After voting we have settled on the dates of April 17th through 19th for the Annual Celicatech Dragon Run.

For the uninitiated, The Dragon is a stretch of road that lies between Tennessee and North Carolina, it is known by many names, but it is officially known as US Highway 129. It is a marvelous stretch of road known to automotive enthusiasts the entire world over.

This is the 3rd year for this version of our meet, but it is the evolution of the Pigeon Forge meet, which was held for many years prior.

We have anticipated a very high turn-out this year, as we have people come in from all over the country. This is an open invitation to all Toyota Owners, and will be posted across several boards.

This will be my third year hosting it, and to be honest, it is the highlight of my year. I enjoy seeing me friends and making new ones.

Now, some of you might be asking, 'Why is it called the Dragon Run?' Well, let me explain.

We are car fanatics. And the reason we love cars, is that we love to drive them. So in a departure from typical meets, we plan this around driving. Driving through the Great Smokey Mountains and enjoying some beautiful sights and comradeship.

This year we intend to make several runs of the Dragon, and come down the Cherohala Skyway as well.

This is our intended route.



Lodging is being planned just off of Cedar Bluff in Knoxville. There are many hotels to fit different budgets.

Holiday Inn Select Knoxville-West Hotel (I-40 & I-75)
- www.holidayinn.com - (877) 863-4780

La Quinta Inn-Knoxville West
- www.lq.com - (865) 690-9777

Sleep Inn
- www.sleepinn.com - (865) 531-5900

Holiday Inn Select Cedar Bluff
- www.cedarbluff.hiselect.com - (865) 693-1011

Econo Lodge West
- www.econolodge.com - (865) 693-6061

Hampton Inn Knoxville-west At Cedar Bluff, Tn
- www.hamptoninn.com - (865) 693-1101

Budget Inn
- www.hotelclub.com - (865) 934-1182

Please join in the discussion and we will see who all is coming, where you are staying, and what you would like to see happen this year. Every year is different, and every year is a blast.


2-Way Radios are recommended, this is how we all like to keep in touch with one another and make sure we all know where we are going.


I hope to see you attend.


http://www.celicatech.com/forums/showthrea...age=1&pp=25

The above is the link to our thread back at Celicatech, you must be a member to see it. If you would like to attend, please hop over and introduce yourself and let us know. So far we have nearly 30 cars signed up, we would like to have even more, this event is a blast every year!

if gas stays the way it is and i have no problems with the car and there is no auto-x that weekend then maaaybe. an 8hr drive is alot for me. if we get alot more 6gens too

only if the drive wasn't so long I would go.

bump. ..for an awesome meet..I'm trying my best to go this year!

Im sure ill be there

If I can find another job by then, count me in.

anyone from charlotte area going?

As a former resident of East Tennessee, it's an unbelievable drive. 318 turns in 11 miles is the greatest feeling I've had behind the wheel in a long while. I would LOVE to be there for this. Why did I move again??? I have to say it's worth the trip if you're thinking about it.

yeah man..i was talking to my friend who has a 7th gen celi...we wanna go. im sooo going even though im in bfe but its totally worth it i hope lol...what could be fun is meeting people on the way with celicas and driving up there all together but thats just me i dunno lol but im going so hope to see everyone there

Bump.

Four months and counting, we have roughly 45 cars already. 3rd through 7th Gens, I was hoping for a better response from the 6th Gen guys...

debating on making the trip from canada, we shal see

I've done this trip on a motorcycle all the way from southern Illinois and it was well worth the ride. This is a great place to ride or drive. I can promise anyone that if they go they will not be sorry! I hope I can make it, we'll have to see. Should be a blast!

This post has been edited by xtinkt94: Jan 26, 2009 - 11:31 AM

I am planning on going to this meet.

-Doc

a buddy of mine took his bike down there a few years ago and the pictures are amazing. Should be a lot of fun. I'm going to try and go, no garuntees which car I'm brining tho.....90 "haftrac" or 92 Alltrac

I'm excited, and if any of you have encountered me in chat, you know this already!

We NEED more 6g's this year. We took a great shot of 4 generations last year, and guess what was missing? A 6GC! The blasphemy!

Cars are coming from as far as Canada!

I think I have a few 4AG, Supra and MR2 groups on the bandwagon as well. This should be BIG! I cant wait!

If my car is in one piece and I can remember...

I will most certainly make this trip

>

Do you think you will still be able to make it?

If my car is still running, i will be attending... tiga... you should join me for the trip!!

95% sure I'll be there - anyone else from Houston or Texas going? Damn 3s is gonna drink $200 getting there LOL

god this sounds amazing.. thats al long drive from WA tho.. ill see whats going on...

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We have a couple of members from Washington driving out.

i want to go. if i land a job i'll be there fo sho

ya im down to go . all toyota or is there gonna be other makes cause i know a few more people that would go but some r in hondas and lexus.

Sweet!!!! I am like 30 min from the dragon!!!

