Chrysler 300M Enthusiasts Club
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Discuss Club Meetings and Functions

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 #381021  by First Lady
 
It’s hard to believe it’s over! Another Ocean City in the books and boy was it memorable!

Each car in attendance this year took a different route to start the weekend. Clarence and Stephanie arrived a day early so they could check out the wild horses, Robert and Nick arrived in PA to Nick’s family’s house to visit with their niece instead of a direct drive from MI, and Keith and I spent the night in DE making for an amazingly short drive on Thursday morning.

The group started to gather on Thursday afternoon and thought ahead with a late lunch at Secrets with strategic parking so when we were finished we’d be ready for the show. A delicious lunch was had, we resisted the hard sell by the photographer, and laughs already started! The show was great and the Ms looked awesome! Finished up the evening with Dumsers ice cream for dinner and confirmation that the word search is different – we were rather stumped with this one and Robert was the only one not to get too distracted by ice cream arriving to the table and finished. Back at the hotel we were amazed at how ‘small’ the beach seemed as high tide peeked the water reached the boardwalk wall – an amazing sight to see and a telling sight for the rest of the weekend. Wrapped up the night with a little bit of electrical correction and laughs in the parking lot.

This year we stayed back at the Days Inn, which we had been to previously and while the rooms are smaller, the view is great – ocean front for sliding doors open at night = great sleeping, the parking lots are easier to get in and out of and they’ve already emailed me about our stay and inviting us back for next year.

Friday morning traditionally begins with lining up for the parade and Stephanie distributed candy for all three cars to throw – what a hit! The parade was great this year! Very well attended by spectators, especially in the higher up streets – we’d later find out why there weren’t as many toward the inlet. Great reaction to the cars this year and of course the candy was a hit! As we entered the lot we got decent parking spots and headed to our traditional breakfast spot. On the way we discovered something that hadn’t happened in 20 years – the bay was flooding!! With the lunar cycle and a noreaster storm off shore it was the perfect mix for a storm surge to cause the bay to flood and spill over into the roads. It was a sight!!!!

Breakfast was good as always and back to get the cars cleaned and setup for the day. We had great conversations with spectators but noticed the inlet was sparse – well, the road in was flooded so the only way in that morning was via the parade. If you missed it, you weren’t able to enter until about 1pm when the road reopened. It was pretty cold with a very strong wind. Our first round of Thrashers fries were delicious and confirmation with John that we were captured on the local cameras for him to keep an eye on us!

Friday evening we had a group dinner with windburn faces at Watermans which started with a round of rum buckets, delicious appetizers, and clean plate worth entrees. Following dinner the group headed to the casino for a show to support breast cancer. Again, the cars all looked great and Robert schooled me in Mario Kart. We just made it back over the bridge before flooding and were able to take the much shorter trip back to the hotel. There were some early sleepers but Keith, Robert, Wendy, and I took up a spot on the rock-wall along the road.

Saturday morning began early for Robert, Keith, Clarence, and Stephanie under mission: O-Dark-Thirty Covert Ops. As they approached flooded roads it was obvious they were not going to drive through the sea water – what to do?! Never fear…with a trusty look out (Stephanie) sent to scope out the scene three cars under darkness drove the wrong way down one-way streets to ensure entry to the inlet. Lessons they learned – 1) even when Keith tries to be quiet, his exhaust will be loud as ever. 2) Unlock the door before picking up the lookout. 3) Catch the police officer nearing the end of his shift after a night of strict enforcement who will keep his head down and not ‘notice’ you. 4) Blame it all on the sebring club. Too jazzed up about their illegal entry, the group hung out before naps in the car. Again, due to flooded roads the only way into the lot for all the other cars was via the parade which they extended into 3 waves on the boardwalk. Cue second breakfast at our traditional café!

The day was beautiful weather wise which made for a crowed boardwalk. Following the statement ‘I have an idea’ Clarence, Keith, Robert, Stephanie, and I all squeezed our way into a photo booth for a few pictures! It was rather hilarious! We had pretzel wraps for lunch and checked on our pictures thanks to Robert thinking ahead with having his number. All three of us out of the store before the crazy lady next to us! The afternoon found Robert and I checking out the welding station where we also got to use the plasma cutter. Both so cool to do and added to our shopping lists! Oh the mods we could do if we had both systems!!! We stayed at the lot due to the tide schedule and headed to pizza for dinner on the boardwalk. Not to worry, while they were serving a limited menu due to closing for the season soon, they still had what we needed!
Saturday night was the Boy Scout sponsored night show which was very well attended in both cars and spectators. About 20 minutes into it, two last guys pulled in with quite the spectacle! The scouts raised more than $600 at the event and Keith took home an award. We were too full for ice cream so we headed back to the hotel parking lot. We shared drinks and stories and laughs and it was great!

Sunday, typically our later morning, also started early due to the tide chart and not knowing what the roads would be like. Luckily there as minimal flooding and no illegal actions needed to be taken to enter the inlet! We parked in the second row of cars – amazing location but noticed the bird poop was a real issue this close to Thrashers! Speaking of which, our final buckets were shared in the lot and we made our annual trip to the dog store so the pups would be spoiled.

The club was recognized for our banner – yay!! Thanks to Bob for sending with bungees and to Clarence for transporting for the group. Keith was also recognized by the National Street Rod Association (NSRA) which was a surprise as the M doesn’t fall into their age of cars. A true surprise!

The worst part then follows as we get our last custard from Kohrs and the goodbyes. It’s always better to be able to part ways when there’s a sooner date to see each other again.
beespecial, StealthM, FIREM and 1 others liked this
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 #381022  by beespecial
 
Another great write up Lindsey. As much as I was texting you guys and checking in on the web cams, it almost made up for the fact that I wasn't actually there in person.
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 #381024  by Sneke_Eyez
 
Sounds like a wonderful time was had by all as usual! Thanks for the writeup, Lindsey!
First Lady liked this
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 #381027  by LUNAT1C
 
We stayed at Chez Armentrout again Sunday night and arrived safely back in Berkley last night before 9, after playing with little miss Winter a bit more. She smiled at Nick, so he's happy that she likes him after all. Also discovered she likes shiny things as she kept trying to take my wristwatch and phone. :lol:

Definitely sad to be back at work after seeing the family we so rarely get to see. We're planning to drive to Royersford again for xmas week, so I'll be in touch with our NJ friends for at least one of those days hopefully!

Also though it was interesting how our return travels kept M-Pressive and Luna together at least until the Wawa immediately before 113 hit Rt 1!
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 #381030  by First Lady
 
LUNAT1C wrote: October 15th, 2019, 11:02 am Also though it was interesting how our return travels kept M-Pressive and Luna together at least until the Wawa immediately before 113 hit Rt 1!
Yes, we kept talking about where you would break off. Is that a different way because you were headed to PA or would you have gone that way to MI too?
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 #381035  by LUNAT1C
 
That's the most efficient route to PA according to Google Maps, 113 and 1. Sometimes I take the main strip all the way up through the DE beaches rather than the 50 or 90 bridges. The 90 bridge is how we always come over since we head to the convention center first thing.
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