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Re: DriversFest:Wrapup repost [very long]
Hey Jim,
I bet up till now, you thought that blocking the box meant something
completely different :>
- Jan Folkson
'86 16V
'99 Passat 1.8T
----------
>From: Jim Jarrett <jarrett@rpa.net>
>To: scirocco-l@scirocco.org
>Subject: DriversFest:Wrapup repost [very long]
>Date: Mon, Aug 30, 1999, 8:21 PM
>
> I'm sending this again, it didn't seem to get thru due to the list problems.
> Apologies if you are seeing it again.
>
> (originally posted 8:30pm 8/29)
>
> Just got home from DriversFest '99 that was on Jones Beach, Long
> Island, NY....a healthy 7 hour drive..
>
> So: The trip down started pretty good; Ryan and Scott from London,
> ON, Canada met up at my house in Rochester, NY for the trip down. So
> we set off, me in my Passat GLX, and their Golf TDi...... We had
> talkabout radios, boy, these things rock....as you will see in a few.
>
>
> We set off from Rochester, down the NYS Thruway to Syracuse, south on
> I-81 to I-380 in PA, to I-80 across the Delaware Water Gap.....very
> scenic, nice twisty roads with a 65mph/105kph speed limit, so we were
> doing around 75/120 easily. Then my cell phone rang, and it was
> Jonas Miller, who I was going to meet up with at the hotel I found.
> He, as he posted in scirocco-l, got boned big-time by his boss,
> missed the train, wasn't going to make it. (I should have seen this
> as foreshadowing...). But, me and the London crew worked out hotel
> rooms, so that wasn't so bad, so on along I-80 to the Lincoln
> Tunnel....
>
> ...and thus began the nightmare.
>
> Well, first of all, the directions weren't clear about exactly how to
> get to the Lincoln Tunnel from I-80. Turns out you have to jump on
> the NJ Turnpike for one exit. No biggie, it isn't a car show unless
> you get a little lost. Heh.
>
> Oh, but it got worse. Once we got up to the tunnel, it took over an
> hour to get INTO the tunnel..traffic was horrendous.
>
> I had used 3 different online travel guides to get directions, and
> all three of them gave me the same set of instructions. All the
> three of them said was to take the Lincoln Tunnel to I-495. Never
> having driven in, nor ever wanting to drive in NYC, I naively thought
> we'd be on an expressway thru NYC.
>
> WRONG.
>
> WE WERE ON FREAKIN' 42nd STREET IN MIDTOWN MANHATTAN! Oh my GOD was
> this a hellish drive. Taxis cutting you off, people just stepping out
> into the street.... But wait, kids, it gets better!
>
> Anyone know what "Blocking The Box" is? I didn't. I do now....SINCE
> I GOT A F&$%ING TICKET FOR IT. Apparently, if you don't make it thru
> an intersection even if you start thru when the light is green, you
> get screwed for it. My first ticket EVER. Two points and some
> unknown amount for a fine. I WILL be talking to someone about this.
> I think this was really unfair. I never planned, nor ever plan to
> again, drive on the surface streets of NYC, for reasons like
> this....I mean here, if you start thru an intersection, you make it
> thru. I was totally baffled by what was going on, and the one
> officer said, "Hey, it's been on the news." Not in Rochester, sorry.
> If the idea is to deter NYC drivers from doing this, it's completely
> lost on me because I don't ever think I want to go to NYC again, and
> I certainly WON'T drive. I guess it's too much to ask for a little
> leniency when it's obvious that you're not from around there. Don't
> get me started on the Downstate NY attitude, because I won't stop.
>
> So, of course, Ryan and Scott have no choice but to keep going.
> While I was sitting there, waiting to get f*^&*&ed, my Brake/ABS
> light goes on. Oh, SWELL.
> I kept in touch with them for as long as I could, but then they went
> out of range.
>
> I set back off down 42nd street, expecting to see a sign for I-495.
> Nope. Know where the FDR Expressway is? I do, now. It's the
> extreme eastern end of Manhattan. So I know I'm SO lost now, I keep
> going. I saw an exit sign for 495 BEHIND me on FDR, so I had some
> clue. I got to the end of it, and looped back around and headed back
> north...Oh....495 is the Midtown Tunnel! How NICE it's labeled like
> that.
>
> Finally get back on the right road, I'm hitting the "call" button on
> the talkabout....as I get to Queens, I get Scott on the line. Turns
> out they got really lost too.....so lost, as a matter of fact, I was
> AHEAD of them, by about a mile! We connected back up and got to the
> hotel, consumed some "Mike's Lemonade," waited forever for some
> clueless yutzes at Domino's to deliver pizza, and crashed.
>
> DRIVERSFEST:
>
> We got to Jones Beach pretty easily (well, in comparison to the
> previous day!). The parking lot was filling up nicely with
> VW's.....so the first thing we did was go and test drive. They had 4
> 2.0l New Beetles (automatics! eech!), two Golf's, a Jetta, and a
> Passat with a Tiptronic. The Beetle definitely needs the stick. I
> was amazed at the headroom! The Passat was really warmed up, so
> Scott took the course in 41+ sec, Ryan in 42, and me in 43 (hey,
> that's pretty good for me, since I'm finally shedding my "careful"
> driver image...why not, my license is tainted now, what have i got to
> lose????? ) The test course was a straightaway, a couple of tight
> turns, some bumps, and a wet area for testing ABS. They also had a
> performance driving course, but the line was too long; it took us an
> hour to get to drive the Passat as it was.
>
> Then I went into the Drive & Shine Car show and met up with some
> Scirocco list members: Jan Folkson and his wife Susan, Danny
> "XXSpArCoXx@aol.com" and Rob CLaYpOoLME@aol.com(?) There were only 7
> Sciroccos there; I have pictures of the show part I will be putting
> up on line this week, as soon as I can get them off the camera.
>
>
> Also bumped into Scott Williams and had a good talk with him -- he
> and I both wore our Scirocco-l t-shirt. Said "hi" to Jim Buck, but
> he was swamped with people asking him stuff...including the woman who
> was telling him all about her Beetle (old) that had flowers painted
> on the door....DEFINITELY stuck in the '60's....
>
> Swam in the ocean, didn't go to the concert(s), didn't really care
> about any of the groups. Found out where I forgot to put sunblock
> (eg. the top of my feet!). Headed back to the hotel, which was near
> JFK Airport. Tried to find a restaurant...all we could come up with
> was a slightly frightening McD's.....Ryan and Scott headed out after
> that, they were gonna camp somewhere in upstate NY; I think they'd
> had enough of the Big Apple.
>
> So I got up this morning, packed up the car and headed out. Thanks
> to Jan Folkson, I had MUCH better directions that got me off Long
> Island and into New Jersey on I-80 in about 30 minutes. See, that's
> what I'm used to here....I estimate distances at one mile = one
> minute for expressway travel, 2 minutes for in-city. None of this
> one-hour per mile bull!
>
> ...until someone had a pretty nasty accident on I-80 about 10 miles
> from the Delaware Water Gap. THAT delayed things an hour......they
> flew someone out on a Mercy Flight helicopter, tho....
>
> So now I'm back home, sharing my experiences with all you ......
>
> I'm done now.....sorry for the length, and watch for the webpage.
> /===============================================================\
> | Jim Jarrett http://www2.rpa.net/~jarrett |
> | jarrett@<NOSPAM>rpa.net |
> | |
> | Any problem can be solved with the proper application of |
> | Force, Heat, Chemicals, or Money. |
> \===============================================================/
>
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