Denton Horse Country Tour — Saturday, January 24, 2015 — 10:00 AM
Cue Sheet (The more OCD of us will pre-program and favorite the destinations below)
Tesla Nav: DFW Founders’ Plaza, Grapevine, TX
We’ll meet at Founders’ Plaza and watch the planes land. The highlight will be an Emirates Airbus A380 scheduled to land at 9:05 AM. Don’t worry if you’re not there for that — we’re leaving at 10:00 AM.
If you arrive a little early and don’t want to watch the planes or hang with us, consider visiting the 9/11 Flight Crew Memorial, just a mile up the road. It’s in the Tesla Nav and there’s a Starbucks a block up Northwest Highway from that.
First Leg: Founders’ Plaza to Argyle, TX
Tesla Nav: Donut Paradise, 100 Country Club Road, Argyle, TX
This leg is just for positioning. We’ll go up SH-114 West until we get to US-377 North in Roanoke.
Once on US-377, we’ll pass through the north side of Lake Grapevine, then Flower Mound and into scenic, little Argyle.
The stop at Donut Paradise will be fairly fast, will allow us to regroup and is for those who need a quick pitstop or top-off.
Second Leg: Donut Paradise to Old Denton to Krugerville City Hall
Tesla Nav: Krugerville City Hall, Aubrey, TX
This leg is on US-377 all the way to Krugerville via downtown Denton.
Argyle is the beginning of Denton Horse Country, so keep your eye out for ranches, especially on the right side of the car.
After a short while, we’ll be in Denton. Follow the US-377 signs carefully, as there are a few turns. We will wind up on Locust St., which takes you right by the city hall. If you look left at Hickory Street, you can see the famous Campus Theater.
We make a right turn at University Dr and head towards Krugerville & Aubrey. The drive past the north side of Lake Lewisville frankly isn’t that interesting, but does give the opportunity to fill all lanes with Teslas, or some other foolish idea.
At Cross Roads, TX, we exit Right and crossover north on US-377 and back into Horse Country.
This is a nice drive with miles of pipe & rail fencing, pastures and hopefully horses.
The stop at Krugerville City Hall will be just to get everyone back together and we’ll be off again.
Third Leg: Krugerville City Hall to Cardinal Reining Horses
Tesla Nav: 10408 FM428, Aubrey, TX
We continue the drive north to Aubrey — which some call “Horse Country USA.” We’ll turn west on FM 428 and drive down Aubrey’s Main St. Stop at Mom’s on Main on you next visit for lunch!
After we leave Aubrey, we head west another couple of miles before we arrive at Cardinal Reining Horses. They’re expecting us and will be exercising horses in the main arena. We have an opportunity to arrange the cars for pictures and leave when we’re ready. Our understanding is that things slow down at the ranch around noon.
Final Leg: Cardinal Reining Horses to Future Tesla Supercharger in Denton
Tesla Nav: 2520 W University Drive, Denton, TX
We continue west on FM 428 to Texas 288 Loop West. There are more farms to see all the way up until we reach Denton, and from there, it’s basically a hope that the Nav routes us around the miserable traffic on University Drive.
The Supercharger will be located somewhere in Rayzor Ranch, and you’re welcome to cruise around and find the most likely spot!
After Tour: Lunch at Cowboy Chicken
We don’t have anything formal planned, but we’re going to stop for lunch at Cowboy Chicken in Rayzor Ranch. If you don’t have any other pressing engagements, why not stay a bit?
Road Rules - Tips for Safe Driving during a club drive
One of the most enjoyable aspects of belonging a Car Club is driving together in a group or caravan. The following is a simple set of Rules and Guidelines that will ENSURE a FUN and SAFE TOUR.
Remember the basics - Vision and Control
It is important on a group drive to keep your vision up and ahead. It is all too easy to end up just watching the car in front of you instead of looking ahead to see where the road is going and what lies ahead in traffic.
A caravan of just 20 cars can stretch over 1-2 miles of highway. If the group is too large, divide into 2 or more groups of 10 or less if possible, each with a Head or Lead car (Engine) and a Tail (Sweep or Caboose) that have FRS radios. All other cars with FRS should be interspersed within the group. At no time should any car pass the whole group to reposition to a forward position. This is a caravan NOT a RACE to see who can drive the fastest.
The group will travel in the middle lane or the RIGHT lane on a freeway or highway so as not to obstruct the flow of traffic.
Use the 3-SECOND RULE to maintain adequate separation and the 4-SECOND RULE when conditions indicate caution. For the 3-SECOND RULE, note a point on the road ahead. When the car in front of you passes it, begin counting "one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three." If you are maintaining a good interval, you will pass the same point on or after you say "three" and "four" when the going gets tough.
Drive with your RUNNING LIGHTS on for safety and identification.
When traveling though congested areas, parts of the group may become separated. The Lead car, will stop at the end of the next leg to REGROUP.
When parking in business parking lots, pull to the FARTHEST open spot and park HEAD IN in order to get the caravan safely off the highway.
Safety First
It is very difficult to keep a caravan together in heavy traffic, congested areas, and on major highways. Plan to regroup when that part of the trip is over.
Be aware of the NO ZONE, the large areas of restricted visibility around large trucks, semi-tractor trailers and buses.
Pass only when legal and safe. Do not pass on double yellow lines or curves.
If a member of the group wants to pass you - let them, however passing within the club group of cars should not be necessary and is not recommended.
Speed
Stay within the posted speed limits. Our trips are planned to be driven and enjoyed at posted legal speed limits. There is no need to rush or speed to keep up with the lead car or cars ahead of you if you get separated in traffic.
The Lead car will set the pace for the caravan but it is each drivers responsibility to keep the car behind him or her in sight.
Radios
Use of a FRS radio is helpful in maintaining contact in the driving group. This keeps you in touch with the lead car and is a fun way to communicate during the drive. Always be careful using a FRS Radio while driving, don't let the radio be a distraction to you while driving.
We generally use CH 19 for communication. If you want to chat, go to channel 10, for example.
