Epic Forum
Epic Boards => Epic Forum => Topic started by: SpokaneX22 on March 18, 2007, 19:37:23 pm
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Thought I would at least start a new topic related to a get together this summer in the Pacific Northwest.
If people can reply with preferred destinations & dates we can start getting an idea of what will work for everyone. Heck, even if is only for a day at Vantage/Crescent Bar on the Columbia
(centrally located) it would be great to see another Epic... In fact, my Epic is the only one I have ever seen in person!
Thanks, Jason
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I originally suggested Lk Wa because I've only got a mini van to tow with and it belongs to the company. I can get from Mason Lk to Lk Wa with an hour drive on flat road and a 40 minute ferry ride but I don't think I want to try pulling over the pass in addition to that. Plus Lk Wa is big with lots of amenities and I think several people can be on the lake in a fairly short period of time.
6/16-17, 6/30-7/1, 7/21-22, or 8/4-5 work for me. The rest of our weekends are booked with our son's swim meets. 8/4-5 is Seafair so that weekend would have to be somewhere else, unless we think we can get the tv helicopter crews to film us for the 5 o'clock news.
Dennis, that's a long haul, what day are you heading to Roosevelt and what day are you heading back?
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Leaving Dallas, Or on Mon 7/25 and driving back on Sun 8/5. It is a long haul to Lake Roosevelt, about 10 hours in a motorhome pulling the Epic. It is worth it, lots of fun and sun, and ice cold alcoholic beverages.
I would like to meet up with everyone for the round up, but it will depend on when everyone goes. Unfortunately, I cannot predict that far in the future, other than my Lake Roosevelt trip. Once everyone confirms a date, I can figure out if I can go about 3-4 weeks before the event.
Dennis
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Hey, no problem with Lake Washington, as I mentioned, I have family in Belleveue so that's an easy one. I towed my boat from Dallas (the Texas one) when I got it so I could care less how far I need to go. 2-3 No Carb Rockstars (new flavor) and I am good to go!!!
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I'd be all for Lake Roosevelt, since I've never been and always wanted to go. But if you drop a pin in the middle of the state, you just poked me. So I can get anywhere really easily. But I might advise against Lake Washington, just because it would probably be more fun to do a camping/weekend trip, and Lake WA isn't really suited to that.
Might I recommend the state park 4 miles south of Vantage? Excellent grounds, nice launch, lots of good water and party spots (if you want 'em, or wide open spaces if not). And Vantage is less than three hours from anywhere in the state -- and less than 6 from anywhere in Oregon/Idaho.
Regardless, I'll be there. I think I was the first Northwesterner on this site. And I just can't see you having a Northwest Roundup without me. :)
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OK I'm up for Vantage. I'll beg, borrow, or steal something to tow with. Cal, are you talking about Ginko/Wanapum St park? I looked up the web site, www.parks.wa.gov, click on Park Info, and it looks pretty nice.
Dates?
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That's the one! The park is really nice. There are free launches all over right there, but I pay to use the state launch because it is that nice. And the campsites are huge -- they let you reserve ahead of time so we could book a whole bunch together if needed.
I'm free almost all weekends except holidays and the last two weeks of July. How about late June?
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6/30-7/1? Feel confident enough about the weather then?
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That timeframe will work for me, I'll be in Campbell River, BC the week before, so I'll be on the left coast already:)
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Those dates would be fine. I could zip over there from Spokane... I would not camp there because the wife's family lives in Wenatchee and it would be an easy tow from there each day... plus I could leave the kids there!!!
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Works for me.
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Beautiful. About the weather, we get 300 days of sunshine each year in Central WA! So the odds are with us. Water will be a touch cold, but a shorty-suit or wetsuit-top is plenty in June. Who's booking campsites? It sounds like there's four of us in right now -- we'd be OK with 2-3 campsites if they are together. I just called and checked. They only have two spots together that weekend on the outside ring, or we can easily get up to 4 if we don't care about being on the outside ring. Sites are $26/night per site. I think it might be a good idea to book 3-4, and I wouldn't mind paying as long as we are sure we can get at least 4 boats. I think we'll probably only be able to fit one towrig/boat and one car per site. Total is $106 for 4. If we have a huge rush of people that want to go, it's fine but those cars/trailers/boats would need to be parked in a seperate lot (still on site). Thoughts? Comments? Conerns?
