PLANNING: TECORE III - June 4-6

[The Roadie]

A couple of us tested SPOTs clipped to the visors, and the proximity of the roof blocked most (but not all) of the outbound messages. I think it retained a good GPS position lock, though. It's not a LoJack, that's for sure. If I was going to use it to track somebody's vehicle sneakily, I'd try to mount it above metal, but underneath some bumper cover plastic.

[AlekG]

Hey James,

I am planning the drive down for Zero and me. We are leaving Thursday morning to get over the border 1 day early (just in case there are any hassles). I am planning a camp in Allegheny National Forest Thursday night, then the 6 hour (approx) drive down to Harrisonburg on Friday.

What's the second meet up time on Friday, same as last year? (Was it 4 or 5?), so that we can plan when to break camp Friday morning.

AG

Well as of now, we have:

JamesDowning
HardTrailz
BartonMD
Zero
AlekG
Splivkramer

Gordinho80 is still on the maybe list.

Meeting times:

I was planning to be there about noon, but I can probably do a little earlier if we all agree on it.

[Trail X]

I've told some of the other guys in emails and I think this is the set times:

12 noon - meet at sheetz for round 1 of trails

4 pm - leave for the campsite from sheetz

[Zero]

Hey guys, not to be a downer....but I have noticed there are 50percent thunderstorms for the area we plan to have our trip, friday - sunday.

Is there a rain date in case this one gets rained out? Do you guys plan to do this regardless of weather? I personaly do not look forward to a 9 hour + drive in misserable weather, or sleeping in mud, while being soaked.

[bartonmd]

Hey guys, not to be a downer....but I have noticed there are 50percent thunderstorms for the area we plan to have our trip, friday - sunday.

Is there a rain date in case this one gets rained out? Do you guys plan to do this regardless of weather? I personaly do not look forward to a 9 hour + drive in misserable weather, or sleeping in mud, while being soaked.

Rain date?? HA!

By the way, in the mountains, it rarely rains all day, unless it's a tropical storm coming in from the coast or something... The other neat thing about the mountains is the fact that they are higher than the surrounding area, and are made of rock, so they drain very well...

About storms and such, though... Do we bring a chainsaw or something for downed trees across the trail?

Mike

[HARDTRAILZ]

Rain date?? HA!

By the way, in the mountains, it rarely rains all day, unless it's a tropical storm coming in from the coast or something... The other neat thing about the mountains is the fact that they are higher than the surrounding area, and are made of rock, so they drain very well...

About storms and such, though... Do we bring a chainsaw or something for downed trees across the trail?

Mike

I have a bow saw and folding saw, but a chainsaw could be nice if any spring storms dropped decent sized trees.

[Trail X]

It may rain a bit, but the event is not getting canceled. It's just another thing to prepare for and learn from if it happens. Anyone have a large tarp? I have a smaller one, but it's only about 7'x8'. If it's looking like rain, I may set up my tent under the tarp.

Plus, forecasts change. Right now it's just a meteorological guess. At least it's not 100% rain! We'll know more in a few days, but no, it's not getting postponed - just be prepared.

As for a chainsaw, great idea. I do not have one, but I do have a reciprocating saw and a winch!

[bartonmd]

I can bring a small chanisaw... Both of my big chainsaws do the typical "chainsaw" thing, and leak and smell when the weather changes... My small saw is newer, and has a 14" bar, so will cut 28" trees, and is top handle, so packs pretty small when I've got the bar off of it... I use MSR cans for fuel/oil mix, so they don't leak... The saw and my chaps and hardhat will all go into a moderately sized (12"x20") tote, and will come along...

It's like this one:

[Trail X]

Sounds like we'll be quite prepared. Is there going to be room in HTz truck?

[bartonmd]

Should be aight...

[Zero]

I dont mind the rain, I can prepare my self....nothing the ROTC and boy scouts havent prepared me for.....but if these thunderstorms become inevitable.....it is nothing more then dangerous to head off into the mountains on a dirt trail in the middle of a T storm.

Fallen trees are the least of my worries...I am worried about tents acting like lightning rods, and having to winch someone out of the mud every 10 feet or so we travel.

I will make it clear now. If it is just a bit of rain, thats fine Ill come. But I am not gona drive 18+ hours round trip to be stuck in a rain storm, wet and misserable the whole time. Offroading is a fun hobby / way of life I enjoy...and there is no reason to purposly put our selfs in harms way, or do something I know wont be fun. Its one thing to go a few hours and deal with that stuff.....but to deal with it for multiple days and over almost a 24 hours period of driving.....well my friends....that just stinks.

