Dusty,
North Carolina and the South Carolina SOC members can't wait to have you as a resident in The South. Been working on the October run. Damn, eating BBQ is tough! The twisty roads that I drive, well you know! It's my opinion the Dragon is mild.
What can I do to help things along to get you here?
Aaron,
I have been sending you emails that must not be getting through. Call me. I will be in most of the afternoon.
I have been sending you emails that must not be getting through. Call me. I will be in most of the afternoon.
Roy---Alice and I enjoyed sitting with you and Greg for the Fri Morro Bay dinner. Greg was so helpful to me and really knows his cars! I hope to see you both again.
Aaron and Lane--is there a schedule for the New Tail Of The Dragon event? What's the name of this new event?
Aaron and Lane--is there a schedule for the New Tail Of The Dragon event? What's the name of this new event?
No name yet, but the dates are set at Oct 15 & 16. Check out the "Early thoughts on the Fall run in the Smokies" thread. It includes date info and the link to the webpage that the Hilton set up for us. We have 10 rooms set aside at a reduced rate ($179/night at a new Hilton in peak season ain't bad!). We can get more rooms if necessary (I hope so).
You can come early and or stay late and I would imagine that the Hilton will give you the same rate. I will probably arrive on the 14th and leave on the 18th, but will stay the extra nights with my inlaws who live there. They'd probably be hurt if I didn't.
EDIT: Plans right now are for a driving event on Saturday and a tour of the Biltmore House on Sunday. If we get there before they open at 9:00 we can do a photo shoot right in front of the mansion. Folks who need to head home can either skip the house tour, or leave after it as that usually only takes a couple of hours.
You can come early and or stay late and I would imagine that the Hilton will give you the same rate. I will probably arrive on the 14th and leave on the 18th, but will stay the extra nights with my inlaws who live there. They'd probably be hurt if I didn't.
EDIT: Plans right now are for a driving event on Saturday and a tour of the Biltmore House on Sunday. If we get there before they open at 9:00 we can do a photo shoot right in front of the mansion. Folks who need to head home can either skip the house tour, or leave after it as that usually only takes a couple of hours.
Dusty, I agree with those who said you did a fantastic job. An event like this is very difficult to organize when trying to please a large group with a variety of individual interests besides our commonality with the speedsters. While I understand folks wanting a change of venue, sometimes you have to refer to the old adage about "if it aint broke..." The increased numbers of people and cars attribute to the success of the event as it stands!!
For those who want a change, please step up and offer to organize the event. I second what Warren said about being close to the area and willing to assist in any way possible. Whether it be scouting new locations, helping determine fun events or creating a group of events that cater to the variety of interests.
I don't believe that anyone is faulting Dusty or Sharon for their organization of the event, in fact, Dusty was given large rounds of applause for his efforts and rightly so!!
I think we should all be open to change, but realize this event takes the better part of a year to organize and that means now is the time to start. If not, let's continue our appreciation of Dusty and aid him in his organization of next years event if he is still willing! Maybe by next year, someone will have stepped up to the plate and be ready to begin organizing right away. I fear that all this discussion is going to create bad feelings and doom the event for the future. A tragedy at best!!
My hat is off to Dusty and Sharon and my support goes right along with it for making next years event bigger and better.....
For those who want a change, please step up and offer to organize the event. I second what Warren said about being close to the area and willing to assist in any way possible. Whether it be scouting new locations, helping determine fun events or creating a group of events that cater to the variety of interests.
I don't believe that anyone is faulting Dusty or Sharon for their organization of the event, in fact, Dusty was given large rounds of applause for his efforts and rightly so!!
I think we should all be open to change, but realize this event takes the better part of a year to organize and that means now is the time to start. If not, let's continue our appreciation of Dusty and aid him in his organization of next years event if he is still willing! Maybe by next year, someone will have stepped up to the plate and be ready to begin organizing right away. I fear that all this discussion is going to create bad feelings and doom the event for the future. A tragedy at best!!
My hat is off to Dusty and Sharon and my support goes right along with it for making next years event bigger and better.....