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I meant to remove the "who's booking campsites?" question. I'll do it, as soon as y'all gimme the go-ahead.
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I vote for booking whatever 4 sites together you think are the best. I'll cover 1 and help with another if needed. We're allowed eight per site so there's plenty of room for more to join. I'm hopping some people just haven't read this yet. We really need seven boats!
Cal, let me know how or where you want the money sent and how much.
Cyclone, you going fishin?
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No but I'll bring my board and a tent!
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It looks as if I can make it if the dates are 6/30 7/01. I would prefer to have an RV site if possible for a 29 ft class C motorhome. I'm sure someone will have a vehicle to launch my boat, since it is a little more difficult with a motorhome. If there are no RV spots, I am ok with tenting it, although it has been a while since I slept in a tent.
Where is this lake at???
Dennis
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Dennis, that's great. Cal can confirm this but I believe the sites have 32 feet of parking with all hookups. It's the reservoir behind the Wanapum Dam just south of where I-90 crosses the Columbia River at Vantage. Click on parks.wa.gov, park info, Wenatchee area, then Ginko/Wanapum, camp site maps, sites 1-50. Then click on a camp site and it will show you pictures of that site with a legend showing all the pertinent info. Some pad parking is back in and some are pull through.
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OK I just put my reservation in for campsite #32 at Wanapum State Park for Fri 6/29 to Sun 7/01. It is a pull through site for my motorhome and boat, at least I hope it will hold both. So I guess I am locked in to go to the first annual Northwest Epic Round Up.
There are still some spots left to reserve, but not many.
Dennis
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Hey guys, just saw the thread now. Ill have to check my calendar about those dates, might work and it might not. My family doesnt really camp, but Im fine with it, so Ill see what happens.
So, it is for sure at Vantage? Just checking because I will need to drag my boat from either Seattle or Coeur 'd Alene, depending where its at and just need to figure out if I need to get to CDA first to bring it to Seattle. ;D
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I just realized that this is the weekend before the 4th of July? Is this going to be an issue for anyone else? I know that is a pretty big party weekend for my family up in Bellingham. Could definitely put a damper on my attendance.
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Lets keep dates and options floating, Sub $100 reservation on 4 campsites, what's the worst that can happen? Other options include houseboat rentals, RV rentals, hotels, lake houses/condos with kickass two story docks and hot tubs. On the same lake or neaby with a bunch of boats that would be fun. What else is available in the general geographical area whereof you all reckon this might take place?
Campsites is cheap, no problema on me reserving that, Cal. PM me about it. ;)
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If we decide to do something else in terms of date and location, I can cancel my camp site reservation. The sooner the better.
Dennis
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I'm all for houseboats, but I think those book out well before the start of the year. I wish I could research, would somebody else take this on? Really the only are two lakes that I know of that have houseboat rentals -- Courd'alene (spelling?) and Lake Roosevelt. I haven't booked the Vantage sites yet.
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Well, Coeur 'd Alene would be sweet as both my boats are there now... ;D
But, I realize that it is at least a 5hr drive at 75mph unloaded (ie, no boat) and closer to 6hrs with a boat at 60-65mph. Im open to options, but that weekend might be hard to do now that it is the 4th of July weekend. I will be at my cabin on CDA then for sure, dont know if I can get to Vantage.
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I'd tough it out to Vantage but Spokane is a bit far for the weekend. From Mason Lk it's an additional 1-2 hours from Seattle and that doesn't include going there to pull the boat out. Let's make this as equitable as possible. Just come to Mason Lk and it won't cost you a dime to camp! ;)
If that weekend doesn't work, pick another. 8/4-5?
