[landcruiser123]

Ok, better late than never. With illness, work commitments, and me just being lazy, I delayed this way too much. It is Halloween, so here's a treat!!! No tricks, I guarantee.

The meet did go on as planned. I'll let the pictures do the talking. (Image credits to their respective owners)

Feeding the beast

The early birds

The whole gang

Ready to roll

It's fall y'all

rohittunga the choreographer

Hot wheels and cool folks

rohittunga with the Fiesta ST

Mpower and the Mini Cooper RS

Saket and the Rapide

rachitagarwal and Madhavi and their Q5

jeevadeepan with the Genesis G70

landcruiser123 with the 'stang

Shrikar (non-BHPian) and his sister Mahathi with the ILX

Yash98 with the Impala

After a delicious lunch

Leaders doing the scouting

Coffee and cars at the iconic 555 diner

A compulsory selfie

"Kitna det hai?"

The men, women, and their machines

Miscellaneous:

Beautiful roads and foliage

Majestic

Route planning stop

Friednly BHPian jeevedeepan shares this:

https://youtu.be/LMzL1SMwjBk

Overall, it was one hell of a trip. Great company, amazing roads, and many, many curves!

A note on the Mustang:
I rented a 2.3 Ecoboost convertible with the High Performance Pack (330 HP) and 6-speed standard transmission

The Mustang is certainly an American Icon, and for good reason. It can do some serious speeds and is equally adept and tackling corners. Having a lighter engine in the front certainly seems to help with the agility of the car. During the drive on the winding country roads, the 3rd gear is your friend. It was incredible fun revving the nuts off the machine going from 25 to 65 mph during the elevation changes.

One thing I did find hard getting used to was the long hood. Some elevation changes in the rolling hills had to be tackled with extra care in the pony car. I was literally seeing clouds going uphill, and didn't know which direction to turn the wheel downhill.

While the standard transmission was fun, I couldn't really stop thinking about the same car with the 10 speed AT which I had driven 6 months ago. Am I becoming an AT convert?

Cheers!

[yuvmudapa]

Great to see BHPians not only in India but in the US enjoying too!

[rohittunga]

Rust Belt States Meetup #8 - Ohio Triple Nickel (October 8 - 9, 2022)

Thanks for the report Landcruiser123. Just a little bit of background on the route. If you remember we did the Ohio 555 in June 2021 . That time we did just the 555 and everybody were amazed. Upon researching I realized that the surrounding areas near 555 are on par or even better in terms of driving pleasure. From our previous 2 meets(Ohio 555 & Tail of the Dragon), if I have to sum up the qualities needed to make a great driving road, it has to be all of the following:

1. Windy Roads: Interstates and 4-laned highways are boring. They’re alright for covering massive distances but windy roads is where the fun lies
2. Less Traffic & No Tourists: If the place is touristy, forget it ! There will be tonnes of people and traffic and inevitably cops which puts a dampener to everything.
3. Elevation changes: That’s a bonus but my goodness does that help. The element of surprise is what makes roads with elevation changes great. And Ohio 555 had them in truck loads.

And this being the United States, excellent quality of tarmac is more or less a given.

Just to give you a frame of reference, the map on the left shows our route during our June 2021 Ohio 555 Meet. And on the right was the route we drove this time. A whole juicy ~150 miles of “the perfect roads”. Words fail to describe the thrill you get driving on these roads. Only those who’ve been there can attest to that fact.



It might appear that I’m blowing my own trumpet but on roads like these you need a hot hatch. You need something agile, nimble and chuckable to have fun here. Once again, it was the R53 Mini Cooper S and the Ford Fiesta ST that probably had the most amount of fun. You know it's that mantra "slow car fast" that is so apt here. Both these hot hatches were unreal on these roads and had left the rest of the convoy a considerable distance behind. How I wish that were my commute every day. Aaahhh wishful thinking !

