It's never too early to think about 2013!

mrvermin

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2007
Location
GTA
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
If I can get the time off work, I'll be there to join you for the Autoshow weekend :D

MrVermin
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Looks like I'm going to have to start an Auto Show thread sooner than I had planned! It's shaping up to be big this year. :cool:
 

deegingerkid

Beware the Ginger! Vendor
Joined
Mar 9, 2011
Location
The Left Coast
TDI
"Blurple" 2000 New Beetle 5M 2006 Jetta has been SOLD
If I can get the time off work, I'll be there to join you for the Autoshow weekend :D

MrVermin
Yay!

Lawson...this year is gonna be big. Folks loved Ypsi, so I'm not surprised the turnout could be pretty sizeable.

:D:D:D
 

VW Derf

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 3, 1996
Location
Richmond, BC, Canada
TDI
2010 Blue Graphite Pearl Golf Variant
For those looking for a few more details on bringing TDIFest 2013 to your areas, Zippy_car wrote up a great TDIFest FAQ last year. Some great details and info can be found there.
 

turbocharged798

Veteran Member
Joined
May 21, 2009
Location
Ellenville, NY
TDI
99.5 black ALH Jetta;09 Gasser Jetta
I know I know, it takes a group to submit a proposal, but Northern/central NJ would probably be a great location for a fest. Lots of TDIs in the northeast and NJ is a central location for a lot of states.
 

jdhunt0

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2010
Location
KY
TDI
2005.5 Jetta
I would love to see one in the Knoxville area as well. You have the mountains, the dragon's tail... but I will agree trying to do something Labor Day weekend would be either difficult, or expensive.

I'm an hour and a half from Nashville and would be willing to help someone if they want to get the ball rolling, but I don't have the time to take on the project myself.

What about St. Louis?
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Like I said before, I'm willing to assist with venue planning management if people have strong local support and good ideas. I'm going to research a location that was mentioned in the New England Fest thread to see if it's feasible.

I will not, however, research every idea that's mentioned. Time is valuable and I will only entertain strong suggestions. If you want to research a location/venue on your own, feel free - if you have any questions on what to look for in terms of space/price/logistics, shoot me a PM and I'll be more than happy to brainstorm with you.
 

Dozenspeed

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 1, 2012
I vote for St. Louis. :D

Lots of hotels, inexpensive town, pretty pro-car, historical, Gateway Raceway, big enough, and we got the oilhammer here! ;)
 

loganbmx4gt

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 14, 2011
Location
Jackson, TN
TDI
97' Passat (1Z), 02' Golf
I would love to see one in the Knoxville area as well. You have the mountains, the dragon's tail... but I will agree trying to do something Labor Day weekend would be either difficult, or expensive.

I'm an hour and a half from Nashville and would be willing to help someone if they want to get the ball rolling, but I don't have the time to take on the project myself.

What about St. Louis?
I'm willing to help with a Nashville proposal.
 

JSWTDI09

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 31, 2009
Location
Las Vegas, Nevada
TDI
2009 JSW TDI (gone but not forgotten)
Somewhere here in the CPR would be nice.
Count me in to help with planning. I would love to see a fest somewhere in the southwest. My town (Las Vegas) or Phoenix are often too hot in the beginning of September, but, LA, San Diego, San Francisco, Flagstaff, AZ, and probably other cities would work great. The closest to here that has ever held a TDIFest is Salt Lake City. I would love to see someone in California start a planning committee. I will help all that I can.

Have Fun!

Don
 

mrvermin

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2007
Location
GTA
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
Enough idle talking..... Get a group together in your area and hash out a viable plan for a TDIFest, then submit it.....

Ok, I woke up on the wrong side of the highway this morning.... :p

MrVermin
 

TomJD

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2010
Location
St. Louis
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI GLS, 2015 Golf TDI
I vote for St. Louis. :D

Lots of hotels, inexpensive town, pretty pro-car, historical, Gateway Raceway, big enough, and we got the oilhammer here! ;)
I will help if that is the case. I should be back home (STL) by December. St. Louis Proponents can PM me. We can see what we can do.
 

fouckhest

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 26, 2007
Location
g'vegs, sc
TDI
.:GTD, .:R32, DangerRanger
has anyone looked into Helen, GA?

