2016 WCR Master Planning Thread

[skymasteres]

FJOwners West Coast Rally 2016

Okay everyone. We have the 2015 West Coast Rally (WCR) successfully behind us. We have some lessons learned and ideas moving forward. I volunteered to honcho the effort to more fully plan the 2016 WCR, so here we go.

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF) We get together to ride, hang out, and have fun.  We can do this better this year.
We will have a location finalized by 31 July 2015.

Here is the timeline to make this happen.

Now - 15 July: Submissions for locations will be PM'd to Pat for posting in the 2016 WCR discussion page. 
These submissions should build a case for why the WCR should be held there.
Ideally, but not required, including information regarding riding routes, lodging, amenities
(Grocery stores, gas, restaurants, etc.), and insight into what makes it a good place for the rally.

16 July - 22 July: 1st round of voting. Every forum member will have three votes.
The three locations with the greatest number of votes will be identified and moved to the next round.

23 July to 27 July: Top three locations will be expanded upon.
This is where the discussion of the locations merits can be hashed out.
There should be some vigorous and exciting commentary on this. 
Route options if not already defined should definitely be included here.

28-31 July: Final voting on WCR location.

Once the location is set the coordination and organization begins.
This year we need to identify earlier who will be attending. It is
expected that there will be some thrash and things that come up.
2015 showed an attendance list of 19 and we had about 30 people there.
(Not a bad thing, but it'd be good to know who's going)

Things that would be good to have once the location is picked out:
Group leaders
Sign in and out sheet at camp.
Everyone has a paper map (Or route plugged into their GPS)

Ideas for 2016:
Have a leap frog going for the routes. If desired, the last rider may work his way to the front. (No passing on the right)
At every stop establish the next route guidance (Where is the next turn?)
Plan stops and have them annotated on the map (Ideally allowing different groups to meet for lunch)
Keep better track of riders. (Roll call before rolling out)
Identify who may be bringing stoves and plan grilling/cooking for the group.
Pick a place that will allow traditions like Thermite and Spud Guns to continue.
Have T-shirts with names?
WCR Facebook page? Have media and information posted there before, during, and after the rally?
Bike checklist. All the common "gotya's" from past experience. Things to check before you're kickstand up miles from home?

Questions:
If you didn't go, why? Was it the expense? Location? Routes?

If you did go;
What are things that you saw that you think could be improved on?
What was your favorite part of the 2015 WCR?
What was your least favorite part of the 2015 WCR?
Favorite ride moment?
Best meal?
Best stop?

This is an open forum so let's hear what you think.

[ZOA NOM]

I think if you want to call it the West Coast Rally, it should be on the coast. Don't get me wrong, there are phenomenal roads all over this state, but California is all about the beach. I say anywhere on the coast is fine with me, from Crescent City to San Diego.

[Flynt]

Bravo for the effort Mike!  I'd submit the Hayfork location again, if we could pick up the facilities and move to a better location.  For those that don't know, the facilities that year were exceptional...  but the weather was terrible and the location pretty remote.  Here's what we had:

The whole group stayed in Bar 717 Camp (http://www.bar717.com),
Rooms were a variety of shared spaces in various cabins,
Food was cooked by camp staff with breakfast, pack-it-yourself lunch, and dinner each day,
Common area big enough for entire group to get together, under cover which was great in the rain, and hang out after dinner,
BIG outdoor fireplace in same common area to keep us warm.
Access to hwy36 and beyond...  we didn't take advantage of the riding much due to the heavy rains, but the roads there were promising.

We even had space to park bikes out of the rain for the most part...

I'm looking for similar accommodations in other locations.  Randy showed us one near Pinecrest Lake while riding this year's WCR.  There's another similar camp in Santa Cruz area that I'll dig up info on. 

Again - Thanks Mike for getting this going.

Frank

[ZOA NOM]

Check out Jalama Beach State Park down by Mission Hills, just south of Vandenberg AFB. They have some interesting roads in the hills, and the accommodations look similar to Meadowcliff.

[racerrad8]

Mike,

Thank you for doing this and I hope there are people who are looking into venues for 2016 and can present the group with a places to go, so we as a group can decide.

