76 replies to this topic

[WhoozOn1st]

After weeks of careful screening, followed by months of rigorous testing and countless hours of dreary focus groups, a crucial decision has been taken:

BEER NUTS - those scrumptious nuggets of sweet & salty goodness - have been designated the Official Snack Food of the Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009.

A limited number of corporate sponsorships remain available in the following categories: Hair care products; footwear; cameras and accessories; notebook computers; beer & wine; car rentals; franchise restaurants; wheelchair lubrication and tires; tobacco products; personal hygiene.

Interested parties are invited to submit proposals to the Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009, Marketing Division.

Edited by WhoozOn1st, 10 August 2009 - 09:39 PM.

[the_traveler]

I tried, but the recorded message said "(that number) has been disconnected"! (Or did it say that they are "at an extended lunch at Phillipe's - try again in 3 weeks"! )

[WhoozOn1st]

The 9-2-09 Hotel Reservation Review, Round 2 (performed while consuming mass quantities of BEER NUTS - Official Snack Food of the Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009) resulted in even greater savings than Hotel Reservation Review, Round 1 (7-30-09). For those keeping score at home, Round 1 checking, rebooking, and canceling netted $144.14 in reduced costs over original hotel reservations. Round 2 included reservations originally made by the Executive Assistant, which were not checked in Round 1. The rundown:

Portland, OR, 1 night. No change.

Chicago, 1 night. Rebooked same hotel, canceled original, saved $10.38.

Pittsburgh, PA, 1 night. No change. Booking early here saved $54 over rate increase found in Round 1 Review, which remains in effect.

Altoona, PA, 4 nights. No change.

Boston - Gathering - 4 nights. No change. I'm not including this in the Round 2 savings total, but Round 1 reduction saved $72. The rate has since gone up beyond original booking price, and RailRiot rate vs. current reserving rate represents a saving of $133.20, $61.20 more than Round 1 savings.

New York (really Long Island), 3 nights and 1 night (Adirondack turn in between). No change.

Lancaster, PA (Strasburg Rail Road), 2 nights. No change.

Atlanta, 3 nights. Rebooked same hotel, canceled original, saved $93.15.

New Orleans, 5 nights. This is the only hotel change. I made the executive decision that I could forego the convenience of stepping right outside the hotel to board the St. Charles Line streetcar if the Executive Assistant was okay with non-accessible lodging in exchange for a major cost reduction; she was. Booked new hotel, canceled original, saved $274.59. St. Charles Line only a block away, more central location is better overall for accessibility and transit options.

Round 1 Savings: $144.14
Round 2 Savings: $378.12
________________________
Combined Saved: $522.26

Other savings, too soon to total, include rebooking Amtrak NEC Regionals around Gathering at extended discount, a Long Island Rail Road 10-ride ticket (extra discount for buying online), and Executive Assistant pursuing reduced disability fares in several cities along the RailRiot route.

On the lodging front, bad times in the travel biz means good times for travelers.

EDIT: Don't touch that dial. Stay tuned for Round 3!

Edited by WhoozOn1st, 03 September 2009 - 02:07 AM.

[WhoozOn1st]

Avid readers of this thread (both of you) will note that the title has been changed to reflect the RailRiot "brand."

With mere weeks to go before departure all major elements are in place, though planning and preparation continue apace on minutiae such as packing the zebra behemoth suitcase:


Difficult to miss on any baggage carousel, no?

Also, and due to overwhelming demand, the July decision to not TWIT the RailRiot is being reconsidered. After all, who among you would not be awaiting with bated breath such momentous pronouncements as "Bad track makes tooth brushing difficult, but somehow I can keep texting this crap?"

The RailRiot expects to maintain a rolling trip report, something along the lines of those done recently by saxman66 and the traveler, to name a couple examples. We know our rabid RailRiot Nation fanbase expects nothing less, and we are happy to oblige.

[Long Train Runnin']

Avid readers of this thread (both of you) will note that the title has been changed to reflect the RailRiot "brand."


Also, and due to overwhelming demand, the July decision to not TWIT the RailRiot is being reconsidered. After all, who among you would not be awaiting with bated breath such momentous pronouncements as "Bad track makes tooth brushing difficult, but somehow I can keep texting this crap?"

The RailRiot expects to maintain a rolling trip report, something along the lines of those done recently by saxman66 and the traveler, to name a couple examples. We know our rabid RailRiot Nation fanbase expects nothing less, and we are happy to oblige.

Well I'd support the idea of a twitter feed, but wouldn't hold my breath wating.

Glad to no there will be frequent updates!

[gswager]

Whoozon1st's twitter: "Frog blamed on stained shirt while feasting in dining car"

[WhoozOn1st]

In a raucous echo of my off-topic, pre-Gathering baseball outburst of last year...

DODGERS SWEEP CARDS!!!

This presents certain problems for the RailRiot, but I'll worry about those later.

[WhoozOn1st]

Registered Gatherers who have not already done so, please log in and visit the Registered Participants forum regarding Saturday night dinner at Boston; late info.
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With RailRiot departure now just a few dozen hours away, the third round of lodging price checks has been completed. No changes were needed or made. One hotel showed a $9/night price drop, but with no accessible rooms showing as available it wasn't worth it to hazard an attempt at canceling/rebooking the one we already have for such a piddly price difference.

