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Re: Club Apathy (relatively long) -

To: "Brad Fornal" <toyman@htcomp.net>, "wizardz" <wizardz@maxinter.net>
Subject: Re: Club Apathy (relatively long) -
From: "ldsp" <ldsp@flash.net>
Date: Tue, 19 Oct 1999 21:07:14 -0500
Cc: <spridgets@autox.team.net>, <mgs@autox.team.net>
Reply-to: "ldsp" <ldsp@flash.net>
Sender: owner-spridgets@autox.team.net
Not all the time when you see a Concours car is it a checkbook resto. I have
spent some serious $$ on my car,worked long hours to get the $$ for it,
spent long hours in the garage, had a lot of help with parts that are hard
to find from some people on the list (trying for the first concours car
partly owned by the list, due to some rare parts given to me by members/ You
ought to like that Frank C. HEHEHEHE ) So it may look like we not tight but
Concours cars are not done by sweat alone. And I do think I have the right
to be proud of it as I have about 4 1/2 years of my labor & love in it. But
I also get a big thrill and pleasure out of seeing the way some people
perform modifications to their cars. I will be doing a driver after (Iris)
is done and you can bet that it will be heavily modified,  I am just
wondering if the MG club where I live would look down their nose if I joined
their club even though my car is a Bugeye ?

Leo
-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Fornal <toyman@htcomp.net>
To: wizardz <wizardz@maxinter.net>
Cc: spridgets@autox.team.net <spridgets@autox.team.net>; Curtis Carlson
<carlson@navtech.com>; triumphs-owner@autox.team.net
<triumphs-owner@autox.team.net>; triumphs@autox.team.net
<triumphs@autox.team.net>; spitfire-enthusiast@egroups.com
<spitfire-enthusiast@egroups.com>; mgs@autox.team.net <mgs@autox.team.net>
Date: Tuesday, October 19, 1999 6:03 PM
Subject: Re: Club Apathy (relatively long) -