My brakes were literally smoking after a spirited run. I only stopped to record this moment as its recommended to keep driving slowly to cool off your brakes.

https://vimeo.com/766661870

A small break with the Mini & Genesis waiting for the rest of the convoy to catch up. Since cellphone coverage is spotty, its best to ensure everybody are together before proceeding ahead


The other details of our drive were just the usual stuff. Our favorite (might I say the only place on 555 for food) restaurant Triple Nickel Diner was lovely as usual with the restaurant folks recognizing us from our previous visit. That came as a pleasant surprise. Our lunch stop was a Mediterranean restaurant called TLV in Marietta, OH was great as well. Lastly our entire convoy of 8 cars including an Aston Martin Rapide were sticking together as much as possible and rarely did anyone get lost and most importantly there weren’t any untoward incident.



We inadvertently created a 4x4 course for the locals to test their side-by-side

https://vimeo.com/766662876

Another extremely successful Rust Belt TBHP meet in the books. We missed a few of our regular members due to unforeseen circumstances. Hope they all participate the next time we meet which is going to be very very soon.

[cooldudesunny]

What!! I am near to Chicago too, how do i make the next meet?

[vj123]

Originally Posted by cooldudesunny

What!! I am near to Chicago too, how do i make the next meet?

If you can PM me your mobile number, i can add you to our WA group.

[cooldudesunny]

Originally Posted by vj123

If you can PM me your mobile number, i can add you to our WA group.

Thanks VJ, PM'd you my number

[nikhilarni]

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

Ok, better late than never. With illness, work commitments, and me just being lazy, I delayed this way too much. It is Halloween, so here's a treat!!! No tricks, I guarantee.

The meet did go on as planned. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Cheers!

Wow. Amazing pictures. I vividly recall the last meet on the 555. Boy! What fun it was.

With that lineup of machines, I am sure it was a super fun meet and thrilling drive.

Looking forward to the next meet.

Originally Posted by rohittunga

Rust Belt States Meetup #8 - Ohio Triple Nickel (October 8 - 9, 2022)

That time we did just the 555 and everybody were amazed. Upon researching I realized that the surrounding areas near 555 are on par or even better in terms of driving pleasure.

The master planner cannot go wrong. I can imagine, if we had so much fun last time around, with the new roads you've discovered, it would have taken the thrill factor several notches higher.

Having experienced your ST on the TOD, I am sure it would have been hoots to drive.

[mobike008]

I love working from home.

It allows you to combine work with pleasure or vice-versa.

I was in Detroit to attend the house warming ceremony of a close pal and decided to catch up with a few Detroit BHP'ians.

It was a quick catch up at the most iconic location- Ford Garage in the city of Ford.

Following BHPians met last Thursday (November 10th, 2022) and enjoyed some good 'ol memories and great times amongst everything that reeks automotive in this wonderful restaurant like their door handles, rest rooms, the first original ford car hanging from roof (2 of them inside, 3 of them outside), engines serving drinks and tires all around the place.

It has an eclectic atmosphere for sure..

This used to be my regular jaunt when I used to live in Detroit and love their burgers, onion rings (served on a pump nozzle ) and shrimp appetizer.

Following Folks met and a few pictures.

1. Mobike008
2. MPower
3. Dreamseller
4. Damo (Non BHPian and a colleague of mine)

Enjoy !

My ride- Chevrolet Traverse



Gang (Left to Right)- Dreamseller, Damo, Mobike008 and Power

















Mobike008 & Mpower- Posing with Mpower's Mini Cooper

[21Archer84]

Originally Posted by rohittunga

Just to give you a frame of reference, the map on the left shows our route during our June 2021 Ohio 555 Meet. And on the right was the route we drove this time. A whole juicy ~150 miles of “the perfect roads”. Words fail to describe the thrill you get driving on these roads. Only those who’ve been there can attest to that fact.

I"ve been not so active on Team-BHP for quite a while. Feel sad that i missed the opportunity to catch up with fellow BHPians and also drive around the beautiful road.

I did get a chance to visit Hocking Hills with family and can totally agree with your opinions.

Would be an honor to be part of the group so that i do not miss the next meets in and around MI,OH.

