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Avenue of the Giants Weekend Run - Sat. March 23, 2024

Saturday will be a very full day of cruising from Novato up through the Avenue of the Giants and ending at Eel River Brewing in Fortuna. Sun...

Weekend To Dunsmuir Train Park and Run - October 21st thru October 23rd

 


NOTICE: TO ALL PAID MEMBERS INTERESTED IN ATTENDING THIS WEEKEND EVENT:

We are posting this early to give everyone a chance to make their RESERVATIONS AT THE Railroad Park Resort NOW. It books early. You can also book accommodations at other local hotels as well (in Dunsmuir or Shasta City). As of today June 21st there are 2 cabins still available as well as 3 cabooses. Many folks who attended last year booked for this year at that time.

GO TO THE RAILROAD PARK RESORT website to book (and more info below)







Your Hosts For The Weekend:

Simon and Nikki Tildesley

Christine and Mike Toibin

Come join us for an amazing weekend up in the mountains. We have an amazing run planned for Saturday that will include beautiful sights and plenty of twisties! Details of the run below.

Also, check out the recap link from this event last early November. It was an epic weekend for sure.

Friday - October 21st

Drive from Bay Area

Simon will be leading the group from the Bay up to Dunsmuir. And there will be TWO meet up points.

Meet Up Location: This location is right off of Highway 680 - Bernal Ave exit
Safeway parking lot
6790 Bernal Ave.
Pleasanton 94566

Meet Up Time/Departure Time
10:00am/10:30am

Meet Up Location #2
Exit 554 off of Interstate 5 In the Denny's Parking Lot (Dunnagan Exit)

Meet Up Time/Departure Time
12:00 Noon/1:00pm (Lunch at this location)

Friday Evening Details:
NOTE: We are having a POTLUCK at the park. 
Between Cabooses 26 and 27. The Toibin and
Tildesley cabooses. All attendees have received an email with details. DINNER AT 7

or

Dinner on your own: The restaurant at the park has a great menu otherwise plenty of choices
in Dunsmuir and Shasta nearby.

Friday Night After Dinner:

Bring your own drinks, snacks, chairs, blankets, etc. and join us outdoors by the Tildesley and Toibin cabooses #26 & #27.

Saturday - October 22nd
Breakfast
You are on your own. There are plenty of places nearby! And the restaurant at the park is NOW OPEN on Saturday and Sunday at 9am. 

Run: Run to McArthur Burney State Park
Meet Up Time/Departure Time
10:45am/11:30am
Meet at the entrance area to the Railroad Park

Route:
Detail Of Run:
The park is within the Cascade Range and Modoc Plateau natural region, with forest and five miles of streamside and lake shoreline, including a portion of Lake Britton. Keep your eyes out as you drive around Lake Britton for a train trestle that was filmed in the movie “Stand by Me”.

The park’s centerpiece is the 129-foot Burney Falls, which is not the highest or largest waterfall in the state, but possibly the most beautiful. Additional water comes from springs, joining to create a mist-filled basin. Burney Creek originates from the park’s underground springs and flows to Lake Britton, getting larger along the way to the majestic falls.

The park’s landscape was created by volcanic activity as well as erosion from weather and streams. This volcanic region is surrounded by mountain peaks and is covered by black volcanic rock, or basalt. Created over a million years ago, the layered, porous basalt retains rainwater and snow melt, which forms a large underground reservoir.

Within the park, the water emerges as springs at and above Burney Falls, where it flows at 100 million gallons every day.

Park Fee: $10.00 CASH ONLY per vehicle 

Pets are not recommended as they cannot walk the trails.

Lunch
We will be stopping in McCloud which is about a half an hour out. Lots of great places to have lunch.
One hour then back on the road.

Dinner
We will have a group dinner in the dining car restaurant in the park on Saturday night. It's important as part of your RSVP to let us know if you're interested in this option. Some may choose to do dinner on their own or get take out from the dining car.
Update: I have booked the Railroad Park restaurant for us for dinner at 7pm. Yes or No will be part of the RSVP we will be sending out soon.

Saturday Night After dinner:
Return to cabooses #26 & #27 again. Be sure to bring your own drinks, snacks, chairs, blankets, etc.

Sunday - October 23rd
Meet in the courtyard for a group photo before everyone heads home. Be there at 9am.


You must RSVP via MotorSportReg: 

About Dunsmuir Railroad Park
Dunsmuir Railroad Park is a very unique place where you can sleep in a caboose. If you'd like more information on the Dunsmuir, check out their website: https://rrpark.com//

Reservation Details:

You're reservation can be made online. If you want to, they also have camping options. Your credit card won't be charged until you arrive. It is Pet Friendly.

To Reserve your caboose, cabin or camping spot:

Click on the "Check Availability" button at: https://rrpark.com//

Set the dates for arrival Friday, October 21st thru October 23rd

Click "Search" this will then set the results to show you what's still available

If you decide not to come up on Friday, you will most likely miss out on the morning Saturday event. .

