2006 Club111 Southeast Regional Meet (formally known as The Tail of the Dragon Run)

[wallabyguy]

I am very proud to announce the 2nd Annual Club111 Fall Run and Southeast Lotus Meet

When:

October 23-27

Where:

Zion Farms
www.zionfarms.com
Amuchee, Georgia

Schedule

October 23 (optional)

8:00 AM- 4:00 PM Club Track day at Carolina Motorsports Park, Kershaw, SC
http://www.carolinamotorsportspark.com/
This event will have the track dedicated to our group. No other drivers will be present which will mean enormous amounts of driving time for those in attendance. There will be a 1 hour break for lunch. All cars, driver experience welcome. Please bring appropriate attire and safety equipment. Gates open at 7:00AM.

October 24

10:00 AM Scenic Caravan Drive from Kershaw, SC to Armuchee, GA. Mapped out by Lotus Cars USA. especially for our group.

Stop for Lunch.

7:00PM Registration and Hors d'oeuvres at Zion Farms

October 25

10:00 AM Scenic drive through Alabama/ Northeast Georgia
(optional ATV and Horseback riding sessions, tours of Berry College and downtown Rome Boutique Antique shopping)

Lunch will be available for those who choose to eat at the farm while taking advantage of the activities.

6:00 PM Social hour- The Pavilion

7:00PM Traditional Southern BBQ Dinner

Hickory and Cherry Smoked Baby Back Ribs
Hickory and Cherry Smoked Assorted Bone in Chicken Pieces
Blackberry & Sorghum BBQ Sauce and Carolina BBQ Sauce
Jalapeno Pineapple Coleslaw
Bourbon Bake Beans
Mama Rena’s Badass Potato Salad
Homemade Brunswick Stew
Buttered Garlic Toast
Sweet and Unsweet Tea
Dessert- Georgia Peach Bread Pudding

October 26

9:00 AM
Trip to Deals Gap, The Tail of the Dragon
(optional horseback riding for those opting to stay behind)

6:00PM Social Hour with Live Music

7:00PM Semi Formal Dinner/ Lotus Product Presentation/ Vendor Presentations

Grilled Steak Dinner and Seasonal Vegetables
Homemade Cream Corn
Yellow Summer Squash Casserole
Plantation Green Beans
Thick Bone in Pork Chops
Corn Bread and Rolls
Sweet & Unsweet Tea
Dessert: Peach Cobbler and Ice Cream with Brandy Sauce

October 27

Concourse and Award Ceremony
Lunch

Caravan Trip to Chattanooga, Tennessee (optional)

Where to stay:
Zion Farms has a limited number of cottages available. They will be available directly through their reservations desk on a first come first serve basis. Most cottages can sleep more than 2 so if you are traveling with friends to the event and want to split a cottage you can dramatically reduce costs. Breakfast is included for resort guests (2 meals standard per room, additional guests are extra). There is also a Bunk House which can accommodate individuals looking for a real bargain.
http://www.zionfarms.com/lodging.html
Room Rates are $130 for the cottages/per night (weekday, rates higher if you plan to stay over the weekend)
Bunk House Rates are $40/ per night

Additional rooms are also available on Rome's waterfront at the Hawthorne Suites (roughly 15 minutes away)
http://www.hawthorn.com/reservations...asp?facid=3743
"Enjoy a comfortable stay in historic downtown Rome, Georgia. This hotel is a beautifully renovated 1800's building which provides the perfect balance of a historic atmosphere plus modern day conveniences. Our studio, one and two-bedroom suites are all unique. Some suites even feature the original brick walls and wood floors that were standard in the building.

At Hawthorn, we'll provide you with all the amenities to make your stay enjoyable. For your convenience, our lobby is adjacent to several boutique shops including Alex which features the latest in New York style, Bella Luna and Dragon Fly Dreams, as well as both men's and women's salons offering massage therapy and a variety of other services. This hotel is also within walking distance of several locally owned unique restaurants."

Cost is roughly $150/per night and up depending on choice of accommodations.