[landcruiser123]

Originally Posted by 21Archer84

Would be an honor to be part of the group so that i do not miss the next meets in and around MI,OH.

Hi 21Archer84,
We will definitely be planning more drives towards Spring '23.

Will send you a PM as we have a WhatsApp group as well.

[vj123]

2023 Spring meet

We are planning our first meet in 2023. Several members have confirmed their availability and the details are yet to be finalized.

Send me a PM if you want to be added to our WhatsApp group.

Date: 25-Mar-23
Time: AM (Exact time - TBD)
Location: Ann Arbor (Exact location - TBD)
Agenda: Meet in the AM, Lunch in AA downtown and Drive for a few hours.
Driving route: Around Ann Arbor or US12 Heritage trail.

Participants:
1. vj123 from Metro Detroit area with Subaru Crosstrek

[landcruiser123]

Thanks, @vj123

2023 Spring meet

We are planning our first meet in 2023. Several members have confirmed their availability and the details are yet to be finalized.

Send me a PM if you want to be added to our WhatsApp group.

Date: 25-Mar-23
Time: AM (Exact time - TBD)
Location: Ann Arbor (Exact location - TBD)
Agenda: Meet in the AM, Lunch in AA downtown and Drive for a few hours.
Driving route: Around Ann Arbor or US12 Heritage trail.

Participants:
1. vj123 from Metro Detroit area with Subaru Crosstrek
2. yash98 + landcruiser123 from Chicago, IL with a VW Jetta

[vj123]

2023 Spring meet

Date: 26-Mar-23 (Date has been change due to weather)
Time: 9 AM
Location: 1901 Fuller Rd, Ann Arbor, MI 48105
Itinerary: Brunch followed by drive from AnnArbor to Sturgis along US 12.

More about US12 Heritage trail: LINK

[vj123]

2023 Spring meet

Seven of us met in AnnArbor (another member joined us at our destination) last sunday before driving along the historic US12 heritage trail which runs between Detroit and Chicago. Weather was sunny and glad that we pushed the meet from saturday due to rain and heavy wind.

Some of us met the previous night for dinner at Neehees Troy which is a well known Indian street food place in the Metro Detroit area. After dinner, we headed over to Shatila bakery in Dearborn which has one of the best Middle Eastern sweets in this part of the country. We drove 45 minutes one way after dinner just to have a few sweets and ice cream. Plan was to meet by 9am the following morning in one of the University of Michigan parking lots in AnnArbor. Some of us met in Bloomfield and drove together through one of the nicest neighborhoods in the area and reached the meeting point by 9:45. After talking for a while and clicking pictures, we had a brunch before beginning the 2.5 hours drive. Since it was a game day in the Big house, we skipped having lunch in any of the restaurants in the downtown area.

Unlike a typical interstate, US12 is a single lane scenic winding road which passes through historic landmarks and small towns. It had plenty of passing zones to overtake slow moving vehicles and traffic was spare to the most part. Our first stop was at Michigan International Speedway which hosts Nascar races. We were clicking pictures for a while in the parking lot. Security Director of the facility offered us to drive along the track and click pictures in the podium area. He made our day and everyone of us were elated. After thanking him, we continued our drive and stopped in one of the many antique shops along the road. After spending some time there, we headed over to our final destination in Sturgis. We dispersed around 5 and everyone from Detroit area drove along the same route back home.

It was a good route considering the flat roads in the MidWest and was a great way to kick off our 2023 meets.

rohittunga with his Fiesta ST



yash98 with his Jetta



landcruiser123 with the ZL1



scatpack392 with his Challenger RT Scat pack



rachitagarwal with his Q37x



nikhilarni with his GLC



vj123 with his Camaro ZL1



University of Michigan - Parking lot



Michigan International Speedway - Parking lot







Michigan International Speedway - Podium area

[BhaskarG]

Nice! I look forward to pics from the USA meet-ups. Always some aspirational (for my Indian middle class brain, that is) cars to see .