A little bit of ancient history here that might or might not help.

There were several Rhodie gatherings at or near the show in the late 90s 
early 00s. We did meet in restaurants a couple of times (I remember one 
at Carroll Creek and one at Buddy's and I think even a small informal 
one at Cantlers but Stan didn't come to that one.) The problem with the 
restaurants during the show is that they are super crowded and Stan (and 
Elton back then) couldn't get off until the show had closed and they had 
wrapped things up for the night.

The most successful one(s) we had were one or two that we had catered 
right at the boat after the show closed. They were catered by the BBQ 
place Red Hot & Blue (still in business) and several of us brought 
munchies, bottles of sodas, ice (and maybe ice tea ) for drinks - the 
wheeled cooler idea. I think the caterer supplied the tables and I don't 
remember who supplied paper goods and utensils. I remember that it 
seemed  like a big undertaking but one of our members, Jan Eyres, was a 
meeting planner and I distinctly remember her saying "oh this will be 
easy."  If I recall correctly, she made the arrangements with the 
caterer. Jan or Michael Meltzer (who just chimed in) made the 
arrangements with the show management to let the caterer in and maybe 
had the list of attendees. This would have to be done by someone acting 
on behalf of the vendor - General Boats. I believe we collected names so 
we had a list of everyone authorized to stay after the show closing. I 
collected the names of attendees and made nametags I found a nametag 
list with 20 names on it from 1998 (that might have been for a 
restaurant gathering) and one with 42 on it from 1999 - that was a big 
catered gathering at the Rhodes 22 display at the show. I'm still 
looking for photos but I may not have had many digital from back then.

Not sure what our rain plans were but we may have had the 1999 
equivalent of a couple of EZ-ups in reserve. I remember that we took 
over a couple of the vacated booths of other vendors and were very 
careful to leave all as we found it when we left.

Good memories.

Note that show management has changed and I have no idea of what current 
rules on such gatherings might be.

Best to all
Mary Lou
ex Rhodes 22
now Rosborough FR-246 Tara
Rock Hall, MD

On 8/3/2017 11:07 AM, marlangreen at gmail.com wrote:

> Dear Rhodies,
>
> Since this is the last year that Stan will be showing the Rhodes 22 at the
> Annapolis Show (that's still the case, right?), I wonder if it would be
> possible to organize a gathering for all of us and Stan to meet, socialize
> and just do what sailors do - tell stories.
>
> I know that in the past Rhodies have met one another by hanging out with
> Stan and the boats and that there have also been informal gatherings away
> from the actual show.
>
> This year could we choose a time and location in advance for a gathering?
>
> Would it be possible to arrange something for Friday or Saturday evening?
>
> I live in the DC metro area and my boat is south of Annapolis. I'm willing
> to help organize this. Would anyone else be willing to help? I don't think
> I can do it alone.
>
> I suspect that the biggest challenge will be finding a venue/restaurant
> that could accommodate us. It might be possible to find an outdoor location
> like a public park but then there is the risk of unfriendly weather.
>
> Do you think this is a good idea?
>
> Do you think it is something you would attend?
>
> Are you willing to help me pull it together?
>
> I'd love to hear your thoughts. If no one wants to do this I'll let it
> slide.
>
> If there is a Rhodie near Annapolis who might know of a venue or location
> please contact me. Better still -- is there a Rhodie in the Annapolis area
> who could host at their home?   :-)
>
> Thanks
>
> Marlan Green
> s/v Nautisaurus
> Holiday Hill Marina
> Mayo, MD
> Rhode River
> __________________________________________________
> To subscribe/unsubscribe go to http://www.rhodes22.org/mailman/listinfo/rhodes22-list
>
> For the list Charter and help with using the mailing list and archives go to http://www.rhodes22.org/list
> __________________________________________________
>


---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus