posted 03-07-2004 09:51 PM               

For April 17th we have a nice outing planned for you. Spring Fever will have set in and we will all be looking for a nice top down ride and gathering of Miatae.

This is the tentative plan. We all plan to arrive from our various places of origin at the D Day National Memorial in Bedford at 11:00am.

http://www.dday.org/start.html

Plan on an hour or so to tour the monument and then proceed on to our next destination, Peaks of Otter Winery, just a short drive away. They have interesting fruit wines and from what I have seen at their festival appearances, a great sense of fun. They have picnic facilities and also offer space to throw a blanket on the ground under one of their many fruit trees which should possibly be in bloom in mid April.
http://www.peaksofotterwinery.com

After tasting and eating lunch a run is planned taking some of the numerous back roads of central Virginia to the summer home of Thomas Jefferson near Forest. If you haven't seen this restoration in progress you will be amazed at this home and its history. If you like Monticello you will definately want to see this place. Can you tell I am a TJ fan?

http://www.poplarforest.org/

After soaking in the history and seeing Mr. Jefferson's architectural brilliance we will depart and go our separate ways or more likely go somewhere to eat. Hope everyone plans to attend and if anyone has any questions or comments just let me know.

See y'all further down the road....

posted 03-08-2004 05:14 PM               

Here is some more descriptive info regarding the route for the April event.

April 17th Miata Event Route

The event begins with all Miata Club members arriving at the National D Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia at 11:00 am. There is a $5.00 per person entry fee and the parking fee has been done away with. Once all have gathered at the memorial, approximately 11/2 hours will be allotted for touring the facility. At approximately 12:30 pm we will drive a short distance to the Peaks of Otter Winery. The directions are as follows:

Exit the parking lot of the D Day Memorial and take a right on Burks Hill Road (I think).
Take exit for Rt. 460 West and proceed approximately a half mile to Rt. 680.
Turn right on Rt. 680 and go 5.5 miles till the sign for the winery and Johnson’s Orchards is seen on the left. Take the left here and go to the winery. The website address is www.peaksofotterwinery.com . When we get here we can do the tasting, buy a glass or two for lunch and find a suitable site for lunch. The website mentions that it has picnic facilities. After we are through with lunch we will set out for our run to Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest. www.poplarforest.org

Exit the winery and take a left back onto Rt. 680. Stay on Rt. 680 until we take a right onto Rt. 614. Rt. 614 looks like a great Miata road as it heads up to the Parkway and the Peaks of Otter (Sharp Top) area. According to my maps (Delorme Street Atlas 2004) Rt. 614 comes out near the intersection of Rt. 43 and the Parkway. We will take Rt. 43 South down the mountain till we take a left on Rt. 643. We stay on Rt. 643 until we get to the big community of Cifax where we take a left onto Rt. 644. We stay on Rt. 644 until after going through the community of Perrowville we take a right on Rt. 663. Follow Rt. 663 to Rt. 221 where we take a left. After about a mile on Rt. 221 take a right onto Rt. 811. Follow Rt. 811 until we take a left onto Rt. 661 and follow the signs to Poplar Forest.

The cost to tour the home and grounds, which are undergoing a total restoration, is $7.00 per adult and is worth every penny. Since we are talking about Jefferson, I guess I should say every nickel. After seeing the home, the touring is done for the day unless we all want to head somewhere for a well deserved meal. Now why would we want to do that?

My Street Atlas tells me that the total mileage for the run is about 45 miles. 8 miles to the winery from the DDay Memorial and about 37 miles to Poplar Forest from the winery.