Another thought, with the rain coming down....dont the water levels rise?....will we still be able to make it through the water passes in the film from last year? What about the risk of flash flood and getting swept away in your truck??? In LA flash floods are a huge problem near water ways. Is this of concern in Harissonburg?

[bartonmd]

Wow, tiger... Calm down...

Like I said before, it drains well and is mostly rock...

Also, they had to go out of the way to do those creek crossings, IIRC... Water in the mountains rises fast and falls fast... If the S really hits the F, just wait a couple hours, and it'll be back down...


Mike

ETA: I read that post, and this is all I can think about:

[Zero]

no no no, Barton...by no means am I worked up. I just wanted to "make it clear" ahead of time, what my intentions were. I didnt want to cancel and at the last minute with no explanation.

I want to do anything I can to make it on this trip. But its a lot of driving, time and cash on my end before I even get to meet you guys. I just want to keep things in perspective.....and right now I am hating the fact that Alek has a //// tent cot.....bastard sleeps 11" off the ground so he doesnt have to worry about a thing!

I have 1 really large HD tarp. I think it is something like 14'x20'.....Ill check it out and measure it to confirm, then pack it in the truck.....could be big enough to cover 2 tents.

I have several small bow saws, large axe, and small hatchet.....should I bring any of them?

[Trail X]

I dont mind the rain, I can prepare my self....nothing the ROTC and boy scouts havent prepared me for.....but if these thunderstorms become inevitable.....it is nothing more then dangerous to head off into the mountains on a dirt trail in the middle of a T storm.

It will be an adventure either way.

Fallen trees are the least of my worries...I am worried about tents acting like lightning rods, and having to winch someone out of the mud every 10 feet or so we travel.

We don't do anything unsafe, it's my job to keep you safe. If we're setting camp and all we see is thunderstorms - or if we wake up in the night to a squall passing by - we'll get into the trucks or pack up and head down the mountain.

The trail isn't that bad, mainly hard pack and rock... the mud is rarely that deep, I've been up there in a rain storm - there's mud, but not deep in most areas.

I will make it clear now. If it is just a bit of rain, thats fine Ill come. But I am not gona drive 18+ hours round trip to be stuck in a rain storm, wet and misserable the whole time. Offroading is a fun hobby / way of life I enjoy...and there is no reason to purposly put our selfs in harms way, or do something I know wont be fun. Its one thing to go a few hours and deal with that stuff.....but to deal with it for multiple days and over almost a 24 hours period of driving.....well my friends....that just stinks.

Understood, I guess I think of it as an adventure. We don't get this chance very often... learn something new, see a new area, learn from our mistakes... it's your call if you decide not to come... I have a feeling you'd regret it in the end.

Another thought, with the rain coming down....dont the water levels rise?....will we still be able to make it through the water passes in the film from last year? What about the risk of flash flood and getting swept away in your truck??? In LA flash floods are a huge problem near water ways. Is this of concern in Harissonburg?

The required water crossings are pretty dry - I don't expect them to get above hub level. The one you see in the videos is an optional water crossing - not required... we'll evaluate the depth upon seeing it.

[bartonmd]

Forcasts, like James said, are just guesses at this point, anyway... It's been my experience that in the mountains, even the same day, they're still just guesses... Unless there's a tropical storm coming in, or something REALLY wierd happens, it just flat ain't gonna rain all day, every day, east of the center of a mountain range...

Mike

[Gordinho80]

I hate the fact that I am not going to be able to make this one. I'm almost caught up on my work but was just informed that I need to be On-Call this weekend. DAMN IT!!!

I really wanted to get out there this weekend. Would have been cool meeting the guys I haven't met yet...

[Trail X]

Dude... that sucks! Try to get out of it!?!?

Confirmed:
-JamesDowning (James)
-HARDTRAILZ (Kyle) & bartonmd (Mike)
-Zero (Brendan)
-AlekG (Alek)
-splivkramer (Todd)
-darknight (John)

Possible:
-foosh (Tom)

[AlekG]

Here's the latest from weather.com

Harrisonburg, VA

Jun 4 Friday
Scattered thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the mid 60s.
Jun 5 Saturday
Times of sun and clouds. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the upper 60s.
Jun 6 Sunday
Isolated thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the mid 60s.

Looks like a standard summer weekend in Southern Ontario. I don't anticipate any issues if the forecast stays like this. "Scattered" & "isolated" are the operative words. We got rained on a bit last April I believe.

AG

[bgwolfpack]

Looking like it could be moist for you guys.

Hope someone will put together a noobish video, in the like of March 2006 - Coyote Canyon, my obsession.

Good luck guys

[Trail X]

Noobish video? Not sure what you mean. There have been TECORE videos from I and II... I'm sure we'll have at least two videos from III.