BACFest 2016

Asheville is a lot of fun...we had a hoot on the Comedy Bus Tour (http://www.lazoomtours.com/tours/) and it's on our list to go back.

There's ILS and GPS/RNAV approaches for both runways but it's one of those airports where terrain makes the LPV have lower minimums than the ILS.
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Mark
 
Asheville is about a 3 hour drive from my home. I figure if we decide to hold BAC Fest 2016 there it will give me an excuse to go do some fishing in the spring, I mean scouting of the area. I think it will take at least four trips maybe more.;)
 
Ramblings on BACfest 2016 (since it came up)


  1. The mean population center of the USA as of 2014 is Wright County Missouri.
    This would suggest that a central location in Missouri would be fair and equitable. I’m thinking Branson, but we could do St. Louis and test those Kevlar belly pads over Ferguson. Seriously, landing at Branson, MO (Polk County) is like landing on a 3,500 foot aircraft carrier with the steep bank arguing for your eye’s attention on short final which is just over the freeway there. But many good shows, shops, restaurants and even a great go-cart track…Shops down on lake Taney-what’sit.

We could come up with a circle around the club membership if anyone has the mapping software and time...(*excuse the auto-number errors now...)


  1. The gambling center of the USA is either the FAA Headquarters or Las Vegas. This would suggest either Wichita (pass) or Las Vegas, NV (in which case I would take the pass line). I would second Las Vegas, NV. . LV is about 3,000 feet elev. but might as well be 10,000 if it’s a hot day. Our A23-19 took 28 minutes from KVGT to 7,500 feet at MGTOW on an 86-degree morning. We got a first-hand close-up of the AFB north of VGT and they were nice about the slow rate of climb… We will be going out again in Nov for a daughter's wedding and will do KHND - cab ride from KVGT to Bellagio for two with bags is a $50 bill but still cheaper than a rental car. (Mass landing at McCarran anyone?)
  2. Our third choice would be someplace with an amusement park, other than the hangar. Six Flags over anywhere, or Orlando would be fun.
  3. Asheville, NC would be fine, but places like Tunica (or Memphis on the other side of the river) might have more interesting music. MS valley is foggy hazy most mornings when I've been through. Why does NC bring to mind the banjo picking in Deliverance?
  4. We could try West Virginia and see if everyone is everyone else's brother or sister...(just kidding) But they do have airports - and so does Bananaland (KBNA/Nashville). Opry anyone?
  5. Am I (or is we) the only poor golfers with a Beech? How’s about something with a golf course and a tournament…We’re presently 50 handicappers but it is fun and unlike an airplane, you can throw things and you just expect things to end on the rough.
  6. Gulfport, NahLins and other spots on the Gulf Coast and have casinos and night life for those who are timid about density altitudes.
  7. We could all fly to the Bahamas for BACfest '16 rather than the spring trip (or in addition) or Key West and swig margaritas for a week and amble home to rehab with stories. Line up someone like Jimmy Buffet to do a guest shot? (Or simply hoist shots to him, heck, I dunno…) Speaking of which, I you haven’t read it, try on “The Fog: A Never-Before Published Theory of the Bermuda Triangle Phenomena” written by a Bonanza driver who went into the anomaly and flew out of it? Amazon link http://www.amazon.com/Fog-Published...2180&sr=8-1&keywords=the+fog+bermuda+triangle If you do nothing else, read the whole excerpt because that "fog" is an electro-magnetic deal and the air gauges on the Bonanza kept working and that's how the pilot survived. So if you ever get into The Bermuda Triangle Fog, air driven instruments only! It's a great excerpt on Amazon and totally worth the read and so was the book...Not like Stick and Rudder, except in a Rod Serling kind of way.​
  8. And speaking of crazy: Here is a wild idea…since I like to do new and outlandish things: There is this hobby that we saw a couple of years back at Ellijay when we were in for a mega annual. Railroad Speeder Cars... See the website http://www.railspeeders.com/excursions.asp the site hasn’t been updated for a long time, but it would sure be interesting to do something like a rail excursion in concert with a fly-in. Durango-Silverton is a little higher than our comfort zone and Durango field elevation is 6,700 feet which limits us (with fuel) to going there at 20-below zero, or thereabouts. Farmington Co is downhill 1,200 feet about 5,500 and a boring drive to get to the rail head. We like train trips, though, so maybe something like that as either a front-end or back in add-on to wherever…
  9. We might be interested in a flight to Washington (and it would give me a chance to use my SIFRA ticket...then rail or rental in to see the Smithsonian which is also on the bucket list.
  10. We like the big Air Force Museum up in Ohio...which we'd do again because it's more than a one-dayer...
Life’s short, and we only go around once. Unless doing a BFR…and your CFI yells "Go around! A bus full of nuns has just pulled onto the active runway!!!"
George and the blonde auto-pilot
 
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Though it's certainly not a rule, we have tried to spread BACFest across the country in consecutive years. 2014 was Portland, OR; this year is Dubuque, IA; so next year would be somewhere near the East Coast. I'd love to see it in New England (ok, I need to fill in some states on my map), but I think it would be in peak leaf peeping season and prices would be too high.
 
As many of us have said in the past - BACFest does not happen by itself and it really doesn't happen by a group of people as large as the board. BACFest happens because one or two people step up as the organizer and do most of the legwork to set it up. This means many things but in particular it means find a location attractive and practical for enough members, a host hotel (not easy actually, our group is an awkward size in many ways) "close enough" (this has varied some but never more than 20 minutes or so) to an airport that can host the fly-in, help work out the contract with said hotel, have the support of the airport and at least one FBO, line up activities, do that all on a weekend that works for both club, area and facility and generally run around like a crazy chicken for a few stretches. You will probably need to be able to visit the site at least once and maybe more in the runup (9-12 months out) to work through the details on the facility choices like rooms, catering, etc and it can be very helpful but not essential to talk to local options for activities directly.

