Deals Gap 2000 

The Event

by "Miata Larry" Cohen

Click on any of the images to see them in full size

Deals Gap is a more than a road, it's an event. 

This year The Gap took center stage to more than 250 Miatas during the weekend of July 29 and 30th, 2000.

Miataphiles from as far away as Canada, Texas, Illinois, Missouri and Ohio descended on the Tapoco Lodge in North Carolina for a weekend of fun and camaraderie. This is the third year for The Gap and it keeps on getting bigger and better. For those of you that don't know what I'm talking about, Deals Gap is a twisty eleven mile stretch of road with 318 turns, located in the Smoky Mountains at the corner of the North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia borders. It's usually inhabited by motorcycles but this weekend is set aside for Miatas.

Dennis and I decided to attend to see what a real grassroots, homegrown Miata event was like. Since I live in California and Dennis lives in Massachusetts, we figured the easiest way to get there was to drive from Boston. On Wednesday we left in a heavy rainstorm with a 3500 pound U-Haul glued to the back of Dennis'  F-150. We headed straight out the Mass Pike through western Mass into Connecticut, then New York. 

Now, if you've spent any time on this site you already know that I have a strong dislike for the Bambi. Suddenly the CB radio came alive with truckers warning everyone that a Smoky was stopped in the hammer lane (the left hand lane) and was directing traffic around something. That something turned out to be two miles of smooshed deer. This was smooshed like I'd never seen... Imagine dropping a watermelon off the Empire State Building. All righty then.

Before we left, we mapped the distance between Boston and The Gap to be around 800 miles. Maybe 18 hours of drive time but with road construction, accidents and brain-dead four wheelers it took 24 hours to get there. At around 8:00 we stopped to have some dinner. I called our hotel to let them know we'd be there soon. The folks in North Carolina (bless their hearts) move at a different speed then we're used to. I think the basic formula is something like:  three and a half hours real time equals forty-five minutes North Carolina time. 

Somewhere along the way we ended up on Old Highway 19 (as opposed to new Highway 19), a two lane twisty with no turnouts and a 8% grade for about nine miles. It was at this point that Mister U-Haul and Mrs. F-150 Brakes had a meltdown that sent Mister Brake Pedal plunging to the carpet. Mister First Gear and cousin Overdrive-Off whined as we careened down the hill finally coming to rest right in the middle of the Cherokee reservation (complete with a rather large neon emblazoned Harrah's Casino. We finally rolled into our hotel at 12:30 AM. Uh-huh.

After a few hours of sleep, it was time to head to the Tapoco Lodge. There were Miatas everywhere! They basically turn the place over to the clubs for the whole weekend.  The festivities began. Gap streaking anyone?

Driving The Gap can be a harrowing experience. If an accident occurs, it's known as "being bit by the dragon". I know that at least one black and red Miata tangled. One of them prematurely left the lodge "on the hook".

Living in Santa Cruz, California has spoiled me and made me forget just how hot the Southeast can be. This year was cool compared to what it was like last year. The thermometer hovered in the mid 80's with humidity at about 200% (well, it felt that way). This combination of heat and humidity got us sweating and introduced us to "sweat bees". Nasty little gnats that bite and bite and bite. Go figure?  

Despite the heat, humidity and sweat bees we had a terrific time. We got to meet many of you that had previously been only voices on the phone. We ate catfish and hush puppies, listened to bluegrass music and hung out with some of the coolest people and cars on the planet.

A special thanks to Rich Little and Russell who took Dennis and I on a run through the Gap.

We'll see ya'll down yonder next year. Uh-huh!