Southwest Regional Rally 2010 location

[audiogooroo]

Hey everyone, I'm sure hoping to see all of you at the Custer Rally next summer, but believe it or not, 2010 will be here before we know it. I know we've got some time, but I'm all about having a couple of plans brewing.
I was considering Durango, CO as a potential location. For any of you who have not yet ridden the Million Dollar Highway, you simply must!
I really want to hear some suggestions from you all. We have such a large region that no matter where we go, some will be riding pretty far to get there so I'd like to move it around every year. To actually select the central most point puts us right in the middle of the Nevada Desert. (and didn't we just do that? ;))
So that's whay I'm proposing Durango, and then maybe the next one we'll do in CA.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions? Insults? http://s2.images.proboards.com/cheesy.gif

Sounds great. I'm up for a mini rally in '09 as well

[audiogooroo]

Oh yeah, we'll definitely set something up in 09 in addition to Custer! Can't wait!

[dantama]

we'll definitely set something up in 09 in addition to Custer! Can't wait!

+1

[ells]

Prescott, AZ

[blowndodge]

+2

[waterman]

Durango sounds good to me. Cortez might be another option close by. Cortez would have some cheaper motel rates compared to Durango.

[cactusjack]

AG is right. This region is so geographically large and we are so spread out that no matter where something is planned, it's going to be less convenient for a number of people.

Durango would be good, Utah has phenomenal scenery and excellent riding, just stay away from the St. George area ::). Northern New Mexico is also nice.

For selfish reasons, I know a number of good locations in AZ that wouldn't be scorching hot. Prescott, Flagstaff, and Show Low are all mountainous areas that are comfortable even in the summer. But this wouldn't be very centrally located for most of the folks.

I think the first consideration for any rally should be the location. Is it close to a majority of the members? What does it have to offer? Is the weather tolerable?

I think Durango is a good choice and meets most, if not all of these criteria for a regional rally.

Personally, I think Custer SD is a little too remote and off the beaten path for many of us. I'd think Arkansas would be more convenient for most people. The geographic center of the US is somewhere in Kansas, but I don't know what kind of riding is available there.

[ells]

Looks like Prescott is more central to the Region than Durango, but don't mind me, both are two of my more favorite SW venues.

[cactusjack]

I was still thinking Western Region, not Southwest for some reason. Prescott would be a day's ride for most folks, which is totally reasonable.

[waterman]

Ok, we have Prescott, AZ and Durango, CO right now. How about another one. Flagstaff, AZ. About 100 miles closer for me than Prescott (750 vs 850) but still around 500 miles for SoCal (BD's location). Also looked at motels (on computer) and it looks like Flagstaff might have a few more choices than Prescott?

I can vouch for good riding around durango.....Hows the riding around prescott/flagstaff??

[waterman]

I can vouch for good riding around durango.....Hows the riding around prescott/flagstaff??

I don't know about flagstaff or prescott. CJ, what's your take on roads around there?

[cactusjack]

Roads? Come on, this is Arizona. We don't need no stinkin' roads!

There is an abundance of excellent riding in that area of the state. Mostly 2-lane highway, lots of twisties and elevation changes. All are good, well maintained roads. Lots of gorgeous scenery, too. Prescott and Flagstaff are only about 60 miles apart. Between the two are the towns of Jerome, Clarkdale, Cottonwood and Sedona. There are tons of riding options in the region. Jerome is an old mining town built on the side of a mountain. Prescott is famous for its historic buildings and "Whiskey Row", Sedona sits beneath some massive stone bluffs and is famous for its energy "vortex". Oak Creek Canyon between Sedona and Flagstaff is beautiful. Both Flagstaff and Prescott are fairly large towns, of around 80-100,000, so most major stores and services are available.

Places to visit: Meteor Crater, Grand Canyon (south rim), Montezuma's Castle (cliff dwellings), Winslow (standin' on a corner in Winslow Arizona...), and Monument Valley is a couple of hours from Flagstaff. Lots of good places to eat and drink.

[dantama]

Here's a google map I started of where we live and possible spots for a rally.

