TLCA 31st Annual Rubithon - 2019 Registration Now Open - NEW DATES!! (1 Viewer)

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reddingcruiser

Practicing for retirement
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Well, just like that 2019 came in like a lion, and it snowed and snowed and snowed...…………….(and we're still waiting for it to go out like a lamb).

So, here’s the news many folks have been expecting: the Rubithon is being postponed due to the record snow pack in the Sierra-Nevada Range. Anyone that knows the Rubicon Trail, and who has seen firsthand what Mother Nature has dumped on the Sierras over the past three months, also knows this announcement was coming. Those familiar with the Rubicon Trail know how a record snow pack affects access to the upper parts of the trail, particularly from Tahoma Staging down to Rubicon Springs. While lower portions of the trail may be passable, this key route for supplying the logistical needs of the Rubithon is at a higher elevation, largely protected by shade, and is one of the last areas to ‘thaw out’. Though thoughts of a snow trip may sound appealing to some folks, the risk of keeping the original dates with the chance we might be able to get though is not worth the logistical nightmare that would be caused by a last minute date change.

Just so everyone is aware, the new dates where reserved almost a month ago when it became obvious that California was headed for a year of record precipitation, so I have been mulling this over for quite some time. The potential for being snowed out is always a risk when we are the first major run of the season. I weighed the options and selected the best/earliest dates that would minimize the chance that we would be dealing with too much snow, high water and too much mud. I also had to consider dates where we would be assured we would have all of our usual spots at Rubicon Springs. Of course, the other major consideration was the potential damage that could be done to the trail by trying to force a hundred or more rigs through sensitive areas of the trail saturated by run-off.

This is truly one decision where not everyone will be happy with the change. From parents with kids who will have conflicts with the first week of school (who knew, I always started school the week before Labor Day), to folks who need to plan vacation time 6 to 12 months in advance, to folks who simply will not be able to adjust their schedules. I want everyone to know I do understand and respect your decisions, but I am hoping that rescheduling the Rubithon now, rather than later, will give the greatest number of folks a chance to rearrange vacation and travel plans.

The upside? The same starry nights, the same friendly faces (a little dustier, maybe), longer and warmer days for sunbathing, warmer water for swimming (I doubt there will be a shortage of water, even by August), and fewer mosquitos.

I will be reaching out over the next week to everyone who has already registered to see they can adjust to the new dates. I truly hope most folks will be able to adjust and still plan to attend the 31st Rubithon.

Oh, the new dates! The Rubithon has been rescheduled for August 13th through August 18th. We’ll see you there!

If you have questions please contact me at chairman@rubithon.com or 530-949-2304

Use the same registration link below.

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Just in case you missed last year’s Rubithon, the subsequent Toyota Trails Rubithon article, or you just had other things distracting you last year, you might have noticed Bad Coco (Eric Agee) isn’t starting the official Rubithon thread this year. Well, that’s because there’s a new Chairman in town! Fortunately for all of us, however, Eric is still in the wings helping me with the ins and outs (and do’s and don’ts) of putting the Rubithon together, as he hands over the Chairman reins and prepares for a much deserved Rubithon ‘retirement’.

As is customary, I’m sure some of this year’s Trail Leads will set up their own ‘mud threads as we get closer to June, in order to keep questions and details about their respective runs in one place and provide for direct communication. Feel free to join in once those threads are posted, or contact me if you’re not seeing the information you need.

It's time to get officially excited.
Online registration for the 31st Annual Rubithon is now available! You can now register at:

2019 Rubithon Registration
SPECIAL NOTE - EFFECTIVE 6/1/19

Moving the Rubithon dates as I had to certainly invited repeat effects from the law of unintended consequences, and the cut-off date I had set for late registrations and shipping your t-shirts and hoddies is no exception.

After speaking again with the vendors for our apparel, dash plaques and other printed materials it was determined our orders must be placed by July 1st to guarantee they are at the Rubithon when you arrive. T-Shirts, hoodies, etc. ordered with registrations received after July 1st will most likely have to be mailed after the Rubithon.

