Colorado Rockies - Mini Epic Road Tour
July 11 - July 15 2016

Disclaimer:
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This a pay your own way event. This means even me the organizer pays my own way to attend. Organizing drives is my hobby and I enjoy putting the events on. I also pay for the website and store system out of my own pocket to make sharing information and registering easier on everyone.
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The Epic road trip event is a bi-yearly event that is focused on the spirit of having an adventure and making friends. The first Epic was a week in Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons in 2013. The second Epic in 2015 was a 10 day grand tour of the many national parks of the southwest states. A rather informal survey concluded that many Participants of these two events could not wait 2 long years until the next Epic, and so here we go.

This will be a five day road adventure to drive as many of the scenic mountain roads and highways of the Colorado Rockies. While the focus will be on driving, we will be making stops to check out the scenery, historic small towns and railroads, ski resorts (gondola rides), etc. as time allows. You are welcome to join or leave the event at any point if you are not able to make all five days. With what we have planned, I strongly suggest you attend all five days as this will be one amazing driving adventure.

Unlike rallies and road course events, we encourage people to stay in a group and stop at the planned destinations, as this is a road trip not a rally. However, the stops and activities are suggestions, not mandates. Our format is for those individuals, couples or families, who want to have an adventure as well as make new friends with fellow enthusiasts. We mix the day up between driving sections, photo stops and sightseeing opportunities for everyone. This is not a race, so if you are looking for a competitive event this is not for you.

NOTE: Rooms are limited and it is first come first serve. So if you wish to go make sure to join ASAP!

Admins, the reason for the post in each region is these are national meet ups. A chance to make new friends from across the country and to share in a road tour adventure.

Day 1: Monday July 11, Dillon, CO.

Rocky Mountain National Park and Trail Ridge Road, Stanley Hotel, Peak to Peak Scenic Byway, Berthoud Pass.

Day 2: Tuesday July 12, Dillon, CO.

Loveland Pass, Mt. Evans, Guanella Pass, Georgetown, Breckenridge.

Day 3: Wednesday July 13, Dillon to Montrose, CO.

Top of the Rockies, West Elk Loop, Aspen, Independence Pass, South Rim Black Canyon.

Day 4: Thursday July 14, Montrose to Telluride, CO.

San Juan Skyway (“most beautiful drive in America”) & Million Dollar Highway. Durango & Silverton.

Day 5: Friday July 15, Telluride to Grand Junction, CO.

Unaweep-Tabeguache Scenic Byway, Grand Mesa Scenic Byway, Gateway Auto Museum.

Base event includes:
Two T-shirts, decals, PayPal Fees, Insurance, and BBQ dinner for one night are include in the base fee

Any and all are welcome, so please invite or forward to friends and family. The first signup deadline is April 1st, after that the price will go up $100 per entry. The final deadline is June 1st. We encourage you to register as early as possible as this is first-come first-served as lodging is extremely limited.

The official start of the trip is Monday, but we will try to coordinate cross country caravans to the start for those interested. As a veteran of our trips you know that the routes and sights may change from what is listed above due to things beyond our control such as weather conditions, etc.

If you have any questions please feel free email kevin@raddrives.com. We’re looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new people.


Register Here: http://raddrives.com/catalog/index.p...&product_id=63



Radio to buy for these trips

VHF radio. We use the Boefang U5r with the longer antenna. This is an investment that you and your buddies can use to go on future drives as well. We use open frequencies to comply with using bigger radios. These can be found on Amazon for $26 dollars. Add the long antenna for more range and its $50 or less.

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio (Black)
Link: http://amzn.com/B007H4VT7A

Long Antenna 7 inch:
Link: http://amzn.com/B00KBZLOHC

 

FYI from Amazon's site

"
Question:
Can this be used as a FRS 2-way radio? I am wondering how suitable this is for using as a walkie talkie/2-way radio. You know, similar to the Motorola Talkabout. My main usage is when I go skiing or hiking, camping, etc. A few questions: 1) I know very little about HAM/repeater, etc. How complicated is it to setup …


Answer:
Short answer is - Yes but not legally.
Long answer is that the radio is not FCC certified to operate on the GMRS/FRS frequencies (even though it can). It is also over the legal power limit for FRS. GMRS requires a license to legally operate (even the GMRS radios you buy at the big box stores - just read the manual… By DaveH on March 6, 2013 See more answers (18)

 

Unless you use open frequencies that are allowed to be used for said radio use.

So radio traffic might be there so you have a "limited" selection of open channels.

 

This actually looks like a very fun drive through Colorado! I've done this once before. Will you be posting up images in this thread during the event?

 

The full event recap and images will be posted there like always. During the event you can see facebook and IG

 

I just moved from Colorado to Arizona. I had a lot of fun in the Colorado mountains with my Crossfire club. It looks like you will be seeing some cool places for sure.

 

This is open to any and all so join the fun. We always have a great time on these and make new friends.

 

Friendly reminder to sign up for the event. At the end of April we have to release the rooms we did not sell. This means you are on your own for a room and will be paying around 15% more than the rest of the group. You also might not find a room.

We do have some good news, we were able to negotiate down one hotel more to save an additional $85 off the price. Website has been updated to show this great news.

Current numbers claimed.

 

So that $400 fee doesn't include any lodging right? I'm asking another couple who have a Mini if they're interested. Thanks.

 

Correct, base event fee covers:
Two T-shirts, decals, achievement decals, PayPal Fees, Insurance, and BBQ dinner for one night

 

Just curious. Can you break down the cost of the $428 registration fee? What is the insurance for? Paypal fees? - for what?

 

Just another reminder that the final registration deadline is June 1st, and since we have limited hotel rooms remaining, register soon. We've got Porsche's, BMW's, Jaguar, Mazda, Mercedes, and Rossion represented so far. On our overnight trips we usually see performance cars from Lotus, Subaru, McLaren, Chevy, Nissan, Subaru, Lamborghini, Toyota, Mini, etc. If you have not been on one of our trips yet, check out our photo albums to see what you've been missing.

Click here to Register.

Below is a map of the full 5 day route. We worked hard to fit in all the best driving and scenic roads, and each day we'll be going over multiple 10,000' passes.




While the official start of the trip is early Monday morning, we have started to coordinate cross country caravans to Dillon, CO for those interested. There are a lot of car rental options in Denver for those of you flying in. For questions and more info email kevin@raddrives.com