3rd Annual Clearwater Not-So-Mini Rally....

[jimbonich]

As many/most of you know, Parliament has acquired Coachworx and now occupies both properties that had previously been split between the two companies for the past two years. The new owner, Cliff Koschnick actually owns a Wanderlodge and is very committed to serving the needs of the WOG and BlueBird community. He contacted me within just a few hours of finalizing the acquisition paperwork and reaffirmed their desire to continue hosting the rally that had previously been held on the Coachworx property.

I have related to Cliff that our rallies are simple, low-cost, no-frills affairs, and that our primary activities are eating and planning the next meal. He has agreed to let us hold this year’s “Not-So-Mini Rally” under virtually the same arrangement as the past two years when Coachworx let us use their facilities. We have also confirmed the date to be the same as in the past two years—the second weekend in January (11th-13th), just prior to the Tampa Super Show. Parliament has also hosted their own rally for their customers and will continue to do so following the Tampa Super Show, but it will be later in the month and a more “enhanced” and more expensive rally than we intend to put on.

I am going to arrive at Parliament the week after Thanksgiving and will meet with Cliff and Rick May to finalize the details, which will be added to this thread as they become available, but I didn’t want to wait any longer to let people know the basics so people can begin making plans to attend. Last year’s attendees were strongly in favor of keeping this a medium-sized rally of approximately 25-30 coaches and not splitting our group between the two properties and that is still our current plan. Once I arrive onsite we will confirm the number of electrical hookups available, but based on my conversations with Rick May we should be able to park and hookup (electric only) approximately the same number of coaches as last year and keep our group on the old Coachworx property. There is a free dump station and water fill on-site, and propane is available also.

Here are the basic details:

DATES: Friday, January 11 through Sunday, January, 13th at the Parliament Motorcoach Corporation facility at 4455 Ulmerton Road in Clearwater, Florida

EARLY ARRIVALS: Anyone that schedules work to be done by the Parliament/Coachworx Service Department will probably be able to arrive earlier in the week and remain on the property so this is a great incentive to go ahead and schedule any service and/or body/paint work for the week prior to the rally. We may (or may not) be able to accommodate other early arrivals for dry camping only but this won’t be known until sometime in December, and those who are having service work performed will have priority for weekday camping and electrical hookups before and after the rally.

COST: Campsite fees = $0, courtesy of Parliament! We should be able to provide electrical hookups for the same 25-30 coaches as last year, but everyone should understand that these will NOT be full 50 amp hookups as many/most of us will be sharing 50 amp breakers. The Tampa Bay weather is usually mild this time of year and one AC unit will probably suffice, but everyone should bear in mind that many/most of our rallies are dry camping only so having any type of electric service is a very generous gift provided by Parliament at their expense. Please consider having any and all service work you need done on your coach by Parliament so they will see the benefits of subsidizing and hosting our annual rally.

ON-SITE MEALS: Ron Roberts has graciously agreed to bring his concession kitchen/trailer again this year, and to prepare the food at no charge as long as we provide the ingredients and plenty of helpers. This was a great hit last year as we were able to have full breakfasts and lunches onsite during the weekend, and everyone remarked how inexpensive and delicious the meals were. We will be devising some type of meal plan at a nominal expense and the details of this will be forthcoming in future posts. NOTE: EACH COACH ATTENDING WILL BE EXPECTED TO PROVIDE ONE VOLUNTEER TO HELP WITH FOOD PREP AND/OR CLEANUP AT ONE OF THE MEALS THAT RON PREPARES.

OTHER MEALS: We intend to eat as a group at a local restaurant on Friday night, and have our traditional potluck dinner on Saturday night. The nominal “meal plan” fee will include money for the meat entrees for the potluck dinner, and all of us are hoping that Bruce and Laura and/or others will help with the barbeque again that was such a hit last year.

SIGNUP/DEPOSITS: Right now we will accept 25 coaches that sign up by responding to this thread. Last year we had several people sign up and then never cancel when their plans changed, and this caused us to turn away some coaches that would have otherwise been able to attend. To avoid a recurrence of this problem I will be contacting those who have signed up sometime in early December with instructions to send in their deposits for the meal plan and incidental expenses (probably $25-50 per coach). Those whose deposits are not received within the specified time period will lose their reservation, and you should assume the deposits are non-refundable and not make one if you are uncertain of your plans. I am still working/traveling full-time to fund Medicare and Social Security for the rest of you so I don’t have the time to track down individuals who haven’t sent in their deposits by the date that will be posted on this thread.

STANDBY LIST: If you are interested in coming but are not among the first 25 to sign up, go ahead and post your interest in attending on this thread and we will create a standby list in the order that people sign up. I am keeping 5 spots open for Rally “helpers”, and we may be able to handle a few more coaches (with or without electrical hookups) once I arrive at Parliament and nail down more details with Rick and Cliff.

If you have questions please do NOT send me a PM via the WOG site, as my mailbox is almost full already and my access to WOG is sporadic due to connectivity problems I am again experiencing with my replacement Verizon 4G/LTE aircard. Email me at jim.nichols.s121@gmail.com instead and I will get back to you as soon as my schedule allows. Please include your cell # also as it may be easier for me to call you if your request is complicated or unusual.

PLEASE NOTE that this has been, and will continue to be, a low-cost “no frills” rally. There are no planned excursions or activities beyond a coach “open house” and tech sessions on Saturday, and of course the required Happy Hour(s) and Potluck dinner on Saturday night. Wannabes and “coach-less” Blue Birders are very welcome, and there is no better way to learn about and/or jump into our “cult” than by attending a rally such as this. If you do plan to attend but aren’t signed up for onsite camping, please email me so we will be able to plan meals, seating arrangements, etc.

I should also add that there even though we don’t have any planned off-site activities (other than Friday night at local restaurants), there are many activities within just a few minutes of the Parliament property. Beaches, Disney World, Ft. Desoto (a great place to camp right on the water before or after the rally), the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Busch Gardens, and many other interesting activities are all within a short drive.

More details to follow…..

[Lee Davis]

we have been eagerly awaiting this info!!
please put Lee and me down as attendees.
thanks for putting this together. we are looking forward to seeing everyone in January!

[Rick]

Jim, Sooooo happy to hear this is a go. Roberta and I will attend! Sign us up.

[Randy Dupree]

i'm in!
Carol and Sadie too!

[al perna]

Jim
Erika,Lola and myself will be attending. Please put us on your list ..

[rrueckwald]

Ron & Dorinda Rueckwald plan to be there.

[jimbonich]

5 coaches signed up so far and it's only been up for 45 minutes!

[exxis]

Nancy and I will be attending with new bait for Sadie.

[michael3536]

I'd like to go, please include me on the list ..... Michael Campbell

[irmagoo]

i'm in jim
mike