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They would only let me book one spot, I booked #34. The person I spoke to recommended booking #'s 35, 48, and 49 since they are all close to Dennis' spot. So, if you get a free minute and are planning on (or even thinking of) attending, will you please call and reserve a spot? They seem to be filling quickly. The number is (888) 226-7688, and ask for "Ginko/Wanapum park reservations". Cost of each site is $59.00 for Friday, 06/29 through Sunday, 07/01.
Cancellation fee is only $7, so please just book even if you aren't sure you can make it. We can always find somebody else to fill the spot later if needed.
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#35 is booked, which will make the wife happy as it is closest to the restrooms. 48 and 49 are still open and directly across the road from 34&35. ScarabEpic22 and FreeLance, if you can't stay the whole weekend, why don't you come over Friday and stay one night.
Cyclone, I'm sure there's plenty of room at any of the already booked sites for you to pitch a tent.
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Sounds good to me, Ill see whats going on when the time gets closer. If worst happens, I can always find someplace to spend the night around there. It might be a little trickier if I bring my Epic, but if its just me and my truck, Im fine wherever.
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The wife and I are in but as I mentioned before we will trailer over from Wenatchee since we can leave the kids there! I look forward to seeing another epic.
Later
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Cool, I'll even tote my kick ass air mattress.
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It's lookin as if we might have a real Northwest Epic Round Up. Yee Haa, I mean, thats great. Looking forward to meeting everyone.
Dennis
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Anything more on this? I have a birthday thing to go to that weekend (still not sure when it is) at Coeur d' Alene, but there is a good chance I could maybe drag the boat to Vantage and then move on to CDA. Still gotta figure a few things out, but I really want to come at least for a day and say whats up and meet all you guys!
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I'm still a go!
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Damn, I just found out an hour ago that my work decided to have a big sale the weekend of the roundup and I have to work. I was really looking forward to going. Hopefully there will be another sometime in the future.
Dennis
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I am in. I reserved a camp site (#48) just in case a month or so ago knowing that some other epic owner could use it if I was a no show. Now I just need to get the boat back in working condition after what seems to be a rookie winterization mistake. The new Transmission cooler is slated to arrive on the 13th, so should be plenty of time to get it installed and water tested before the round up. I just hope that nothing else is f'ed up that may prevent this season from happening at all.
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Good to know, Im still working on my family to see if they want to stop for a day and maybe a night (like come over from Seattle to Vantage on Friday night, spend the night then hang for Saturday then drive late Sat night to CDA), or just show up for the day (Leave early Sat morning and leave late Sat night).
I really want to put some faces to the screen names, plus just meet some fellow Epic owners!
As of now, how many are going?
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We're still a go. Leaving Seattle late Friday morning and staying 2 nights.
Cal, couple of questions. What amenities gas,store,restaurant are nearby?
Should we bring the extra fuel cans?
Will they let you check in early or at least drop your boat in?
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I am still in for Saturday...!!!!
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I'm there duudes. Sans boat, I'll be hitchhiking on Cal's X22. Should be fun, can't wait!!
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There are gas stations and mini-marts about 5 miles away -- no grocery stores for 20+ miles. There's a couple of crappy restaurants which cater almost primarily to concert-goers at the Gorge Ampitheater (only 10 miles away from the campground, you'll be able to see it when we're on the water).
It's up to you whether you bring gas cans, I'm not going to. You can drop your boat in earlier than check-in, you just leave the boat and truck at the boat ramp and head to the campsite afterwards.
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Thanks for the reminder, I have 2 5-gal cans that I used to use with my old boat and have now sat empty in my shed for the past 8ish years. I should throw them into the Epic before trekking over (looks like Im going to be able to come, at least for Saturday and maybe Fri night) just to make sure Im fine on gas. An extra 10gal is plenty.
Just hope now I can drag the Epic over, that part is still up in the air, but Im definitely coming!
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Cal check your PM's, we need to coordinate. I have killed at least five cel phones since I last had your number. My plans have changed but only for the weeks preceding the ghettogether. I will bring some Spring Salmon that I will catch in the straits of juan de la fuca. With my bare hands. I will capture an indian lass and make her build a fire and smoke the fish, tan some skins, and travel with us. Actually, I am going to stay at the Painters Lodge in Campbell River, BC. Clark Gable and John Wayne stayed there and went out with one worm and three bottles of scotch and fished until they ran out of bait.
