MINIs ON The Dragon

Welcome to MINIs on the Dragon. This site is dedicated to the breathtaking Mountains of North Carolina, the Dragon and the MINI Community. My goal is to provide as much info available on the area to make your visit the best possible. Whether it's for our annual MOTD event or any other time of year. Please consider this your site too and let me know what you would like to see on it. .........................................Thanks, Barry (Snooter on the boards)

I was able to attend my first Mini's on the Dragon in May of 2006. My wife and I had a blast. Although I had been up to the Blue Ridge / Appalachian mountains many times before, this was the first time up in my MINI and my first time on the Dragon.

Being a newbie, I had many questions and found that the answers were scattered in many different areas. So, I'm hoping to consolidate as much info about the Dragon and the event on this site as I can. Please feel free to email me with anything you would like to see added.

What Is The Dragon?

That's the first question I had. Well, I've learned that the Dragon is many things to many people. For me, it's kinda like a concert. Sure if I want to listen to my favorite group I'll choose an acoustically designed room with a great stereo system. But if that group comes to concert, I'm there, not because of the quality of the music, but for the atmosphere and camaraderie. The event itself now takes on more meaning than the music.

Yes, the Dragon started out as an 11-mile stretch of road with 318 curves. That in itself is more than enough reason to travel to the breath taking mountains of North Carolina. But in the first weekend of May each year, it has evolved into much more than that. Just like our beloved MINI's have evolved into more than just a car to us. So you take the 11-mile stretch of road, then you toss in the mountains, country roads and waterfalls. Now add over 600 fellow MINIacs and it takes on a whole new meaning. Wake up each morning and see hundreds of Mini's each day, attend dinners and events, go on group drives, or just gather and drool over each other's mods. Get a chance to put a face to a screen name, see some old friends and make some new ones..