Alright kiddies, it's that time again. This message is your 30-day notice! The even-year meet is upon us... or should I say meat? You'll see why in a second.

CLIFF NOTES...
WHO: HAN ppl. + cool cats from honda-tech
WHAT: Amusement park, good food, drag racing, go-kart racing (with discounts!), more drag racing, camaraderie, free wi-fi.
WHEN: June 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th. (Thursday-Sunday)
WHERE: Jafro's house, Busch Gardens, Richmond Dragway, G-Force Karts, Bandito's Burrito Lounge, Bottoms-Up Pizza.
WHY: Because it's cool. It's what all the cool people will be doing. Are you cool enough?

THE NOVEL...

Many of you remember the 2006 housewarming get-together. It was a lot of fun despite the low number of drag passes we got that year. Truly a freak incident when 2 F-bodies collide in the turn-around lane at the end of the track and take so damn long to clean up. I know. But nobody will be disappointed this year even if it rains out an event. Here's why. You have multiple days to race, and a choice of 3 venues and 3 separate events at which you may race. Richmond Dragway (a mile from my house), Virginia Motorsports Park (as a backup option), and G-Force Karts (where part of the Saturday event will take place). G-force has an indoor 1/4 mile circuit track, so there will be racing of one kind or another rain-or-shine.

www.gforcekarts.com

Interest has been expressed in doing a gang-meet at Busch Gardens preceding that weekend. I will be searching for discount coupons and investigating group rates. Those of you interested in a fun day of bitchin' roller coasters and probably the most ornately decorated theme park in America are welcome to show up anytime Wednesday evening - to 9:00 am Thursday. I don't want to wait around Thursday much later than that because Williamsburg is a 40 minute drive from here, and everyone deserves to get their money's worth at the park. Rides open at 10:00. Admission is regularly $56.95 a head. I'll work whatever angles I can to shave that expense down. The park closes at 9:00 on weeknights.

http://www.buschgardens.com/BGW/default.aspx

Friday: I have hired someone to prepare finger-food and Linner before the Friday AED event whilst we wait for arrivals. Richmond Dragway is hosting their every-other-Friday AED Friday Night Street Shootout. Gate fee is either $15 or $18 to run as many times as you can line up. That can be anywhere between 3 and 11 heads-up runs depending on who breaks what, and how many people show up. I have had both ends of that spectrum, but I usually get 5-6 runs and sit 1 or 2 out. Well worth the gate fee. This year the rules have changed. Cars are no longer broken out into classes. You may line up against a 22 second '88 Accord LX, or you might end up next to a Pro-Modified 8-second tubbed and tubed trans-braked race car. You never know. My best advice is to pull into the pit lanes every-other-car unless you want to race the guy directly in front or behind you because they stage only 2 of the 9 lanes at a time and nothing's reserved unless you only have 2 wheels. They tell you where to go. You don't pick your races. If you see a line of trailer queens rolling to the staging lanes, just chill and wait for your friends or other street cars unless you've got the balls and skills for running against the "big boys". AFTER TEH TRACK - there will be a steak dinner with smashed garlic potatoes, and cajun green beans with garlic bread for EVERYONE (yes, everyone) that shows up representing HAN. That's what the hired help (call her Janice) will be doing while we're at the track. Does that mean your girl eats too? Yes. I have 96 steaks. I just cleaned my grill.

www.richmonddragway.com

Saturday DAY - the big event: There is going to be a LARGE car show for the Honda tuner crowd, gathering in the Northside of Richmond, VA on SATURDAY, June 7th, 2008 at G-Force Karts AT NOON. There will be food, cars, DISCOUNT go kart racing, bitches, pimps, players and OG hustlers, kicking it and hangin' until 5:00 PM. As always, the bitches may not show, and hustlers, pimps and players are optional. If you fear that any of the aforementioned may not be present, and feel they're mandatory, then by all means feel free to BYO. Alcohol is prohibited at this event. From what I understand, there's already an ungodly number of Honda ppl that have RSVP'd this event in another forum. More details of that can be found here... uh... at the other forum:

http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=2201981&page=1

As of the time this thread was posted, 144 people have RSVP'd... meaning... at least 100 other cars are definitely going to show.

Saturday NIGHT: The whole gang from the car show at G Force Karts is rolling to Richmond Dragway at 5:00 for yet another opportunity to break stuff. Timed runs usually end at 10:00 PM, although I was on my front porch last Saturday night listening to them run well through 11:00 pm. The Saturday program may be different, and probably not the same as the AED Friday Night event. From what I can remember from the Saturdays-passed is... bracket racing. I don't recall there being a street category that can run without first qualifying... which I remember happening earlier in the day than that... but honda-tuner is saying their whole crew is rolling out there at 5:00 to race. I'll check those details.

Sunday: If you're not tired-as-hell of all of us by then, there will be sight-seeing/shopping for the out-of-towners, and good food for whoever wants to come along. No, I'm not cooking again, and I have no hired help on Sunday... I can only afford to do that for everybody once. We'll probably eat at either Bottoms-Up Pizza downtown (best pizza anywhere, I swear... www.bottomsuppizza.com) or at Banditos who is going to set the World's Record this weekend for making a basketball-court-sized serving of Nachos. Weird, I know... they do all kinds of insane promo stuff. I don't give a flying puck about any of that, though... they just have really awesome tex-mex food, and they're a good second-option, or additional option... or what have you? I guess it all depends on how hungry you are.

http://www.banditosburritolounge.com/index.html
http://www.bottomsuppizza.com/awards.htm

The reason I'm announcing this as a HAN meet even though the above thread is for another forum... is because I can accommodate a small crowd at my house for several days just 1 mile from the track, and for the large events, the more the merrier. The Honda-Tuner event is only on Saturday. I know that better racing accommodations will exist Friday night than it will on Saturday night. All HAN people are welcome. If you're local to the area and have some place to stay, great, but please plan on attending as much of it as you can and there's meat in it for you if you do. I have an extra queen-sized bed, and that's claimed. Tony has an inflatable mattress that will deflate slowly until you're on the floor that I'm sure he's willing to bring down. There is also a couple of couches in the living room, and I remember 4 people sleeping on those last time. If you're from out-of-town and can't handle these accommodations for a weekend, there are dozens of cheap lodging opportunities 2 miles away because I'm as close to an airport as I am to the dragstrip. This gathering gives us the opportunity to interact with other Honda tuners we may or may not have met, and the whole weekend will be choc-full of fun things to do. Represent! I have taken Thursday and Friday preceding this so that I can spend as much time as possible doing fun things while attempting to play Howard Johnson.

So it's time for the head count. Who's in? Don't PM me, my inbox is intentionally full. Post your aye's or nay's here.

1. Jafro
2. Running925
3. Dragonlair258
4. fathergoat
5...