
10801 Battleview Parkway
Manassas, VA 20109-2349
Located off I-66
(703) 369-4641

Meet time 6:30am sharp so we can get breakfast and then get back on the road. If theres no objection to this meeting spot I will contact the restaurant to let them know approx how many people to expect.

The below map thanks to Google is what has helped in the planning.
The houses are the cities of people who have expressed interest in the drive.
Coffe cup is the Starbucks and the food icon is the Cracker Barrel.


Those that are going please PM me your cell #. I'd like to make a list of people driving together in case we get seperated or lost along the way.

Route:
We will drive west on I-66, pick up W 81 and cruise along till we hit 40W and then a few more miles and we're @ Fontana Villiage.
Stops along the way will be decided by the members of the group using radios/cell phones. Depending on conditions and how we are feeling stops can be planned.

The drive from the Starbucks is approx. 549 miles and just over a 9 hour drive.
Driving from the Cracker Barrel is approx. 519 miles and a 8 hours 38 mins drive.

 

I think leaving between 5:30 and 5:45am would be good since it will take 9 hours 42 minutes (give or take a bit depending on which way around the smokey mountains park we go). That way the projected time for arrival is 2:30 - 2:45 and then add in stops along the way (food, bathroom, gas...etc)

 

i've been lookin for a group to run with on thursday as well. so i could prolly meet up with u guys.

 

was checking out directions, and it looks like the best way is to take 340W out to 81S. You get 340 over at Frederick. So I think the meeting spot should be out there, since some of us are coming from baltimore and not the DC area.

 

Agreed on taking 81S. I'd like to use this thread to brainstorm and plan a route and meeting spot for the drive.

I know Krolyat and I are big Cracker Barrel fans and want to stop there for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

 

I envy you all haha

 

Count me in too.

 

I'm in with the caravan too, with radar detector (except in DC and VA)

 

there is a walmart in frederick. i saw we meet in that lot there. There is plenty of food up and down that road, which is buckeystown pike (RT. 85).

i haven't been up there too much, so I don't know all the restaurant places there. If you know of one, we could meet there instead of the parking lot. That way we can just keep on eating as we're waiting for people.

 

I know exactly where the Walmart is in Frederick. But that would mean driving 45min out of my way towards our goal.

I'm coming from Bowie, MD; Jeremy from the Baltimore area.

I'd like to find a place on the map where we are on our way to our destination. What that place is, i'm not sure. Searching the map.

 

if you're coming from baltimore or DC you will have to go through frederick. unless you want to drive through NoVA. You gotta take 81S to get down there.

only two ways out to 81S, and it's either 66W or the 340W.

if you're in Bowie, you just gotta hit 32 up to 70. it's 45 minutes on your way.

 

Count us in, we were leaving about that time and taking the same route. Frederick is fine with us, know it well, give us a time and place and we will be there.

 

Im actually going to be coming from Hardford County...a little north wester then where I would be coming from, if I were coming from my house.

 

I'm not sure Fredrick would be a good place to start. Being that anyone on the south side of Rt. 66 would have to go an extra 45 minutes (if not more with morning rush hour traffic).

Therefore I think meeting on 81-S would be a better place to meet up. If you would like to drive down together from Fredrick by all means do so and anyone that would like to meet up with us (Bowie area) can join us. Then as said earlier both groups meet on 81-S.

As a proposed meeting place I would suggest Cracker barrel since it's on our way and close to where Rt. 66 meets US 81-S

 

We'll be sure to see you all there, since we will be there tuesday. Have a good drive...Are you planning on going through TN or through NC?
I ask because if you go through TN you have to go THROUGH the Dragon to get there, if you are planning on coming through NC, you get to go through the HellBender. We all came in through the dragon last year, what a way to pop that cherry!!!

 

I'ma goin Tuesday too, or possibly even Monday... I've always come through TN and down 129...

 

If you're coming from baltimore and surrounding areas, you're gonna have to come through frederick. Just cuz I-70 & RT.340 is the major vein towards 81.

if anyone is leaving anywhere from Northern baltimore prolly all the way down somewhere near columbia, we can either meet in frederick or at an earlier point depending on where everyone is coming from.

i know dc people can use 66. I'm just not familiar with traffic in the DC/NoVA area at that time in the morning.

 

There is traffic everywhere!!!

 

that's why i said DC and surrounding areas use 66. traffic goin to frederick in the morning is non existent. in the morning all the traffic is leaving frederick either heading to baltimore or down to DC. well at least the times i've driven out to frederick, and i've driven out there at about 8am and even a little earlier.

like i said, i can't speak for da DC people.

meeting up at 81 & 66 sounds like a good idea though. Just don't know what time we should set for meetin up out there. I think someone said leaving around 5:30 or so. My guesstimate would be around 8:30 or so to meet up at the cracker barrel at the junction of 81 & 66.

 

Meeting up at 8:30 and leaving then is not going to work because that would only leave an hour of "play". meaning if we hit traffic, stop for gas, bathroom or food the 6 (as of now) of us that are slated for the dinner would not be able to make it.

From the meeting point it is roughtly still 7.5 - 8 hours to go according to the maps.

I would propose meeting at the junction between 5:30 and 6 to leave at 6 which would then only give us 3 hours of "play" but still better than 1 hour.

 

If you are thinking of going on Tues. Wanna make a MINIvan? I think Sally and Paul may be joining us on the journey as well.

 

Yes, might be very well interested. Leaving early?

 

you do realize it will take 2 to 3 hours to get to that junction point from baltimore. in order to meet up at there at about 5:30, would have to leave in the vicinity of 2:30-3:30am.

if we met at the junction at about 8am, 8 hours from that point would put us in the dragon at about 2pm. with the welcome dinner at 5, there's about 2.5 hours of play.

hmmm... i say we can move the meet time to about 7am that way we can have that 3 hour window of play time to alleviate for all stops and traffic. I don't expect any traffic until we are in the area of the dragon.

thoughts...?

 

Yes, I am aware of the two hours because it will take us atleast 2 hours to get there as well.

Meet at the junction at 8am and then an additional 8 hour drive...(8+8 = 16) so we are now at 16 hundred hours military time. Minus two hours and drop the 1 = 4 pm

I don't understand how you are getting 2pm as the time that we would arrive at the dragon if we leave from CB at 8am

If we leave the junction at 7am we would arrive in Fontana at 3 PM (without any stops) which would leave a 2 hour window of play

 

whoops! don't ask, i don't know how i got it either.