Car Clubs...On a different note, what is YOUR idea?

[Steve Moskowitz]

I have noted with interest the two threads on car clubs.  Naturally on this open forum provided by AACA we have people who are our members, who are not and who are members of other car clubs.  On our forums I find discussions quickly going to what people do not like which I guess is natural.  I would seriously like to hear from you folks about what ideas you have that you would like to see car clubs do that are not done now.  A couple caveats:

1.  This is not meant to be a complaint department, what POSITIVE things would you like to see.

2.  This is not about AACA per se, just what thoughts do you have to make your membership experience better (for any club).

3.  I know it is hard but try not to hijack the thread

4.  Be realistic ( you need to take into account whether your idea is financially viable, there is the time to do it and there would be a mass appeal in your mind.

 

As an example:  "I would like to see my club have more joint activities with other car clubs" or "How about car tours that are over a weekend and less expensive"

 

[zdillinger]

I touched on these in the previous post but, with the goal of making it a positive brainstorming session, I offer the following:

- Online membership: AACA is great with this but many other clubs are not. Make it easy to pay, easy to join, and easy to renew.

- More local contact: Have somebody reach out to new members directly. Each state or region could/should have a member coordinator who is responsible for making that personal connection. Few clubs do this but it impressed me thoroughly when the Pontiac Oakland Club did this when I joined. It made me feel valued.

- Online presence: AACA is obviously the king of this, with this forum and Facebook, but other clubs need this. Have somebody film interesting tech sessions, etc. and get them out there.

[B Jake Moran]

I don't know enough about what has been tried or is currently under consideration but - 

 

As a former member of many marque specific clubs and a former member of the AACA, I think it is seriously time to grab as many of the small membership marque specific clubs as clubs underneath the AACA umbrella.  

 

For most of the smaller marque clubs, such as the orphan cars from the 50's, and so on, they struggle with being able to put out publications and hold meets.   I'll use the Kaiser Frazer Owners Club (KFOCI) since I was formally a member.  

 

Membership is dropping, website is not used anymore due to cost and the newsletter is a simple paper newsletter.  Once a year I believe - you receive a slick magazine type issue.  

 

Many other smaller marque clubs are gone or moribund so why not reach out to them to be a chapter of the AACA.  In fact, I suspect there are more members in the AACA owning Kaiser products then there are in the KFOCI. 

 

So my suggestion is that the AACA reach out to ALL old car clubs with an offer to become an affiliate club or chapter of the AACA.  

 

Might not be the time yet for this idea, but 20 years from now, when memberships decline to such levels that clubs suspend activities and disband all together, it will be too late.  But the AACA needs to be the leader on this subject. 

[Leif in Calif]

I belong the The Arcane Auto Society, a Northern California club for people with odd cars. I used to belong the 356 Porsche club. The thing I like about the arcaners is, they aren't judgmental. Where the 356 group would get upset about non OEM spark plug wires, the arcaners loved the members Tartra that now had VW power. 

[Mark Shaw]

• More garage tours of members collections or businesses that offer skills and experience to work on older cars.
• More local day tours or simple overnight tours that are pay-as-you-go rather than high $$ tours with formal banquets etc.
•  Joint tours with other car clubs as previously mentioned.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

I think nationals whether AACA or otherwise might follow the MBCA model of either including local region membership or making it an option.  That streamlines joining process and they could support admin of differing payment methods.

 

Having been a membership officer for one club, it is a bit of work.  That could possibly be avoided.  Club gets one annual payment from the mother ship, newbies free in year one if they join National.

 

Might encourage some to get active.

Edited November 16, 2022 by Steve_Mack_CT (see edit history)

[Avanti Bill]

Our local region AACA club just recently voted to disband.  There lots of reasons but the bottom line was we were down to about 10 active members who would come out to a meeting and I was one of the youngest at 64.  For me personally I feel as a club we lost our mission or focus.  Our club had become a social club due to the aging membership, we just quit doing things with the cars.  Lots of members still had cars but no longer drove them for a variety of reasons.  I was the only member who stilled showed cars at AACA events.

 

I started a cars and coffee to try to recruit members and though it has become successful with about 100 cars each Sunday we have not been able to recruit one new member.  In talking to people I think there are several reasons for this, here are a few.  Way back if you wanted to see old cars you had to go to a car show sponsored most likely the AACA or one of the Marque clubs, now there is a cruise night every day of the week with no requirements or commitments, just show up and enjoy.  The younger generation doesn't feel the need to belong to an organization for lots of reasons.  My last point is the most controversial, the current trend is toward modified cars, hot rods, rat rods, pro touring and so forth and so on.  Very few people I meet at our weekly event have any interest in doing original cars.  All my cars are original and most are somewhat rare and interesting, they draw a lot of attention, people seem to love them.  However when I talk to those admirers they ask me things like why didn't you put a 500 hp crate engine in it if you were going to spend that much money or why didn't you install air conditioning.  About 75% of the cars that show up every week are modified in some way.  To me they just don't get the point but it is the reality of the current hoby.

