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what month? I'm trying to plan ahead.

July 19th is the official date!

In my calendar, I am all set for that date!

I'm in the photo montage not once, not twice, but three times! I feel loved!

Unfortunately I likely won't be able to come this summer, I'm hopefully starting a new job soon, and won't be full time with PTO until well after the BBQ date. Depending on how things go, I might be able to work something out, but I can't commit for some time to come. :\

DEM RIBS, though! I will be sad.

IN

Planning on seeing y'all again!

P.S. Forge, if you're reading this --you better make it again.

Gonna try and make it, but got switched to a new job and working mid-nights now......gonna be up in the air until we get close to the date.
P.S. It may not be a bad idea to put the official date in the thread title, or make a new thread with the official date in the title..

LoneWolf15 wrote:

P.S. Forge, if you're reading this --you better make it again.

Remember there will be ribs!

Honestly you guys are like BBQ zombies. Rrrriiibbbbsssss!!

Dposcorp wrote:

P.S. It may not be a bad idea to put the official date in the thread title, or make a new thread with the official date in the title..

Done.

It seems like the BBQ is so close already hard to believe it's less than 4 months out. I'll start pulling this thread together better fairly soon. Anything you guys want to do different this year? I don't have a lot of new ideas but I highly doubt more of the same would be objectionable...

zgirl wrote:

LoneWolf15 wrote:

P.S. Forge, if you're reading this --you better make it again.

Remember there will be ribs!

And of course, your lovely self.

And ribs.

And people probably blowing things up.

And ribs.

And cornhole (which I suck at).

And ribs.

very nice! i'll be there as well, i know sheldon wouldn't feel good if i didn't show up with my music and our annual latino breakfast runs..

I'll try to make the date. Its up in the air.

For anyone else coming long distances, I'm looking at Amtrak, might make this a possibility even without PTO usage. It's actually cheaper, once I figure gas and tolls, even before wear and tear on the car is figured in.

Their business class seats have 120V AC and lots of little amenities, too, so I might spend about 8 hours gaming each way, instead of ~12 hours hunched over driving... It's appealing.

I just looked at Amtrak and it's a no-go from VT. I'd have to go to Chicago and grab a rental there. Same thing with flights. Looks like you'll see my tired & dirty old Subaru in the parking lot once again, especially with the cannon.

EDIT: Reservations made in Holland and Erie, PA (my midpoint). Hotel prices in mid-July are substantially pricier than they would be in August. Once in Holland I'm in the Hampton Inn off US 31 north of town if anyone wants to party. Spent the extra $10/night for a room with a whirlpool tub (which I will need after all of the miles). Now to find the new tie-dye for the event.

If I'm really lucky I'll have completed my conversion from XP to Kubuntu 14.04 LTS by that point. If not, I may have a patient in the back seat.

Captain Ned wrote:

I just looked at Amtrak and it's a no-go from VT. I'd have to go to Chicago and grab a rental there. Same thing with flights. Looks like you'll see my tired & dirty old Subaru in the parking lot once again, especially with the cannon.

EDIT: Reservations made in Holland and Erie, PA (my midpoint). Hotel prices in mid-July are substantially pricier than they would be in August. Once in Holland I'm in the Hampton Inn off US 31 north of town if anyone wants to party. Spent the extra $10/night for a room with a whirlpool tub (which I will need after all of the miles). Now to find the new tie-dye for the event.

If I'm really lucky I'll have completed my conversion from XP to Kubuntu 14.04 LTS by that point. If not, I may have a patient in the back seat.

My two options are here to Pittsburg, then to Chicago, then to Grand Rapids, then to Holland, or here to Chicago, then Chicago to Holland. The former goes from early afternoon to late night (like my drive), the latter leaves at night and arrives mid-morning. It's possible, just the times may not be lining up for you.

I just might pilot test it this summer, and rent a car in Holland to go the last mile.

Forge wrote:

I just might pilot test it this summer, and rent a car in Holland to go the last mile.

I'd give it a whirl if it weren't for the cannon. Can't imagine trying to explain that thing past TSA and my recent colonoscopy would be rated "gentle" on the TSA scale.

