After some false starts, the join page is now finally visible, you can see the information they ask for below:
The form successfully validates your input as well. They make sure you enter something in all the fields, at least a 2 character first and last name, etc. However, when you click the “Launch My Site” button to submit this info, you merely get the old response “Sorry, but we are currently closed to new registrations”.
Not very user friendly. Net result? Two days after launch, it is still not launched.