OK, I like where we're getting with this. Even if dues were optional, it would still provide a decent amount of "slushmoney". Additionally, extra income from non-members for events would produce more toward the club. The club sponsors the event, so that is quite fair. Even if I wasn't a member, I would expect the same (I already do with the SCCA events). You all can just sit back for a while, WOTV and I will sort this out.:laugh:
Thats wonderful you have such amazing experiences else where. Just like you wanting to bring another crowd of people to the Lacrosse Cruise, i can understand that...but you requesting different camp grounds or limit what WE want to do here as part of THIS club is retarded IMO. I don't care if they come, but i dont feel like i need to conform to what you want or what they would like to see as just some random people coming. Yet another reason why IMO dues wouldn't be a bad idea... you pay, you get to come and do the fun stuff with the group, limit the random people coming just because. And like Lee said, i believe the vast majority of people were MORE than happy with the events this past year, there were a few things addresses such as the firework in the room and intrusions but that is minimal IMO. If you had such a huge problem with something, talk to the individuals, why the hell do we need to sit here and read your banter about it when you are crabby? As i stated before, i brought up sub-forums and i think more moderation and a clearer definition of what we can/can't do should be put in place. I can understand warnings for drunken posts, ect... But the rules need to be universal and clear. i dont want to see a mod crawling up someone's butt again or defending some jerk off... its annoying. As far as the being "central" thing, quit complaining,Firestone is in St. Paul, its without question the most visited "event" by the "regulars". If you are so bummed out about the meets and locations, START a new one, theres an idea! As far as i am concerned, i think it should be left up to the Admin/Mod team to pick and establish the moderation team and handle the funds... obviously they know who they think is well suited for the positions and i would personally like to keep somewhat of a friendly mood around the club. Having someone loose the elections would i am sure cause some problems and stir some feelings. Again, can i point out the aim of this post? now can we get back on track. kthnxbi
I don't remember saying that, though it is true. Also, you may refer to me as Captain Awesome on the forum. That doesn't sound like a bad idea. Maybe another perk of membership dues? Actually, a coffehouse or some interior setting may be a good idea. Especially with our recent sub-zero temperatures coming to mind.
These are all phenomenal ideas, and #1 and #2 are really on the money. If you have dues but make them optional, not only do you have an open door for new people, but you gain support for ongoing/future events from current members simply "because I already paid $xx and get a discount."
Yeah Russ, I definitely didn't mean to imply that I didn't get money for the stuff. It's just that I had paid out of pocket for a few things like running around looking at places to hold the event and the likes. And any money that I spent on deposits or whatever, WAS reimbursed! It's just that if there was a "slush fund", the deposits and everything else could have been made with that money instead. You are right. And when I need a banner made for the La Crosse Cruise or whatever else, I'll just start a thread and ask everyone to help pay for it. Forget that I ever mentioned it. I guess I just don't care anymore. If it prevents people from hosting events, then so be it. /my input on the subject.
now look at that..we are actually getting somewhere.... if we want to setup a group meet/chat GrimmSpeed is always willing to host. maybe down the road when mnsubaru has money in the acccount we could even order a bunch of food for everyone when grimmspeed hosts the meeting. honestly..10 bucks a year for membership brings in 4 grand, that would be plenty to start out with and you will definitely be getting that back in terms of free food at events, vendor discounts, etc. glad to see we are starting to get more "uppers" than "downers" posting in this thread.
or something we could do with the "membership dues" is to have a vote as a club of what to do with the money...or even try to save up for something big. Just putting it out there. Some of the dues could go to dyno days, or i know the jorge thing has been up down it could help pay some of the plane ticket and accommodation's. That would bring down some of the price of the tunes. i not sure if this all makes sense
only problem with something like Jorge is it only benifits the people getting a tune. I could see some cash for dyno days or something where more people could get more out of it. mainly, i would say for like food, drinks, and stuff like banners
i would pay for dyno time, but i wouldnt pay for jorge to come here, not everyone can get custom tunes
yeah i agree about the Jorge thing i guess. But the main point is to have a spend the money when the time comes. Something that would be cool to do which is a long shot would be to do a cruise down to 6 flags. I understand that would be harder to plan and to have committed people to it. But it would be a real fun getaway for a weekend. Thoughts?