I added a few Utah spots too. There is a lot of Utah to ride in and the western rally only scratched the surface. I added Bryce Canyon, Hwy 12 and Capitol Reef, and Moab for Arches and Canyonlands.

Feel free to add more spots.

click here (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=111163913744842722215.0004593973195071e32f7&ll=37.71859,-111.269531&spn=17.630489,39.550781&z=5)

And here is how it looks with a circle drawn around it.

Looks like Utah and Arizona are pretty central, except for Valdez. Halfway between Valdez, Denver and Southern Cal would put your right in an ugly place to ride :)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/52678b68.gif

[waterman]

click here (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=111163913744842722215.0004593973195071e32f7&ll=37.71859,-111.269531&spn=17.630489,39.550781&z=5)

And here is how it looks with a circle drawn around it.

Looks like Utah and Arizona are pretty central, except for Valdez. Halfway between Valdez, Denver and Southern Cal would put your right in an ugly place to ride :)

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/52678b68.gif

Hey, Valdez isn't the only one out of the circle. :'( Do you see Sterling, CO on the map, I am south of that. Well, at least I'm not as far from the circle as Valdez.

[audiogooroo]

Just make the circle bigger! :)

[dantama]

Just pull up the map in the click here link in the post and add a marker for Sterling, but yes, it will be out of the circle :)

And all the Green motorcycle icons are possible rally sites that were mentioned (plus my other good Utah ones) click on them with the cursor and they will say what location they are. And as I said, feel free to add more. It's a public map that anyone can change.

[cactusjack]

Dan, maybe I'm just stupid, but I can't see a way to add a point to the map.

[dantama]

Dan, maybe I'm just stupid, but I can't see a way to add a point to the map.

Cactus, I'm not sure if only I can do it or not, it may look different for you.

For me, right up next to the Google at the top left you put the city and state. Then click search maps, that brings up a box and a pointer on the map (at least for me it does) and you click "save to my maps" in the box, then it should say southwest nomads as the map to save ti to.

It may just be me that can do it, I don't know.

If it doesn't work for you guys, post your town and I'll put it on.

[waterman]

Doesn't work Dan. It is your account.

[dantama]

Doesn't work Dan. It is your account.

Thanks, I hoped that if I made it public you guys could add yourselves.

[blowndodge]

Dan, maybe I'm just stupid, but I can't see a way to add a point to the map.


<marquee>I know how I'm voting!! http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif</marquee>

[cactusjack]

Dan, maybe I'm just stupid, but I can't see a way to add a point to the map.


<marquee>I know how I'm voting!! http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif</marquee>

Keep it up, Brad. http://s2.images.proboards.com/shocked.gif http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif

[ells]

My thought in suggesting Prescott was its central location, nice community setting, interesting surroundings but I haven't ridden around there. Always enjoyed driving in the area. Close to and nice contrast with the desert and plenty of scenery coming and going from about any direction. No real objection to other sites mentioned either.

Well its over 500 miles only 40 of which are Interstate for me to get to Flagstaff, so it would definitely be a full days ride. One that I would love to make BTW.

[cactusjack]

Well its over 500 miles only 40 of which are Interstate for me to get to Flagstaff, so it would definitely be a full days ride. One that I would love to make BTW.

Which 40 miles are interstate? Which route would you take? Just curious, I know this is hypothetical.

I went on yahoo maps and clicked from tooele to flagstaff and got THIS (http://maps.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTExNmIycG51BF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEc2VjA2ZwLWJ1 dHRvbgRzbGsDbGluaw--#mvt=m&lat=37.736511&lon=-111.928612&zoom=7&q1=Tooele%2C%20UT&q2=Flagstaff%2C%20AZ) If I go through Cedar City I could make the whole ride without even getting on the free way once.

[dantama]

Looking at the member map, I see we have a member who lives in Durango. Too bad we didn't hook up with him when we were there.