I don't drink like that and the salmon will be running hard so I will bring some tasty fish with me. No indian lass though;)
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Freelance,
Any decent radiator shop could fab one of those up or fix yours relatively cheap if you had to patch it up just for the occasion. They can just braze it up, its a good spare when you get the new one in.
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Fast approaching!!!
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Well I have to say I have bad news, Im not going to be able to make it. :'( I know, I really really want to come meet everyone, but right now its just not going to happen. I start work tomorrow and work Mon-Thurs and this weekend we have to get to CDA to pickup our other boat from storage (why pay when I can have it at the cabin?) and make sure its fixed. I tried doing that the following weekend, but I have a wedding in Oregon to go to. :(
There is a chance we might be able to stop in for an hour or maybe two on friday night on my way to CDA, Ill run that by the family.
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ScarabEpic22, if you need me to get your boat out of storage for you let me know. I work in CDA two-three days a week... If I had a way I could tow it to Vantage but this is not Montana so I can't have two trailers behind the truck...
Jason
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We'll still have three or four boats and plenty of room so bring your board and come Fri. for a day of riding and b.s.'n on your way over. Cyclone will be there with fresh salmon and you can ask him all those questions you've forgotten to post on here.
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I'm getting excited. Pete and I will be arriving sometime around 7pm on Friday night. The campsites are huge and we'll have plenty of room in boats. So the more the merrier -- this should be a good time!
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I am in and looking forward to it. Anybody need anything from SkiMasters or another seattle store? If so let me know and I will drag it over with me.
I should arrive sometime around 7pm as well. Grey 4Runner and True Blue S22, site 48.
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I am driving over Saturday morning from Spokane...should be there around 10...perfect time to hit the water. Looking forward to seeing everyone.
Jason
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Someone emailed me about an Epic round-up today... but it was in Austin, TX. Was that just a dirty trick? ???
-Chasity
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Thanks for the offer Jason, however my Epic is sitting in my driveway here in Seattle, its our old boat (Wellcraft Scarab 1) that needs to be pulled from storage and tested. 20 year old boat with a 20 year old hi-po Merc means lots of fun issues that we are tackling every year, so its basically a hit and miss type game.
If I can come, it can probably only be for a few hours Friday night from like 5 or 6 till 8 or 9 as I have to get to CDA Friday night (as of now). Still working on everyone to convince them we should stay Friday night and leave Vantage at like noon or something.
Sure hope the water is good, never been in the Columbia but I hear its really cold and when I drive over its usually rough, anyone know of an inlet/bay-type place to get some shelter from the wind?
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CHasity,
See the other thread about the round up down in Tejas:)
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Thanks Pete. Sometimes I just get excited and start typing instead of clicking. ;-)
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11am...leaving town! Kind of iffy on the weather today but the Sat., Sun. forcast is great. See ya there.
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Getting packed up, amassing groceries and liquid refreshments. We'll be there early evening, 6:30 PM or so. Cocktail hour.
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Dont think Im going to be able to make it, but I might stop at Vantage to say hi for a few min. Im leaving now from Seattle, should be in Vantage at 5ish.
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Well I was able to stop by Friday night for about an hour and a half and had a nice talk with masonlk (Steve). Nice chatting with you man, and we really should set something up for later in the summer over here in the Seattle area.
As for everyone else, whats up with that? I showed up at about 6 and stayed until like 7:30 and no one else showed up? And I was bummed when I swung by today on my way home from CDA at about 1 that no one was there at all. :( What time did everyone leave?
Ohh, and Spokane we need to hook up and go play on CDA, my Epic will be over there from 7/12-15 (for my 18th B-Day on the 15th! 8) ) and definitely when Im in CDA for about a week and a half (Aug 2/3 thru the 12th). Im a waterskiier at heart, but I really need someone who can board to show me some stuff...
