GMC SOuthern ORegon (SO-ORE) RALLY

[DATE] [LOCATION] [AGENDA] [COST] [WHO CAN COME ?]
[WEIGHTING THE COACH] [SWAP MEET] [GOLDEN AGE]

WEATHER CAMERA -- WISH YOU WERE HERE ?

           h20mobile Fine Living
Time to get the southern Oregon and Northern California  GMCs together and  talk about where to get good stuff for our GMCs and check out each others coaches.  Everyone is invited and especially new owners that want to know more about their coaches and the support group of owners that exist in this area.  We  have at least one owner who is driving down from Portland to visit this wonderful site.
 
Location 
The 4th Annual SOOR Rally will return to it's roots this year, Charleston, Oregon, where we had one coach and 6 coach owners meet one Saturday afternoon in July, 2002. 

 

AN ANNOUNCEMENT
  
 The dates for the 6th annual SOOR rally
(that's SOuthern ORegon) held this year at my place in Charleston, Oregon, from
July 19th-22nd. 2007 

This is a no fee rally with with water and a dump site available; room for 20+ coaches to park with an overflow area about 200feet away for another 10-15 coaches if needed.  

We have had from 20-25coaches attend each year for the past 4 years.     Our place is almost on the Coos bay with several Oregon beaches within 3  miles; we're about 5 blocks from the fishing boat marina; several restaurants within a block and one can dig clams within walking distance from our place.  It's cool on the coast in July (I mean the temperatures are usually between 60-70 F.); a nice place to beat the heat. 

The southern end of the Oregon dunes are across the bay from us, but one has to drive about 15 miles to access them unless you have a boat to cross the bay. 

We're located about 100 miles north of the California/Oregon border. 

This year's rally will be much like the ones in the past with crab, clams and fish to eat.  If any GMCers plan to visit the Northwest sometime this summer, we'd be happy to have you attend our rally.  We hope to see you this summer on the Oregon coast.  All we ask is that you let Gene Fisher or I know by the end of June if you plan to attend so we can plan accordingly.

JR Wheeler     78 Royale   NC/OR


ps:  We have a spot for all GMCers to overnight with hookups at our place
in Charleston, Oregon, any time you pass thru our area...........

 

Tech Agenda
 Sit around and talk about GMCs
        Onan Preventative Maint. Video

         Non Tech Agenda

For those not familiar with Charleston, please access the web site http://coos-bay.net/ and click on the various links in that web site to learn more about the area. Our rally will be held one block from downtown Charleston. Within walking distance will be shops, restaurants, the drawbridge, the boat basin and docks. We have a very nice bakery within 500 feet of our rally and I hope it is still open for business (they were looking to sell last Fall). Our property is about 500 feet from the first marine estuary established in the USA. 

The weekend we have picked has excellent clam tides at reasonable morning hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings. We clam about 1000 feet from our house. I have a large garage that I put together last summer that we can use for any work on a coach. I have a dump site on the property that will be available to everyone as well as water to fill tanks. Propane is available about 4 blocks from our house. 

Attractions in this area are

 the beaches (4 of them within 5 miles), 

the Coos Bay jetty (about 1 mile), 

the southern end of the Oregon dunes (about 14 miles away), click here baby 

the South Slough Estuary, 

an Indian casino (The Mill, about 7 miles). 

I have access to 4 or 5 kayaks for kayaking in the bay in front of us. 

It will be a lot of fun and I hope the weather works out. Last year it only rained 3 days in the whole summer and all in a row; just when I had the sides of my garage up with no roof and the wall insulation exposed. It can be foggy and cool for days on end, so if you do come, plan on some cool air in the mid-50's range; it gets into the low 70's on a hot day. 

I have other plans up my sleeve and will develop them after I move. Parking will be on a first come, first serve basis. Since there are no up front fees, no one loses any money by not showing, but I do need to know who might be attending for planning, so please email me sometime between now and mid-May. I will be asking some people to coordinate a few planned activities or events. 

JR Wheeler 78 Royale NC/OR
jrwheeler7@earthlink.net

Directions are not very hard to follow; you come into the area on Highway 101; either from the north or the south. There are signs that direct you to the Oregon beaches when you enter Coos Bay (from the south going north) or North Bend (from the north going south). Follow those signs and about 7 or 8 miles you will come to  the Charleston drawbridge. Go over the bridge into Charleston, go about one block and take the first left (between the bakery and a mini-storage business). This is Roosevelt Rd. Go about 500 feet and our 2 lots with the big metal garage and white 2 story house is on the right. You can only go another 400 feet if you miss the place as the street dead ends. I will have another email out if needed before I move and another for sure somewhere around the first of July. 

Hope you make plans to attend.

 
Jerry and Rosemary Wheeler

 


WEIGHTING THE COACH
On the way into the rally, this is a good time to weight  your coach. You can get the weight of your  coach, and do some tire pressure calculations as per the work of Chuck Botts. http://www.gmcws.org/Tech/TireSafety/index.html

 At mile marker 227 on highway 101 out of Coos Bay, is a  weight station on the ocean side of the road.  Oregon leaves the scales on when the station is not in operation.  

On HWY 126 at mile marker 43, on the road from Eugene, Or.  near Veneta, Or., there is a scale that you can use if it is not open for operation.
tire pressure
If your coach has about 2100 pounds on each tire like mine does, you only need 50 pounds of air pressure for my 85s.   Read the article in the GMCWS tech area
http://www.gmcws.org/Tech/TireSafety/index.html
Who Can Come ?

Any one can come, this rally has no club affiliation.  But since there is no organization,  you are just visitors like we are and your liability is your own.  Remember this is dry camping, there are no hookups or power.

gmc wave
GMC  WAVE BY JERRY
(NOTE THE CHECK BOOK AND CREDIT CARD)
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/gallery/showlist.php?uuid=botiemad&dowhat=user
 

SWAP MEET
Bring your GMC junk.  If  you sit it out in front of  your coach, someone will want to buy your stuff.  Good time to clean out the garage.
 
THINGS TO DO IN THE AREA
 

pass

If you are over 62 and do not have one of these yet, get one from a national park entrance.  It will let you into most of the Oregon State Day use parks and is a great value.... http://www.nps.gov/fees_passes.htm     what a deal.

Anyone who arrives here Friday afternoon, and is 62, could make the short trip to Florence and get theirs. The Forest Service office is right next to
NAPA. Something else to do. Ken