Insite to "Rally" psyche. When do you book it?

[Singing Land Cruiser]

? When you want to go to a rally, When do you book it and why? 1 month out? 2 weeks out?  M&C

[Ed Hackenbruch]

Sometimes 1 or 2 months ahead of time, at other times we have just showed up. All depends on circumstances for us....whether or not i am working, how far away it is, finances, etc.  With that said, we may be dropping in on yours at the last minute. Still not sure of our plans/schedule, yet.

[Mike in GA]

As an attendee, I try to register as early as possible, as long as I can see clearly that we'll be unencumbered. Rally hosts really appreciate an early indication of attendees. Having said that, in practice it has been my experience that many folks wait 'til the last minute. Call it procrastination, or busy schedules, for forgetfulness, whatever.
    As a long time rally host here in the southeast, my experience is that few seem just to 'show up', but we try to accommodate them. I do tell them that since the catering was ordered a week ago, they'll have to go through the food line after everyone else is fed, just to be fair.  Haven't yet run out of food and turned anyone away, but there's always a first time...
    Just my way. YMMV.
Mike in GA

[Eagle Andy]

When we did our rally in South dakota we tryed to give all a heads up early on. It did take us a bit to find someplace that would hold 20 to 30 Buses.And once we got that settled it went pretty smooth, We had a good responce and ran out of sites but as we got closer we had some drop out for different reasons and were able to get everyone in. The best laid plans lol. It worked out great and had a wonderful time.
This was only our second rally.

[bubbaqgal]

I think that if you know, for certain, it is nice to go ahead and tell them you will be there as soon as possible.  If you think you might then go ahead and let people know. It really helps those planning the rally to know as soon as possible that you are coming.  Last minute yes/no's are okay but, definitely, as soon as you know it does help with space/food/events to know.  Drop ins are okay for those that aren't certain until the time of the event.  For ours we have quite a few yes's, several not this time's and a good number of maybe's.  I really hope we get even more that are able to make it, even last minute. We are looking forward to seeing anyone that can make it for this one.

[kyle4501]

For my Non-Rally, I list the tenative menu & what I'm planning on bringing. I then invite others to announce their intentions. I don't bother with taking reservations or charging a rally fee. I also don't plan any entertainment - I let those who know what quality entertainment is volunteer to handle those details.
Once at the rally, I use a dry erase board to list out the daily activities & solicit help where needed.

All meals are what I call a modified covered dish - that means I bring enough meat for ~50 & attendees can bring a side or make a donation (or both) to offset my expenses.
This also allows for those who can't plan ahead to be able to attend without causing any inconvience.

That has worked well for me & allows me to host a rally with minimal planning & minimal cost to the attendees.
The best part is actively participating with everyone there to make the rally a success.

Kyle