As an East Coast outlander, all I can offer is to say what a fabulous time the Morro Bay sojourn by Dusty and the LMS was for me. I would look fwd to doing another west coast long week end sometime, but will not be able to make it every year. So basically, I carry no weight at all in the "voting" and would just work to whatever you decide. I will say a big swinger in my decision to come out this year had to do w/ the Pacific coast environs. I just knew that would be cool. All I can do is say what works for these types of jaunts. I never did the parade, but I'd bet it would be OK to do so long as it might be properly organized so it would not take the whole morning, which seems to be the main objection: takes too long to round up all those cats. The basic deal here is the schmooze time and the drive time. That is what it is all about for me. I understand that doing the same ol' same ol' year after year might be boring, but for me it would take a lot to make me jaded about the central CA coast, the ocean and all that fabulous countryside. Variety is good, so doing different stuff now and then is fine. But if it ain't broke, don't fix it. That is the mechanic's Zeroth Rule, and I'd say it applies here too. I agree that it will never happen "by committee". You have the perfect benevolent dictator in Dusty, and his org skills and git 'er done attitude are a prize worth protecting. If you have an idea (duh!! look how many there are above) put it out, and then let Dusty run, if he is willing. If you feel strongly about something, then stand up and do it yourself.
And good weather is a real big deal for proper enjoyment of the cars. You guys know the weather there, so plan accordingly. And I'd say don't get too close to Carlisle on the calendar, as some folks (not many, for sure, but some) make an effort to do both.
Ya know, the Carlisle event is at the same place every year and each year (I am told) it just gets bigger and better as far as Speedies are concerned. The cars are cool, and the people are cooler. So now I am going to go get another beer, grab my popcorn, and sit back and enjoy the show . . .
And good weather is a real big deal for proper enjoyment of the cars. You guys know the weather there, so plan accordingly. And I'd say don't get too close to Carlisle on the calendar, as some folks (not many, for sure, but some) make an effort to do both.
Ya know, the Carlisle event is at the same place every year and each year (I am told) it just gets bigger and better as far as Speedies are concerned. The cars are cool, and the people are cooler. So now I am going to go get another beer, grab my popcorn, and sit back and enjoy the show . . .
Just an FYI... I sent an e-mail to Justin Winery regarding the issues the group had at their facility. I can't post in it's entirety, but here are some excerpts with their response to follow in my next posting...
"On 4-24-10, I was part of a large group of Porsche Speedsters (40 cars and approx 70 people) that came to your winery as part of our days wine tasting and driving event organized by a Dusty Johnson from Colorado (who may have sent you a letter as well). While I, and one other couple are from the area, most of the others were from around the country including Florida, Colorado, Arkansas, Idaho, etc."
"When Mr Johnson pre-arranged the visitation of our group, he was told the tastings would be $12 per person and that information was disseminated to the group. When we arrive, Mr Johnson was met by an employee who was our liaison (Unknown Male) who advised Mr Johnson that, not only were we being charged an increased tasting fee of $15 per person, but that he would be responsible for the fee up front which was not mentioned when the arrangements were made."
"Needless to say, Mr Johnson being the consummate professional businessman, chose not to create a scene in front of the group (although we all heard the story later), but during a losing discussion about his responsibility for paying and the winery holding to their end of the bargain, he politely suggested that the group would be leaving and go elsewhere for our winery visit. At that point, a resolution was discovered and the group stayed.
Now, I know that Justin has a reputation for a higher and more expensive class of wines than some other wineries, I was astounded as a member of several local wineries, that we would pay almost $80 (for two people) to have five small tastes of wine, a quick (ten minute) wine tour that digressed into an advertisement for your wine club rather than the informational tour folks expected, and a croissant turkey sandwich with a small helping of rice, potato salad and a bowl of bruised bananas and shriveled up oranges.
After paying $20 per person for what amounted to a box lunch, we discovered that even though everyone took small helpings of the food mentioned above (the sides were in one medium sized bowl each, to accomodate 70 people), we ran out of the sides for the last folks served. Oh, I forgot to mention, there were exceptional chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
All in all, while everyone had a great time driving their vintage cars through the back roads of Paso Robles, one of the biggest topics of discussion (translated to complaints) was the trip to Justin. In fact, next year when we meet in Morro Bay, the conclusion was a resounding "NO" when the topic of returning to Justin was discussed and several members were put off completely by doing any additional wine tasting at future events. What a shame that your winery has given our region and all wineries such a black eye with folks from around the country!!
