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MountainMeet 2017: Sept. 28-Oct. 1

propav8r

F*ck Edgar
Joined
Jan 17, 2010
Location
Franklin, NC
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Reservations are made, the freezer is filling with meat, and that means we're a few months away from MountainMeet, so it's either time to stock up axles and 15W40, or start thinking about a believable excuse.

I want to start the thread off by saying a huge "thank you" to everyone who came out last year, ESPECIALLY to those who helped put the event on. Wren is an absolute master in the kitchen, and Kenny's egg made sure we were all stuffed with BBQ on Saturday night.

Now, as last year, all the beds inside are sold out, but there's still two huge couches that can be claimed, room inside for inflatables, and tons of room in the yard for hammocks and tents. I think Alden has already called dibs on a couch, so there's one more. Y'all will have to defend your titles on your own though. Just because you don't have a bed doesn't mean you aren't welcome.

So for those who haven't been before, it's (potentially) a 4 day, 3 night throwdown.

General plan is as follows:

Thursday, 9/28:


Some of us will arrive at Balsam Lake Lodge in the early afternoon.
Early birds set up shop, get the grill going, and maybe check out a little of the area, go fishing, see a waterfall, whatever.

As we did last year, the cost of Thursday night is not included if you've already bought a bed. I know most people won't show up for Thursday night, but last year we had 6 or 8 of us. We'll split the cost of that night by however many people show up. It's only $200 for the night, so it won't be too much.

Friday 9/29:

The rest of y'all show up. We'll do breakfast/lunch/dinner for those who show up, probably something simple like chili, burgers, brats, and something green like we did last year. That worked out pretty well.

Friday night: Drink, eat, benchrace.

Saturday: 9/30

Wren's Famous Southern Breakfast<sup>TM</sup>. Seriously, don't miss this. The man knocked it out of the park last year.

Saturday day we'll do some sort of group drive. Last year, Derrick led a group out to the Gap and had a pretty good time. Going out there from the lodge is definitely a full-day affair though. There are plenty of other really great roads in the area, and I might lead a group on a shorter, more local run.

I kinda intend that Saturday be what you make it. If you want to go gem mining in Franklin, go. If you want to ride mountain bikes out in Pisgah or hike along the Parkway, do it. If you just want to sit on the porch with a beer in your hand and tend to the grill, or spend all day floating on the lake with a line in the water, go for it. There isn't some super-regimented schedule.

Saturday night: BBQ Feast with all the trimmings, and a hootenanny in the holler.

Sunday 10/1:

Wake up, clean up, GTFO.

The Location:

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Balsam Lake Lodge, North Carolina. There is no address. I'm not kidding. You drive to nowhere, hang a left, go down a fair piece, and it's by the lake. Here's a link to a Google Maps location for the place: http://tinyurl.com/jkt65yj

There's a sign and a gravel driveway off the road. It's easy to miss, so I'll leave some sort of Volvo (alternatively, a drunken turbobricker) out by the road to mark it.

I've said it already, but I'm worried that much like Ron Swanson ordering all the bacon in the restaurant for breakfast, you're not understanding. This place is seriously remote. It's over an hour to a town of a decent size. Auto parts stores are not open late. It's probably wise to download offline directions on your phone.

Lodge Rules:
Technically, alcohol is not allowed at this place. There will be a trash can for your empty bottles and cans. Use it. Under no circumstances should you leave trash, particularly bottles and cans, laying around. We're in the middle of nowhere. There is a caretaker's house about 1/4 mile away, but as long as we don't get excessively rowdy, we'll be fine.

I plan on leaving the lodge in the same condition it's in when we arrive. Your assistance in this mission is greatly appreciated.

You do not need to bring linens, however, you CAN bring your own, and it helps immensely with cleanup. Every sheet/towel/blanket that we use has to be washed, dried, folded, and put away. If you want to bring your own sheets/blankets/sleeping bags/whatever, that will save a TON of time and effort Sunday morning.

Also, there's no need to bring cooking utensils, pots and pans, stuff like that. It's all there.

What are you eating?

I'll take care of some of most of the meat, and some things that don't travel well. We've already got some meat in the freezer, but we're just getting started.

Last year, we broke up the food requirements into manageable groups that wound up costing (I hope) $20-30 per person. That worked really, really well, so we'll do that again. Keep an eye on the OP here for food groups.

This is important
Again
This is important


There will be a donation pot on the table. If you don't bring food or contribute to the prep in some way, and especially if you didn't buy a bed, PLEASE throw a little cash in the pot. Surprisingly, we had plenty of money last year to cover expenses. Let's make that happen again.

8-10 solid meals per person for a 30 person group is not exactly cheap or a trivial task.

Who's Coming:

* means you paid for a bed

1: *Jared/Propav8r
2: *Bayleigh
3: *Kenny/linuxman51
4: *Sam/Roadracer
5: *Sam's plus juan
6: *Matt "It's only 300 feet" Harders/Hondamatt
7: *Ian/MrBill
8: *Wren the Chef
9: *DMFWallace
10: *Andrew/AndrewNance
11: *Eamonn/Hockey930
12: *Towery
13: *Peter/FlyingTog
14: *Peter's plus juan
15: *Andy (Wren's friend)
16: *Jennifer (Wren's lady)
17: Derrick/940Guy
18: Mackeever/ItsMackeever
19: Mark/BrnBrik
20: Alden/WindowsBreakerG4
21: MikeJr, plus 2
22: Rob/Volvorules
23: MG Rob
24: Stick70/Kyle
25: Stick70ette/Chelsie
26: Wes/Sporkfan
27: Randy
28: Joseph D.
29: Carlos/Acepeekaporn
30: MikeSr
31: Dana/Boostdemon
32: Meredith/MG Rob's Lady
33: Eric Z.
34: 740ATL
35: JD's gal
36: Gordon/volvstang

Maybes:
1: Cami
2: Scott and the Dingleberries
3: Aaron/Slow240
4: photoman327
5: Benjamin W.


