Upsc'Ale
The 2009 California Morris Ale

Presented by Seabright Morris and Sword
 
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The Site

The ale will be based around Cowell College and the Stevenson Event Center on the campus of the University of California at Santa Cruz, located on California's Monterey Bay - 75 miles south of San Francisco, 45 miles north of Monterey and Carmel, and just over the coastal mountains from Silicon Valley.  The campus is located in the foothills above Santa Cruz.  Weather in Santa Cruz is usually not too hot at this time of year (ranging from 70-80 degrees along the coast to 90s inland on warm days), and can actually get quite cool in the evening when the fog comes in.  The temperature drops significantly in evenings so layers are advised.

Nestled at the foot of the Santa Cruz mountains, it gives the idyllic impression of being remote and far away from it all.  Yet, it is less than 15 minutes from the beach, the Pacific Coast Highway, or the civilizing influence of Santa Cruz with the modern conveniences of grocery stores and  coffee/espresso bars for those whom "roughing it" is a term requiring moderation.

The nearest airport is San Jose International (although San Francisco International and Oakland International may be cheaper air fares if you don't mind 30-to-45 minutes of extra driving). There is no public transit from the airports, although there is from the Amtrak Train/Bus link (if you choose to go that route).

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Directions to the UC Santa Cruz Campus

From Oakland: Take Interstate 880 (I-880) South  to San Jose, where the freeway becomes California Highway 17 (CA 17). Continue on Highway 17 South to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From San Jose: Take Interstate 880 South.  Stay on the freeway as it becomes California Highway 17.  Continue on Highway 17 South to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From San Francisco: Take U.S. Highway 101 (US101) South or Interstate 280 (I-280) South to California Highway 85 (CA 85) South.  From Highway 85, take California Highway 17 to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From Walnut Creek/Concord: Take Interstate 680 (I-680) South to San Jose, where it becomes Interstate 280 North.  From 280 North, take California Highway 17 South to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From Sacramento: Take Interstate 80 (I-80) West to the exit for Interstate 680 towards San Jose.  In San Jose, Interstate 680 becomes Interstate 280 North.  From 280 North, take California Highway 17 South and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From Los Angeles: Take Interstate 5 (I-5) North. From I-5 take California Highway 152 (CA 152) West, to Watsonville. Then Take California Highway 1 (CA 1) North to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.

From Santa Barbara: Take U.S. Highway 101 North, then California Highway 129 (CA 129) to Watsonville.  Take California Highway 1 North to Santa Cruz and follow the From Santa Cruz instructions below.
From Santa Cruz: Take California Highway 1 North (toward Half Moon Bay).  On Business Highway 1 (Mission Street), travel approximately one mile north to Bay Street in Santa Cruz. Turn right on Bay and proceed up the hill to the main campus entrance, just past High Street.

Once on Campus

You should be able to get assistance from the Information Kiosk at the main entrance.  Let them know you're looking for Cowell Circle for the Ale check-in (see the upper right area of the Cowell College campus map).

Housing

We are being booked at the Youth / Sports Program rate (i.e. no child/teen discount, because the rate is already discounted).  This means that we'll be housed almost entirely in dorm rooms with two people each.  (We are investigating larger rooms for families, but don't yet know what options are available.)  These rooms DO NOT have linens provided, so you will either need to bring your own or opt to pay an additional $32 for linens.  These rooms also won't have things like table lamps, alarm clocks, phones, etc.

However, there are overhead lights, electrical outlets, and mattresses.  Bathrooms are at the end of the halls, so there will be about a dozen people per bathroom.  The number of stalls and showers per bathroom.  It's rumored that there may be wall jacks with internet access.

Be a good Campus citizen (after all, we ARE guests)

Special considerations:

  1. UCSC is less kid-friendly to the extent that they aren't going to be any cheaper.  The best we could do was to get UCSC to (grudgingly) allow that toddlers and infants don't have to pay (but parents need to bring food for them).  In UCSC's defense, we are getting treated as a Youth / Athletic group, which is less than the "Adult" rate.
     
  2. UCSC has quiet hours from 10:00PM to 8:00AM.  (Yes they know we are Morris Dancers.)  After some discussion, the definition of quiet became:
    • After 10:00 pm we need to be dancing in the conference center.
    • No amplified music.

    Since we haggled them down to just these two restrictions, expect UCSC to be diligent about enforcement.
     

  3. Alcohol consumption needs to be limited to the conference center and dorm rooms.  (So, no roaming the campus with a beer in your hand.)  Obviously, no minors can drink alcohol.  Perhaps less obviously for a college campus, UCSC will do very bad things to us if minors do drink, so take this very seriously.
     
  4. There will be other (non-Morris) conferences around and we'll be sharing the dining hall with them.

Meals:

Don't forget - the Ale includes dinner on Friday and a box lunch on Sunday.

UCSC should be able to handle any dietary restrictions provided we get that information early enough. Details forthcoming as available...

If you did not identify your lunch preferences for Saturday and Sunday you'll have to be cheerful and flexible about whatever miscellaneous lunch they end up with - so anyone who hasn't chosen (and will be annoyed to end up with roast beef or escargot) contact the with their selection (choices available on the registration form)

Need more info? 
Visit us here at http://TheCaliforniaAle.info/2009