I want to be very clear, the staff in the tasting room was pleasant and friendly, so the complaint does not rest on their shoulders. Where the problem lies is with the person who met and facilitated our gathering at the winery. He even had the audacity, upon seeing the bowl of damaged fruit still untouched, to announce that we should feel free to take the fruit with us since we "already paid for it." Just a hint to him, it was untouched for a reason!!"
"On 4-24-10, I was part of a large group of Porsche Speedsters (40 cars and approx 70 people) that came to your winery as part of our days wine tasting and driving event organized by a Dusty Johnson from Colorado (who may have sent you a letter as well). While I, and one other couple are from the area, most of the others were from around the country including Florida, Colorado, Arkansas, Idaho, etc."
"When Mr Johnson pre-arranged the visitation of our group, he was told the tastings would be $12 per person and that information was disseminated to the group. When we arrive, Mr Johnson was met by an employee who was our liaison (Unknown Male) who advised Mr Johnson that, not only were we being charged an increased tasting fee of $15 per person, but that he would be responsible for the fee up front which was not mentioned when the arrangements were made."
"Needless to say, Mr Johnson being the consummate professional businessman, chose not to create a scene in front of the group (although we all heard the story later), but during a losing discussion about his responsibility for paying and the winery holding to their end of the bargain, he politely suggested that the group would be leaving and go elsewhere for our winery visit. At that point, a resolution was discovered and the group stayed.
Now, I know that Justin has a reputation for a higher and more expensive class of wines than some other wineries, I was astounded as a member of several local wineries, that we would pay almost $80 (for two people) to have five small tastes of wine, a quick (ten minute) wine tour that digressed into an advertisement for your wine club rather than the informational tour folks expected, and a croissant turkey sandwich with a small helping of rice, potato salad and a bowl of bruised bananas and shriveled up oranges.
After paying $20 per person for what amounted to a box lunch, we discovered that even though everyone took small helpings of the food mentioned above (the sides were in one medium sized bowl each, to accomodate 70 people), we ran out of the sides for the last folks served. Oh, I forgot to mention, there were exceptional chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
All in all, while everyone had a great time driving their vintage cars through the back roads of Paso Robles, one of the biggest topics of discussion (translated to complaints) was the trip to Justin. In fact, next year when we meet in Morro Bay, the conclusion was a resounding "NO" when the topic of returning to Justin was discussed and several members were put off completely by doing any additional wine tasting at future events. What a shame that your winery has given our region and all wineries such a black eye with folks from around the country!!
I want to be very clear, the staff in the tasting room was pleasant and friendly, so the complaint does not rest on their shoulders. Where the problem lies is with the person who met and facilitated our gathering at the winery. He even had the audacity, upon seeing the bowl of damaged fruit still untouched, to announce that we should feel free to take the fruit with us since we "already paid for it." Just a hint to him, it was untouched for a reason!!"
Here is the Justin reply, again edited since our site limits the characters...
" I
" I
Damn glad I missed it or there would be much more to talk about....
This letter contains many items that I must call "fiction". I spoke with a number of different people when setting this up and, somehow, never spoke to the same person twice! The numbers quoted are not what I was told and not what my notes (taken during conversations) show; at no time did anyone ask for prepayment or one individual to pay; I never saw an "Event Booking Form"; I was never given a menu or a description of the meal to be served other than it would be "a picnic style lunch"; I counted 52 attendees and have no idea where 70 came from (I DID see people there who were not a part of the SOC. I made the assumption that they alsp purchased meals), plus if they did not collect from everyone that is their own control problem; I certainly did not ask them to cut the tour short but did, in fact, ask them to begin the wine tasting and tour immediately as they were just milling around and were not sure when things would begin. I have no idea who in our group would have taken it upon themselves to have the authority to ask them to cut the time short and believe this is more fiction to divert blame.
In the end, this is the usual "he said, I said" and "let's pass the blame". I see no reason to pursue it further as nothing will be accomplished. Let's put all this behind us and just enjoy remembering the good friends and good times we all had being together again. I look forward to seeing you all next year.
Happy Trails,
Dusty and the LMS
In the end, this is the usual "he said, I said" and "let's pass the blame". I see no reason to pursue it further as nothing will be accomplished. Let's put all this behind us and just enjoy remembering the good friends and good times we all had being together again. I look forward to seeing you all next year.
Happy Trails,
Dusty and the LMS
Dusty,
I see you posted your reply and I appreciate that. When I posted the Justin response, I assumed that everyone on this site would see it for the sham that it was.