EDIT: If anyone is on the New York Thruway (I'll pick it it up in Utica)/I-80 corridor and needs a lift, please PM me to see if we can make it work. Home to Erie (& reverse) is the long day. Erie to Holland & return is shorter.

Yeah, I forgot you have the cannon. The price you pay for fame, I guess.

I'm about 50/50 on whether I'll be able to make it this year. Probably won't know until sometime in May or early June.

I'm getting the urge to start working on a BBQ related project... It needs to follow my general minimal effort maximum impact philosophy on such things because I'm lazy and don't have much time...

I'd like to improve the glow stick launcher, that was kind of my favorite thing from last year. I also need a new plan for a raft, something cooler than last year but more manageable than the previous couple before that... I also really want to do something that flies, either a kite or maybe helium based - either way I want it to light up somehow... What cool stuff have you guys seen or dreamed up that we can try to make happen this year?

OOooh! We could put a wifi AP on a balloon, with a combo tether/PoE setup!! That could make lots of smartphones very happy.

Forge wrote:

OOooh! We could put a wifi AP on a balloon, with a combo tether/PoE setup!! That could make lots of smartphones very happy.

Add a GoPro feeding back down the Cat 6 and stream it.

EDIT: Hmm, this balloon is rapidly approaching weather balloon size just to haul everything.

I actually sent a WAP using PoE up at a party last year, used generic mylar helium balloons, had no trouble hauling up the WAP and 100ft of CAT6.

How much does a GoPro weigh? I was under the impression they were pretty light.

Captain Ned wrote:

Forge wrote:

OOooh! We could put a wifi AP on a balloon, with a combo tether/PoE setup!! That could make lots of smartphones very happy.

Add a GoPro feeding back down the Cat 6 and stream it.

EDIT: Hmm, this balloon is rapidly approaching weather balloon size just to haul everything.

I think you're forgetting who you're dealing with...

Forge wrote:

For anyone else coming long distances, I'm looking at Amtrak, might make this a possibility even without PTO usage. It's actually cheaper, once I figure gas and tolls, even before wear and tear on the car is figured in.

Their business class seats have 120V AC and lots of little amenities, too, so I might spend about 8 hours gaming each way, instead of ~12 hours hunched over driving... It's appealing.

One note.

I have no idea what the the tracks like from PA, but last December, when my flight was diverted from LaGuardia to Albany, I had to take the train into Penn Station in Manhattan. Trying to use my laptop on a constantly vibrating tray just about made me sick from my eyes having to go up and down with the screen. It was easier to sleep or use my smartphone.

Hmm, much food for thought.

Honestly, I didn't enjoy the driving much last time. Even staring into space or picking my nose for a similar amount of time would have been welcomed, since I wouldn't have a sore back and rubber legs from hunching over the wheel.

Dedicated driver here (hell, I have a 2010 Subaru with 111K miles on it, mainly in Vermont). I'll repeat: If you're in the I-80/I-90 corridor west of Utica, NY (west of Erie, PA would help logistics, but there's time for that) and need a lift, please PM me. If you're real lucky I'll let you play some of your own tunes (modern urban music excepted), and you're gonna have to learn how to drive a Zune.

If I come this year I'm willing to carpool with someone from the Chicago area again. As noted above, won't know if I can make it until closer to the actual date though.

LoneWolf15 wrote:

I have no idea what the the tracks like from PA, but last December, when my flight was diverted from LaGuardia to Albany, I had to take the train into Penn Station in Manhattan. Trying to use my laptop on a constantly vibrating tray just about made me sick from my eyes having to go up and down with the screen. It was easier to sleep or use my smartphone.

It's like that over most of the Amtrak network as they don't own any of their own track beyond the Acela lines in the Sprawl so you're stuck on freight track of varying quality. A freight hitting 60 mph is flying, at least here in frost-heave land, so factor that in.

Forge wrote:

For anyone else coming long distances, I'm looking at Amtrak, might make this a possibility even without PTO usage. It's actually cheaper, once I figure gas and tolls, even before wear and tear on the car is figured in.

Their business class seats have 120V AC and lots of little amenities, too, so I might spend about 8 hours gaming each way, instead of ~12 hours hunched over driving... It's appealing.

This is what I'm going to try to do.

FYI, hit the cottage yesterday with the dogs, this is what your summer vacation destination looks like right now: