MEMORIES OF CHARLOTTE, NC
MARAUDERVILLE VIII (MV8), 8 - 12 September 2010
“Marauders meet NASCAR” (The 8th Annual Marauderville)
Wednesday, 8 September 2010
• 370 miles total. Left exactly at 9:00 AM on time for a rare change. Charlotte, NC here we come. Looks like it is gonna be a nice day for a cruise.
• Am taking the I-95 South to I-85 South route through Richmond, VA.
• The rest of the MD, PA, NJ and NY group have decided to go the I-81 South to I-77 South route. Looks of nice scenery that way running through the Shenandoah Valley.
• That convoy meets up near Hagerstown, MD and includes Ladyhawke/Haggis, Ms. Denmark/Mr. Man, rayjay, BigDogJim and Blackened300a. They are running about 2 hours behind my arrival time.
• Holding steady at 75-80 MPH. Arrive in South Hill, VA the halfway point at about 12:00 Noon. Top off the Bluerauder with gas and head over to the Cracker Barrel restaurant for lunch.
• Supposed to meet FreddieH and Kelly at Cracker Barrel; but have not seen them.
• Seems FreddieH took VA 58 coming out of Virginia Beach and stopped to talk to some local LEOs along the way ….. twice. He arrived just as we were finishing up lunch.
• Browsed the CB shop while FreddieH and Kelly enjoyed their lunch.
• Pulled out of the lot at about 1:30 PM with Bluerauder in the lead and FreddieH trailing.
• Passed through a few brief rain sprinkles enroute to Greensboro, NC. Just enough to wet the windshield and a single swipe to clear it. Hope the weather holds out but the sky is looking much darker ahead.
• Starts raining heavier as we get closer to Greensboro. Road is now wet and the 18-wheelers are kicking up road spray. There goes the wash & wax job. Sure hope the engine compartment holds out.
• After about 2 hours, a rest stop was in order. Bladders needed to be emptied. FreddieH was very happy.
• Traffic on I-85 south of Greensboro gets pretty heavy as we approach the hotel exit.
• Pull into the Hilton Hotel – University Place at 4:30 PM. Leave the MM in the side lot and check in.
• Get a room on the 5th floor and an upgrade lake view room.
• The large banner in the lobby says “www.MercuryMarauder.Net and the Carolina Marauders welcome you to Charlotte – home of the NASCAR Hall of Fame”. The MV8 logo is terrific. Can’t wait to get my T-Shirts.
• Take luggage up to the room and unpack. Lake View is pretty scarce; but if I look real hard I think I can see a small patch of water. View of the huge twin fan air conditioner outside the window is much better. Sounds like an airport. Maybe we should move up to the 10th or 11th floor. Naaaaaah, the bags are unpacked. This is gonna be home for the next 4 days. Room is very nice. Bathroom is tiny.
• Back to the lot to move the car. Where are all the Marauders??
• The hotel has sectioned off the entire back parking lot for us. Both entrances marked with yellow tape. Sign says “MARAUDER PARKING”. No Hondas, Toyotas, Nissans or Kia’s allowed.
• Wow, we must be late. There are already 20 MMs or more already in the lot with several folks milling around and cleaning cars. 03mmmonroe and his Dad are here and has two cars – the black ‘03MM and a brand new company car Taurus SHO. We chat briefly.
• Others in the lot include: Gryphonzus, Vortex, SC Cheesehead, MERCMAN, Motorhead350, and james79stang all wiping and cleaning or standing and chatting.
• Popped into to Marauderville VIII registration room to pick up name tags, goody bags and check-in with MM03MOK, fastblackmerc and Marauderman. About 1/2 already checked in and registered. Others are on the road.
• Get tickets for all of the events – winery, BBQ, RCR, CMS, and the HOF. The Mrs. Bluerauder decides to hang on to the tickets ‘cause she knows I will forget them or leave ‘em in the room.
• Several folks milling around in the registration room. This will be the base of operations for the rest of the week. The sign board outside will be updated with the daily activities and departure times. Carolina Marauders SC Cheesehead, Marauderman, fastblackmerc, 03mmmonroe, and dakslim are our host club. This is gonna be a great event.
• Meet up with fordfrk and Connie in the lobby. Decide to stroll on over to the Shops at University Place for dinner. Meet up with FreddieH and Kelly and head over to Boardwalk Billy’s around 6:00 PM. The small lake behind the hotel is very picturesque with two bridges across to the shops and restaurants on the other side. “Don’t feed the Geese”. Apparently the geese can’t read because they follow the people just waiting for something.
• Get a table in the back of Boardwalk Billy’s. After about 45 minutes, Haggis/Ladyhawke and Ms. Denmark/Mr. Man arrive and say hi. They decide to get a table out on the deck overlooking the lake.
• Meet Mike Brown and his family as we leave the restaurant and recommend Boardwalk Billy’s
• Back to the hotel to hang out in the MM parking lot.
• More MMs have arrived in the lot and include Blackened300a, Ladyhawke, Ms. Denmark, rayjay, BigDogJim and vkirkend. There are lots of other MMs that I don’t recognize but will later in the week.
• Blackened300a puts Voula to work getting the road grime and rain spots off his MM.
• Meet donr and Nancy under the canopy. Those are North Dakota license plates that say “MERCMAN”. They’ve been on the road 3 days and 1500 miles from West Fargo, ND after a brief repair stop in Lexington, KY for and EGR fix.
• Hang out and clean up the Bluerauder from the trip and then just mill around and talk to the gang until about 11:00 PM. Motorhead350 leaves 2 black stripes in the lot. I am done – time for bed.