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It all starts here, Ladies and Gentleman. 😀

This is where WE.....the Minions of the SCMA....get to voice our thoughts and opinions for next year's ride....the 2020 Three Flags Classic, which is also the 45th Anniversary of this great ride.

To get things rolling, I would like to take a public poll, and ask each of you to post here......where would YOU like next year's ride to Start from, and where would you like next year's ride to Finish ?

Don't go into a long soliloquy about where we have been in the past.....we know our history.

Keep it short, and to the point.....where do YOU want to Start, and Finish ???

For those riders that are not familiar, or aware of it, next year being the 45th annual running of the Three Flags Classic, which means it is a 5th year event.....means it is also one more extra day of riding, and an additional Checkpoint thrown in there. It also means a longer distance Route, generally 2,200 to 2,500 miles in total.

THINK..... about your answers for the Start and Finish locations..... before you post them.

Do your best to post ONE time, if possible. I know that is hard for some of my riding friends, but....do your best.

I can tell you that Key West, FL. to Prudhoe Bay, AK., has been ruled out. 🙁

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New post by Steve Shulman added below on Octobr 15, 2019.
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Hello Everyone!
Well, preparations for the 2020 Three Flags Classic have begun.

So there is as little rumor as possible, let me tell you there are 3 people who can dispel most rumors about the 2020 TFC. They are Gonzo, the SCMA Chairman; Steven Shulman, the Three Flags Chairman; and Brian Hooker, the Three Flags Vice Chairman. I intend to monitor this forum regularly between now and the start of Three Flags so you will get much of your information here.

Let me start by telling you I have put out a call for people who want to serve on committees. I have received a fair amount of response and will get information out to those interested this week regarding those committees. If you also wish to participate, we welcome any helpful hands!

The first thing that came up was a request to begin the Three Flags the week following Labor Day. A survey was sent out and an overwhelming response favored the request to move the ride to the week after Labor Day. This survey was conducted after we had requested rated from several hotels for the banquet, so the response we got back were for Labor Day week. Brian Hooker and I traveled to the greater Vancouver area and also Whistler to meet with a number of venues. While there, we asked about rates and availability for the following week.

While we are currently in discussions with a few locations, one of the venues has their banquet room booked the week after Labor Day and the other does not. At this time we are having a difficult time being able to afford either venue for either week. The discussions continue and I hope to have new proposals this week. Frankly, Whistler is our first choice coming in from the north and departing to the south for most people. It is likely the cost will drive our decision whether to have the ride Labor Day week or the week after. I'll keep you posted as negotiations continue.

We have considered a few other options as well. They are:

1) Raising the registration fee for the 45th somewhere between $285 (2019 price) and $325.
2) Reducing the cost at the start to afford the follies at the finish.
and/or
3) A combination of both.

While I know I may hear a lot of "If they raise the rates, I'm not going," we ARE cost conscious! Costs have gone up everywhere and the cost for the 40th ride was .
still under $300... 5 years ago, and that was at the EMPRESS HOTEL! The overall cost for this ride from the time people leave home until they return home runs between $1500 to $2500 USD depending upon your choice of lodging. I hope you'll consider where $40 fits into the equation in the overall scheme of things. I welcome your thoughtful comments.

ROUTE:
We have people working on the route at the moment, despite not inking the finish location. Early work on the start means we have plenty of time to make this a terrific route.

I'll have much more to report as time goes on as we are working on some cool stuff for 45... until then, ride safely!

Steven Shulman
2020 Three Flags Chairman

OK, how about Reynosa, Tamaulipas to Winnipeg, Manitoba? Could do lots of roads we haven't done before. Through Texas, Oklahoma, eventually through the Dakotas into Canada.

Ensenada would be great if we had our own lane exiting Mexico. Is that a 24 hour border? Edmonton not great, Calgary is the only nice City in Alberta. 😉 But Lethbridge would be OK and it's very close to the border. Saskatchewan too flat. How about Canmore or Banff for finish? Victoria? Vancouver? Or anywhere in southern BC west of Cranbrook.

....waiting for Edmonton and Saskatchewan citizens to sling some detritus my way. 🙂

Howard, that is a good question, and a fair one. Here is the answer... 😎

In the days of yore, the information about the following years' ride would be presented at the Finish Banquet of the current year, so that riders at the Finish Banquet would know in September what the Start and Finish locations for the next years' ride would be.

That has NOT been happening the past few years. 🙁

For the past few years, the decision making for all the things needed for this annual ride has been taking longer and longer, which means the riders have been waiting longer and longer to receive the information. 😕

Knowing in advance that next year, 2020 is one of our 5th anniversary rides, which means it is an extra day of riding, and extra miles, and we go a little bigger in all the activities, from the Start, to the Finish Banquet, it helps to get the ball rolling on this......THIS early in the game. 🙂

The "fault", as it were, is not in our "early" prepping for next year, it is in the late execution for this years ride. 😉

We, the Minions of the Three Flags Classic, are trying to get this event planning "back-on-track" as to how it was done for 35+ years, and get the riders...or potential riders...the info delivered to them at the Finish Banquet, so they can plan for next years ride that far in advance.

This does NOT mean that all, or 100% of all the work for the 2020 ride will be completed by the time of the Finish Banquet for 2019. It simply means that decisions will have been made as to the Start...and Finish locations for 2020, including the Start and Finish HOTEL info, and a basic understanding of the Route for next year, including Checkpoint TOWN locations, without being specific as to precisely which motel or dealership the Checkpoints will be located within.

Those finite decisions and contract agreements can be finalized in the months AFTER this years Finish Banquet.

But by having the base information available to be presented to the riders at the 2019 Finish Banquet, as we did for 35+ years, it builds an excitement in the riders, and they can ride home from this years' event, and begin planning next years' ride, knowing WHERE they can make reservations for their hotel stays at the Start and Finish, as well as plan their Route, and where they want to stay along that Route.

The "official" Route takes a lot of work, done by volunteers, and there is a lot of work that goes into making sure that every mile/kilometer is something that can be done, no issues with it, and makes for a fun/exciting/pleasurable ride for the masses to ride on. It is a good Route for riders to choose, if they are new to the Three Flags Classic, or want others to plan the riding route for them, or is a route they have not been on personally, so they can see new roads.

The "official" Routes are generally pretty darn good, and take the riders places that are intended to be good roads, and places of interest.

We are fortunate that this year Paul Lax is the Checkpoint Coordinator/Director, and the man knows what he is doing. Paul Lax is a many, many years veteran of the Three Flags Classic, a rider will a LOT of miles to his credit, but more importantly a LOT of common sense and logic. 😎

Howard, I hope this answers your question, albeit a book length reading.

The work for 2019 is 99% in the bag, and we need to get rolling on the 2020 ride, so we can feed that basic info to the riders at the Finish Banquet this year.

And I'm no newbie.