[dantama]

I added some more people to the map, and there was a way to check mark "let other people edit this map" so maybe people can add themselves to the map now.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/e2702d2a.gif

[audiogooroo]

My thought in suggesting Prescott was its central location, nice community setting, interesting surroundings but I haven't ridden around there. Always enjoyed driving in the area. Close to and nice contrast with the desert and plenty of scenery coming and going from about any direction. No real objection to other sites mentioned either.
I'm not too familiar with the area. Anyone else who is? It is pretty centrally located for everyone.

[cactusjack]

Well, I am.

[waterman]

Well, I am.

Ya. And???? What's your thought CJ? Which is a nicer area Prescott or Flagstaff??? Which has nicer roads????

We want to know!!!!!!!!!! http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif

[dantama]

I'll lobby for Escalante or Tropic Utah.

click here (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=Torrey,+ut&daddr=Tropic,+ut&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=37.866181,-111.445312&sspn=1.032096,2.449951&ie=UTF8&ll=37.963689,-111.420593&spn=1.082697,2.449951&t=p&z=9)

They are not wife shopping type of towns, but they are some of the best riding ever, without the heat of down south like the last rally.

One direction is hwy 12, Car and Drivers "most scenic road in America". The other direction is Bryce canyon. Capitol reef national park is just beyond hwy 12.

Valdez stayed in Tropic and went through all that area on his way to the western rally, and could give his impressions.

If it's all about getting on your bike and riding, you can't beat that area. It could come up lacking in resort town shopping. My wife isn't going, so I don't care about the shopping :)

[dantama]

Here's some google earth shots of the area.

This is the alpine type side. It's curvy and spectacular scenery. It doesn't look it here, but it's a tall mountain with a lot of elevation change. you're up in the pines and quaking aspens.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/7cf98a5c.gif

Then you drop over the other side into the red rock desert type stuff, which is equally spectacular.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/f1693115.gif

Beyond Escalante is Bryce Canyon which most of you are probably familiar with. One of the most spectacular places on earth.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y237/dantama/ded6cbb5.jpg

[cactusjack]

Flagstaff and Prescott are about 90 miles apart. Prescott is at about 5000', Flagstaff is over 7000'. Hence, Flagstaff would be much cooler in the summer. Prescott is typically 5-10 degrees cooler than Phoenix, Flagstaff is 15 to 20 degrees cooler. Flagstaff would be closer to the Grand Canyon, and being on I-40 might make it more convenient for some to get there.

One place that is worth suggesting is Williams, AZ. It's about 30 miles West of Flagstaff on I-40 and is a small railroad town. Hotels, restaurants, bars, etc are pretty much located in the same area. They used to hold a big HD rally in Williams every year until they moved it to Tucson.

I would consider Flagstaff to be the "hub" of some of the best riding in the whole state. You can go south to Sedona, Jerome, Prescott and the Yarnell Valley, you can go east towards Winslow (...standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona...) and Mormon Lake. Most of the area is heavily forested . You can head north across the Navajo Nation to the Grand Canyon or NE towards Lake Powell.

[rlfaubion]

Man, I forgot this thread existed. There's a lot of'm now. I did read through all the replies above while at work today, as a good employee would, and I'd like to offer a suggestion of Moab Utah no later than May 30th or the 31st of any year. You could spend your life running those canyons.... Some off road available too, so I know Dan would be in

Its good to see postings up here again...

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s31/rlfaubion/Zions.jpg

[rlfaubion]

Gawd, that was a big-a$$ picture!

[audiogooroo]

Man, I forgot this thread existed. There's a lot of'm now. I did read through all the replies above while at work today, as a good employee would, and I'd like to offer a suggestion of Moab Utah no later than May 30th or the 31st of any year. You could spend your life running those canyons.... Some off road available too, so I know Dan would be in

Its good to see postings up here again...


Cool pic Ron. I would definitely consider Moab as a potential locale. Beautiful country to be sure.

It is good to see some action on this board. We're a spread out bunch, no doubt, but I still like reading about you SoCal guys' year round riding. ::sigh::

[rksaw]

Hey guys,
If you don't mind a Northwesterner jumping in, are the 2010 rallies strictly devided into each of the six U.S. regions or was the intent to go with three like in 2008? Is there any guidance from Trip and the rest of the leadership on this?