For those who maybe have never seen an accessible hotel room, there are several differences. The main difference for a TRULY accessible room (some are only sort of) is a roll-in shower stall roomy enough for Munchkins to hold a rodeo: BIG. It has a fold-down bench attached to the wall, which in turn often has more handholds than an ordinary shower stall. Toilet seats are the raised type common to handicapped public restroom stalls. Main doors are not sprung - stay open without being held - but sometimes the bathroom door still is. In an accessible room recently in Lancaster, CA, I beat a hotel wakeup call, so was awake to see that the ring included a flashing strobe light. The room layout itself is often no different from a standard version at the same hotel, which is to say not really very accessible at all.

On the Amtrak front, all RailRiot overnight rides are in sleeper H rooms (Superliner and Viewliner). The Executive Assistant has traveled in H rooms before, but a first for me, and I'm sure I'll have something to say about 'em.

[gswager]

So you're abandoned yourself as a CA resident temporarily? Have a great trip across the US! Can't wait to see you guys again in Boston in two weeks!

[WhoozOn1st]

Have a great trip across the US! Can't wait to see you guys again in Boston in two weeks!

Thanks, Greg, and you have a great and safe trip to Beanburg too. The RailRiot is looking forward to seeing you and other repeat Gatherers again, and happily anticipating meeting new ones as well!

Next news will come in the form of a rolling trip report, to be initiated VERY soon.

[Alice]

So you're abandoned yourself as a CA resident temporarily? Have a great trip across the US! Can't wait to see you guys again in Boston in two weeks!

Thanks Greg, It will be great to see you again! In the meantime, we are off to a great start (even though Patrick doesn't think RailRiot starts until tomorrow morning). Dinner was at Philippe's tonight.

Edited by Alice, 18 October 2009 - 01:14 AM.

[GG-1]

So you're abandoned yourself as a CA resident temporarily? Have a great trip across the US! Can't wait to see you guys again in Boston in two weeks!

Thanks Greg, It will be great to see you again! In the meantime, we are off to a great start (even though Patrick doesn't think RailRiot starts until tomorrow morning). Dinner was at Phillippe's tonight.

Aloha

Gee with the two of you at Philippe's tonight at least the riot has commenced but Patrick is correct (good heavens ) the Rail is tommorrow. See you in two weeks, aloha.

Eric

By the way Don't destroy Amtrak leave some for us.

[Alice]

Aloha

Gee with the two of you at Philippe's tonight at least the riot has commenced but Patrick is correct (good heavens ) the Rail is tommorrow. See you in two weeks, aloha.

Eric

By the way Don't destroy Amtrak leave some for us.

Well Eric, We arrived at LAUS via Surfliner ... doesn't that count? Have a good trip out, very sorry we'll be missing the
Chicago pizza party! I'm hoping Patrick agrees to Giordano's when we are through there next week. See you in Boston!

[GG-1]

Aloha

Gee with the two of you at Philippe's tonight at least the riot has commenced but Patrick is correct (good heavens ) the Rail is tommorrow. See you in two weeks, aloha.

Eric

By the way Don't destroy Amtrak leave some for us.

Well Eric, We arrived at LAUS via Surfliner ... doesn't that count? Have a good trip out, very sorry we'll be missing the
Chicago pizza party! I'm hoping Patrick agrees to Giordano's when we are through there next week. See you in Boston!

Well you just proved whooz in charge, not, I forgot about the Surfliner.

Aloha, and Mahalo,
See you in Boston, Hope you have a better coat than I, it was 4,7 with coastal flooding today in Boston according to some internet weather service.

Edited by GG-1, 18 October 2009 - 02:13 AM.

[the_traveler]

43° and heavy rain and windy last night (Saturday), today (Sunday) and tonight - but it may end tomorrow afternoon!

[diesteldorf]

Registered Gatherers who have not already done so, please log in and visit the Registered Participants forum regarding Saturday night dinner at Boston; late info.
___________________________________

On the Amtrak front, all RailRiot overnight rides are in sleeper H rooms (Superliner and Viewliner). The Executive Assistant has traveled in H rooms before, but a first for me, and I'm sure I'll have something to say about 'em.

I've also traveled in the H rooms before, and, when in a Superliner, I will always use one of the public restrooms when traveling with someone. In fact, 90% of the time regardless, I will use the public restroom. The curtain doesn't allow for much privacy.

Without a doubt, though, the Viewliner H room is probably one of the nicest rooms in the Amtrak system. The bathroom and bedroom are two completely seperate areas that are sparated by a metal door. It also seems to be a little bigger than the Superliner counterpart.

[the_traveler]

Without a doubt, though, the Viewliner H room is probably one of the nicest rooms in the Amtrak system. The bathroom and bedroom are two completely seperate areas that are sparated by a metal door. It also seems to be a little bigger than the Superliner counterpart.

I'll very much agree there!

Although I didn't sleep overnight in a Superliner H bedroom, I have in a Viewliner H bedroom. (The conductor let me use an unoccupied roomette - without charge - while my sister used the H room! It was the last night of the SWC and we boarded at 1 AM.) I found the Viewliner H room much nicer, and it did appear to have more room.