CANCELLATION POLICY

MUST cancel 48 HOURS prior to arrival or you credit card will be charged for 1 night.

LODGING UNITS

· CHECK IN 3PM

· CHECK OUT 11AM

· Base rates include 2 people, each additional person is $10 plus tax.

· NO SMOKING Smoking in lodging units will incur a $250 cleaning fee added to credit card.

This is a run for PAID NorCal MINI members only.  

Check out 2022 Run Calendar for complete list of events for this year.


Current EVENT PROTOCOLS:
The following guidelines are our best attempt to secure your safety given what is known at this time. They are by no means comprehensive, and we cannot predict every circumstance. Therefore, we are counting on you to exercise your best judgment throughout the event. Please have an awareness and understanding of the following COVID-19 safety protocols:
• NorCal MINIS asks that anyone who is at higher risk for severe illness, feeling unwell, or who has been in contact with anyone that is sick in the last two weeks to STAY HOME
• In line with State guidelines – people who are fully vaccinated may attend without a face mask. If you are not fully vaccinated – we kindly request that you maintain a face covering.
• NorCal MINIs will encourage everyone to maintain personal hygiene in regards to washing hands
• Club loaner radios will be available at the run. These will be sanitized prior to be handed and out will be sanitized again upon return.
• Any PPE you wish to use must be supplied by yourself. This includes any face coverings or hand sanitizing products
• Participants will be required to Sign Waivers Electronically
• Please be courteous with people who wish to maintain PPE and social distancing. It is their choice to do this and we cannot question their vaccine status
Anyone who continually or willfully violates these guidelines will be asked to leave by a club officer or director.
POST-EVENT PROTOCOLS:
• Any participant that falls ill within 2 weeks after the event MUST contact NorCal MINIs and share a description of their symptoms, related test results and movements during the event
• NorCal MINIs will make every effort to alert affected participants privately of the situation
Ultimately, it is your responsibility to assess the risk to you and make a responsible decision on whether or not to participate. You assume all risks and agree the Club holds no liability if you or anyone in your party should develop any Covid-19 symptoms afterwards by attending a NorCal MINIs event. Participants are required to follow these guidelines; any participant may be asked to leave the event for non-compliance.

Join Today! Create your MotorSportReg Account to become a PAID Club Member, use the link below:
NorCal MINIs Membership

Instructions for joining MotorSportReg and joining NorCal MINIs can be found in the following document:  Instructions









Paso Robles Holiday Run - December 3rd & 4th, 2022

 


Your Hosts For This Event:

Tina & Steve Sandke

Come join us in December for a quick overnight trip down to the Central Coast and back. On the way down, we’ll visit an old California Mission (https://www.missionsanantonio.net/) on some rarely traveled backroads. 


After lunch on your own in Paso Robles, you are free to explore Paso Robles (the wine tasting is good). Your hosts will lead an optional run out to the coast for those who are interested.

The evening will be spent on a holiday themed drive. We’re signing up to participate in the annual Paso Robles Christmas Light Parade. 




Assuming we are accepted (it sounds like it’s a go!), we’ll decorate the cars and roll through downtown Saturday evening. If we aren’t accepted, we’ll have an evening run past holiday light displays in Paso Robles and nearby areas.

DECORATING OUR CARS FOR THE EVENING WILL BE REQUIRED, ESPECIALLY IF WE’RE IN THE PARADE. MORE DETAILS WILL BE PROVIDED WELL IN ADVANCE FOR PARTICIPANTS.

On Sunday, we’ll do a relatively short run through some twisties near Paso Robles before folks head home. Details TBD

Accomodations:
Booking your hotel for Saturday in Paso Robles is recommended.

Meet Up Time/Departure Time:
8:30am/9:00am

Meet Up Location:
Peet's Coffee - Morgan Hill
755 Cochrane Rd Suite 100,
Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Route:

Register Via MotorSport Reg:


Check out 2022 Run Calendar for complete list of events for the remainder of this year!