 

I think we need to embrace a wider group of people if we want to survive.  I realize there are lots of pitfalls to this thinking and I am not sure how to make it work within the all original community but the number speak for themselves and will ultimately control what happens.  

[Chris Bamford]

I'll offer a perspective on what our Edmonton Antique Car Club has been up to the last few years, and it seems to be helping... our membership inched steadily upward during the pandemic and is now at a record high of 197 persons (metro area 1,000,000+). We're an older-demographic club obviously, with new members typically in their 50s and 60s.

 

DIGITAL

• Shiny new website in 2020 at eacc.ca, regularly updated (see Events Photos and Calendar page). Regular updates are key, as they are for almost all online outreach.

• On-line or paper membership applications, with online or cheque/cash payments cheerfully accepted.

• The Running Board monthly newsletter. 16-20 pages most months; this has evolved the past few years more into a pleasant, informative read rather than the prime source for upcoming events and club news. Our editor, by the way, is a <30 year old Model A owner who is also building a T speedster.

• Club Facebook site: great for photo galleries and attracting prospective members but IMO borderline useless for disseminating info or any kind of permanent record. 

• Mid-Month and Meeting Day (1st Wed of the month for us) member emails — short & snappy, club news, upcoming events, reminders, etc.

• We have a few members who do not do e-mail (or refuse to understand it 🙂) and they receive printed newsletters and notices by mail.

 

EXECUTIVE

• Term Limits! Our By-laws limit Executive members to a maximum of two years consecutive service. This ensures regular shuffles and while many Execs come back on after their year off, new ones rotate in as well. As one might expect, the newsletter editor is given a pass on the two-year rule.

 

MONTHLY MEETINGS

• Business portion is kept as brief as practical, followed by coffee and doughnuts then some kind of entertainment. There is no more "reading of the minutes of the previous meeting" as they are emailed out to all members on the morning of the meeting day.

• Some after-business examples: slide show of the year's activities, a piano concert, speaker from the city about how traffic lights and flows are managed and what to expect in the future, a de-cluttering expert, suitcase swap meet, member slide shows from travels, museum visits, etc., show-and-tell evenings where members bring in something unique to show (not necessarily old-car-related), local history presentations, etc. etc. Meeting entertainment does not have to be old-car related. We do have a significant number of spouses attend, and many of them welcome the variety. As do we car kooks.

 

ACTIVITIES

• We do some 30+ Seniors' Visits every season, regular feasts (St Patrick's Day, Corn Roast, Klondike Breakfast, etc), one large summer car show jointly with two other clubs, garage & shop tours, Fall colours tour, bowling, occasional multi-day tours, etc. Anything involving driving, visiting and eating seems to hit the mark (not news to readers here, I'm sure).

• Mystery Tours: for three or four summer months there is no General Meeting and we gather those nights for a "Mystery Tour" which involves a drive and a surprise destination. The destination might be a park for ice-cream and coffee, a private collection, a ride on our local historic streetcar, visit to community gardens, a distillery, etc etc.

 

OTHER

• Our annual show is non-judged, as are all our club activities.

• While we officially recognize pre-1949 vehicles, all are welcome. And we actually mean it!

• During the pandemic, we ramped up our on-line activity and communications, and were as active as possible whilst obeying local restrictions (outdoor and driving activities, indoors and masked when permitted, etc). Several other clubs I belong to basically put everything on hold those two years, suffered as a result, and continue to struggle.

 

All this is not to say that we're doing everything right, but it seems to work for us. Embracing the digital age, staying in touch and being active year 'round are probably the biggest things in our favour.

 

[pkhammer]

  I like Steve's example of "car tours that are over a weekend and less expensive". I still work but many of the active members of a given car club are retired. Many times activities are planned that happen throughout the week and it's difficult if not impossible for a working individual to attend. Money is usually not the issue but time. Tours that would be Saturday only capped with a cook-out or something of that nature would be appealing.

[Matt Harwood]

Events on weekends. I've noticed that a great many tours are Monday - Friday. Why? How about Thursday - Sunday? Some of us still work for a living and vacation time is scarce. Or how about doing more during the summer when the kids aren't in school? September/October or April/May tours are good for weather, but bad for families with kids. If I can't bring the kids, I can't bring me.

