Norfolk/Hampton/Newport News/etc... Virginia Meeting

[JK_the_CJer]

Hey everyone,

Emrys and myself have been talking and are trying to organize a little get-together for pickers in the hampton roads area of Virginia. So far we're up to 3 people and a possible forth. The tentative plan is to meet at a bar of some kind on the Hampton side of the water this Sunday. Anyway, if you think you can make it, post here and shoot me a PM as soon as possible.

[JK_the_CJer]

Alright guys, as of now we only have 3 confirmed attendees. That's cool as we'll still meet if its just us. However, if you think you can make it, please show up. Here is the current plan:

Meet at Bennigan's in Hampton. You can either to just around for the weirdos picking locks at a table or you can try to recognize me: http://theamazingking.com/images/sexy.jpg I promise I won't wear that though, I'll probably be in my lp101 tshirt. We are showing up starting a 6PM and they close at 10PM. Here's the address and phone number:

Bennigan's: Hampton
2029 Coliseum Dr
Hampton, VA 23666
(757) 838-9261

I hope this location is relatively convenient for those that can make it. I call them today to ask some questions and get a feel for what the atmosphere will be like. It seems like a good place. Plus, the girl I talked to said they wouldn't call the cops I'm going to eat there tonight so I can check it out further and confirm OK-ness with the manager. I'll let you guys know if anything changes. Also, if you guys have suggestions, either post em here or PM me.

I'll be bringing a decent amount of locks and a mounted safe lock or two. The plan is to have a rediculous amount of random locks, beers, and picks spread all over the table.

PS: Emrys, yes they serve Guinness

[JK_the_CJer]

Alright, I went to dinner at Bennigan's and this place seems perfect for us to meet. The manager offered to reserve us a good-sized round table tucked away from most of the foot traffic (although it will likely be light anyway); I accepted the offer. When you enter, its around the corner to your right. I'll see you guys on Sunday (11NOV07) at 6PM (1800)!

[dougfarre]

Who are the other confirmed attendees? Would you consider this a "trial run" for a potentialy new L.I Chapter?

[JK_the_CJer]

Who are the other confirmed attendees? Would you consider this a "trial run" for a potentialy new L.I Chapter?

Myself, Emrys, and cryptonic are the 3 that are mostly confirmed so far for this meeting. I also have one other confirmed to attend future meetings but can't make it to this one (unregistered i believe). If we can get more interest going locally, I'd love for it to develop into either an L.I. or TOOOL chapter (honestly I need to research both orgs more). However, I'm aiming low for the moment. We'll see what happens and make that part of the discussion.

[Emrys]

PS: Emrys, yes they serve Guinness

hell yea that's my only condition. so you're bringing all your locks? this is going to be ridiculous. I think we're going to have a lot of people gawking at us. lol

-Rob

[dougfarre]

Emrys, Cryptonic - Do you guys have any friends that might be interested in participating? I think you will find that having a few more interested people, will make the meeting more enjoyable.

[JK_the_CJer]

hell yea that's my only condition. so you're bringing all your locks? this is going to be ridiculous. I think we're going to have a lot of people gawking at us. lol

-Rob

I can't bring ALL of them, that would get pretty heavy and obnoxious, but I'm bringing a good number of them. As far as people gawking, screw 'em. I think of it more as people getting interested anyway. Who knows, a couple might get into it and join us

[UWSDWF]

Who knows, a couple might get into it and join us

WOMEN!! and then you can show them you ample small motor skilss and finger dexterity

[Emrys]

yea, 'cuz you know "chicks dig skills" lol i'll bring a few locks of my own. nah, I don't have any friends that are interested in lock picking. they're all still out at sea right now. I've got one buddy that's as good as me. Then there are just a bunch of others that want to know how to pick, they just don't want to put in the time. they all like beer though But like i said, they're all still out at sea right now. They're on the Enterprise, so they're not going to be back for another month or so.

-Rob

[dougfarre]

.... Who knows, a couple might get into it and join us

That would be a really good thing! Maybe you could put up a sign that says "Lockpicking Meeting - Come join us!" Or something to that extent? Im just trying to think of ways to get more people involved..

[JK_the_CJer]

I just got back from the meeting and boy was it good times. Good folks, picking, discussion, and beers; excellent. We ended up staying pretty much until the place closed (10PM). This was mostly unintentional, but we had a lot of great dialogue, tips, and information sharing going on and just lost track of time honestly. There were only 4 of us (myself, Emrys, cryptonic, and cryptonic's girlfriend), but we know other folks that should be able to make it next time. We all agreed to meet again in one or two weeks. Whatever we decide will be posted as a reply here as soon as possible.

Myself and Emrys did a little temporary lock trading. He is borrowing my DOM 9-Pin Dimple Rim Cylinder and Maxis KiK (that weird round-keywayd thing). I am borrowing his S&G 831 (the big one) padlock. I'd like to get it picked and then picked on video if possible. By the way, Emrys did pick the Maxis during the meetup.

PS: I know we went over tons of stuff at the meet guys. If you remember me mentioning something but cant remember the terminology, etc.. Or if I wrote a note for you and my handwriting is horrendous, just ask here and I'll find the URL, etc..

[JK_the_CJer]

Dear dougfarre,

I think there is strong possibility that we may try to become a Locksport International branch. I plan to discuss it a little more after we've done some more research at the next meet. I plan to print out a lot of L.I material for folks that didnt get the chance to read about it as much. I'd love to discuss this idea further with you in the IRC channel (you know its my favorite haunt:-))

[dougfarre]

Wow sounds great! Im glad to see your meeting went so successfully. Four people is a good start. I do have one question however, Did your picking skills get better or worse as your bar tab increased? Otherwise, I look forward to working with you guys. There are many things L.I will offer to help you continue to move forward if you decided to become a official chapter. Some of these things include:
-Practice locks to accommodate a larger member base.
-T-Shirts available for purchase
-Meeting Ideas
-Money Loans
-Advertising Costs

[JK_the_CJer]

To answer your question, I don't think we were focusing on drinking enough to make much of a difference. Maybe the others can give their opinions on this, but I know I was taking it pretty slow. It's hard to say if we were getting better or worse as the evening progressed though. We were swapping locks very frequently and comparing ideas/tips often. I will say that I picked my first Brinks shrouded padlock. I didn't have a ton of trouble with it, but that's because I know exactly what to look for when recognizing security pins. I counted at least 5 spools.

On the subject of L.I, we'll first discuss the idea of trying to bring more public members and folks that have maybe never picked before. After we decide how much we'd like to involve that, we'll discuss L.I membership. So, we should have an answer in two weeks. If that answer is yes, we'll begin the process of application, etc...

Thank you for the help, encouragement, patience, etc..