>I agree with you on your opinion of why people won't frequent the event. I
myself felt the same
>way before going to an all British Car show with the Healey Sprite with the
home done half-@$$ed
>restoration that my friends and I did after the car was wrecked. I did not
redo the engine as
>the car runs OK but I am afraid that I would not really wish to bring home
the coveted "Dirtiest
>Engine Compartment" award either. The car show that we did compete in was
my first and I would
>return to it again next year because of one reason only. NO COMPETITION!!!
that's right, no
>trophies, no professional judging, just a bunch of folks who love British
cars and were there to
>show off what they had. They had Aston Martins next to 'B's and some cars
were all the way done
>and some were not but it didn't matter cuz you were just looking, I had
someone ask to see the
>engine compartment, and after explaining the contents, they were shown so
that they would know
>where such and such a part was supposed to go. There were no snide remarks
that I heard, no put
>downs or criticisms. There was no need for that behavior because there was
nothing to be lost or
>gained by it. I went merely to look at others cars and had a blast, about
60-70 cars in the
>space of 1/2 a city block. So that is my suggestion to the list, use the
money to get food and
>drinks to lure in the curious and have a good time talking about how you
got your car and why
>you love it, not bitching and moaning about how you didn't win a scrap of
metal because you
>didn't spend X amount of $$$ on the latest and greatest factory option
repop. From what I've
>read on the list, we all tight, we all love and work on our own cars. Why
try to compete with a
>person with unlimited finances (i.e. Checkbook Mechanic). Why compete at
all? Look at 'em and
>Love 'em, that's what they are for.          Brad (from the Spridgets List)
>wizardz wrote:
>
>> A major problem I've noticed at club events and showS in general is the
>> 'cleque-iness' of the events, and the lack of catagories.
>> What young kid with his 'coll to him and his friends' daily driver...
>> wants to park next to a <1k miles a year  $20K restored creamy puff.
>>
>> There are a lot of people out there (members and non) that don't bother
going
>> to events because the feel they are looked down on by the rest
>> of the members.
>>
>>  I know of quite a few Spits, Healeys B's, etc running around in my
>> area (Annapolis/Baltimore/DC area) that won't go because they feel
>> they haven't got a chance at any type of recognition at all or are made
to
>> feel embarrassed by letting others scrutenize the pride and joys.
>> Just because some of us can spend $6K-$30K to 'play with a car,
>> a lot of owners... I MEAN A LOT OF owners, can bearly maintain their
>> $2K total investment car. These ar ethe people we need to give real
credit to.
>> They are the TRUE lovers these cars. Not the 'egos' represented at most
shows.
>>  ...granted there are many exceptions on both sides of this fence.
>>
>> I can understand it. With trailer queens and 'less than1K miles a year'
cars
>> on the field, how could they compete and/or not feel like they are at the
low
>> end of the totum pole. These are their daily drivers and in most cases
>> the only car they can even afford to drive.
>>
>> If we don't get the younger people involved in the sport/hobby, in 10-20
years
>> who will there be to even want to buy YOUR gem when you're too old to
>> even be able to get in or out of one anymore.
>>
>> Clubs need to make a serious effort to get 'the commoner' to bring their
>> cars to the show.
>> Create classes such as
>> * dirtiest engine compartment
>> * most rust
>> * highest mileage
>> * I can't beleive that even runs
>> * Ugliest paint
>> * Youngest owner/driver
>> * Lowest cost$ (proveable)
>> Or create events and/or subdivide classes for judging
>> such as restored and unrestored.
>> Within the unrestored or 'beatup' catagory
>> ditribute awards for different reasons.
>>
>> I truely fear if we do not promote the 'average daily driver' at
>> events. You'll slowly see most clubs fall apart as the years go by
>> and is already evident by the participation at some events.
>>
>> Paul Tegler
>> OBie - 1973 BGT - Daily Driver
http://www.teglerizer.com/mgstuff/ob_description.htm
>> Rat - 1980 Spitfire  w/  O/D - in re-hab
http://www.teglerizer.com/triumphstuff/spit80.htm
>> Punkin' - 1978 Spitfire - in Superb Shape!
http://www.teglerizer.com/triumphstuff/spit78.htm
>> Greene - 1972 Round Wheel arch MG Midget in the works
>> email: wizardz@toad.net        http://www.teglerizer.com
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Curtis Carlson <carlson@navtech.com>
>> To: spridgets@autox.team.net <spridgets@autox.team.net>
>> Date: Tuesday, October 19, 1999 11:50 AM
>> Subject: Club Apathy (relatively long)
>>
>> Friends:
>> Lately, our local AH Club has been suffering from some apathy which is
>> showing itself in diminishing participation in club activities.  Our end
of
>> the year drive resulted in only 6 cars out of a possible 150 members.
This
>> last weekend, we held our last Gymkhana and only 4 cars showed up and two
of
>> them were over an hour late!
>>
>> Do any of you have any ideas about sparking new interest in club
activities?
>> Have any of you ever fought with this before?  Either successfully or
>> unsuccessfully?  I'd be interested in ALL ideas, even the ones which
didn't
>> work.  We've wrapped up the driving events for the year now and Gerty
will
>> go into storage soon, but we still have our annual business meeting
coming
>> up and planning for the next year is just around the corner.  I'm worried
>> that we won't get any volunteers to commit to hosting events for the
>> upcoming year.
>>
>> Some ideas I'm considering include:
>>
>> Door prizes for club activities and give-aways
>> Themed activities (4th of July, Boxing Day, Thanksgiving,)
>>
>> One event which I'd like to host myself for the coming year is a nice
summer
>> drive which would treat some kids in the local Shriners hospital to a
ride
>> in a convertible.  I have to contact the hospital about that.  But we'd
need
>> a minimum commitment of drivers for that one.
>>
>> What are some of the events in your clubs which result in the most
>> participation and the best response?
>>
>> Thanks for listening!
>> Curt ('n Gert)  Soon to be president
>>
>> Curtis Carlson
>> '66 Austin Healey Sprite MkIII ("Gerty") HAN8L-63423
>> '72 MG Midget MkIII ("unnamed")
>> ________________________
>> Research Geographer  612.931.3936 (voice)
>> Navigation Technologies  612.931.3937 (fax)
>> 5780 Lincoln Dr  Ste. 100 612.251.7492 (mobile)
>> Edina, MN  55436  carlson@navtech.com
>
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