 

Affordable events. Mostly this is aimed at one club in particular that only caters to the wealthy and wonders why no young people want to/can get involved. I'll gladly pay $150 a night for a hotel. I'm going to balk at $850/night. What am I, a Rockefeller?

 

And on a related note, knock it off with the "all in one" packaging of tours. Sure, if I want to do everything, that's great. But if I don't, I'm still locked in at $4500/person even though my kids don't want to see the dollhouse museum and will only eat cheeseburgers and pizza instead of the fancy meals you have scheduled. No thanks.

 

Streamlined online participation. If I have to mail an SASE to someone to get a flyer about an event, then mail the flyer back with a check to register, I'm not doing it. Period.  Let me register online with a credit card or Paypal and I'm in. Online systems like EventBrite are easy to use and don't cost much at all. Figure it out.

 

Stop saying, "This is the way we've always done it." Melanie and I run the Stan Hywet Father's Day Car Show, which is the oldest continuously running car show in the country. Each year it attracts 450 STOCK, unmodified old cars 25 years or older. For years, the club would mail entry forms to everyone who had ever attended the show (thousands of pages--think of the postage!) or force interested parties to send an SASE to get an entry form. Then they'd have to mail the form back with a check to register for the show. Someone recorded their information manually on a piece of paper and someone else had to go to the bank to deposit the checks every few days. A few weeks before the show, the club would mail participants a letter with confirmation (more postage, hundreds of hand-addressed envelopes, more time). Then at the show, the cars would line up, some old lady would walk up to the car, ask them their name, then walk back over to the tent and look through a stack of pre-prepared envelopes for that person's name. God forbid that someone wrote Jack Johnson on John Jackson's folder, because that would require two or three trips back and forth to the car and to the envelope pile to find the right one. Meanwhile, cars are backing up onto the street and starting to overheat. It used to take four or five hours to get all the cars onto the show field, but hey, that's the way they always did it.

 

Five years ago, Melanie solved all that by introducing online-only registration and using a database. Instead of a letter of confirmation, you receive a pre-printed windshield card that was computer generated and printed using a spreadsheet and sent directly from the print shop. You just show that at the gate and drive right in without stopping. All the participant packets were identical, so they could just hand you any of them as you drove by. We went from having cars piling up and overheating on the street to cars streaming in seamlessly without any hold-ups at all. With online registration, we had a lot more younger people register and a lot of new participants who had never been to the show before. It was a win-win-win for everyone involved except the people who bitterly said, "We always did it this way and it worked just fine," and only looked for ways the new system could fail. It hasn't yet.

 

Make it easier for people to participate and they will. Consider how alien envelopes and postage and checks must be to young people who pay everything with a credit card or online or even with their phones. As terrifying as it is for older people to even consider using something like Venmo, that's how weird it is for younger people to use a check and postage. They simply won't bother. What is comfortable for you may not be comfortable for the people you want to attract and you simply MUST take that into account today. Make it easy for them to get involved in a way that's familiar and convenient for them and I suspect you will see a significant uptick in participation rates.

 

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[Walt G]

Matt, well stated, for me especially the first two paragraphs. The car hobby needs family participation to survive. Parents bringing kids, grand parents bringing grand kids. And to all of us who have grown kids and attend shows or tours or whatever  .... talk to the younger generation! They are eager to to be part of it - makes them feel good and boosts their self esteem. Try to let them help out if you can . This is the next generation that will own and hopefully preserve and drive and work on the cars. We all need to pass on the passion. It doesn't take a lot of effort to have a smile, say hello and make people feel welcome.

A few years ago at my Hershey spaces I had a pile of NOS die cast 4 inch long fire trucks from the mid 1950s , several kids walked by with their parents etc they were eye level with the table so saw the toy cars. For a few I just handed them one free and said that is for you and will be the memory you have of the Hershey car flea market . They were in shock, and then had the biggest smile on their faces. Showed their "find" to whomever they were with who looked at me and I just shrugged my shoulders . Playing it forward , sharing the joy......................

[RAH]

Walt, et all, I agree with the concept of enticing younger members to our hobby. Here are a couple pix of my 1927 Auto Red Bug at meets. The one with several munchkins was at a Micro Car meet in Ore. I figured there wasn't much they could break that I couldn't fix and they seemed to enjoy. The other pix was at a local car club meet. The fellow and his sister (I believe) was having fun pretending to drive it. So, when the meet was over and cars were leaving I found him and asked if he would like to actually drive it. Of course the answer was a definite YES!. He could barely reach the GO pedal but was in HOG Hevan. I was able to walk along side over to the van. Later I saw him talking to his Uncle asking him to buy him one!! The point is if we are to continue in our hobby we need to entice the next generation to SHARE instead of those LARGE 'DO NOT TOUCH' signs. 