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Sorry we missed you Scarab. Cal and I and crew and Freelance arrived kind of late on Fri. We were probably all out on the water when you came by at 1pm, the water was chilly but glass, great water conditions. Absolutely a great time all the way around.
I can't log into the photo gallery, so here are some pics.
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Cal had a very cool attachement for his truck, pretty cool. His boat is immaculate, it totally makes me reminisce about my old boat.
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Eric, nice to meet you, sorry we missed you on your way back. We left about 11am to try and beat the traffic jams. FreeLance left shortly thereafter to get to a softball game. VillageIdiot was out on the water and you have to clear the campsites by 1pm for the next renter.
Pete, Cal, and Erin, great to meet all of you. Good times with lots of sun and fun on the water. Great campsite! I'll post a longer report and pics as soon as I get them shrunk down. They all seem to be too big.
Lesman, on a separate note. I wrote a couple of replies and added some pics, the site then said they were too big and didn't post. When I went back the whole reply was gone. One was rather lengthy on this weekend. Any way to correct this?
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Thanks Steve!
Nice boats guys (but you all knew that anyway...haha) but Im bummed I didnt see you other guys. Ohh well, just means we have to do it again soon.
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Sorry everyone! I had a turn of events on Friday and Saturday that hindered my timing on the get together! Toyota was offering 0% financing (that right 0%) on the new Tundras and the wife couldn't pass up the chance for a newer truck! So, I was in Wenatchee that evening (Friday) until 9pm doing all the paperwork! I will say that the new 5.7 L V8 is one impressive engine!!! it does not even phase that truck when you have the Epic in tow! Again, I am sorry for not hooking up with everyone!
ScarabEpic22 I will be on Coeur d'Alene that same timeframe when you are vacationing there...I will be down real close to Conkling Marina. Send me a PM and we can talk exact dates and times to meet up!
Peace, SpokaneX22
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Well man, congrats on the new truck!! The new Tundras are really good looking, and that 5.7 iForce is pretty sweet too!
Conklin Park huh? Man thats at the other end of the lake for me, but there is a day during that week my family and I grab our friends from San Diego that are there the same time and we head up either the St. Joe or the CDA River for a day of skiing, boarding, and tubing plus a bunch of chilling. I will let you know what day thats going to be closer to the week and we should exchange cell #s, even though once we up about 2-3mi above the lake I have no service...haha
And what is this cool attachment Cal has?? Sparking my interest man!
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First off, that is the most fun I have ever experienced while out on my boat. The Columbia is beautiful to boat on and the campsite was fricking awesome. Cal, Steve, Pete: Great to meet all of you, your friends and family and also to put a face to the handles on the site. Also thanks for all of the great information that a rookie boater such as myself needs to learn. The one thing I would have liked to do was ride on the other boats to get a feel for the differences. Maybe next time...
As for pictures and videos I have a fair amount of videos, and only a few pics. I will post videos up on youtube, see links below. If for any reason you don't want the videos you see up there let me know and I will gladly remove them.
Sorry we missed you Scarab but after 2 days of sunshine and boozing it up we were totally bagged and bailed early. To bad we hit a crap load of traffic anyway.
Spokane, congrats on the Tundra. I have the older 4.7L V8 in my 4Runner and it does tow really nice. I think you will be really happy with the 5.7L.
Also I did take a video of Cal's camping set up. Pretty darn cool.
Cal's set up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnklSE0NQDs
Epics at the sandbar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLa6CqZKQP4
Epics at the campsite: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI_Sx4uKDGw
Pete riding behind Cal's X22: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Iu-F-Zyyw
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Nice vids man, and sweet Avy Cal!! ;D Us Chevy men have to stick together! haha
Completely understand about the traffic, it sucked big time hitting seattle about 2:30 and was worse at cle elum (where it always is horrible).
The only problem I have (and hopefully you can clarify) is beaching 2 Epics on a sandbar, I have never beached a boat and unless I had one of those mats that protect the hull I probably wouldnt do it. Please tell me no damage occurred to the bottoms.... :'(
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And nice new forum software, really makes it nicer to browse around. :D
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Those videos are great. It was great meeting all of you, and wish I could have met the rest, but there will be other opportunities, I hope. The round-up was a blast. Let's do it again on Lake WA later this summer? I'll provide a longer post later, but I just got back in town from my twice-annual wakeboarding trip to Pateros and gotta go to bed. Hanna has a lot more pics to add to the mix.