If you want the event to be in a particular place and step up to do the above and have enough ducks in a row a year out to convey confidently it will work - particularly if one or two prospective host hotels identified that you've talked to and meet the requirements - then you are really well over halfway to having a BACFest where you want it. It's really that simple (and I use the term "simple" very loosely). As previous organizers will attest to (and in fairness I'm not one of them but I've seen enough of their behind the scenes work to at least understand a little) - it is not rocket science, and there will be good advice and help, but it is real work and time to make it happen.

It is a simple reality that the location of the next BACFest is often decided by the first organizer to get to that preparation and commitment baseline in time to make the commitment for next year (and if you miss one year but stick it out you're very unlikely to miss out two years in a row). In my years with the club the only time I've seen it not work out that way is due to external factors like conflicting events or in maybe one case a location that just wasn't practical/realistic for a lot of members.
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Mark
 
What Mark says. I tried for Oshkosh one year, but the meeting rooms were booked out a year in advance, so no go. I will add that our members (including me) are sensitive to room prices, much over $100 a night probably won't do...
 
rgschmi said:
What Mark says. I tried for Oshkosh one year, but the meeting rooms were booked out a year in advance, so no go. I will add that our members (including me) are sensitive to room prices, much over $100 a night probably won't do...
Click to expand...

That's one good thing about Asheville. All the hotels I posted are a rock's throw from one another, giving everyone options on rooms. The attraction are not within walking distance from the hotels we would have to utilize shuttles. Most are 15 to 30 minutes drive from the hotels.
 
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I have seen convention hosting facilities in a few places that are not connected to hotels. While it is nicer to have it in a hotel, cheaper hotels nearby with a meeting and banquet facility would also be nice if that could be found.
 
BAC Members-

As we "firm-up" BACfest 2016, one of the items I would like to get a "pulse-check" on is the comfort level with hotel costs. Can you please respond, either here on the forum OR private message me with your thoughts on what a reasonable hotel cost is for our event. I want our annual event to be accessible to any and all members. Of course, any member is able to reserve their own hotel space and it is not necessary to stay at the "HOST" hotel, but the opportunity to have everyone together for fun and camaraderie is my intent. I'd like for you to consider quality as well as cost. Not always, but most of the time, a hotel cost for a room less than $100/night could be less than desirable, while a room in excess of $175/night has amenities that never get used and are worthless from a value perspective... Ask me about the Chicago and New York hotel rooms that cost in excess of $300/night that look like those rooms at less than $100/night...

Anyway, I would really like to get a pulse check of the cost scale so that I can best cater to the majority of the membership. Thank you for your anticipated feedback.
 
I'm personally comfortable paying $100 to maybe $120 for a hotel room. I'm already saving up for this trip, really looking forward to it. I had actually saved up for BAC2015 but had to spend the money on paint. Hopefully nothing happens like that this year.
 
It is what it is. I'm not that concerned about it. Give me a clean room in a pretty nice hotel or resort, below $200. It's only a couple nights. I and some other guys have split room cost before. There are usually options to do that. And if your prior service, you don't care. Sharing a room with just one other guy is resort living!

I'm not there so much for the room. Nor do we spend much 'room time' during BACfest. I'm more in it for the airport, events and BAC friends social.

One really nice part of BACfest is that it's off season! So rates are lower than prime time. That's how I like to travel. I'm a Douglas MacArthur fan! Let's hit'em, where they ain't!
 
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I would like to see rooms at or below 200 bucks. This will allow more folks to attend. As for the hotel, clean and well equipped rooms are fine. I don't use swimming pools or hot tubs as I like to explore the areas and simply use the room to sleep. A nearby restaurant is always welcome espicially one that remains open late or 24/7 so some of us can drink coffee and just plane talk.
 
It's the off season in October I would expect good rooms to be under 150$ maybe around 99$ with the satellite motels in the sub 50$ range. That is barring several conventions and a dozen weddings all picking the same weekend.
 
Anything under $200, amenities are worthless to me, I don't hot tub or exercise with strangers. My #1 thing is accesibility/walking distance to our events and local attractions.

Good stuff, CN.

Rap
 
BACFest 2015 taught us a lot about greasing the skids to help members attend. Their $89 room rate was integral in making it the best attended ever. Their rooms were not great, but were clean and comfortable. That room rate was unusually low for BACFest, but as you get closer to the $150 to $200 per night rate, plan on having about half the turn out we had last year.
 
Uncle WDND and Uncle Cloyd has offered to let me sleep on the couch in their room, so I'm good with $300 a night being their footing the bill.
 
Donald,

No problem! My GF and I traveled the world with 5 kids. But never found a hotel room with more than one bathroom. When they got older we did get two rooms. Lol!

They all travel the world on their own now.
 
All great feedback folks! Yeah, no need to worry about $300 rooms in Branson unless you need some kind of special suite. The numbers I am getting range between $100 and $150 for a standard room. There are less expensive options at other motor lodges/hotels but these facilities will not work for conference/meeting facilities. Branson will still be busy in the September/October time frame. There are lots of veteran activities in October. Branson is a very friendly town to our past and present military U.S. members, probably Canadian military too.

There is quite a bit to do in Branson... Lots of shows (live entertainment), Silver Dollar City (Family Theme Park). lakes (boat rentals at State Marina), etc....
 
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