2009 BorregoFest General Discussion (Wells/Not So Wells)

[OLLIE]

Let's hear from an overall standpoint how this event was so we know what to keep them same or make improvements on next year. Please keep it constructive.

[Chazz Layne]

Absolutely awesome. I have never been out with a group that had everything pulled together this well before, from planning to safety to knowledge of the area... Dani and I are both looking forward to the next event.

That campground seemed to be a pretty good fit for the group too.

[Arkarch]

Awesome time out there. Thank-you to all the organizers and members of the board.

Great trails, Great Rigs, Great People!

Some ideas for next events...

1) Flyers. With a produced single (or double-sided) page promoting the event, I could distribute flyers at 4x4 club meetings elsewhere. I belong to the Vegas Valley 4 Wheelers club that has twice-monthly meetings; flyers to other events in the southwest including Big Bear and Utah 4 have generated interest. Also an online one-pager could be useful for posting.

2) Campsite. Great choice. However not being a regular camper, I really had no idea where to park when I arrived around 1:30 am. I finally arrived at a good spot, but there was some trial and error. Hope I didnt wake anyone up.

3) Radios - almost impossible to solve since Ham radios are so integral to the club mission; yet so many 4x4'ers are CB-minded. I'm a HAM-licensed Extra - so I definitely encourage 2 meter. But shifting back and forth on one antenna mount caused my own internal frustration - though once I complete wiring the new rig I should have three or four mount points.

4) Names.. someone mentioned name tags... not a huge fan but it could work here. Maybe even tags for the rigs. If names, use handle and real first name.

[BruisedFJ]

2) Campsite. Great choice. However not being a regular camper, I really had no idea where to park when I arrived around 1:30 am. I finally arrived at a good spot, but there was some trial and error. Hope I didnt wake anyone up.

Dude, I got there at Noon and couldn't figure out the lay of the land in that campground. I don't know an easy way for them to fix it. My final thought was we're too used to being told what to do in the city. We need to put our minds to work a bit out in the real world.

The radio problem is a tough one. Though a distraction for those of us with both, I feel bad for those who only have one and are missing half the conversation on the road, often missing some terrific humor. On the Truckhaven run, we had enough extra hand-helds to outfit everyone with ham, and that worked out fabulously. (Thanks for that, Ollie)

Board: I really appreciate the run descriptions. That gives us just what we need to make an informed choice about what we want to see, or put our rigs through.

Hey, that checklist of all the things we need to be prepared for - how about adding "spare key outside of the vehicle"

[cruiserlarry]

Over all, I think this was the best BorregoFest yet, and I have been a part of them all. We had a terrific mix of participants, vehicles, and personalities; but everyone got along great, semed to have a good time, and no major carnage occurred.

The campground was outstanding IMO. I understand the frustration of trying to figure out which area to camp in, but I tend to agree with BruisedFJ: Part of the fun is to end up meeting new people, and picking a campsite randomly can add to that interest. I do think we should have some "street signs" to mark the general area assigned to OAUSA, though.

I only have two minor criticisms of the campground:

1) It is not centrally located, so it was difficult to see the east side of AB without taking a lot of time and fuel. Of course, choices are very limited in AB, unless you fre camp, which is not really possible with such a large group.

2) Bathroom / trash maintenance. I understand that the campground is in a state of transition; the couple that runs it work it alone. But, if you are going to have a large group using the facilities, daily checks for toilet paper, and daily trash removal are a must - both for sanitary reasons, and to keep the mess down to a minimum for final clean-up. The facilities were terrific otherwise, but if you didn't remember to check for TP, you could have been in trouble...

We need to make sure the banners for OAUSA are up and prominently displayed, and have a table for T-shirt / merchandise sales that is labeled and manned during dinner hours.

I think we have a good mix of trail runs and trail leaders - a nice mix of difficulty levels, scenery, and group sizes. I didn't hear any complaints in the campground gossip, so I guess that's a good thing...

The potluck was phenomenal again. Quantities were more realistic this year, so less waste and easier clean-up just topped it off. The originality of some of the dishes was fabulous - and, as always, I left well-fed...

