Here is some incouraging news. Brad just posted this email he got from Senator Overby in TN: Rep. McCord and I just had a meeting with TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely. Comm. Nicely indicated he thinks they have the law enforcement piece worked out or nearly worked out for the Highway Patrol to patrol the Dragon during daylight hours (8 to 8). They do not, however, have the EMS piece worked out and he says it will take a written commitment from North Carolina that the state of North Carolina can provide suitable and appropriate EMS coverage. This written commitment needs to come from someone in North Carolina with authority to commit the resources to provide EMS coverage and needs to be addressed jointly to Commissioner Nicely and Safety Commissioner Mitchell. If such a letter is and can be forthcoming, please favor me with a copy Brad already has the letters in hand and feel that the barricades could be moved within days!!! The road will open from 8:00am to 8:00pm and will be manned by two law enforcement officers at all times. So if this happens as planned we all need to plan in the rules and not mess up all the hard work that everyone put in to get this done
Saw this in the Graham Star paper from RobinsvilleN.C. delegation wants 'The Dragon' open - The Graham Star - Graham County's hometown newspaper since 1955 - News
Ugh, it's a shame but true! Local businesses are really gonna be hit by this. At least most of us are still going
we have to make sure we spend as much as possible at Deal's Gap....normally, I don't buy tshirts there, because I have too many already. This year I'm going to, just to help fill their cash registers. Gonna try to eat a lot of lunches there as well....maybe we need a daily Deal's Gap Lunch & Shopping "run"....
UPDATE: from the Deals Gap Facebook: Ok Gang the new official day is monday for the Dragon to be reopened. TN had some questions that needed answered from NC to finish up the agreement. I just left t he County EMS office...thanks Larry. We have answered all the questions and once Graham county manager...thanks Kim approves it will send it off.
Lawyers have oked all the paperwork Monday (4/12) at 8 am The Dragon will be if full swing from 8 am until 8 pm everyday.
Or how about a very large "tip" jar that could be passed around and delivered to the chamber of commerce....:idea:
W00T! Now if we can convince the local LEO to let us do Midnight on the Dragon.... A huge thanks and kudos to all the folks that worked so hard in getting this done.
The fact that they agreed to open it during the day is a total bonus....don't push your luck in asking for a midnight run....
I was there at 8 AM when it opened. Did some video of the gates being unlocked and then I was the second car in (not counting US129 Photo and the Leo) behind a GTI. Did six runs this morning, four of which were all the way through with no one else on the road. It was awesome! [ame=http://vimeo.com/10885383]MINIBee at the re-opening of the Dragon on Vimeo[/ame]
Here is a ride report from a Rider friend: Well, here's my report: Road conditions: very good all things considered. There was a good bit of dirt on the north side of Shade Tree, but everything else was remarkably clear. No need to do a full on broom patrol. LEO: Here's where it gets interesting. There were two as expected. Whether from their own boredom or design, they shifted positions quite frequently. They are serious about keeping a lid on people being idiots. I talked to one THP for a few minutes, and he was a little ill about the folks that did get the awards today. Seems they had already been given a friendly warning. Bottom line, local or not you will get a ticket. Also, troopers from outside the area have been putting in requests for duty up there because of the serious overtime so count on there being a lot of new faces behind the radar gun. And they will absolutely not care if you have made 3000 passes and know the name of every corner. Traffic: Very minimal. I honestly expected to see more folks. There were probably never more than a dozen bikes at the store at any one time. I hope for their sake that that changes as word gets out. Rumor of the day: Hottest rumor was that they may get one lane open on the lake in a couple weeks (15 days). I would take that with a grain of salt. As you all know the Gap breeds rumors like Tribbles. I won't believe it until theroyz71 posts it. BTW, the warning sign on the gate is not the only one. There are a couple others as well as one approaches the gate. Final take: Is it as fun riding without cracking 45? Absolutely not. Is it better than not having the road open at all? Without a doubt.
Well cool, thanks for the update. I am very pleased to be able to hit the Dragon when I get down there.