Event Costs:
Event: Including: Tuesday: Hors d'oeuvres
Wednesday: driving, BBQ
Thursday: driving, semi-formal dinner,
presentations
Friday: Concourse, Lunch

before 9/15/06 $140 Club111 Members ($155 non-
members)
after 9/16/06 and onsite $155 Club111 members ($170
non-members)

Optional Activities: Horseback riding: $50/ person Club111 members
($55/person non members) trailriding (per
session/ multiple sessions available)
ATV: TBD
Lunch on 10/25 at Zion Farm for those not
attending the drive: $20
10/23 Track day at C.M.P.: $245 Club111
members ($275 non members)

Main thread with pictures.........

http://www.elisetalk.com/forums/show...916#post416916

[wallabyguy]

Registration is now up!

http://www.club111.net/index.php?pag...mart&Itemid=93

[wallabyguy]

LODGING UPDATE

Zion Farms called me today to tell me they have rented out all of their cottages for our event. They still do have beds available in the "bunk house" which are substantially less expensive. Otherwise, please look to the Hawthorne Suites in Rome for accommodations.

http://www.hawthorn.com/reservations...asp?facid=3743

BTW, I was also told that someone's wife is trailering horses up for the event and will be going riding for the week. Sounds awesome.

[MickOpalak]

Its hard to come up with just the right word for this "event": fiasco, disaster, joke?

It was easily the most poorly planned and executed car event I've ever been to. Its as if the entire thing was cancelled but no one bothered to inform the attendees. Let me start from the beginning...

First of all, about two weeks ago we were informed that the track day portion of the "event" was cancelled. Fine, just send me my refund. I'm still waiting for my refund. That cut the event back by two days because the second day, Tuesday, was going to be a drive from Kershaw, SC to Rome, GA.

Instead the event would start at Zion Farms Tuesday night at 7 PM with a reception featuring folks from Club111, Lotus Cars USA (with a 'special' car), vendors, sponsors, door prizes, food and drink. I arrived at Zion Farms at 7 PM but couldn't find anyone there. One guy working at the stables had no idea what I was talking about but gave me the phone number for the events lady. Of course, all I got was voice mail. I decided to drive all the way back to Rome so that I could check EliseTalk and make sure I was in the correct place. Sure enough, the schedule says Zion Farms, 7 PM. By the time I get back its 8 PM and dark. Zion Farms is in the middle of nowhere, so I'm driving around the gravel roads of this horse farm looking for a reception. I finally find it in one of the cottages on the property. Something is odd as soon as I get in the door. The only people there are staff. I'm the first one to arrive! Then I'm told that the Club111 organizer of the entire event, Robert aka Wallabyguy, was not going to show up for it! So over the course of the next couple of hours more attendees show up, all wondering whats going on. There was no one from Lotus there, no vendors and no Club111 organizers. All we got was a BW Racing duffle bag and a rough itinerary for the following days. In all about 8 Elises showed up for the event, some travelling from Florida, South Carolina, Illinois and Indiana.

Wednesday started with breakfast at 9. According to the schedule today was the Deal's Gap drive. After looking at the maps for a while we realized that it was a 3.5 hour drive just to get to the Gap! And dinner was planned for 7 PM. That gave us 9 hours between meals and 7 of those would be just driving to and from the Gap. We gave it a go and made it to the Gap by 3 PM. We had enough time for two runs of the Gap, then back into the cars for the 3.5 hour drive back to Zion Farms. This was a poorly planned day indeed.

Thursday was supposed to feature a scenic mountain drive of Georgia and Alabama, but with no organizers in attendance, we had no route, schedule or anything. We met for breakfast at 9 again, but people were already starting to pack up and head home. We thought about making a run into Atlanta to visit LCU (since they couldn't be bothered to attend the event) but found out that all of the Exige Ss that we wanted to see were leaving town on a truck for the press launch. The weather forecast called for rain in the afternoon, all through Friday. There goes our concourse that we were supposed to have on Friday morning, but I guess it doesn't matter when you have no judges or awards. After breakfast everyone agreed to just head home.

One thing is for sure: we all want our money back. This "event" sucked.

Two positives though: Zion Farms is a very beautiful setting to have an event and the staff was very nice, friendly and helpful. Unfortunately, Zion Farms is located about 3 hours from all of the interesting roads we wanted to drive.

