BCA NATIONALS, AMES, IOWA JULY 24, 2010

[Guest BJM]

Brian,

Your photo is worth a thousand of my words. Thanks

[Guest buickapollo455]

475 CARS, APROX 25 SWAPS, AND 50DOLLAR DUE PER AND STILL A SWAP AND CAR SPACE DUE ON TOP OF THAT. GO FIGURE THE PROFITS. 18,000 FOR GROUNDS, 7,000 OF THAT PAID BY CITY OF AMES, YET 30,000 PLUS DOLLARS OF INCOME JUST IN REGISTRATIONS, WHEN DO CLUBS GET THERE CUTS,???? 50 PER MEMBER AND SPACE OR CAR??? COME ON, EVEN IF THE CLUB DID NOT EXPECT ENOUGH CARS TO COVER COST, THIS IS NOW WELL SHOWN TO BE OVER COST , AND MAYBE EVEN A REBATE SHOULD BE IN LINE.

[rivgs]

When do the clubs get there cuts? The show ended less then a week ago. It takes some time to get all the bills together and paid. The accounting will be completed as quickly as possible.

[bhclark]

475 CARS, APROX 25 SWAPS, AND 50DOLLAR DUE PER AND STILL A SWAP AND CAR SPACE DUE ON TOP OF THAT. GO FIGURE THE PROFITS. 18,000 FOR GROUNDS, 7,000 OF THAT PAID BY CITY OF AMES, YET 30,000 PLUS DOLLARS OF INCOME JUST IN REGISTRATIONS, WHEN DO CLUBS GET THERE CUTS,???? 50 PER MEMBER AND SPACE OR CAR??? COME ON, EVEN IF THE CLUB DID NOT EXPECT ENOUGH CARS TO COVER COST, THIS IS NOW WELL SHOWN TO BE OVER COST , AND MAYBE EVEN A REBATE SHOULD BE IN LINE.

Can't figure out what your problem is, but if you didn't like it, you shouldn't have paid and went.

This kind of negativity is not productive for anyone, including the BOD or yourself and is just blah blah rambling to the rest of us.

[Guest buickapollo455]

I love the show, and have paid for 25 years + of membership, but when the club does not go to its members and just raises the rates, so you cant afford to go then it loses on new members, as older club members die off who will support the club, in 10 years, there will be NO club as dues will be over 100 by then. The club has had poor years of nats, so take it out on the midwest when as a whole the area supports more nats shows than any other area of the country. So when 475+ cars show, not 200, not 250, the club makes off big and then is not giving back or cutting cost the next year. The show was well done except for hospitality room sucked nothing there 4-5 times up to the room when open. Cost of the Grounds was extravagant. could have taken a double hotel area and givin the hotels good sell out , Using 2 hotels back to back and using both lots and giving more than one hotel the use of HOST, would sell, and keep rooms at 69-79 dollars, not 119. I had a king suite for $39 2miles away at major hotel. If this club wishes to stay financially afloat, then start thinking on NEW members, not 65 + but of 30yr old etc. to keep the club going with family rates memberships so family can come. make the weekend all can have fun, amusement park bus, zoo's, etc. not just beer making plants, antique'ng, railroad or chevy plant tours. lets make our shows grow our familys and memberships at a reasonable cost not 50 a year, Even Cadillac is $35 year and not raising their rates. I am after and have tried for 15 years to get new members to join, and find time after time the cost of local and national dues turn off any chance of winning new dues in new membership. The Club needs to wake up. Look at the AGE future of which there is glim hopes. 40% of our members will be dead in 10-12 years on US average , what then. Cant the club see why some buick clubs wont work with the BCA? Cost to members if out of control. NO life time dues? over $35 dollar national, and most locals have raised due to same as no new members to cover their cost of a club operation. If we had lower dues, and more new members came in not only would it keep the club alive for years, but maybe even grow or double. Could we all not enjoy a 2000 car national show?? hell yea, Lets get members in lower cost, and keep it family as it was planned in the beginning.

[buick5563]

40% of our members will be dead in 10-12 years on US average , what then?

I buy all of their cars!

Bwahaaahaaahaa.

My evil plan of world domination in the old car hobby will finally come true!

[Thriller]

Craig, were you as vocal when the GSC doubled dues? I don't know as meetings are too far to attend. Of course someone had suggested higher rates for international members...a lot of good that would do with one of me paying a higher rate.

There were families there, although not many. My children enjoy riding steam trains and we considered going on the train, but didn't have time to make it happen.

I'm not sure what your idea is of what the hospitality room is supposed to be. As far as I am concerned, it is a place to be able to get out of the weather and socialize. It is nice to have drinks available, but for a $50 registration, the expectation should not be that the club feed everyone at the meet. I have heard of freeloaders crashing the judges' breakfast in the past for a free meal - if nothing else, that is an argument for keeping it away from the hotels.

The reality is that we have been over this numerous times over the past year. The membership generally supported a dues increase to maintain the size and colour content of the Bugle. Not everyone will be happy - the BoD certainly understood that. You can't please everyone all the time. We have now seen an increase in membership month over month.

Clubs evolve. Anything that remains static won't survive. It doesn't help the club that Buick generally stopped making what most folks consider collectible cars, with a few exceptions over the past few decades. I was just going through a price guide and noting that car values seem to be rising again. If that is the case, perhaps it is more that the affordability of entry level vehicles to get into the hobby is a bigger deal. If you can't afford $10k to purchase / maintain a car, then certainly, $50 for a club membership doesn't necessarily make sense. However, if they can get into a car for under $2k (like say my Electra), and can afford to insure and drive it, then $50 per annum is not going to be a significant deterrent. Whether or not the club has enough visibility to get them interested is probably more of an issue. Of course, that varies by region - for example, if you live in the Flint area, the national meets and Buicktown chapter probably make it easy. If you live in North Dakota or Montana, where you don't have local chapters, the club is much less visible. Even so, are all Buick owners in the Twin Cities BCA members and GSC / Fireball Chapter members? No. Not everyone wants to join a club. Frankly, people lie. It is easier to say $50 is too much than to tell someone who is passionate about a club that they aren't interested in joining.

I'm not going to say the Ames National was perfect. Nor am I saying that the BoD is perfect. Both are run by humans, therefore imperfect. If you want to have a say, start with constructive criticism and potential alternatives. Presenting a problem without a possible solution / suggestion for improvement is just complaining. People will always tire of it. The other thing is to realize that the club is a collective - some will share your views, but others will not. All views are valid, but majority generally rules and decisions have to be made in the best interest of the club.

My family enjoyed the meet. We didn't partake in any of the tours that had cost associated simply because it does turn into a lot of money when one multiplies it by five. However, that didn't need to make the meet. My children can go back to school to see their friends saying they sat behind the wheel of a Motorama show car. How many can say that? They have friends they like to see at each meet, just like I do. It is a family atmosphere - we can essentially let them run free on the National Meet grounds. It is a heck of a lot safer than the streets of Winnipeg.

[MrEarl]

I buy all of their cars!

Bwahaaahaaahaa.

My evil plan of world domination in the old car hobby will finally come true!

Not all of them. I've already got contracts on all 54's for the next 40 years.

[buick5563]

Not all of them. I've already got contracts on all 54's for the next 40 years.

Then a toast to your health, my friend!

[buick5563]

...now, back to the show...