Hope to see everyone there.

posted 03-14-2004 12:13 PM               

Kim and I took a test run yesterday on the proposed April route and all of it was nice except for Rt.614. Its gravel. So a slight change of routing. Instead of Rt.614 to Rt.43, it will be Rt.682 to Rt.43. Take a left and a quarter mile later take a right on Rt.643 and then proceed on as originally planned.

later,

robert

posted 04-01-2004 08:55 AM               

This also the date of a Wine Festival here in Danville, which I'd also like to go to

posted 04-03-2004 05:11 PM               

I think we should go 29N to Rt 43 to Bedford. Meet at 9:30 at the place Jeff suggested and get on the road by 9:45 and arrive around 11:00. Reckon that would work Jeff??

robert

posted 04-11-2004 09:40 PM               

I hope to attend. Where do you want to meet? At what time?

posted 04-12-2004 09:21 PM               

robert

posted 04-12-2004 09:30 PM               

but I'm volunteering for the FIRST Robotics Championship that begins Thrusday in Atlanta.
http://www.usfirst.org

the team I mentor here in the valley (Hidden Valley High) didn't qualify for the championships but we did have a blast in the regionals at VCU.

posted 04-13-2004 09:29 PM               

The Danville Miata folks will meet at the Market Square shopping center opposite the Squire Armory at 9:30 am with the goal of getting on the road around 9:45 am. The route proposed is this.

1. Turn left out of shopping center parking lot onto Rt. 29 Business and proceed for 37 miles to Rt. 43 at Altavista.
2. Turn left off of the exit ramp onto Rt. 43 and head towards Bedford.
3. Follow Rt. 43 for approximately 18 miles till we take a left onto Rt. 722.
4. Follow Rt. 722 for one half mile and take a right onto Rt. 721.
5. Follow Rt. 721 for almost one mile until we take a right onto Rt. 122.
6. Follow Rt. 122 into Bedford and the D Day Memorial should appear on our left as we go under Rt. 460.
7. Arrive at Memorial approximately at 11:00 am. Meet up with other Miata folks, tour the grounds and leave parking lot at 12:30 pm for Peaks of Otter Winery for picnic lunch. Everyone should bring their own food.
8. Take a right back onto Rt. 122 and then take exit ramp onto Rt. 460 West. Follow Rt. 460 for approximately one half mile and turn right onto Rt. 680.
9. Follow Rt. 680 for 5.5 miles to Johnson’s Orchard/Peaks of Otter Winery. Enjoy a tasting, buy a glass or bottle of a wine that tastes good, break out the vittles and let’s have a picnic under the apple trees.
10. After lunch we will take a nice cross country drive to Poplar Forest. Take a right back onto Rt. 680 and follow it back down the mountain 1.1 miles to where we take a left onto Rt. 682.
11. Follow Rt. 682 3.5 miles to Rt. 43.
12. Take a left onto Rt. 43 for a short distance and take a right onto Rt. 643.
13. Follow Rt. 643 for 10 miles until we turn left onto Rt. 644.
14. Follow Rt. 644 for almost 4 miles and turn right onto Rt. 663.
15. Follow Rt. 663 4.4 miles to Rt. 221.
16. Turn left onto Rt. 221 and follow for 1 mile.
17. Turn right onto Rt. 811 and follow for 1 mile.
18. Turn left onto Rt. 661 and the signs for Poplar Forest should guide us the rest of the way to Mr. Jefferson’s Summer Retreat. Tour the grounds and home and then when we have finished we can decide on the next destination …..SUPPER!!

The weather looks like it is going to be perfect for top down driving and I think we have a good outing planned. Hope to see y’all there.

Robert

posted 04-14-2004 11:11 AM               

Also, don't forget your name badges. We hopefully will have some new members and guests on this run.

jeff

posted 04-14-2004 04:42 PM               

I have some ideas for a twisty drive to Bedford. If you want, we can meet at the McDonalds located at Exit 146 on I-81 at 9:30 AM and leave at 10:00. This would get us to Bedford around 11:00 where we could catch up with the Danville group. I'll post the details later.

Please post a response if you plan to meet me.