When I came up with the La Crosse Cruise, I was originally thinking Wisconsin Dells. But it's $$$. And I believe Six Flags is like a 6-7 hour drive?
20 is to much to start right off the bat. at 10 bucks, if you beotch about 10 freakin dollars than you can get the hell out. this is obviously a detail of it all that we wouldnt have to agree on for awhile..but just putting it out there.
Well, in reference to the original topic of the thread, it seems that in some way we all agree that more events would be great and to make it more inclusive to all members. It also appaears we all generally want the club to grow and maybe be a bit more "respectable" to outsiders, which may also help get us discounts from more sources in the future as well because if a company sees that we are a respected "car club" then may be willing to give us other discounts simply because ofthe positive feedback we give, or maybe ( i have no idea how dealerships or companys work, mind you ) be a sponsor to meets or events we may go to ( autocrosses, rallys, etc ) as far as funding for events we do, i can understand the want for general membership as well as the want for funding for specific events. maybe we should do a poll on this? i like the card idea as well, that idea should also be discussed.... hell, the card would be cheaper than the stickers we all have on our cars anyway, and will make it much easier to identify who actually is part of the club when we want discounts. my two cents.
As far as track events go, I dont know that we would need to start hosting our own events anytime soon as there is alot involved. I am looking forward to a eventful year in 2008 as I'll be learning to drive a RWD and will be trying out various new forms including Rally Cross, some hill climbs and drifting. And on top of that Fuji and I will be hitting some high speed tracks in the midwest area like MAM, Road America and BIR. Its always been nice to see other Subaru drivers at our events, but not very often are they from this forum. I have a few friends from various clubs who I'd be incline to talk with if we got more interest in doing some events. I know BMW and Audi have expressed interest in getting more Subaru's out to their events and are willing to accommodate something simple for us. So what do you say, lets stop talking and start walking. I'd be happy to volunteer and help coordinate high speed track events with various clubs, everything other than Drag and Autox. There are some serious Autox members here who can be the liason and cover those events. And the Dragster's pretty much takes care of its own as there are more of them who show up without invitation. I just hope who ever gets into office is not just another Bush! We have a very diverse and wide range of professionals on this board, lets start using our talents for our own pleasure other than work. Lets have some fun, let unify.
I'm not 'requesting' a different campground. again, practice your reading comprehension skills. I said that we will go somewhere else. as in, I'll make all the arrangements, cough up the cash, etc. I expect nobody to conform to me. also, my comments as to what might happen are only in concern that the club be cast in a negative light. I love how people talk about how they should be able to do whatever they want, regardless of consequences, and then expect to start major events......gotta earn it. trashing a campground (or even just leaving a bad impression) will hinder our ability to come back, if not worse, depending on how bad it is, and who hears about it. I just ask that people keep that in mind while having fun. who's the one posting a text book about fictional events? I'm offering ideas and ways that we can improve the future of the club, by using examples from places where it has worked well before. and the part people are forgetting about collecting dues: "before any of this is done a tax ID (LLC, non-profit, etc) is going to be needed." this is not an easy process. and not something that can be overlooked.
Omg, cause me posting is SO much more of banter than the worthless crap you insist on cluttering the forum with. You offer arguments with members on a fairly regular basis as you have become a butt hurt member, i had no problem with you in the past, now you seem like you are all pissy over really nothing.