Let me know if anyone needs any info or anything, I will be glad to help!

I think I win the distance award so far (via car)

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source...ie=UTF8&z=5

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lexus IS toyota

>

nice. you'll have to change your oil like 2-3 times in a weekend LOL

Fortunately for me I've got a Gen 3 3SGE and changing the oil is super easy. Expensive, yes, but super easy.

Here is the attendance list from ONE forum: (Celicatech)

0.grayscale
1. Murg
2. Mario
3. 92-gt
4. Vip09
5. Ciento44
6. Luni
7. gt4rcdude
8. tuner4life
9. t4l pt.2 +1?
10. METDeath + Vafalla
11. cms-gt4
12. Colossus20v
13. Nitro Alltrac
14. Donteatbugs
15. CriScO (assuming there's no massive engine explosion on the way)
16. bCaff
17. celicasilfee +1
18. Dr Tweak +1
19. Prodigy515
20. Cavanagh
21. Silentchaos+Rider
22. v3bahumut + 1
23. car + 0 (I'm planning on going)
24. grot
25. andy10889
26. VikingJZ+maybe someone. I was a go last year for 2009
27. renegadex
28. mafix plus wife (pending i don't blow up the motor)
29. hyoctane (tentative, depends on teh wifey thing)
30. brigidrose +1 (also pending on motor not being blown up)
31. cbarett251 + wifey (continuing motor trend)
32. darthripley + justjoe (depends on $$$ & whether alltrac is running good)
33. resident brother
34. lowredcruzr
35. rammerjammer7
36. Boosted Yotaman
37. zero2toy
38. vegeta4ss (maybe)
39. supracelica32
40. Trance4c
41. InitialD93 (most likely in the Z4)
42.crazydriver (watch me crash)
43. Tecker184 +1
44. MR2Guru (91 T MR2) - Western NC
45. MR2Gurl (88 165/205 swap) - Western NC
46. "The Jeep" - Western NC
47. KoreanJoey
48. Aciddice
49. KT
50. Brak
51. Kungfubar
52. geekmyride
53. burnyd

+ MR2OC

54.jeffg213 - East TN
55.Dragonflys2
56.BlitzAction
57.Jtripp06
58.Rich3sgte - Western NC
59.SnowRocker88 - GSP SC
60.freestyle
61.Shadowlife25
62. RC'sDeuce
Here goes the official itinerary, which we try our best to follow! (Copied from Celicatech)

Friday April 17th:

8pm: Meet, Greet, Eat.

Location: Cracker Barrel 9214 Park West Blvd. Knoxville, TN. Located just off of I-40/75 on Exit 373 (Cedar Bluff.)

Saturday April 18th:

8am: Meet and prepare for departure.

Location: Old Food City Parkinglot. This is located on Executive Park Drive, just across from the Holiday Inn Select. Just off of I-40/75 on Exit 378. Yes, just down the street from Cracker Barrel.

9am: Departure.

This puts us reaching the base of the Dragon at or around 10am. Once there, we will stop for pictures and determine running order. In the event that more cars arrive than is safe for a caravan (20+) cars will be broken into groups. This is for our convenience as well as the safety and convenience of others on the road.

10am: Run!

We will begin running the Dragon at 10am, either was a whole or in smaller groups. Hopefully we will be able to get several run in over the next few hours.

1pm: Pictures.

We will make our way to Fontana Dam for group pictures. After these pictures, we will make our way to the top of the mountain to the church for more pictures.

In these pictures I would like all cars represented and uniformly parked. This is to ensure equal exposure of all cars and attendees being visible and represented.

3pm: Cherohala Skyway.

At 2pm we will depart the church and head for the Skyway. This will be a long run, so I suggest that anyone that needs gas for the next 100 mile stretch have it. There won’t be any gas stations.


8pm(approximately): Dinner.

Location as of yet to be determined. As all the cars should be in a tight group, general consensus will determine.

Sunday April 19th:

10am: Discussion, Show and Bench Racing.

Location: Old Food City Parkinglot. This is located on Executive Park Drive, just across from the Holiday Inn Select. Just off of I-40/75 on Exit 378.

All points from here on out will be played by ear. I know some folks desire a junk yard run, some would like to head to Pigeon Forge for Go-Karts and or shopping.

2pm: Lunch/Dinner.

Location: To be determined


At some point and time after this, we will all go our merry ways.

Some folks will be in earlier, some folks will be staying later. This is only a general guideline, however, we will be trying very hard to stick to these times.

Remember your Two-Ways. I will update with our channel at the time of the event.

My name is Murg and my number is (Eight Six Five) Seven Seven Three Nine Seven Zero Eight.
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This post has been edited by MR2Guru: Mar 20, 2009 - 3:32 PM

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Hey Matt, I know DarthRipley, JustJoe, and Stephen_Lee are all Texans, maybe you guys can make a caravan of sorts?

This sounds like an awesome event. Just too short of a notice for me right now. Hope everything goes great and count me in for future years.