I see the questions below and this is where we need the forum members, who might be in the area of any rally, not just the WCR, to tell us why they do not or have not attended a rally. It would be good to know if there is something that can be done to make the rallies more available to others who for one reason or another have not attended.

So, maybe a new general rally topic needs to be made and the questions below can be answered for specific rallies.

I have attended rallies now for several years and on two different continents and I have learned something new from each of them. Things that are done differently and can be easily implemented into other rallies to make the more enjoyable, more organized, more group orientated.

Randy - RPM

Questions:
If you didn't go, why? Was it the expense? Location? Routes?

This is an open forum so let's hear what you think.

[racerrad8]

Another thing, I am trying to make a complete head count of who attended the WCR this year, but I am sure I am leaving someone off.

I think I counted twenty seven. So, I guess we need to plan on 25-40 people because that really matters when trying to determine the location.

1 Mark - FJmonkey
2 Steve - Moparman
3 Pat Conlon
4 Jason Lawson
5 Paul Lawson
6 CapnRon
7 Mike Ramos
8 Kurt - Yamaha FJ rider
9 Kai - chainus
10 Dan - Giantkiller and his friend
11 Dave (Harley Vrod rider)(Dan's friend)
12 Mark Olson
13 Craig zari
14 Mike - skymasteres
15 Mike's friend (sorry dont know the name)
16 & 17 San Dimas Mike (AKA Sherpa) and Tina
18 & 19 Simi Ed (& Sue too)
20 LAMike (with Hats and Shirts)
21 Rick - ZOA NOM
22 Henning (Canada)
23 Drew (Canada)
24 & 25 Frank & Diane
26 & 27 Randy & Chandra


I know it is a long way off, but if you can add or remove your name if you have an plan on attending or not. We would love to have some more central and east coast guys join us.

Andy French & maybe his better half
Derek & Donna
Keary & Pam(Winddancer)
twangin4u
Garth
Robert & Jamie
Craig's better half
Kurt's better half
George
Alan

Please add your name if you have a notion you might attend and hopefully we will see next year.

Are we still shooting for the weekend after Memorial day, which will be June 1-5?
Or is there a better weekend that suits more people in the early summer months before it gets too hot?

Randy - RPM

[Pat Conlon]

We have found that the weekend after Memorial Day has worked well
1) the kids are still in school, mostly.
2) the RV's are not out in full force like they are later in summer
3) LEO presence is lower on the weekend following a 3 day holiday

[aviationfred]

Another thing, I am trying to make a complete head count of who attended the WCR this year, but I am sure I am leaving someone off.

I think I counted twenty seven. So, I guess we need to plan on 25-40 people because that really matters when trying to determine the location.

1 Mark - FJmonkey
2 Steve - Moparman
3 Pat Conlon
4 Jason Lawson
5 Paul Lawson
6 CapnRon
7 Mike Ramos
8 Kurt - Yamaha FJ rider
9 Kai - chainus
10 Dan - Giantkiller and his friend
11 Dave (Harley Vrod rider)(Dan's friend)
12 Mark Olson
13 Craig zari
14 Mike - skymasteres
15 Mike's friend (sorry dont know the name)
16 & 17 San Dimas Mike (AKA Sherpa) and Tina
18 & 19 Simi Ed (& Sue too)
20 LAMike (with Hats and Shirts)
21 Rick - ZOA NOM
22 Henning (Canada)
23 Drew (Canada)
24 & 25 Frank & Diane
26 & 27 Randy & Chandra


I know it is a long way off, but if you can add or remove your name if you have an plan on attending or not. We would love to have some more central and east coast guys join us.

Andy French & maybe his better half
Derek & Donna
Keary & Pam(Winddancer)
twangin4u
Garth
Robert & Jamie
Craig's better half
Kurt's better half
George
Alan

Please add your name if you have a notion you might attend and hopefully we will see next year.

Are we still shooting for the weekend after Memorial day, which will be June 1-5?
Or is there a better weekend that suits more people in the early summer months before it gets too hot?

Randy - RPM

Add me and my daughter to the list for the 2016 attendees.


