With a new year, comes a new Manx Club event...Manx In The Middle! This will be the first time a Manx Club event has been held in the middle of the US, so the name fits! We are hoping this event will be an annual event and give our members nationwide more access to our great buggy community! I can say that Barb and I have met many people who we feel are not only friends, but family!
With that said, the MITM event will be held in Collinsville, Illinois, September 8th-September 11. The host hotel will be:
Double Tree Hotel Collinsville/St Louis
1000 Eastport Plaza Drive
Collinsville, IL 62234
Rate-109 per night
Reservations-866-235-4657 (Reference "Manx Club")
Reservations must be made by August 17th, 2016
This location is only a few miles from downtown St. Louis. There are many amenities in the area of the hotel (restaurants, gas stations, shopping, Wal Mart, Home Depot, auto parts, etc), and easy access to the interstate. There is ample parking for cars, trucks, buggies and trailers. This was the hotel that the Shuffle to Buffalo crew used, so ask them about it. We can tell you that its a first class facility and we have used it as a base for other events in the past. We hope to have links to make reservations online soon. The link will be posted as soon as we get it.
The schedule for MITM will be, but is not limited to the following:
Thursday night:
5pm-10pm-Meet and greet-St Clair Room of the Doubletree
Friday:
9am-Loud and Quiet pipe contest-parking lot of Doubletree
11am-Photo opportunity at Malcolm Martin Memorial Park across from the Gateway Arch
---Afternoon will be free to explore the area (Budweiser, Arch, Forest Park, Ted Drewes, etc)
7pm-to 10pm-Die Cast racing-VW or buggy 1:64th scale-St Clair Room of the Doubletree
Saturday:
9-11am-Show and Shine-Doubletree parking lot
Noon to 4pm-Cruise to Grafton, IL along IL-100 and the Mississippi River
7pm-1130pm-Awards, silent auctions, shenanigans, thank yous!-Madison Ballroom, Doubletree
Sunday:
Goodbye breakfast (groups can get together where they desire)
That is schedule as it stands right now. Some of the times may change but this is about 80% solid. More details will be given in the coming weeks and months.
The diecast racing is like you did as a kid, with Hot Wheels track. We have a digital finish line and plenty of track. We will post the rules and details in the coming weeks and months.
As a bonus, Bruce and Winnie have said that they will be attending! What a great honor to have the Father of the Dune Buggy at our event! We are truly happy to invite them both and look forward to the stories!
There is so much to see and do in St Louis, I just hope that everyone will mark their calendars and plan on attending. There are going to be a couple of cruises headed this way, so there are opportunities for Long Haul Awards!
Barb and I have a great group of individuals that are helping and we appreciate everything they are doing. (I wont mention names at this time, so as not to embarrass them) Many have asked what can they do to help. Well, spread the word! Let your buggy friends know that this will be an opportunity to go to a Manx Club event and even meet Bruce Meyers! Also, we will need donations for raffle items, silent auction items and gift bags! We will also need volunteers for raffle tickets, signups, and many other things that I havent thought of yet!
If you would like to donate, have contacts that might like to donate, or would like to volunteer, feel free to email me at manxinthemiddle@gmail.com.
We all look forward to seeing everyone. See you in St Louie!!
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