February Fun Fly Weekend 2024
Mark your calendar now!
February 16-18, 2024 will be our February Flying Smiles Fun Fly Weekend!
New for 2024 - WOW y'all have really shown up the last 2 years. As a result, we need to rethink dinners as the event continues to grow! This year, we're gonna be doing dinners potluck style (we'll pick a theme for the night and have folks sign up to bring things). More info below in the "Food" section of this page.
You can stay on the 19th for a super casual day too, but please know that dinner that night will be "leftovers" or a group outing to a restaurant as many kiters are going to be traveling home that day!
Please register here if you're planning on coming so that we can make you a welcome bag and include you in the dinner headcount.
Flying:
This is what we're all here for!!
We will be flying at the Whalehead Club or the Shad Street Beach Access, depending on which way the wind is blowing. We will know each day what to expect and make the call day by day! Both locations are within half a mile of the shop, so it'll be easy to change locations if the wind shifts.
We will also set up some indoor time at the Pine Island Racquet and Fitness Center, and are also tentatively planning on a night fly (we'll pick which night when we know the weather for the weekend).
Food:
Coming closer to the event, Cassie will compile a list of restaurants that should be open for breakfast and lunch each day. As we learned the hard way in the past, some will say they're open and then they're not. To help ensure that everyone eats at least one good meal a day, we will be working out group dinners, potluck style.
"Potluck dinners? This is new!" Yes, it is new this year. We're asking everyone to help with dinners this year, as the event has grown to a size that the Shooks truly can't do it all. By asking everyone to help, it will ensure that none of us are spending the whole weekend cooking! By planning potluck style dinners, everyone can sign up to bring something to share or do (setting up, cleaning up, bringing food, drink, ice, cups... it'll all be needed so you can sign up for what you're comfortable committing to!). This will help keep everyone's stress levels and out of pocket expenses low while we all get fed! We will pick themes, so please be sure to make theme suggestions on the registration form!
You are welcome to join us for dinner any evening, but please know that we will not be offended if you decide to check out our area restaurants!
Lodging:
Ready to book your lodging? We've got some great options:
Option 1 - Get a room at the Hampton Inn!
We've got a group rate set up at the Hampton Inn in Corolla. They're offering us rooms at $109 per night. You'll want to call and book soon - they reminded us that it's a holiday weekend so they expect to book most of their rooms that weekend.
Option 2 - You can rent a 2-3 bedroom condo!
Our friend Lynn manages a bunch of the condos next to the shop that have been completed in the last year or so. She's got just a couple listed on her website, you can go here to look at pictures. Look at the first units, listed under Beacon Quarters. The second batch of units listed (The Beach Club at Whalehead) are NOT next door to the shop. Please know that she's got at least 10 more units available in Beacon Quarters than are shown on her portal, so you may end up in one of the other units. They are ALL new builds, so you can expect them all to be in fantastic condition. They'll be roughly $175 per night for a 2 bedroom unit, plus a $185 cleaning fee.
When you're ready to book, click the "Book Directly" link on any of those properties shown and she'll get you into one of the units. (Be sure you're looking at the Beacon Quarters listings!)
Please note that if you book with Airbnb, you will pay more fees. Can we all agree that we don't want to pay more fees than we need to? So, PLEASE book direct with Lynn to save those fees. If you have any issues contacting her from her website, contact Cassie and she'll give you Lynn's email address and phone number. She has promised us to get you the best rates possible for that weekend.
Some units are pet friendly! If you reserve one of those units, you can expect that there will be a pet fee added.
Option 3 - We're gonna rent 1 "big house" so there's a place for dinners each night. Space will be limited in the big house, so please indicate interest in the house when you fill out your registration. That house will be rented Thursday night through Tuesday morning. Update - the big house is full. Please refer to options 1 and 2 for the best housing options!
Don't forget to register here if you're planning on coming so that we can make you a welcome bag and include you in the dinner headcount.