Fred

[Capn Ron]

We have found that the weekend after Memorial Day has worked well
1) the kids are still in school, mostly.
2) the RV's are not out in full force like they are later in summer
3) LEO presence is lower on the weekend following a 3 day holiday

Agreed on all those points!  Another thing I'll add is that it's a DATE...and it's established.  This alone makes planning far in advance for some much easier.  I've found over the 14 years of planning rock crawling get togethers in Moab, when the date shifts around to try to accommodate everyone, the attendance goes way down.

[Pat Conlon]

In absence of a location candidate, Willits or Petaluma are our fallbacks.

No one has PM'ed me yet as to their recommendations.

tick tick tick...

[racerrad8]

Okay, so the date for the 2016 WCR is June 1-5, 2016.

Randy - RPM

[Capn Ron]

Another thing, I am trying to make a complete head count of who attended the WCR this year, but I am sure I am leaving someone off.

I think I counted twenty seven. So, I guess we need to plan on 25-40 people because that really matters when trying to determine the location.

1 Mark - FJmonkey
2 Steve - Moparman
3 Pat Conlon
4 Jason Lawson
5 Paul Lawson
6 CapnRon
7 Mike Ramos
8 Kurt - Yamaha FJ rider
9 Kai - chainus
10 Dan - Giantkiller and his friend
11 Dave (Harley Vrod rider)(Dan's friend)
12 Mark Olson
13 Craig zari
14 Mike - skymasteres
15 Mike's friend (sorry dont know the name)
16 & 17 San Dimas Mike (AKA Sherpa) and Tina
18 & 19 Simi Ed (& Sue too)
20 LAMike (with Hats and Shirts)
21 Rick - ZOA NOM
22 Henning (Canada)
23 Drew (Canada)
24 & 25 Frank & Diane
26 & 27 Randy & Chandra


I know it is a long way off, but if you can add or remove your name if you have an plan on attending or not. We would love to have some more central and east coast guys join us.

Andy French & maybe his better half
Derek & Donna
Keary & Pam(Winddancer)
twangin4u
Garth
Robert & Jamie
Craig's better half
Kurt's better half
George
Alan

Please add your name if you have a notion you might attend and hopefully we will see next year.

Randy - RPM

I think figuring out *who* will attend this far in advance is tough...figuring out *how many* for planning purposes should be easy to ball park.

Taking a look at your list, I counted those who are *highly* likely to attend based on: previous attendance, proximity or their ability to attend more than one rally.  I came up with 22.  All the others on the list have made at least one WCR in the last three I've attended and the numbers as I recall for those years were ~25 (Petaluma), ~31 (Willits) and ~27 for Coleville.

There are some that aren't on that list...Marsh, Klavdy, Jeff and so on...and a bunch of new folks that I've seen joining the forum lately that are close enough to be likely to attend.

With the ebb and flow of people's schedules, kids graduations, time off work, etc. . .we're looking at 25 minimum for sure.  I think a well-attended rally would hit 35...40+ would be awesome!

[pdxfj]

While Hayfork was a nice location, it had it's shortcomings.

A few that come to mind:

Way out in the sticks, no cell coverage (at all) and the local fuel station only had regular (no premium).

Good company and food.  Honestly, I didn't mind the lack of cell coverage.  Quite refreshing..  Being out in the sticks has its advantages and disadvantages.

For me to attend it all depends on what is going on at work.  Having to travel can pop up at any moment.

[yamaha fj rider]

WCR this year was great as far roads. The KOA was good also. Rooms were nice and reasonably priced. The fire ring was small and too centrally located. Things that could be better. My number one complaint was Coleville it's self. They close everything by 8 pm and I mean everything, no gas, food, nothing. The saving grace was the casino ten miles up the road. It is open 24 hours. Better services would be nice. AT&T no service. Thank you Craig for the use of your Verizon phone. I am not trying to stir thing up. I would go back there in a second. Thank you everyone who planed and helped put on this years rally. A little bigger town to support the rally would be nice. Just my thoughts to help in future planning.

Kurt

[Pat Conlon]

I agree 100% with you Kurt

I totally whiffed fire ring set up when checking out the Meadow Cliff facilities. My bad. 
Yea, Coleville was a one horse town for sure. No markets for BBQ supplies.

At least the weather gods smiled on us....it could have been much worse. The week prior I was freaking out.

We will do better next year!