Tail of the Dragon 2018 meet

[hootrscootr]

Would anybody be interested in getting together over a long weekend and running the the Dragon? Maybe the end of April beginning of May? I have seen groups of Miatas and several other car groups run the Dragon and figured why can't we get together and do the same? I have stayed in Robbinsville which is about 20 miles away and I have stayed at Fontana Village which is just a few miles from the Dragon and both were nice. Fontana might be a little more secure for the cars if that is a concern for anyone. Post up if y'all are interested in doing this.

[coolhandluke]

I helped plan several of the earlier TI Dragon Run meets. I recommend staying on the Dragon to reduce travel time each day. The Fontana Village and Tapaco Lodge are both solid:
-Fontana - Larger facility, plenty of parking, cabin-style, pools, etc
-Tapaco - Cool old-school hotel spot, right off the Dragon, with scenic views

Recommendations:
-Cruise Cherohala Skyway
-Check out Fontana Dam, aka the dam from The Fugitive movie
-Check out the tree of shame
-Enjoy the views
-Buy a koozie

More info:
https://tailofthedragon.com

Fontana Dam

[hootrscootr]

Thanks for the info! I ran the Dragon twice last year and had a ball. It's a fun ride during The day and an absolute rush at night. The Tapaco lodge is really cool and the food is excellent. Fontana Village is really nice and it is located off of Highway 28, aka the Moonshiner. The cabins at Fontana are big enough to sleep prob 8-10 people, lots of parking, onsite gas station, pools, small grocery store on site, ice cream shop too. Hopefully we can get enough interest and get a nice crowd of people to come and hang out and tame the Dragon!

[TurboLS]

yep...i'm good friends with stephen who used to run that site and am planning to attend a half week with the club during the normal annual event down there. Let me know if interested.

[hootrscootr]

The more I think about this, the more I think this could be the 2018 ITR Expo East coast version, just minus the track day! I would be willing to do whatever I can to facilitate this into a reality. That way those who wouldn't be able to make the ride to Cali would still be able to get together during a long 3 or 4 day weekend and have some fun! There are plenty of roads up there that will make your butt pucker and blow you away with the scenery. I am sure there are some other east coast peeps who would do whatever it took to help this also. We could do this the same time the West Coast expo is happening. Maybe get t-shirts done up for the event. Any help getting this going would be appreciated. Jay, any thought or words of wisdom?

[hybrid4]

man, i've always wanted to do the tail and i live right here in GA. i haven't done it cause i never had a car fit for it and my R won't be road ready till maybe next year. it sounds like a good alternative or addition to the expo/meet line up as long as its timed where people wouldn't have to choose one over the other. definitely a good idea. i hope some more east coasters and southerns can make it happen.

[hootrscootr]

Myself along with a few other east coasters are willing to put in the leg work to make it happen. I think it would be cool for those that can't do the West Coast Expo to be able to get together and have a meet around the same time, maybe have a room available to video conference between the 2 coast simultaneously. Just need to see who else would be on board. Would also like to get Jay's blessing to do this.

[jayhaire]

We're actually working on an East Coast Expo already, haha.

[hootrscootr]

That's sweeter than yoo-hoo! Just trying to help out in any way possible.

[hootrscootr]

Looks like this is gonna go down the weekend of July 27-29th. I'll be at the Fontana Village along with a few others. If anyone else close to the area wants to come and join please feel free to do so.