As posted by Dusty in this thread, Justin Winery has done a disservice to our group as well as the entire Paso Robles wine industry. My letter to them was to put them on notice and point out their shortcomings in the hope they would improve for the future. Their response indicates they are not willing to improve, but are full of excuses and are quick to pacify with a "complimentary tasting for two" for my wife and I. I think they missed the point!
I apologize to Dusty for not making this clearer when I posted the Justin response. Again, I assumed everyone would recognize the "fiction" they tried to pass by us.
Scott
I see you posted your reply and I appreciate that. When I posted the Justin response, I assumed that everyone on this site would see it for the sham that it was.
As posted by Dusty in this thread, Justin Winery has done a disservice to our group as well as the entire Paso Robles wine industry. My letter to them was to put them on notice and point out their shortcomings in the hope they would improve for the future. Their response indicates they are not willing to improve, but are full of excuses and are quick to pacify with a "complimentary tasting for two" for my wife and I. I think they missed the point!
I apologize to Dusty for not making this clearer when I posted the Justin response. Again, I assumed everyone would recognize the "fiction" they tried to pass by us.
Scott
Dusty, Scott;
Justin Winery seems to be unjustifiably full of themselves. I live in Sonoma County and I can assure you Justin is hardly even bush-league as a destination winery. As a vintner, they are even worse. I guess they rely on "impressing" those who don't know better.
I'd say blow them off as a bad deal without any further aggravation. Anyway, the location was nice and the company was terrific.
As mentioned before, Ann and I had a great time -- even though the spyder only made it half way and we had to Plan B with the Acura.
We have enjoyed all 5 of the Paso / Morro events and were already looking forward to #6 on the drive home last month. However, the way things are shaping up it looks like we have probably seen our last.
Thanks again Dusty, Sharon, and the rest of you who made these events the annual highlight. We had a blast!
Justin Winery seems to be unjustifiably full of themselves. I live in Sonoma County and I can assure you Justin is hardly even bush-league as a destination winery. As a vintner, they are even worse. I guess they rely on "impressing" those who don't know better.
I'd say blow them off as a bad deal without any further aggravation. Anyway, the location was nice and the company was terrific.
As mentioned before, Ann and I had a great time -- even though the spyder only made it half way and we had to Plan B with the Acura.
We have enjoyed all 5 of the Paso / Morro events and were already looking forward to #6 on the drive home last month. However, the way things are shaping up it looks like we have probably seen our last.
Thanks again Dusty, Sharon, and the rest of you who made these events the annual highlight. We had a blast!
"However, the way things are shaping up it looks like we have probably seen our last."
Mark, would you care to elaborate on this statement? It doesn't seem to fit with everything else you said.
Mark, would you care to elaborate on this statement? It doesn't seem to fit with everything else you said.
I view our West Coast gathering's as a large success....
The gathering at the Topanga Ranch,the ride up and then meeting the rest of the group at the hotel, it doesn't get any better than that.
We even coaxed a few of those "Other Coasters" out.....
OK, so some things didn't work out, no big deal...live and learn...
As for changing the venue, why is that such a big deal for some of you.....Same area, same roads, just a different gathering spot...
Is this some sort of mis-guided loyalty to Dusty because of all he has done in the past...
We all love Dusty and the LMS, sure maybe the LMS a little more, lets face it, she is a little easier to look at, (especially in the old shots from the past when she was Dusty's foil)Dusty is a big boy, he has more stories and has lived more lives than any two of us, I don't think he needs defending. We are all equally important to this group (gees even I don't believe what I'm saying)
I better stop before I make a complete fool of myself....
The point is, don't be bailing out over something stupid....I dare you to try and find a better group than this....
The gathering at the Topanga Ranch,the ride up and then meeting the rest of the group at the hotel, it doesn't get any better than that.
We even coaxed a few of those "Other Coasters" out.....
OK, so some things didn't work out, no big deal...live and learn...
As for changing the venue, why is that such a big deal for some of you.....Same area, same roads, just a different gathering spot...
Is this some sort of mis-guided loyalty to Dusty because of all he has done in the past...
We all love Dusty and the LMS, sure maybe the LMS a little more, lets face it, she is a little easier to look at, (especially in the old shots from the past when she was Dusty's foil)Dusty is a big boy, he has more stories and has lived more lives than any two of us, I don't think he needs defending. We are all equally important to this group (gees even I don't believe what I'm saying)
I better stop before I make a complete fool of myself....