If it is regional then great, the Northwesterners will start working on their own 2010 rally, but if it's geographical is there any though to include those coming from the North?
Rich

[cactusjack]

As I recall, the original 3 regions were deemed to be too large for informal rallies, so they were carved up into 6 regions. Therefore, 6 regional rallies would be held in even years and a national rally would be held in odd years.

[rksaw]

Yeah, I got clarification about this from Trip...I guess we'll start thinking about a 2010 rally for the Northwesterners as well. I sure hope that I'll get to Custer, because I know that I don't want to have to wait until 2011 to meet you all in person. (I feel bad for picking on BD and I haven't even so much as shaken his hand!)
Rich

[cactusjack]

Yeah, I got clarification about this from Trip...I guess we'll start thinking about a 2010 rally for the Northwesterners as well. I sure hope that I'll get to Custer, because I know that I don't want to have to wait until 2011 to meet you all in person. (I feel bad for picking on BD and I haven't even so much as shaken his hand!)
Rich

You haven't missed much. His hands are sweaty and sticky. http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif

[Dave]

Has any date and site been picked yet? I like the idea of Flagstaff.

[blowndodge]

<marquee>Yes you guys have been real mean to BD !!!!! :( :(</marquee>

[audiogooroo]

Has any date and site been picked yet? I like the idea of Flagstaff.
Not yet Dave. We have enough time. I just wanted to get everyone's input and we'll see where we end up.

[bigbear]

I've been offline for a long time, but am finding my way back. I know I'm a little late with all of this, but I live between Durango and Cortez. There are a couple members who also live in Durango. I'm a little partial, but you can't find any better riding than around the Durango area, as long as you enjoy riding in the mountains with lots of curves and no guard rails! I personally know one of the members in Durango and he would be more than happy to help work on this if it was in this area. There are two competing rallys in the area over labor day every year so that would be a bad time.

[audiogooroo]

Good to know bigbear. I know there are great roads in the area.
I'm thinking we'll avoid the holiday weekends. Having someone in the area will be really helpful when it comes to selecting lodging.
Thanks!
As we get closer we'll try to find a location that won't be too far for anyone to make, considering our region is so large.

[rlfaubion]

As you can see, the Northwest Region is closer for us NorCal riders than the Southwest Region. Hardly anyone is nearby to come out and play with us here in Northern California ::)

Trip - I'm soooo lonely http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s31/rlfaubion/Miscellaneous/StevePark.jpg

[ice793]

Prescott or flag would be nice

[josh]

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=111163913744842722215.0004593973195071e32f7&ll=37.71859,-111.269531&spn=17.630489,39.550781&z=5

I am not even visible on the map

[Jared]

I just drove through flagstaff for the first time last week. Beautiful area. It would be about 500 miles of beautiful country road for me. 89 through Zions, Bryce Canyon area, past Lake Powell, and right next to the Grand Canyon.

I think that ride would be doable. (:

[pronghorn]

Since I usually attend one of the rallies in Durango, I would vote for Flagstaff. As long as the riding and accomadations are good it really doesn't matter. I'm sure we will have a great time.

[cactusjack]

I just drove through flagstaff for the first time last week. Beautiful area. It would be about 500 miles of beautiful country road for me. 89 through Zions, Bryce Canyon area, past Lake Powell, and right next to the Grand Canyon.

I think that ride would be doable. (:

I'll be doing that same ride coming back from Custer, except after Flagstaff, I still have 193 miles to home.

[rayk]

A few years ago Me and some friends from So Cal, rode to Cortez Co for a Roadstar rally. We stopped @ the south rim of the Grand Canyon, Went thru Monument Valley, Rode the Teleuride loop, went thru Mesa Verde nat'l pk. On the way home we did Arches, Canyon land, And Zion. was one of the most awesome vacations I've ever had, and I would do it again in a minute.

[ells]

Rayk, That is one premier road trip. I'm about a green with envy as that bike.