Don't worry Chux, the club is ALREADY cast in a negative light. The cool kiddies need to remember that just because we ONLY have 420+ members that post every month, that we still have alot of people who do not post. We are right around 3k different IP's every month. Maybe it is just because I am older and have connections outside this group, but I do receive a bunch of e-mails from outside people asking about us. Some are more of a concern than anything alse. Not going to name names, or pick certain "things" that have happened, but I definitely tell you, we are NOT looked at very highly. And that is the reason for this thread, to see if everyone wants to just turn the whole group into another OT group that does nothing, or a group that wants to go out and enjoy the cars we have. Can we please just be civil?? Do we need to set up a cage match for you two so this can be overwith?? yes you BOTH make good points, but at this point in time, we are looking for idea's. Of all the ideas that have been posted, not one of them will be in place next week or even next month, probably not even the month after that. Again, there are alot of people in here, most of us have jobs and families, there are certain things that come before MNSubaru. The mod group has asked for help in the past, people raise their hands, and when it came down to actually getting something done, it was still the mod group doing all the work (a thankless job). Like I posted in the mod forum, if the general members don't want the club to grow and continue, we might as well close doors now. The reason this site is here is to gather local (minnesota/western wisconsin) subaru people, and give us a place to talk about our cars, help each other, and hold/plan/help out at events. If the group doesn't want to step up and do some fo these things, what is the point? Russ
I agree Russ, i know this post was about ideas and visions for the site in the future, and thats whats been ticking me off in here... someone presents an idea or a thought on something and members who disagree with it instantly attempt to discard it. Beyond the legal issues with having donations to the club, i can see its valor and use to us as a whole. It just bugs me to see that the user base is so large and for whatever reason its the same group of us that seem to speak up always. I can completely understand where people are coming from so far in the thread, i really can. I just think things should be done for the user group that infact uses the group the most, we would be the ones willing to pay in, and thus i believe we should benifit from it.
maybe this fact has nothing to do with the banter/OT that goes on with the forum...but rather the fact that, to use your own words, there isnt even a "Club", just a forum. How does one group get any respect when it cant even start a formal club with elected leaders and membership dues....but is only an online website for chating. i can do this. but, if we never collect dues, like you want, we can never do it because it costs money to become a legal business. what does "being take care of" mean? so you are telling me that we longer have an admin(s)? if yes, please list the current mods of this site(i'm assuming these are the only people that can access "secret" forums...if they arent the only ones, who are the others and why do they have access to it?(only people of "power" should have access to these said secret forums)).[/quote] still waiting on an answer for this russ.
Are you trying to be rhetorical or something? A group gets respect by showing and sharing their knowledge, by showing respect to each other, by demonstrating strong character, by supporting each other, by welcoming new people, by... do you want me to go on? You don't need to have elected members and bureaucracy to get respect. I'm an outsider around these parts (or at least get treated as one at times) and people always think I'm butt hurt or whatever when I come into a post and call out someone for being disrespectful, immature, or plain old mean sometimes. That's fine, I'm a big boy and can handle it, but I think this is what Russ is talking about: If a logical, thick skinned person (who still loves his subaru) comes in here and gets pooped on for thinking someones disrespectful disposition is (surprise!) disrespectful, how are people of less conviction or less interest supposed to feel like hanging out around here?
I will have to disagree with you on this one, Justin. The forum is, as pointed out before, public and can be read by anyone. Some of the more recent discussions have painted some of our members in a negative light. Club or not, it's going to make us look a little bit... "young". Quite frankly though, I think that recent incidents/discussions only reflect a small portion of the club/forum, and this is something we other members (or really, all of us members together) can work to disproving. Our image isn't looking fantastic, but I think that it is painting an untrue picture of who we really are. This demonstrates a little bit of what I'm trying to convey, I'm just glad I'm not alone. The proper term is "butthurt". It's one word.:biggrin:
to each his own i guess then. bummpy, do you have to reply to every single post i make stating the exact opposite? its getting rather annoying. i mean you can continue if you want but then i might have to find some time to do it to you too if people come and look at the forums and dont want to sign up for the forum because they see some banter and some things about guys partying up at a cabin...well then dont freaking come here. good luck finding a forum that doesnt have that(idk, maybe go join a quilting forum). its called fun and enternainment. if you want respect as a club, you need to be respected by other clubs, and to do this things need to be more legit than just having a forum and a couple annual meets. but chux and bummpy....we can do things your way and not do jack other try to clean up posts and clean up events we can see where that gets us...oh wait..thats what we have been doing for 3-4 years now.