The point is, don't be bailing out over something stupid....I dare you to try and find a better group than this....
To Mark,
Not sure what you meant about this being your last. As far as Justin goes, I have a vested interest in maintaining the reputation my area has as a friendly destination for wine lovers. I felt the need to communicate our discontent with the staff at Justin, but in no way should that start an avalanche of people bailing out on the event.
I'm a little discouraged to see so many feelings getting hurt over a discussion on a possible change of event location (Vince, see what you started), but no matter what happens, we all had a good time. When the dust settles, we will have another fine event planned and hopefully another increase in attendance. For those who attend, I'm sure everyone will have a great time. As we all know, it's tough to please everyone when planning events for large groups, but as you also know "It is what you make of it" and, with that said, we had a good time and got to meet some special people from all over the country! That, in itself, made it all worthwhile and will keep me coming back for more!!!
Keep the faith!
Scott
Not sure what you meant about this being your last. As far as Justin goes, I have a vested interest in maintaining the reputation my area has as a friendly destination for wine lovers. I felt the need to communicate our discontent with the staff at Justin, but in no way should that start an avalanche of people bailing out on the event.
I'm a little discouraged to see so many feelings getting hurt over a discussion on a possible change of event location (Vince, see what you started), but no matter what happens, we all had a good time. When the dust settles, we will have another fine event planned and hopefully another increase in attendance. For those who attend, I'm sure everyone will have a great time. As we all know, it's tough to please everyone when planning events for large groups, but as you also know "It is what you make of it" and, with that said, we had a good time and got to meet some special people from all over the country! That, in itself, made it all worthwhile and will keep me coming back for more!!!
Keep the faith!
Scott
HEY IM EASY TO PLEASE, A BAG OF JERKY AND A BEER
Vince,
You might be a bit demented but you still have the ability to be clear and concise. Thanks for being the level-headed, sappy guy I know and love.
You might be a bit demented but you still have the ability to be clear and concise. Thanks for being the level-headed, sappy guy I know and love.
Well, we could all just pack our own lunches and have a roadside picnic. I vote to do only two wineries and either do the picnic thing (what if maybe it's raining??) or go to a real food emporium in the area, if such exists.
Their wine was good but not great, unlike its price. They needn't worry about our repeat business. My bet is that there are plenty of fine wine places that would know how to deal up-front and cater to our crowd.
Their wine was good but not great, unlike its price. They needn't worry about our repeat business. My bet is that there are plenty of fine wine places that would know how to deal up-front and cater to our crowd.
Warren, Scott, Vince -- I think I left you a wrong impression. I don't have a line-in-the sand over Morro, although it should be obvious to everyone that it is going to be a tough act to follow. Everyone likes different things, so I don't want to be a black-cloud on the new event organizers' enthusiasm. Anyway, my opinion of the venue or schedule doesn't matter because I probably have a conflict with the new date. That weekend is the traditional date for the Wine Country Classics which are rumored to be successor to the Monterey Historics (talk about change of venue!!).
So when I said Ann and I will probably take a pass due to the way next year's event is developing it had to do with the date as much as anything else.
As I said before, Ann and I have had a ton of fun at all of the previous Paso / Morro events. We certainly had our adventures! They got better every year and we were already looking forward to doing it again next year. I'm sure the group will have fun no matter where or when they get together. In our case, maybe we can't make them all. The show will still go on.
So when I said Ann and I will probably take a pass due to the way next year's event is developing it had to do with the date as much as anything else.
As I said before, Ann and I have had a ton of fun at all of the previous Paso / Morro events. We certainly had our adventures! They got better every year and we were already looking forward to doing it again next year. I'm sure the group will have fun no matter where or when they get together. In our case, maybe we can't make them all. The show will still go on.
Dusty, here is my response to your request for new ideas in your post of 5/11/10:
First let me tell you what a great job you have done the past several years organizing the SOC West events. As the group gets larger, it certainly gets harder and harder to accommodate all the wishes of the entire group. I totally understand your frustration with wanting to make everything perfect. You did the best you could and dam if it didn
First let me tell you what a great job you have done the past several years organizing the SOC West events. As the group gets larger, it certainly gets harder and harder to accommodate all the wishes of the entire group. I totally understand your frustration with wanting to make everything perfect. You did the best you could and dam if it didn