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I would be down for a lake WA meet, as long as its a weekend. The Epic is heading to CDA on thurs, and unless I have motivation to bring it back there is no way the pops is gonna pay for all that extra gas coming home with the boat... what about the weekend of July 21-22?
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Friday 7/29, beautiful day in Eastern Washington, roll into campground at 2pm. Set up camp and drop boat in the water around 4:30 for a quick tour of the area. Temp immediately shoots up to 200*. Guess what I've been procrastinating about replacing? It also happens to be the only spare part I brought with me. Eric(Scarab) shows up at 6 and I've got tools in one hand and printed instructions for changing the impeller in the other. Took another hour after Eric left but I got the new one in and water tested. THIS SITE ROCKS!
Cal(VillageIdiot) shows up about 8:30 with his X22, introductions are made along with a bit of boat b.s.ing and a beer, and then they get their camp set up. They come over to visit about 10:30 but being the old folks that we are with two kids we're already snuggled in our bags for the night. Although I'm sure my eighteen year old was wishing mom and dad weren't there so she could go have a beer with everyone else. Sometime later, 11-12-1?, Erin(FreeLance) rolls in with his S22 and crew, and proceeds to keep everyone at Cal's camp and us and the rest of the neighbors in stitches until 3am. We didn't catch all the stories but it was funny listening to you guy's yak it up. Wind blew the tent around pretty good all night and had us a little concerned as to what the weekend would be like.
Saturday however dawns clear and hot and the wind dies away just after breakfast. Everyone gets launched and two minutes later all boats have got someone in the water. I jumped in with my ski and got some great water before the wakeboards roughed it up. Rob on Cal's boat has a great pull and NAILS his first back flip. It was a beautiful site, unfortunately we didn't get a picture of it. Next my son Wyatt jumps in with his board and is doing great until he does a face plant and cracks himself in the back of his head with the board. Scared the crap out of me since that post went up just before we left about the guy in a coma. Helmet time dad! Thank God nothing came of it but a lump the size of a AA Large. Went back to the launch and picked up some Tylenol and headed back out. All three boats then made their way about 5(?) miles upstream to the sand dune that sticks out into the river. Spent the rest of the day relaxing with everyone, listening to Cal's awesome new stereo set up, and watching Ollie the chocolate lab run himself silly chasing sticks in the water.
Saturday evening we recharge with a few margarita's and dinner and then hit the sack. Cal and crew head for a party and once again Erin is back in camp after dark. What the hell were you doing out there after sunset? When they emptied out their ballast there wasn't any room for anymore beer cans in the recycle can(55gal drum). Never mind I think I just answered my own question. Erin just had a baby girl nine months ago and doesn't get out much so when he does his friends help him make the most of it!
Sunday was just as nice and we launched again around 9:30 and spent a couple of hours on the water before heading back. There was a roll over at Cle ELum around 12:30 that backed traffic up for miles. That's the mess you guy's ran into behind us. We got held up for about half an hour but not too bad considering we've been stuck on the pass for hours before. All in all a great time and we missed all of you that didn't make it.
No excuses Spokane. With that hot new Tundra you could have been there in 6 hours round trip! Congrats you'll have to pop the hood at Lk Wash. for us.
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Pics.
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See what I missed??!!! And the crappiest part was that the only reason I went to CDA was to pickup our Scarab and test it for my B-Day weekend (aka this coming one as Im bringing 2-3 buddies over for the big 1-8), and a miscommunication between my dad and our mechanic meant the boat was still in storage!!! Basically we should have stayed, but we had no idea.
Well, Im down for a weekend somewhere. Looking at the calendar the 21-22 and the 28-29 of July work for us, but I think that might be a little quick for everyone, especially those heading to Seattle from E WA.
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Posted a few more pics in the photo section.
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