Great little town, same place that Southern Worthersee is held; they LOVE the VW crowd, and if they can deal with the gasser crowd, the TDI folks would be welcomed with more than open arms!

just a suggestion! would love to try and make it next year if it is close enough!:cool:
 

Dozenspeed

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 1, 2012
I will help if that is the case. I should be back home (STL) by December. St. Louis Proponents can PM me. We can see what we can do.
Don't really need a big project in my life right now, but if it really swells up into being held here, I can see myself getting sucked in to help with....er... I don't know, stuff and whatever...

I guess the first place to start is hotel rates, etc and venue. I don't how accomodating Gateway would be, do we need them?

(Darn why did I say that? Now I'm thinking about it. Stupid stupid stupid...)

I may be pathetic but at least I'm upfront and honest about it. :rolleyes:
 

jdhunt0

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2010
Location
KY
TDI
2005.5 Jetta
Since I suggested St Louis, I guess I should help. Someone PM me, let's share email address and get organized.
 

Dozenspeed

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 1, 2012
I may be pathetic but at least I'm upfront and honest about it. :rolleyes:

Re-reading this, I got concerned someome might interpret this a personal dig, but it's not, it's more of a weak justification for myself. :eek:

Sadly, St. Louis is a town of connections, of which I have none. :(
 

ssamalin

Veteran Member
Joined
May 13, 2007
Location
Southern CA
TDI
2015 Mercedes E250 Blutec. Previously: 2006 Jetta TDI
We need a study that analyzes where we are. Then find the center of where we are. We may be concentrated in lets say the Midwest and the median of our density is Chicago. Let's do this statistically for once. If no one else will do it, I could if someone can supply the data. Also I think the data should be weighted to at least some degree by which of us has attended GTG since that is fairer to them and to the success of the GTG.
 
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dieselfuel

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2008
Location
ohio
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI
What about a Fest in Death Valley in between Christmas and New Years...? Many people have that time off from work.

We could stay in Pahrump, Nv at the Best Western. There's a couple of casinos (and buffets!) in town and a car wash adjoining the Best Western prking lot.

No cooler place on this planet than Death Valley, imo.

df
 

Dozenspeed

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 1, 2012
Want a Fest in your neck of the woods?

The sooner you start planning, the better!

Here's where past and present TDIFests have been held:

(click for Google Map)

If you want a Fest in your area, start looking up hotels now. Historically, the Fest rate for a hotel has been $99/night (a room block will get you discounts off of the normal rate, so don't be afraid to look at hotels that are above that rate).

Tools that can be useful for finding hotels are the city's chamber of commerce, and the Cvent Event Venue Directory. Some city websites and Cvent will let you filter based on requirements.


Here's some hotel requirements that have been compiled (thanks VeeDubTDI and Airwolf):
  • 90-120 guest rooms, 200 room-nights
  • 200 parking spaces guaranteed available - block off our side of the lot
  • Meeting space no extra charge
    • suggested banquet style minimum seating - 125
  • Registration suite for entire weekend
    • 500 - 750 sq ft
    • lockable doors
  • Food
    • On-site catering
    • Enough space for 110-175 people to eat
    • Max $5000 food minimum
  • Free WiFi in guest rooms
  • Car washing area (loading dock?)
  • Electricity available outside
Larger hotels can work, but present more logistic problems due to sharing the space with others. On the other hand, a smaller hotel may need to be dealt with earlier, or it won't have room for us.

It's also not a bad idea to stay at a candidate hotel for at least a night, and try their food - that way, you have an idea of what the accommodations and food are like.
Ok folks, I took a little initiative on an idea about TDIFest 2013 being in St. Louis.

I had a nice meeting with THE lady in charge of this sort of thing for the Sheraton Hotels in Westport in west St. Louis county.