The Fine Print

1: A note on attendance: If you plan on coming, have the courtesy to let me know in the thread. As a general rule, if we've met before and are cool, come on out. If we haven't met, just shoot me a PM and let me know you'd like to come. I try to open my events to everyone, but see #4 if there are any questions.

2: If you want to arrive Thursday, you can. Do not arrive before say 1pm on Thursday the 28th (well, no one at my house. you can come whenever I reckon). I will gladly host a couple people at my house Wednesday night. Pre-arrival coordination with me is required. First night at the lodge is Thursday night. Do not arrive at the lodge before 1pm.

3: Bring enough 'stuff' (clothes, swimsuit, towel, bath accouterments) for the weekend and some emergencies. The lodge has running water and hot showers. Use them. Don't stink.

4:I reserve the right to throw your ass out, don't try me. I also know (on a first name basis) the people to call if you push the issue. Please don't. Quickest way to get tossed: Piss off a bear or mess up the lodge. If you do anything dumb or anything that would jeopardize my ability to use NFS facilities in the future, there will be issues. This is a small community. Word gets around.

5: Bring more money than you "think" you'll need. Incidentals are a bitch and you're IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. The cost of the weekend really isn't that high, but double what you anticipate you'll need and you should be alright.

6: Do not bring marginal vehicles. If you're not confident in your car's ability to safely make the trip out and back, leave it at home and buy/beg/borrow/whatever some other means of transportation. You do not want to get out here and have something big fail, and I don't want to have you get out here and have something big fail. This is coming from someone who broke a T5 at the first MountainMeet.

6a: Rule 6 does not apply to anyone coming from the Gump. Poking fun at you provided a lot of enjoyment for Mr.Bill last year. Let's not upset tradition.

7: If you're unsure about something, bring a spare. If you're planning on driving your car on Sunday and you've got an m-46, bring a spare or tow your car. Insert other parts where needed. Bring sufficient equipment to repair whatever you think you'll need to repair. Refer to the marginal vehicle paragraph above. Yes, I'm local, but in this case, local means that we will be anywhere between 1 and 3 hours away from my driveway and garage. Don't plan on using them, but they may be available in a pinch.

8: Not 21? Don't drink. Yeah, I know, laaaame. But in the unlikely event we do attract unwanted attention, I don't want to have to deal with some drunk 18 year old landing me in jail.


Oh, and let's go ahead and get this out of the way:
Hate I missed it! Next year!

You can't bitch out now Stephen.
 
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Food Planning Post! Each of these groups should generally come in around the $20-$30 mark, except for the burger bundle. We need a few people to volunteer to pick a group, and show up with the items in the group.

<del>Breakfast:(AndrewNance)</del> Covered!
Eggs (Buy a couple cases of 5 dozen)
Bacon (As much as your bank account will allow)
2 gal of milk
Bulk breakfast sausage
Coffee
Half-and-half

<del>Cooking staples (Dr. Carlos)</del> Covered!
Sugar (5lb)
Iced tea bags
Crisco? Maybe?
Salt/pepper
Self rising flour (5 lbs)

<del>Alden's Bundle</del> Covered!
Chips (Plain, bbq, tortilla, etc)
Dip/Salsa (Several tubs of each)
Buns (Hamburger and dog, Lots.)
Butter (2-3lbs)
Canola oil
Trash bags

<del>Cookout essentials Mr.Bill</del> Covered!
Bread (sandwich and italian loaf)
Industrial cans of baked beans and green beans
Corn on the cob
Condiments
Large sack of potatoes
Sweet onions
Mac and cheese

<del>Miscellaneous stuff Sam</del> (We may add to this group, check back) Covered!
Sliced cheese for burgers
Basic salad fixings
Cheddar cheese (a couple blocks)
Fruit
Case or three of water

<del>Non-food items (MikeJr.)</del> Covered!
Plates
Cups/bowls
Utensils
Paper Towels
Aluminum foil/waxed paper
Disposable serving trays


<del>Burger Bundle: Kenny and Carson are splitting this</del> Covered!
25lbs Ground Beef
Onions
Chili Powder
Pepper
Bottle of honey
Bottle of Heinz 57

<dek>Cleanup:</del> (I'll bring this, more of a reminder than anything)
Windex and greased lighting
Cleaning rags
Trash bags

If someone thinks of something not on the list, let me know. If you want to bring something not on the list, knock yourself out.
 
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I'll be there camping again. It's either keep the wagon alive that long, or blow it up soon enough to get it going again.
 
That thing is not relaxing to drive long distances. I did drive it to SE one year, though.
 
I'm a solid maybe. I'm planning on being there, I love the mountains and I'd love to bring the wife. We are tent people so no worries there, now I've got to either tidy up the blue beater, fix the brown 79, or resign myself to driving the nice, reliable, comfortable 245....
 
I'm a solid maybe. I'm planning on being there, I love the mountains and I'd love to bring the wife. We are tent people so no worries there, now I've got to either tidy up the blue beater, fix the brown 79, or resign myself to driving the nice, reliable, comfortable 245....

Maybe I'll have my '79 done.

Not likely though.
 
Yeah, beds are gone. Those were all sold within 40 minutes. It might be easier to take up cash during the meet this year.
 
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