Icetrack meet 2018. Time to ditch Lapland

DaBoom

Worlds fastest Amish
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Trying to start off early for people planning on flying to the meet. The idea about going to Lapland for a winter meet has been in the talks for years and looks like this is the year when there's enough interest to endure the rather tedious transfer towards the lovely northern wilderness.

Plans at the moment are rather vague, but outlines for this winters meet are as follows;
-heading to (southern) Lapland for that proper winter touch
-date will most likely be set around late February, as every week towards summer will make a huge difference on day length. Feel free to suggest something specific
-there's a skiing area right next to the place we're planning on going, so anyone interested (and with enough time) are free to join, as I'll be heading there before the meet
-if looking for flights, you'll get a ride from Helsinki I'm sure. But if someone is pressed for time, Kittil? (KTT) is an option in the north, right next to the area where we will be.

As usual, I should be able to offer some loaners. It will be a long drive, but doable over a long weekend. :)

There's also a poll for gauging interest, so would those interested be kind enough to respond there, so I'll know which size a place I need to find for https://beta.doodle.com/poll/6kmkwh9xnkrwpnqt

Edit:

So, to make it clear again, for now we have a cabin booked near Pudasj?rvi, from Thursday afternoon to Monday morning, January 25th to 29th and a track for Saturday.


So what did we end up with then. Well, we have ourselves 7 bedrooms, each with room for 3-5 people. 4 toilets, with Adrian access as well. :razz: Two conference rooms, kitchen and of course a sauna, which should be larger than what we?ve had in Joensuu. Place is called Lent?j?nmaja, which is a clue for Finnish speakers..


..Because for Saturday, we have ourselves an airfield! :w00t: That is to say, 3km of runway width area to play around for the whole day, right next to the cabin. Works for getting used to winter action, I think?


So, on to Sunday plans then. Since the dates changed, I need to contact the other track still and confirm those arrangements. At this point I should point out that my estimates put the price / person at around 110eur (that?s 4 nights at the cabin + airfield). The other track will bring that to about 150eur with current participant numbers. But those will go down if we get more people attending. Not free, but quite reasonably priced, I think. But anyway, the OuluZone track planned is about 60km away and will be an actual ice track (race track in summer as well).The paved track is 1.4km long at least, not sure about winter layout. And weather permitting there?s an option of trying a 2.9km (iirc) special stage as well. That won?t be included in our track reservation, so it will be optional 50eur/car/3 hours addition for those interested.


So that was the stuff that needed reservations beforehand. That leaves us (or those arriving as early as planned) a free Friday. Well, there?s a skiing centre 50km away, which will provide two activities for those interested: Snowmobiles and skiing. :mrgreen: To give a bit of an idea, snowmobiles are about 100eur/2h, or 70eur/2h for legacy hardware. This includes necessary riding gear. Skiing tickets are 31eur/3h, or 38eur/day and renting gear is 29eur/38eur accordingly. I?m sort of planning on doing both on that day and willing to try teaching anyone wanting to try skiing or snowboarding (latter I?m more qualified with).


After all this summarizing, I?m back to monetary things. The cabin+airfield track reservation has a 50% booking fee, so I?ll be needing some money soon. I?m not a fan of displaying my account details on an open forum. So as is usual for me, there will be a planning sheeeeeet that will get shared to people attending (with more detailed info about everything as well). I was actually planning on doing a Thomas and opening a dedicated account for this, but cheapskate in me was against the ~40eur annual banking costs, even if it?s used only once. So for now I?ll deal with the arrangementings like I?ve done previously.


Did I miss anything? Let?s get this (snow)ball rolling.
 
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As you well know, I will probably be there. Either in the 140 or flying ;-)
 
just decide the days, so i can use my overtime/summerholidays :lol:
 
1ujk4j.jpg


I saw a cheap Legacy on Auto Trader because, y'know, icetrack n00b...
 
Ah, there's a new option!

Indeed. Since there were more people interested I added the option to clarify things. There's a good chance other accommodation arrangements are needed for those days.

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I saw a cheap Legacy on Auto Trader because, y'know, icetrack n00b...

Faster ditching!

I recommend rwd though. Much more achievable fun and much less speed to cause damage with. :p
 
As you well know, I will probably be there. Either in the 140 or flying ;-)
If you decide to go in the 140: shotgun from Hamburg!

Otherwise I'll probably fly in to Helsinki - Kittil? would be 340 Euros for the cheapest return flight, Helsinki a mere 150 (stopover in Riga) or 214 (non stop) Euros.
 
Put Munch and I down as (almost) definite. I'm too old and scared to become a better skier but I'm bang up for this one and it's already in our savings plan for things to aim for. Let us know definite dates soonest so we can secure the cheapest flights to Helsinki and yes, a loaner rather than a hire care would be ideal if you are feeling generous in that regard.
 
Put Munch and I down as (almost) definite. I'm too old and scared to become a better skier but I'm bang up for this one and it's already in our savings plan for things to aim for. Let us know definite dates soonest so we can secure the cheapest flights to Helsinki and yes, a loaner rather than a hire care would be ideal if you are feeling generous in that regard.


Earlier this week there were ~115eur return flights from London, so should be doable. :) Leave couple days earlier and you get to train skiing again on the same go as well. ;)
 
Sounds good. Get the dates confirmed ASAP and if required I will pawn a kidney!
 
Return flight from D?sseldorf with Finnair for the dates Thursday Feb 22 to Monday Feb 26 comes out at ? 305. Hm...

Return ferry from Travem?nde for a car with 3 people* is ? 630 without or ? 1200 with possibility for cancellation. Eugh. Add petrol to that...

*loose_unit, Eye-Q, me ;)
 
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I like where this thread is going. Also, cars are cheap to add to the ferry booking, it's only the cabin that's pricey.. ;) :p
 
I'm planning to make it again this year (sadly no Lexus to sell this time), hopefully with quite a few other Brits in convoy.

Not sure on how many of us will be making the 4,000km trek from the Midlands yet, I'll try and get commitment once the dates are set! Whoever I can round up should be coming in a ?250 RWD banger so I imagine there'll be some potential loaners in the UK fleet.
 
Faster ditching!

I recommend rwd though. Much more achievable fun and much less speed to cause damage with. :p

Duly noted, hopefully cheaper too. :)
 
Return flight from D?sseldorf with Finnair for the dates Thursday Feb 22 to Monday Feb 26 comes out at ? 305. Hm...

Return ferry from Travem?nde for a car with 3 people* is ? 630 without or ? 1200 with possibility for cancellation. Eugh. Add petrol to that...

*loose_unit, Eye-Q, me ;)

Just drive via Sweden, the planned destination is close enough to the border?

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You're the only one interested in skiing it seems :p

We can tow someone behind the car on skis...
 
Preparations to improve the Sierra's pathetic performance last year have started.
 
Do we have dates confirmed yet? I would rather get the flight bookings confirmed sooner rather than later as prices will only go up.
 
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