Thanks,

posted 04-14-2004 09:49 PM               

The following directions are computer generated. Please keep the following in mind:

- These directions and their associated driving times may not be perfect since a computer came up with them
- When we get to Bedford, we will switch to the directions that Robert Clifton posted earlier (I just plotted a route below so we Roanoke folks can get a rough idea of how long the event should take—Robert is handling the event, and we will follow his lead once we get in Bedford)
- If someone needs to break away early and return to Roanoke a little bit early, that would be okay too

Jonathan

code:

---

Time      Mile   Instruction                                                                For
--------  -----  -------------------------------------------------------------------------  -------
10:05 AM    0.0  Depart near Hollins on SR-115 [Plantation Rd] (South)                      0.8 mi
10:07 AM    0.8  Keep STRAIGHT onto McConnell Rd                                            0.2 mi
10:08 AM    0.9  At near Hollins, turn LEFT (East) onto US-11 [Williamson Rd]               4.8 mi
10:14 AM    5.7  At near Daleville, turn RIGHT (South-East) onto Humbert Rd                 0.8 mi	
10:16 AM    6.6  At near Troutville, turn RIGHT (South-East) onto Mountain Pass Rd          2.6 mi
10:22 AM    9.2  Bear RIGHT (East) onto Laymantown Rd [Mountain Pass Rd], then immediately bear RIGHT (South) onto Mountain Pass Rd 1.0 mi
10:24 AM   10.2  Keep STRAIGHT onto Mountain Pass Rd [Rainbow Forrest Dr]                   0.3 mi
10:24 AM   10.5  Keep STRAIGHT onto Mountain Pass Rd                                        1.0 mi
10:26 AM   11.5  At near Blue Ridge, turn RIGHT (South-West) onto US-221 [Blue Ridge Blvd]  0.2 mi
10:27 AM   11.7  Turn LEFT (South-East) onto Webster Rd                                     0.9 mi
10:29 AM   12.6  Keep LEFT onto Archway Rd                                                  2.2 mi
10:34 AM   14.8  Turn LEFT (North) onto Porters Mountain Rd                                 0.8 mi
10:36 AM   15.6  At near Blue Ridge, stay on Porters Mountain Rd (North)                    1.1 mi
10:38 AM   16.7  Bear LEFT (East) onto Mountain View Church Rd                              3.5 mi
10:46 AM   20.2  Turn RIGHT (East) onto US-221 [W Lynchburg Salem Tpke]                     10.7 mi
10:59 AM   30.9  Take Ramp (RIGHT) onto US-460 [US-460 Byp]                                 1.1 mi
11:00 AM   32.0  At exit SR-122, keep RIGHT onto Ramp                                       0.1 mi
11:00 AM   32.2  Turn LEFT (North) onto SR-122 [Tiger Trail]                                0.1 mi
11:00 AM   32.3  Keep STRAIGHT onto SR-122 [Burks Hill Rd]                                  98 yds
11:00 AM   32.4  Arrive near Bedford
12:15 PM   32.4  Depart near Bedford on SR-122 [Burks Hill Rd] (South-West)                 87 yds
12:15 PM   32.4  Take Ramp (RIGHT) onto US-460 [US-460 Byp]                                 1.1 mi
12:16 PM   33.5  At exit US-221, keep STRAIGHT onto Ramp                                    0.1 mi
12:16 PM   33.6  Turn LEFT (West) onto US-221 [Blue Ridge Ave]                              1.4 mi
12:18 PM   35.0  Turn RIGHT (North) onto Patterson Mill Rd                                  4.5 mi
12:27 PM   39.5  Road name changes to Sheep Creek Rd                                        1.4 mi
12:30 PM   40.9  Arrive 2122 Sheep Creek Rd, Bedford, VA 24523
 1:45 PM   40.9  Depart 2122 Sheep Creek Rd, Bedford, VA 24523 on Sheep Creek Rd (South)    1.4 mi
