9/12/10 Hay Days Debacle Chat
Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 7:49 am
For those of you who went to Hay Days in Sunrise Township, Minnesota, I share your pain. Although Hay Days has been an annual event for 44 years, this was the first year in this new and highly anticipated location.
Hay Days is known to many as the largest Grass Drag and Swap Meet Event of the season. Tagging their event as the "Official Start of Winter" has got thousands hoping it's not an indication of how the season will unfold. Now I can't speak for the Grass Drags, RC Car Races, Motorsports Freestyle Expo or the many vendor and manufacturer booths that were numerous and ready to please, but I can speak for the overall in regards to getting to Hay Days - Yikes
I hit traffic coming from the east about 7:45 am on Saturday. At this point, I was about 8 miles from Hay Days and traffic moved at a rate where I parked my car at 11:15. Yes, that's right. 3 1/2 hours to go 8 miles and the parking lot I was in (which was the last available lot for the event) was still over 1/2 mile from the event. Luckily Hay Days provided transportation from the lot to the gate.
Onward into the swap area. This is a big event, you can get almost anything you need for late model sleds and ATVs. Also just about anything else you can think of as the Hay Days Swap Meet each year turns into more of a rummage sale than a Snowmobile / ATV Swap Meet. The Swap Area has is also turning into a campground as it looks as if many swappers are using the swap fee to obtain a space to camp for the weekend. Hustling through the isles looking for Hus Ski and Diablo Parts, my mission was pretty clear. With that, it still took me almost 5 hours to get through it all. The only part I found was a Salsbury Primary Clutch with the 30mm taper which I was very happy to come across almost making the day worthwhile.
Upon heading back, the frequent tractor pulled wagons that brought us to Hay Days were no longer readily available. No problem though as the walk back to the truck was not difficult, just a little tiring after a long walk at the swap. On my way out of the lot in my truck, I learned just how bad the traffic to the event was when a couple guys asked me for a ride to their vehicle. 5 guys hoped in my truck with their swap meet spoils and off we went. Curious as to the distance, I checked the odometer and can you believe it, but I took these guys 4 1/2 miles back to their truck and I could still see cars parked along the road as far as I could see.
These poor chaps hit traffic at 7:30 that morning and got within 5 miles of Hay Days and were made to walk the rest of the way into the event walking through the gate at 1 pm.
The poor planning resulted in much pain and suffering and will certainly effect attendance at future shows.
Hay Days is known to many as the largest Grass Drag and Swap Meet Event of the season. Tagging their event as the "Official Start of Winter" has got thousands hoping it's not an indication of how the season will unfold. Now I can't speak for the Grass Drags, RC Car Races, Motorsports Freestyle Expo or the many vendor and manufacturer booths that were numerous and ready to please, but I can speak for the overall in regards to getting to Hay Days - Yikes
I hit traffic coming from the east about 7:45 am on Saturday. At this point, I was about 8 miles from Hay Days and traffic moved at a rate where I parked my car at 11:15. Yes, that's right. 3 1/2 hours to go 8 miles and the parking lot I was in (which was the last available lot for the event) was still over 1/2 mile from the event. Luckily Hay Days provided transportation from the lot to the gate.
Onward into the swap area. This is a big event, you can get almost anything you need for late model sleds and ATVs. Also just about anything else you can think of as the Hay Days Swap Meet each year turns into more of a rummage sale than a Snowmobile / ATV Swap Meet. The Swap Area has is also turning into a campground as it looks as if many swappers are using the swap fee to obtain a space to camp for the weekend. Hustling through the isles looking for Hus Ski and Diablo Parts, my mission was pretty clear. With that, it still took me almost 5 hours to get through it all. The only part I found was a Salsbury Primary Clutch with the 30mm taper which I was very happy to come across almost making the day worthwhile.
Upon heading back, the frequent tractor pulled wagons that brought us to Hay Days were no longer readily available. No problem though as the walk back to the truck was not difficult, just a little tiring after a long walk at the swap. On my way out of the lot in my truck, I learned just how bad the traffic to the event was when a couple guys asked me for a ride to their vehicle. 5 guys hoped in my truck with their swap meet spoils and off we went. Curious as to the distance, I checked the odometer and can you believe it, but I took these guys 4 1/2 miles back to their truck and I could still see cars parked along the road as far as I could see.
These poor chaps hit traffic at 7:30 that morning and got within 5 miles of Hay Days and were made to walk the rest of the way into the event walking through the gate at 1 pm. The poor planning resulted in much pain and suffering and will certainly effect attendance at future shows.