[MSCW list] MSCW 2026 Destination Drive #2 - Durham Bulls Baseball - 4/17/2026

[Timothy Metzinger]

Our second destination of the season will take us to see AAA Minor League Baseball in Durham, NC.  This will be an overnight trip, where we'll head down in the afternoon for an evening game and fireworks, spend the night in the Durham area, and head home after breakfast the next morning.   Because the movie "Bull Durham" was based on this ballpark and this team, I encourage you to watch the movie, there WILL be a quiz and I will buy the winner(s) of the quiz a Bulls hat, a beer, and a hot dog at the game.

The drive down will start on Friday afternoon (4/17/2026) near Fredericksburg, at the Falmouth Park and Ride (US17 near I-95).  We'll take the Interstates (I-95 and I-85) on the way down, and save the "fun" and longer route for our return the next day.   I'm going to stay near Duke (though it's been almost 40 years since I was there) at a Red Roof Inn.
On Saturday Morning, we'll meet for breakfast and then head North on US501 to Lynchburg, VA, where we'll get on US29 Northbound.  After 5 hours total, we'll arrive at the Northside 29 restaurant just south of I-66.  The drive will end here as people can find their way home from the Gainesville area.   If it's a warm day we will pass Moo Thru about 15 minutes before Northside 29 and can stop there if we wish.

We will have at least one bladder/fuel break on each day.  As far as tickets to the game are concerned, they'll go on sale the second week of February.  If you sign up by February 10th, I'll prepurchase tickets to cover you and your guests, and you can pay me back. I expect the tickets will be around $20 per seat, and I'll try to get us all in one section.  I'll buy a few extras, and I'll post here on the signup the section of the park where the 'early birds' will be, but after all the tickets I buy are gone, then folks are on their own to purchase their own tickets - you can call the Bulls at (919) 956-BULL after 2/12/2026 to buy ticket(s).

I'll post more details on the Bull Durham Quiz in late March.  Not quite sure if it will be done in person at the ball game or online right before we go.

Logistics:

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Assembly – For the trip to Durham, we'll assemble on Friday, 4/17/2026, at the Falmouth Park and Ride off US17 near I-95 at 2:00 PM  Fuel is available nearby.
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Departure – We'll depart the lot at 2:30 PMto arrive at 5:45 for a 6:45 game.
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Time/Distance – Heading down, the drive is 210 miles and will take about three hours and twenty minutes.  The return drive is 245 miles and will take just under five hours.
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Food – We'll have food at the ball game, and breakfast at the Silver Spoon (5230 N. Roxboro Rd - US501N https://www.silverspoonnc.com).  We'll meet there around 8 AM on Saturday (4/18/2026) morning.
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Fees - Besides the tickets (~$20 per seat), parking near the stadium will be around $10, and you can likely buy the parking pass in advance.
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Car limits – 20 cars for this route.  We will divide into subgroups, and the leaders will have GPS.
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Weather – If the weather is really bad we'll cancel the drive, and folks may be able to go to the game when it's rescheduled, or sell their tickets on the secondary market..
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Technology  – I will bring eleven extra Midland GMRS radios.  IIf you want to bring your own GMRS radio, we will be using Channel 30 on Midland Radios, or 462.7000 MHz frequency and CTCSS 17 (118.8 Hz) for the privacy code.  In Glympse, we'll use the !mscw_cruise tag to keep track of each other.

RSVP via signup genius at https://rebrand.ly/mscw2026-dd-02.  Don't use Facebook to indicate you're going.
Visit www.midatlanticscenicdrives.com for maps and GPS files - the GPS files will be 'final' by 4/1/2026



Drive safely and HAVE FUN,

Timothy (Tim) Metzinger

Scenic Drive Coordinator – Mazda Sport Cars of Washington, DC

Current drive list - https://www.midatlanticscenicdrives.com/mscwdrives.html

Guide to our group drives – https://midatlanticscenicdrives.com/downloads/MSCW_Group_Drive_Guide.pdf

tim.metzinger at outlook.com<mailto:tim.metzinger at outlook.com>

703.963.3015