Regarding younger people at car events

[LINC400]

The no respect for young people at car shows post got me thinking about a similar problem.

A club for a long out of production car company in my area constantly holds events and shows during the week, when younger people are working and cannot attend. I am fine with grand invitationals starting on Weds and running through Sat. But this club has monthly meetings on Mondays. Schedules driving tours or shows for Thurs and Fri, etc. Unfortunately this is not the only club that does this. It seems when a club is mostly retired people, they think nothing of this. I am actually going to miss events this year from 3 different clubs, and have missed several each year from previous years because they schedule stuff during the week. How do they expect to get younger people interested in the car and club if their events are when younger working people cannot attend?

[ted sweet]

im 50 and cant do events during the week

[Peter J.Heizmann]

The no respect for young people at car shows post got me thinking about a similar problem.

A club for a long out of production car company in my area constantly holds events and shows during the week, when younger people are working and cannot attend. I am fine with grand invitationals starting on Weds and running through Sat. But this club has monthly meetings on Mondays. Schedules driving tours or shows for Thurs and Fri, etc. Unfortunately this is not the only club that does this. It seems when a club is mostly retired people, they think nothing of this. I am actually going to miss events this year from 3 different clubs, and have missed several each year from previous years because they schedule stuff during the week. How do they expect to get younger people interested in the car and club if their events are when younger working people cannot attend?

LINC400 is addressing "NON-AACA" clubs.

I would contact the un-named clubs as to why they do this if LINC provides the names. Then we could receive the reason from the club's officials as to why they hold their meets during the week.

As for the AACA we have 8-10 National Meets during any given year. They normally run from Thursday thru Saturday with "SATURDAY BEING THE CAR SHOW".

The only exception is the wonderful "TOURS" which run normally from "MONDAY - THRU FRIDAY". The tours are family vacation calibre events held all over this great country.

Only reason I am posting this is to clarify so anyone reading it does not assume the AACA holds "WEEKDAY EVENTS THAT HAMPER YOUTH INVOLVEMENT WITHIN THE HOBBY".

Regards,

Peter J.

[Guest carbadge]

Peter and Marty,

You both point out that AACA shows are typically Saturdays (with an occasional Grand National on Friday), however Tour schedules aren't necessarily convenient for families. Many of the Tours are scheduled during non-peak vacation periods to keep costs down (for our retired/fixed income members), however these time periods typically fall during the normal school year. When you look at the number of members and member's spouses that are school teachers, and the potential youth participants that this excludes, it becomes very difficult to find events that are family friendly. Building youth interest and fostering the next generation(s) involvement really is more likely based on these "kids" experiencing the vehicles. Walking around at a car show is one way to see them, but the real experience is found on Tour. Look at this year's calendar as well as next year, and there are few "family friendly" Tours for the school age kids. I know that given the choice between going to a show and participating in a Tour, each of our family members opt for the Tour. Maybe the club could look at finding possible Regional Tour ideas that are in fact geared towards the family?? Now that I'm finished rambling, it's time to get the car packed for next week's Vintage Tour - and yes there will be school teacher navigating, and a 3 three and six year old in the backseat!!!

[Marty Roth]

Peter and Marty,

You both point out that AACA shows are typically Saturdays (with an occasional Grand National on Friday), however Tour schedules aren't necessarily convenient for families. Many of the Tours are scheduled during non-peak vacation periods to keep costs down (for our retired/fixed income members), however these time periods typically fall during the normal school year. When you look at the number of members and member's spouses that are school teachers, and the potential youth participants that this excludes, it becomes very difficult to find events that are family friendly. Building youth interest and fostering the next generation(s) involvement really is more likely based on these "kids" experiencing the vehicles. Walking around at a car show is one way to see them, but the real experience is found on Tour. Look at this year's calendar as well as next year, and there are few "family friendly" Tours for the school age kids. I know that given the choice between going to a show and participating in a Tour, each of our family members opt for the Tour. Maybe the club could look at finding possible Regional Tour ideas that are in fact geared towards the family?? Now that I'm finished rambling, it's time to get the car packed for next week's Vintage Tour - and yes there will be school teacher navigating, and a 3 three and six year old in the backseat!!!

CARBADGE: You make some excellent points, and I agree that AACA Touring is one of the best ways to attract young families. This was certainly the case when we were considered a young family. After many years of local, Region Weekend, and Divisional touring, we attended the Premier (very first) AACA Founders tour, hosted in 1988 by the North Alabama Region in Huntsville. At that time our son was 17 and our daughter was 13-1/2. Both had been touring, rallying, and exploring back roads with us since they were infants. Last June our 15-1/2 year old grandson drove our 1954 Cadillac convertible as the "Youngest Driver" on the AACA Sentimental Tour" based out of Staunton, VA. I can personally assure you that AACA wants very much to be "FAMILY FRIENDLY" , especially in the arena of TOURING. Part of the problem is that differ regions of the country use different months for summer vacation. It has been discussed by the Tour Committee. Here in the South, our kids are off from Late May, but are back in school the 2nd week of August. When we lived in NJ, we got out of school at the end of June and went back the day after Labor Day. Also, vacations differ during the year. We have vacation around Mardi Gras, but not some of the times like other areas. We plan extra days for Hurricane evacuation - but no "snow Days". This is why we encourage Regions to sponsor more local and regional "DIVISIONAL TOUR", usually of closer distance, and of shorter duration to make them more affordable and attractive to young families. Thank you for your thoughts. Marty

[Scooter Guy]

The no respect for young people at car shows post got me thinking about a similar problem.

A club for a long out of production car company in my area constantly holds events and shows during the week, when younger people are working and cannot attend. I am fine with grand invitationals starting on Weds and running through Sat. But this club has monthly meetings on Mondays. Schedules driving tours or shows for Thurs and Fri, etc. Unfortunately this is not the only club that does this. It seems when a club is mostly retired people, they think nothing of this. I am actually going to miss events this year from 3 different clubs, and have missed several each year from previous years because they schedule stuff during the week. How do they expect to get younger people interested in the car and club if their events are when younger working people cannot attend?

AMEN!

As a "younger person" with a family and a full time job, it is almost completely out of the question to attend shows and club events held during the week. Scheduling events to fall squarely over the weekend (or perhaps even Thurs-Friday through Sunday) allows for working members (and the vast majority of the general public) to participate at some level simply by virtue of not interfering with their work/career lives. Since the retirees have the flexibility of operating without the constraints of work schedules, their attendance and participation would not be adversely impacted by weekend scheduling in principle.

Going a step further:

Public attendance and participation is something I think many clubs overlook when scheduling their meets, instead thinking only of their own members. Yes, I understand that the members pay dues, perhaps vote of issues, etc., etc., but if by virtue of scheduling you exclude the public, what's the point? Most people don't think "Hey, it's Tuesday night...let's go to the car club meeting / show / tour, etc." The interested public is the future of ANY organization and should not be forsaken.