I showed her the forum for the club and this post in particular with the above requirement outline and it looks like they can accomodate all the aspects listed. The two hotels share a massive parking lot and are within the Westport complex they now control. I told her 80 to possibly 150 rooms (because I think geographically St. Louis may be within reach of much of the country with TDI club members who want to attend but haven't had one "close enough")

She said she didn't see any conflicts with what we are looking for, and deals with car clubs all the time including the (Corvette Club) and has been in her position for years! She would set up a special website for our reservations that she AND our organizers could access and monitor. She also told me they may be able to put us up in the nearby Doubletree and could put us all on the one side of the hotel that faces the parking lot. :)

There are PLENTY of other hotels within a couple miles for any amount of overflow we might possibly have. Also, oilhammer's shop it within a couple miles of the whole complex.

Westpost has multiple restaurants, a comedy club called The Funnybone, a Starbucks and a 24 hour diesel station. The area is low-crime with a significant professional police force.

She is going to email me a proposal on Monday with prices, and began reviewing the itinerary of past events on her own to better understand what it is we like to do.

Also look at local attractions - both those that will appeal to TDI drivers, and their families. Remember that this is Labor Day weekend, so you may need to jump on those attractions quickly.
If you are willing to do a little driving, the St. Louis metro area has many family-friendly attractions and activities at low or even no cost, including our free zoo and tours of the AB brewery.

Please note that organizing a TDIFest will involve volunteering several hundred hours of your time, and a strong team, to make this event a success. However, your contributions will be greatly appreciated, and support the club significantly.
I am a new guy around here and only know a few of you a little tiny bit. I'm not looking to spearhead this thing, but just be a humble part of an organizing team. I think my best role might be a sort of geographical information concierge, as I have had driving jobs in St. Louis for 19 years, and currently operate my TDI as a taxicab all over the metro area.

Here is a link to the hotel, which has just undergone a multi-million dollar rehab. Looks pretty sweet to me for about $100 a night.

http://www.sheratonwestport.com/

I'll post the info I get in email, and can pass on email adds to whoever will really be running this thing, should it get any traction. Your comments are appreciated. :)
 

jdhunt0

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2010
Location
KY
TDI
2005.5 Jetta
Thanks for moving forward with the St Louis location. I have only visited there once, the the last 15 years, but I think it's a great location for many of us.
 

tomo366

TDI Lifer, Member #68
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Location
Kensington, Maryland USA
TDI
2015 Jetta SEL TDI
Thanks for moving forward with the St Louis location. I have only visited there once, the the last 15 years, but I think it's a great location for many of us.
I have family in Alton Ill and was there a couple weeks ago for a funeral would love to come out for a FEST!! DO IT!
 

romad

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2011
Location
Prescott, AZ
TDI
2005 Jetta GLS Wagon "Cranberry"
While I enjoyed Ypsilanti, I'm getting too old to be driving way back east again. Perhaps it could be set up to alternate between regions? East one year, MidWest the next, then West the third; also Canada should be in the rotation.

BTW, is there a geographical breakdown of TDIClub.com members?
 

tomo366

TDI Lifer, Member #68
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Location
Kensington, Maryland USA
TDI
2015 Jetta SEL TDI
While I enjoyed Ypsilanti, I'm getting too old to be driving way back east again. Perhaps it could be set up to alternate between regions? East one year, MidWest the next, then West the third; also Canada should be in the rotation.

BTW, is there a geographical breakdown of TDIClub.com members?
This has been discussed for years and has never happened......note the number of Fests in the west......The last several years it has been a mighty struggle to get anything together......and have you noticed it is pretty much always the same 5-10 Core group members?? One of these days the Fest will cease happening and probably sooner than later for just these reasons......:(
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
While I enjoyed Ypsilanti, I'm getting too old to be driving way back east again. Perhaps it could be set up to alternate between regions? East one year, MidWest the next, then West the third; also Canada should be in the rotation.

BTW, is there a geographical breakdown of TDIClub.com members?
Http://www.tinyurl.com/tdimap is a pretty representative sample of TDIClub members.

Also, the VCDS locator link in my signature.
 
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