 1:48 PM   42.3  Road name changes to Patterson Mill Rd                                     4.5 mi
 1:57 PM   46.8  Turn LEFT (East) onto US-221 [W Lynchburg Salem Tpke]                      2.1 mi
 2:00 PM   48.9  Turn LEFT (North) onto US-221 [Blue Ridge Ave]                             0.4 mi
 2:00 PM   49.3  Turn LEFT (North) onto US-221 [N Bridge St]                                0.6 mi
 2:01 PM   49.9  Turn LEFT (North) onto US-221 [Longwood Ave]                               8.3 mi
 2:11 PM   58.3  Turn LEFT (North) onto US-221 [Forest Rd]                                  6.9 mi
 2:20 PM   65.2  Turn RIGHT (South) onto Bateman Bridge Rd                                  0.5 mi
 2:22 PM   65.7  Turn LEFT (South-East) onto Fox Hall Rd                                    0.8 mi
 2:24 PM   66.5  Turn RIGHT (West) onto SR-1567 [Fox Hall Rd]                               0.2 mi
 2:24 PM   66.7  Turn RIGHT (West) onto Local road(s)                                       76 yds
 2:24 PM   66.7  Arrive Thomas Jefferson Poplar Forest
 3:39 PM   66.7  Depart Thomas Jefferson Poplar Forest on Local road(s) (East)              76 yds
 3:40 PM   66.8  Turn LEFT (North) onto SR-1567 [Fox Hall Rd]                               0.2 mi
 3:40 PM   66.9  Turn LEFT (North) onto Fox Hall Rd                                         0.8 mi
 3:42 PM   67.7  Turn RIGHT (North) onto Bateman Bridge Rd                                  0.5 mi
 3:44 PM   68.3  Turn LEFT (West) onto US-221 [Forest Rd]                                   15.1 mi
 4:02 PM   83.3  Turn RIGHT (West) onto US-221 [Longwood Ave]                               0.8 mi
 4:03 PM   84.2  Turn RIGHT (West) onto US-221 [W Main St]                                  0.4 mi
 4:04 PM   84.5  Turn RIGHT (West) onto US-221 [Blue Ridge Ave]                             22.0 mi
(Construction near Blue Ridge January 31, 2003 - May 21, 2004)		
 4:30 PM  106.6  Turn RIGHT (North-West) onto US-220 Alt [Cloverdale Rd]                    5.4 mi
 4:36 PM  112.0  Road name changes to US-220 [US-220 Alt]                                   98 yds
 4:37 PM  112.0  Take Ramp (RIGHT) onto I-81                                                3.6 mi
 4:40 PM  115.7  At exit 146, turn RIGHT onto Ramp                                          0.3 mi
 4:40 PM  116.0  Turn LEFT (South) onto SR-115 [Plantation Rd]                              0.1 mi
 4:41 PM  116.1  Arrive near Hollins
SUMMARY
Driving distance:  116.1 miles
Trip duration:  6 hours, 35 minutes
Driving time:  2 hours, 51 minutes

---

posted 04-14-2004 11:27 PM               

*cough*

Yeah I'll have to try that for once

posted 04-17-2004 12:07 AM               

You guys enjoy;it's going to be a beautiful day!

posted 04-17-2004 10:03 PM               

Upon return to Roanoke, we went to Fast Freddy's for dinner, and the turnout was considerable, although shy of Miatas. Quite a few new rods and restorations out for the first sunny Saturday of spring. We need to get a Miata gathering happening here soon!

Post us up on the drive!

posted 04-18-2004 02:07 PM               

Thanks for all you guys that came out for the event yesterday. Hope everyone had a good time. We couldn't have had a better day weather wise. Kim has made a website for the pictures she took. Here's the address.
http://pws.gamewood.net/~web/brmc/dday1.htm

See everybody next month. Details will be coming soon.

robert

posted 04-19-2004 04:37 PM               

jeff

[This message has been edited by miataman (edited 04-19-2004).]