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SoCal Caravan 09 eNewsNo. 8 - 6/4/07>>>TOP STORY<<< >>Route for the First Two Days is Set The route which the Southern California Section of the 2009 National Corvette Caravan on it's first two days is nearing final approval, SoCal Caravan Captain, Hib Halverson, announced today. "Our intent is for the 09 event to start in Fontana and go to Flagstaff, Arizona on the first day," Halverson said in an interview with the SoCalCar eNews. "While a similar route as '03, there will be some differences. First, we're not going to run on old 66 in San Bernardino County. The first 10-20 miles of that road was too rough in '03 and, after six years, will be even worse in 09. Plus, this time we're going in August rather than June and it will be too darn hot in the high desert." "We will run Historic 66 in Arizona between Kingman and exit 139 on I-40 west of Flagstaff. We did that last time but, in 09, our tentative plan will be to stop the entire Caravan in Seligman and have ice cream treats at the famed 'Sno-Cap' drive-in." "In Flag, we're probably going to headquarter at the Days Inn, again. 'Commander' Ron Cohen, our hotel booking specialist, and I both think that's the best place to go because it's right on old 66 with easy access from the first I-40 East exit in Flagstaff, it's got a huge parking lot and, frankly, it was a pretty good hotel property for us in '03." "The second day, like last time, we'll overnight in Tucumcari, New Mexico, however, unlike last time, there will be no long lunch stop for the entire Caravan in Albuquerque. Two reasons for this: 1) Capt. Bob Kroener's Arizona Caravan advised us that it has an exclusive 'deal' for 2009 with Galles Chevrolet in Albuquerque which staged a large event for us in 03 and 2) last time, the stop in Albuquerque made us way late getting to Tucumcari." "I decided, since Capt. Kroener has Galles locked-up and the main focus of our social events that day will be the 'party' in Tucumcari, that we don't need two big events the same day. As a group, we'll bypass Albuquerque and take our 300 cars straight to Tucumcari. What our Route Book Project Manager, 'Commander' Tony Megowan will do is write about an extra hour into the route plans for Day Two. Each pair of Caravanners can stop where they choose, along I-40 between Gallup and Albuquerque, to do lunch and fuel. We'll probably 'reform' the Caravan outside of Gallup, like we did in '03, and, so our arrival in Tucumcari is as a group, we may reform a second time in either Moriarty or Cline's Corners." "Caravanners who were with us in 03 will remember the 'dinner dance' Steve Mills (the dealer-operator of Mills-Strebeck Chevrolet in Tucumcari) put on for us at the Tucumcari Convention Center. Unfortunately, Steve went broke a couple years ago but there is also, good news. The Tucumcari GM dealer, Cross Country Auto Sales, is now owned by former NFL player, Brian Urlacher. I visited Tucumcari about two weeks ago on a 'Caravan recon' trip and met with the General Manager, John Everhardt, and I have a handshake deal with him for the dealership to put on an event for the Caravan similar to what Steve Mills did in '03. Differences will be 1) it will happen at a new dealership facility on the east end of Tucumcari fronting I-40 and 2) it will be larger as the event will be on a Sunday afternoon and open to the general public. This is going to be what I hope is one heck of a party and, like '03, should be the best social event of our four nights on the road." "Of course, all this is tentative at this point, but the SoCalCar Organizing Team is at the point in planning the route that we know what we want to do for the first two days. Now we need to move from planning the route to organizing the events. Any changes to the plan will come from organizational challenges and not being indecisive about the route." >>>OTHER NEWS >>Day Three and Four The second two days of the Southern California Caravan are not as well conceived at this point but according to Route Book "boss" Tony Megowan, planning is moving ahead. The third day of the trip will take the 09 SoCalCar to Oklahoma City. While SoCal's official responsibility for routing ends at the Texas state line, in a practical sense, Megowan says that our responsibility for planning the route lasts until we get to wherever we join the North Texas/Oklahoma group. Capt. Halverson has met with the Oklahoma Captain twice this year and visited him in OKC on an early "recon" trip through the area last month. The specific location where our group and Captain Tuna Dobbins' Oklahoma Caravan will meet hasn't been picked, yet, but it will be near the location we used last time. The social event in OKC is still in the very early planning stages but the choices are looking like either a large event, such as what SoCal and OK did last time, or a series of smaller events. The fourth day of the trip will be the day where we travel the most on old U.S. 66 and the day where we spend the most time on a different route than 2003. The N.TX/OK Caravan will have planning and organizational responsibility for the route. Based on Halverson's last meeting with Tuna Dobbins, it looks like we'll go northeast out of OKC towards Tulsa and run parts of old 66 on the way. A lunch stop in Alma, Arkansas has been suggested but the route beyond the Tulsa area is dependent on the plans of Captain Jan Marshall's Arkansas Caravan and she has not announced any route details as yet. >>Survey to End Caravan "Commander" Sherry Maples says the caravan research survey will end on June 7th. If you had not given us your opinion on plans for the 2009 Caravan and want to do that, now's the time. Go to: http://www.corvettecaravan.com/ca-southern/survey/ >>The Quest for Sponsors The Special Start-Up Sponsor program was announced in eNews #5 and, since then, we've had a few questions about it. The SoCalCar Organizing Team's "Special Start-Up Sponsor" program is set to end on September 1st. Special Start-Up Sponsors are a select group of businesses and individuals who donate money to defray the O.T.'s start-up costs. Money from these sponsors covers office expenses, such as letterhead, business cards and graphic design services, and travel expenses such as trips to National Captain's Meetings in Bowling Green, drive trips to AZ, NM and OK to pre-run the route and meetings with Captains of the other Caravans. A Special Start-Up Sponsorship requires donation of $500.00 to the SoCalCar Organizing Team by 9/1/07. These special sponsors will receive an advertisement/announcement in the Route Book along with a unique listing on the Route Book Sponsor Page. Those interested in Special Start-Up Sponsorship of the SoCalCar should contact Hib Halverson by sending email to: captain.socalcar@charter.net Thanks for reading. Best regards,
SoCal Caravan 09 eNews |
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