June 2003
1. Everyone will be assigned a day and time of admittance based on the date their registration is received at FMCA headquarters in Cincinnati. All registrations will be divided equally over a three-day period. National officers, member staff, parking layout crew, volunteers, committee members, past national officers, and Governing Board are assigned early admittance.
2. Family members arriving at Buffalo with credentials for the date and time specified should enter either Erie County Fairgrounds or Ralph Wilson Stadium, as explained in the confirmation materials. Members reporting to Ralph Wilson Stadium will be directed to the Holding Area, accessed via Drive 7 in order to be parked.
3. Members who arrive prior to their specified date and time of arrival should report to the official on-site holding area located at Ralph Wilson Stadium (see directions in the June 2003 issue or online at www.fmca.com) to wait until their assigned time for entry.
4. Members who arrive at Buffalo later than the date and time specified on their official window credential should report to the official on-site holding area at Ralph Wilson Stadium. From there, you will be directed by the parking crew to your parking area at the earliest possible time.
5. Families who pre-register and who receive July 17, 2003, “date of entry” credentials for Buffalo should arrive prior to noon on Thursday, July 17, 2003. All families who register are guaranteed parking at the convention site or at an off-site satellite parking area. There is a cap of 5,000 families permitted for this convention.
6. Caravan reservations will be accepted for Tuesday or Wednesday, July 15 or 16; caravans will not be accepted on Monday, July 14. Your assistance with caravan reservations and scheduling is appreciated.
7. When a caravan leader makes his or her caravan reservation, he or she will be sent the appropriate number of “caravan date of arrival” cards that must be distributed, one per coach, to caravan members. One caravan card should be displayed in each caravan member’s coach window along with one date of entry card each member of the caravan received when registering individually.
8. A caravan reservation does not guarantee a parking space on the convention site; a caravan reservation means only that members of a caravan will be parked together as a group. A caravan admittance “assigned time” means that a caravan should arrive on-grounds at that time. Caravans may have to remain in the holding area for a time until parkers are prepared to move them as a group.
9. Due to increased security at the U.S. border, caravans from Canada have been requested to break in Canada and reassemble at a location inside the U.S. border. Additional time should be considered for clearing customs.
10. Since there is a cap of 5,000 families permitted for the Buffalo convention, families not registered in advance should call the national office to see if space is available prior to making plans to attend. If space is available following the completion of general parking, family members will be parked on a first-come, first-serve basis, on Thursday afternoon, July 17, 2003, from noon until 5:00 p.m.
11. “Will Call” families who choose not to have confirmation materials mailed should report to the official holding area to pick up credentials and confirm their admittance day. Members picking up “Will Call” packets for large groups may be asked to submit their list early and return later for packages. The “Will Call” office opens at the Buffalo holding area starting Monday, July 14, 2003, at 7:00 a.m.
Convention Parking Definitions
Holding Area: Members who arrive at the convention site earlier than permitted according to their entry credentials may park at the holding area until their appointed time to enter the grounds. When it is time to enter the grounds, the parking crew will assist them in moving to their final parking space.
The holding area is also a place to meet friends who wish to park together because, in order to park together, convention attendees must arrive together. However, if members of a group have a later entry date than other members in their group, they must all enter on the later entry date. The best way to park with friends and avoid a longer wait in the holding area is to send registrations to FMCA in the same envelope with a note requesting identical date of entry credentials.
Will Call: Many families do not maintain an address long enough to receive their convention registration confirmation packets through the mail. These people ask FMCA to hold their credentials at Will Call. Will Call is located at the convention holding area. In Buffalo, packets may be picked up at the holding area Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, July 14, 15, and 16, from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Thursday, July 17, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Will Call packets may be picked up at the Information Center, located in the Lower Clubhouse of the Erie County Fairgrounds, beginning Friday, July 18, at 8:00 a.m. After convention-goers pick up their packets, they should remain in the holding area, if necessary, until their appointed entry time.
Gate Registration: Since there is a cap of 5,000 families permitted for the Buffalo convention, families not registered in advance should call the national office to see if space is available prior to making plans to attend. If space is available following the completion of general parking, family members will be parked on a first-come, first-serve basis, on Thursday afternoon, July 17, 2003, from noon until 5:00 p.m.
Families should not arrive at the holding area without calling the national office to verify availability. Pre-registration for the Buffalo convention is highly recommended.
Passport Registration: A passport registration entitles the convention attendee to all convention services and activities with the exception of overnight on-site parking of a motorhome. Passport registrants often choose to stay at a local campground or a friend’s home and drive to the convention site each day.