Again, in order to guarantee that your tee shirts, hoodies, dash plaques and other printed materials are at the Rubithon when you arrive, we need to receive registration NO LATER THAN July 1st. (Previous date was July 15th) I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. :(

This only effects the items noted, period. Everything else remains the same.


Like last year, you will be able pay directly on the site with a credit card or PayPal, or you can still send in a check. Registration works with Windows or Macs, and can be completed from your mobile devices.

Just like last year, each month one lucky person will get an extra Grand Prize Raffle ticket, drawn from among the folks that register each month from now through May 31st.

As always, your optimism, enthusiasm, and prayers are welcome to ensure all the ducks get in lined up in a row, the weather cooperates and the trail is ready and open.

You can reach me at chairman@rubithon.com or at 530-949-2304.

Thanks, Dick Thompson
 
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Some important changes with respect of air ambulance service on the Rubicon Trail and other areas in California and Nevada.


There have been several important changes that need to be brought up and discussed so that all users can ensure they are properly protected while out on the trail. While this thread is addressed primarily to Rubithon participants, it pertains to all of us that have been protected by AMCN and previously CalStar.


Unlike in years past, AMCN will no longer allow us to collect your information and send your payment in with our group. You will soon see the new Chairman has adjusted the Premier Registration to account for this. Each household now has to submit and make payment on their own. We will however still be entitled to the Rubithon Group discount. The discount code for Rubithon is 11148 and the rate is $65 for the entire household vs the non-member price of $85.


Another big change is that AMCN and Care Flight are no longer reciprocal partners. This came to our attention after one of our Rubithon members was flown out from another event and Care Flight was the transporting helicopter. Luckily for him, his personal health insurance paid for nearly all of this, but not all of us are that fortunate! There is no way to ensure which air ambulance comes. It’s a matter of which aircraft is closest and available.


I have been in contact with Care Flight and they have set up a Rubithon Group as well. The group price for the household air ambulance plan is $30 vs. their normal price of $55. The coverage is different than that of AMCN. With the Care Flight plan, they will bill the insurance first and then cover the remainder. If you do not have health care coverage, they only give you a 20% discount on the medical flight.


To sign up for the AMCN plan, you can wait until you sign up for Rubithon and the application will be emailed to you as a PDF, or if you need it sooner, you can email Eric Agee at firemedic@wildblue.net and he will get it to you.


To sign up for the Care Flight plan, they are working on getting us a PDF that we can email to you, but for now go to: Membership Form - REMSA-CF - Formstack


Under the membership plan select the middle one that says Care Flight Plan. Don’t worry that it says $55.


Enter your personal information and household member’s info.


At the bottom, in the comments section, it is very important that you type in you are a member of the group Rubithon.


When you go to pay for the plan, ONLY PAY $30. Care Flight will not refund you if you forget, but will allow you to pay another $5 and will cover you for 2 years if you make a mistake.


While I am no longer the Chairman of Rubithon, I will be handling issues as they relate to our partnerships with these two agencies. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at firemedic@wildblue.net or give me a call at 530-401-0800.


Looking forward to seeing everyone out on the trail this year!

Eric
 
Subscribed and looking forward to it.

The air ambulance thing sounds like a real pain. Am I correct that 1-There is no control over which company is called and does the evac, and 2- you need to join both networks to assure coverage? And that to join both sounds like $95. Hmmm. Time to check health plan benefits more carefully! If your insurance covers air evac, there is certainly no reason to join REMSA-Care Flight since it sounds like they bill your insurance anyway.

Rather than joining a network specifically, isn't there an insurance plan that would cover individuals for event evacuation? That would make more sense to me than joining 2 networks.
 
Subscribed and looking forward to it.

The air ambulance thing sounds like a real pain. Am I correct that 1-There is no control over which company is called and does the evac, and 2- you need to join both networks to assure coverage? And that to join both sounds like $95. Hmmm. Time to check health plan benefits more carefully! If your insurance covers air evac, there is certainly no reason to join REMSA-Care Flight since it sounds like they bill your insurance anyway.