Note: I'm writing this as a hypothetical situation.... If there has been multiple complaints about a given member from people "on the outside" (ie, people who weren't directly involved in this hypothetical altercation) the mods need to step up and have a little discussion with the person the complaints are directed towards. Furthermore, if there is a continuous stream of complaints over a period of times for numerous things, BAN THEIR ASS. Simple, really. Furthermore, a clear set of guidelines needs to be defined and the mods need to be as impartial as possible. Also, there needs to be consistancy with how things get handled. People that complain about how this place operates need to realize that this is a private website -- not a democracy. If you don't like it, leave. Plain and simple. IMHO, Russ and the other people who started the site can do whatever the hell they want with it.
Settle down. Stop thinking its about you, or that I'm against fun. All I'm saying is that money and the management of it is something that people shouldn't be throwing around willy-nilly. 4 grand isn't chump change and bad things can happen when you have that much of other peoples money sitting around in a bank account. That's the only point I'm making. When we fund things on a case by case basis, I think things work out much better that way. For instance, I put down a double deposit on the ice races and ended up not going. I'm out waaay more than the $10 the dues would cover, but Rich got the money he needed to make sure everything still went smoothly. An $80 variance is much MUCH better than a $1500 variance. That's my only point. So, BBQ? Paypal a deposit. Summer cruise? Paypal a deposit. Ice race? Paypal a deposit. I think as more events start happening, it would be a wise idea to have an events committee voted in. I think that would work well. And then the events committee could have the commissioner, treasurer, et. al. and handle the planning and funding based off of a deposit system per event. That way, no one event will have too much money involved, and we can get some experience with what works and what doesn't work. It's about baby steps. There, does that make you feel better?
sure mr. not go to an event but thinks his opinion about what happened at the event is more logical than anyone that was there. but wait...we'd have to have an election aka popularity contest for that and we wouldnt want that right? lol, i'm pretty sure this forum is a classic example of baby steps. i mean it did take russ like 9 months to make shirts or some crap because no one could agree on anything.
Quit being so salty. The ONLY comments I had pertaining to the ice races were peoples piss poor (and disrespectful) attitudes. Not their actions. The very point I've been making all along. The "popularity contest" aspect of voting becomes an issue when we're talking about modding the forums. The people who mod will have a very strong hand in the direction these boards go, and if the highest post count people (aka most popular) are the mods, they'll most likely support a rule of law that pertains to their own perspective of the boards -> a post whore fantasy land. Or maybe not, maybe the most respected members would win and promote a very informative and friendly environment. I'm not really sure how it would play out, I just know that, at the moment, we're probably not ready for that. It's a little volatile around here right now and is probably not the best environment to experiment. This website could go either way for now. But if we only voted in events planers, their mission would be much more clear and the voting public would know these guys are going to be handling the money. The most responsible and upbeat people would be voted for these positions and I think it would generally fair well. That's what I mean by baby steps.
how many times do i have to repeat myself....i dont care if the elected leaders are the same people as the mods or not. by all means, if the newly elected leaders want to appoint mods that would be great. also, its a save bet that many of the top posters wouldnt even want to take an elected leadership position in this club right now. they've been kinda burnt out with the things of the last few years. no more back and forth with you now...gots to get back to work, so dont tempt me. ps- hahaha, and I'M salty lol good one.
I can get on board of some elections. I'm not sure what you think we're fighting about... that's all I'm saying.
Well, some of the banter is some of the things that I have heard about. When the answer to someone not liking the dunk people lighting off fireworks in the cabin is "tough, grow a think skin cuz thats what drunks do", the crowd that doesn't want to be a part of that, will NEVER be a part of that. Kinda funny how many people want the quiet cabins for the next race.:biggrin: Yes justin, there is no direct admin. Steve-o and myself have access to the admin account so we can make the site changes/updates, and I validate all the new accounts. A list of the mods can be found on the bottom of the forum listing on the main page. That is exactly what I am talking about. It has happened many times. And just like Bikerboy and myself said to Justin back in the day, there are older people here (50+) and doctors, lawyers, and everything else, so just because it is a group of 20 somethings that are posting all the time, doesn't mean that they are the only people looking. Don't forget about the hoodies that didn't happen this winter and the mebership cards that got dropped 7-8 months ago.:laugh: And of course, will probably be the same reason that a t-shirt will not be made come spring time. Russ