Current EVENT PROTOCOLS:
The following guidelines are our best attempt to secure your safety given what is known at this time. They are by no means comprehensive, and we cannot predict every circumstance. Therefore, we are counting on you to exercise your best judgment throughout the event. Please have an awareness and understanding of the following COVID-19 safety protocols:
• NorCal MINIS asks that anyone who is at higher risk for severe illness, feeling unwell, or who has been in contact with anyone that is sick in the last two weeks to STAY HOME
• In line with State guidelines – people who are fully vaccinated may attend without a face mask. If you are not fully vaccinated – we kindly request that you maintain a face covering.
• NorCal MINIs will encourage everyone to maintain personal hygiene in regards to washing hands
• Club loaner radios will be available at the run. These will be sanitized prior to be handed and out will be sanitized again upon return.
• Any PPE you wish to use must be supplied by yourself. This includes any face coverings or hand sanitizing products
• Participants will be required to Sign Waivers Electronically
• Please be courteous with people who wish to maintain PPE and social distancing. It is their choice to do this and we cannot question their vaccine status
Anyone who continually or willfully violates these guidelines will be asked to leave by a club officer or director.
POST-EVENT PROTOCOLS:
• Any participant that falls ill within 2 weeks after the event MUST contact NorCal MINIs and share a description of their symptoms, related test results and movements during the event
• NorCal MINIs will make every effort to alert affected participants privately of the situation
Ultimately, it is your responsibility to assess the risk to you and make a responsible decision on whether or not to participate. You assume all risks and agree the Club holds no liability if you or anyone in your party should develop any Covid-19 symptoms afterwards by attending a NorCal MINIs event. Participants are required to follow these guidelines; any participant may be asked to leave the event for non-compliance.

Join Today! Create your MotorSportReg Account to become a PAID Club Member, use the link below:
NorCal MINIs Membership

Instructions for joining MotorSportReg and joining NorCal MINIs can be found in the following document:  Instructions






Recap - North Monterey County Run & Annual Picnic Sunday August 28, 2022

                                                                               
                                                                           

North Monterey County Run and Annual Picnic

Hosts: Vickie Casacca and Mick Brown

We chose Sunday, August 28 to hold our North Monterey County Run and Annual Picnic because we hoped the weather would be good and it was after Monterey Car Week. The weather wasn’t perfect but it wasn’t raining, so It was good to go.

The other thing this run was fortunate to have was lots of help from some of our dedicated officers and directors. A huge thank you to Dolores Quintero-Sanchez for coordinating payment for the picnic location with the parks department and picking up the meat sandwiches at Costco the morning of the event. Another huge thank you to Michelle Lewis for picking up the vegetarian sandwiches at Subway, purchasing all of the paper supplies and utensils and for organizing the set-up at the park. One more huge thank you goes to Paige Laine for purchasing the beverages and leading a group of 24 cars down to our meet-up location in San Juan Bautista.

We met at the San Juan School parking lot in San Juan Bautista around 9:20am. There were a few early birds, so they had plenty of time to run across the street for a quick cup of coffee. We had 30 plus cars and close to 75 people check in for the run, with several new members and many familiar faces ready to motor on. After checking out everyone’s cars, we had a brief driver’s meeting and left pretty close to our start time of 10:00am.

The first part of the run was on Salinas Road in San Benito County and the road definitely had its challenges. It was originally an old stage coach road that went from San Juan Bautista to Salinas and it seemed like the road hadn’t been updated since then, with some rough patches and potholes to maneuver around. 


Once we crossed over into Monterey County and the name changed to San Juan Grade Road it seemed to be a bit better and the views were pretty spectacular. We crossed over Highway 101 and traversed our way through Prunedale to the Succulent Gardens.

    


 Unfortunately, a different person was running the place then when we had visited during our pre-run. She informed us we couldn’t park where we had wanted to and forced all of us to move our cars. After a few disgruntled let’s just go remarks, we parked across the street and some of us checked out the gardens. They have over 700 varieties of succulents and several of us went home with new additions to our home gardens, including the very rare “TInalikes” plants that Steve Sandke proudly purchased. My favorite quote came from Paige’s sister-in-law, who was talking to her mother on the phone and said, “When they said we were going to a succulent garden, I thought it was going to be lame; but it is really cool.”

After about a 40-minute stop at the Succulent Gardens, we got back in our cars and headed to our picnic destination of Royal Oaks Park, a lovely park with plenty of shade and picnic tables in the Live Oak BBQ area. Michelle, Pat, Rick and Dolores had everything set up and quickly got the group in line for sandwiches, chips and beverages, provided by the club, and sides and desserts, provided by the members. There was plenty of food and even seconds for those that were still hungry!

 


After lunch, our President Simon Tildesley said a few words and then we had several door prizes to give away. Mick and I donated a few potted succulents, some pure Vermont maple syrup and some grab bags filled with souvenirs from our recent MINI Takes the States trip, which included a pair of MINI socks, a MINI pen and a miniature MINI Motoring cone from the BMW Test track in Spartanburg, SC. Michelle also donated a MTTS pint glass and Larry Anderson donated a NorCal club sweatshirt. 


The big prize of the day was a lovely gift put together by John and Lorraine Dick. It consisted of a patriotic rolling bag that held all kinds of terrific items for a fabulous barbeque.




 Everyone had a great time meeting and catching up with other members. Thank you also to Duane Caldwell for the fabulous pictures of the cars and events of the day.

Respectfully,

Vickie Casacca, Mick Brown and Dirk

Lots more great pictures from the day - See the links below



And many thanks again to Duane Caldwell and also to Simon Tildesley, Paige Lane, Michael Kane and Mary Wolgamot for their great pictures.