As a board member here, this has been another learning experience, and thanks to the work of many members here, I think we put on an excellent event, and will continue to learn ways to make each subsequent OAUSA event even better.

Thank you to everyone who made my weekend awesome - I hope you all had as good a time in AB as I did...

[BorregoWrangler]

Good thoughts here. BorregoFest just seems to get better and better each year. I don't think we could have done any better with our choice of campground; trees, hookups, water, store, pool, etc. A map was posted in the planning threads, but maybe a few directions could have helped a bit, as well as some signage pointing folks in the right direction. Of course, next year alot more people will know right where to go.

I was a little worried about having to travel for fuel but it seemed to work out just fine. Just head to the station closest to whatever trail you're running.

We need to make sure the banners for OAUSA are up and prominently displayed, and have a table for T-shirt / merchandise sales that is labeled and manned during dinner hours.

Yes, good one.

Name tags (name/screen name) might just come in handy.

I like how the raffle was organized and how that the majority of prizes weren't vehicle specific. Mostly general off-road equipment. The potluck was just right. I had no problem filling up on carne asada! We also had plenty of firewood as a few members pitched in.

The only other concern I have is making sure everyone knows to keep their speed down while driving through camp. Other than that I think everything turned out pretty darn well! Can't wait for next year.

So, how about SpringFest?...

[Frogeye]

That was a really fun BorregoFest. I've been to a few of them and this one was really nice, so great job to all of you who helped to put on this event.

The trail run selection was excellent. Next year I'm taking Friday off and wheeling an extra day. AB is a beautiful place and there is nothing better than exploring It with friends.

I want to apologize for my dog getting off his leash Saturday night. Niko gave him some Greek meat earlier in the evening. I attached Rojo to the truck for the raffle and he chewed through his leash and decided to go back over to Nikko's camp. Thank you Scott for letting me know of Rojo's escape and I'm sorry if he scared you. Rojo can be head shy with new people and young children. I always try to let both children and adults know this and hope that they listen. If two dogs that have never met look into eachother's eyes, and one of the dogs is over the other one (the same stance as when somebody stands over a strange dog they have never met and looks into their eyes or trys to hug their head)
this can cause the two dogs to fight. I know they don't have a clue about what they are doing so I always try to explain it. A better way to meet a strange dog is to not get in it's face but to let it approach and smell you. No touch no talk no eye contact. I know it's difficult not to want to grab and hug a cute big dog or little for that matter, but you have to respect The way dogs communicate. Sorry for the rant.

[DaveK]

The radio problem is a tough one. Though a distraction for those of us with both, I feel bad for those who only have one and are missing half the conversation on the road, often missing some terrific humor. On the Truckhaven run, we had enough extra hand-helds to outfit everyone with ham, and that worked out fabulously.

Jon, I think you nailed it. On our run we were a little light on HTs but I gave mine out and it definitely helped. For me, for next time, we will see what we can do to get enough HTs to the non ham crowd.

Hey, that checklist of all the things we need to be prepared for - how about adding "spare key outside of the vehicle"

or adding FJ rear windows.

[BorregoWrangler]

Hey, that checklist of all the things we need to be prepared for - how about adding "spare key outside of the vehicle"

What? You don't need to do that. There's always plenty of rocks out in the desert!

[gon2srf]

I just wanted to say thanks to the board members and moderators for putting on such a great BorregoFest. Although I did not camp in the campground I was able to pay 3 dollars a day to use all of their amenities and the pool was pretty darn refreshing after a long hot day on the trail.

I would really like to see a movie night similar to what they have at Surf & Turf and and maybe brighten up the potluck area with a theme , something to add a little more party atmosphere.

Also since we seem to have lots of great cooks a cook off is always entertaining.

I'm not sure if limiting the raffle tickets to one per person is such a good idea when your are trying to raise money to offset costs but at least everyone felt they got a fair shake. Maybe we should consider a separate grand prize that one could buy as many tickets as they want to purchase.

I know many of you put thankless hours into the preparation for this event, you really are appreciated. Some of you had a lot to contend with just to make it there much less run the whole show (Ollie).

Finally I want to thank Larry at Dirty Parts for his usual generosity at the raffle. Great prizes, thanks!