Rather than joining a network specifically, isn't there an insurance plan that would cover individuals for event evacuation? That would make more sense to me than joining 2 networks.
I"m thinking the same thing , pay for a service thinking i"m covered ??? And BAMB you are not , ??????????
 
As Eric mentioned, with regards to air ambulance services, either AMCN or Care Flight will respond. They do not have reciprocal agreements, and that's why there are two separate plans. So, the issue is: how will the bill get paid if someone needs to be air-lifted out of the Rubicon? Remember folks, this happens regularly, and not just for accidents, but for plain old medical emergencies.

For folks that don't want to worry and just want the peace of mind knowing that one way or another they'll get flown out, taking both plans is an option.

For folks that have read the fine print on their auto policies AND confirmed with agent and insurance carrier that they are indeed covered OFF ROAD AND IN THE BOONIES - cool!

For those of us who are more conservative and are probably covered (over - cautious), it's still "cheap insurance" and one less thing to worry about.

As always, just my two cents worth.
 
I have been in contact with Care Flight and they have set up a Rubithon Group as well. The group price for the household air ambulance plan is $30 vs. their normal price of $55. The coverage is different than that of AMCN. With the Care Flight plan, they will bill the insurance first and then cover the remainder. If you do not have health care coverage, they only give you a 20% discount on the medical flight.


Eric


So what exactly is the point of buying Care Flight network coverage? If your health plan covers, and Care Flight bills anyway, why join them at all? And if you don't have health insurance your fee covers only a 20% discount? That would be a $4000 "discount" on a $20,000 bill. Still sounds like you pay $16000, making it not really insurance at all. Not seeing the point to it, that's all.

I always liked the CalStar/AMCN approach because it was clean. Even if your health plan covers the flight, they were providing independent coverage. That was clean and seemed reasonable with no questions asked. And I have always joined even though covered by my Kaiser plan. And I plan to join again this year. But this Care Flight group seems like they are taking advantage of a situation here (ie that they "might" be called, in order to muscle in on the business, and then charge a fee that isn't really buying anything)

Some things for everyone to check:
-Coverage by your health plan
-Coverage by AAA (Reading the fine print, it looks like AAA covers with Premier level membership, but would have to call)
-Coverage by your auto insurance
-Coverage by many credit cards


Regarding the event as a whole, isn't there a way to buy an insurance coverage that would cover the entire event, and then spread that among the participants? That way you don't have to individually buy into a Network, and instead the Air Ambulance company just bills the insurance company in the event of a call.
 
Fired up for this year's Rubithon. My son will finally be driving legally! Hoping to get the 14 bolt on the back shaved - I think I left metal on every rock on the road last year.
 
The Pryor Clan is super stoked for this year's Wagon Run!!!!!!!

I've started a Wagon Run thread so please use that for run-specific communication:
2019 Rubithon Wagon Run

Steve
 
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Looking forward to this years Rubithon! Watching the rain and snow come down, hopefully wont be too dusty.
 
OKAY! Registrations are beginning to stack up, just as snow continues to stack up in the Sierra-Nevada range! But Punxsutawney Phil says we are going to have an early spring, and the Farmer's Almanac agrees. So, if you trust a large rodent and a book written over a year ago by folks that probably work in an office without windows, we'll be just fine! It's probably safe to say, however, there won't be a shortage of water to play in at the Springs (for those Eskimo types out there).

Now that the last of transitional technical issues have been put to rest👏, the drawing for the January Extra Grand Prize ticket will be happening shortly.

Remember: when you register early you have a chance of winning multiple times. All of the registrations from the previous months go into the barrel for the drawing at the end of each successive month. So, the first drawing will include only January, for a lucky few :). February's drawing will include January and February, March will include January and February, and so on.

So, keep those Rubithon Registrations rolling in, good luck, and we'll see you on the trail!!!!!!
 
...snow continues to stack up in the Sierra-Nevada range! But Punxsutawney Phil says we are going to have an early spring, and the Farmer's Almanac agrees.

Hmm...

1910310
 
You may be building an ark in the valley, but the snow will be gone.
 

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