Secondly, the 20 or so folks who did show up for the event were great fun. Everyone tried to have a positive outlook about the outing, even though we were making everything up as we went along.

Robert, I'm sure everyone who attended would like a nice detailed explanation of what happened, an apology and a refund. We're waiting...

[wallabyguy]

The failure of this event was entirely my fault. I could give a host of reasons why this occured, but in the end it falls on my sholders. I'm truly sorry that you all opted to end the event early but I do understand. I am extremely sorry for the situation and will discuss remeding the situation to the best of my ability with the officers ASAP.

[MickOpalak]

Some pix from yesterday. As you can see, some folks trailered cars and horses from several states away.

[MickOpalak]

More pix...

[MickOpalak]

Last pix...

[Brian Skeoch]

Nice pics Mick.

[MickOpalak]

The black Elise in the first picture has a 350 hp turbo motor.

[wallabyguy]

I want to make sure that everyone understands something very clearly. I was responsible for this situation. Regardless of what factors or circumstances caused the problems, this was my event, I was not there and therefore everyone’s anger should be directed at me. Do not allow this to reflect on the club as a whole or on the sponsoring/ participating organizations. I am going to do whatever I can to make this right and am trying very hard to understand exactly what happened and what failed to happen before responding to each person in attendance individually.

[zvezdah1]

Man have I been at that stop a zillion times!!!
Sorry things didn't flow well but it looks like some good times there too. Perhaps something can be planned a bit earlier in the year next year?

[DragonRider]

Guys,
I just joined your forum to make you aware of the pictures of the Lotus' on Killboys frontpage.

If these drivers are in fact part of this group, please police yourselves and try to behave a little more safely when sharing a public road with other enthusiasts. I don't take well to meeting cars in my lane when riding my motorcycle at a spirited pace on the gap, and don't wish to have it happen again.

[JWA]

Ouch guys - those are some pretty damning pics and comments.

[MickOpalak]

I meant to say something to the group at the time when I noticed some folks were crossing the double yellow. I figure its OK to do when you can see a long way down the road, but not on a blind corner.

[smoseley]

Originally Posted by DragonRider

please police yourselves... I don't take well to meeting cars in my lane when riding my motorcycle

Sure, go bitch at the Lotus guys because ONE of them pissed you off on the road... And I assume that for your part, you'll go police the THOUSANDS of idiots riding a motorcycles in a dangerous manner for the rest of us?

[zvezdah1]

Originally Posted by transio

Sure, go bitch at the Lotus guys because ONE of them pissed you off on the road... And I assume that for your part, you'll go police the THOUSANDS of idiots riding a motorcycles in a dangerous manner for the rest of us?

Big difference Steve, unlikely for a motorcycle to kill you if you're in a car and THEY cross the double line and hit you. Just about guaranteed kill on the rider if a car crosses and hits the bike.

BY no means am I condoning it, if you cross the double lines in a blind corner you're driving or riding WAY too fast.

[andykeck]

Originally Posted by transio

Sure, go bitch at the Lotus guys because ONE of them pissed you off on the road... And I assume that for your part, you'll go police the THOUSANDS of idiots riding a motorcycles in a dangerous manner for the rest of us?

They _do_ make a point of tracking down the bad riders when possible. There's a lot of self-policing at the gap.

[wallabyguy]

As mad as I was that I wasn't there before, now I'm pissed.

We need to be responsible members of the motoring community. This isn't OK. Esspecially when someone hunts our group down to slap out wrists because we behaved so badly. We need to remember that when we are driving together as a group we represent the brand, the clubs and the community. This reflects badly on all of us.

[LotusFamily]

A reminder to Robert, maybe some of us wouldnt have been driving so hard were we to have had more than one stinkin hour to spend on the road after traveling so far, I would stay out of this if I was you. As to the persons tracking us down to bitch, there were a few of us running quick and we only crossed the line when there was plain view down the road so go cry someplace else, at no time were any of us close to our driving limits or endangering other people on the roadway. We didnt go looking for all the motorcycles, suv's, or the semi-tractor trailer that came across in our lanes so get bent.