[1912Staver]

Several times when spectating at vintage racing events I had my young son with me. And he was invited to sit in cars in the pits on a number of occasions. 

 Really he was  too young to appreciate the opportunity, around the age of the two in the Red Bug { the younger pair }. I often thought to myself "what about the father ?" I would have been tickled pink  for the chance to sit in some of the cars, Lotus 23 , Mallock , Lotus Formula Ford etc.

As he got closer to being a teenager the invitations seemed to trail off. Pitty , because that's the age where it might have made a difference. These days  as a young man in his twenties he isn't even all that interested in my Lola. Way more into music.

Edited November 16, 2022 by 1912Staver (see edit history)

[SC38dls]

For my two cents Matt and Walt hit the mail on the head. Nothing else needs to be said by me. 
dave s 

[Walt G]

My enthusiasm for old cars, trucks etc has always been there never lessened when I got into my early teens. On long island we were fortunate that near the east end was an Automobile museum that opened up a year before I was born. Austin Clark's Long Island Automotive Museum. My folks made the long drive out there (70+ miles one way as we are on the western end of the island) on a two lane highway - this was long before the Long Island Expressway was built. In our family station wagon. Austin Clark would round up all the kids in the museum and pile us into the back of a late teens fire truck and give us a ride ( and it was very bumpy) around the property. No seat belts, or any safety devices , we just had to "hold on tight". That was a major factor to reinforce my love of old vehicles which obviously I still have. He was sharing the joy - and was smiling as much as all the kids ( at least a dozen ) in the back of the fire truck.

Decades later after he and I became friends the experience would continue as we would take one of his brass era cars out for a vigorous ride before going to lunch.

[Bhigdog]

4 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

Stop saying, "This is the way we've always done it."

BINGO!.................Bob

[Pfeil]

What ideas you have that you would like to see car clubs do that are not done now.

 

I think all clubs have a mission statement. I think that the mission statement should be paramount in the eyes of the members and the potential members of a club. The clubs or chapters that I have belonged have all deviated from the purpose of the mission statement. Deviation from the mission statement has split clubs and turned members against one another. On the outside, deviation has caused public bewilderment as to what the club represents and sometimes a little humiliation to some members.

Former Clubs

AACA

POCI

OCA

VVCA
PAAC

[TAKerry]

What I would like to see from a car club?

I would like to get together with like minded people, regardless of age of car, whether or not is restored, modified etc. 

Spend a Saturday or Sunday with a casual drive, maybe hit up a coffee house, decent place for lunch-burgers, dogs and bbq are quite fine. If there was a museum, car collection or even a private garage/shop that someone wanted to share with others that would be great. I dont drink so bar hopping is a big NO.

I would like to meet up within a reasonable distance from my home. I dont want to drive for 2 hrs for a club meeting.

I dont need a lot of organization, staying connected through social media would be fine (although I dont do FB so that part would be hard). Im not lazy, nor complacent, but I own a business and keeping it running on a weekly basis is time consuming and stressful, Im at a point in my life that I dont need the extra work of keeping a club running as well. I was in the Kiwanis 30 yrs ago, I was much younger, probably had a little more spare time and loved every minute of it. But I was very involved, serving all the way through President. Honestly, I dont have the time to devote to that kind of thing now.

I would not mind getting together maybe every couple of months for a dinner and commraderie but do not want to organize events, etc.

I enjoy car shows but this past summer I realized I was getting burned out on them. I had more fun driving to and from than sitting at one for hours. 

I belong to AACA and enjoyed participating in the DPC at Hershey and look forward to doing so again. But my work schedule and pocket book wont allow me to travel around the country attending multiple events. I enjoy the magazine but do not participate in any other AACA activity.

I belong to POCI, and have never attended a POCI event. 

I belong to MD Chevelle club and have never participated in an event.

I guess its my fault but the biggest constraint is that my wife has no interest in old cars, and there is no way I am squeezing vacation time to go to a car convention.

 

I will add, one of the 'events' I really enjoy is a 'car cruise' that a buddy of mine runs. Its about a 45 min. one way drive from home, and held at a crab house. Drive there on a Sunday afternoon, get a crab cake, get to talk to a few friends then drive home. Makes for a good afternoon.

[John_S_in_Penna]

11 hours ago, zdillinger said:

- More local contact: Have somebody reach out to new members directly. Each state or region could/should have a member coordinator who is responsible for making that personal connection. Few clubs do this but it impressed me thoroughly when the Pontiac Oakland Club did this when I joined. It made me feel valued.

Excellent.  Whenever someone joins the national AACA,

give his name to the region that covers his location, if there is one.

The region then MUST contact him once or twice--personably,

not impersonally--and invite him to belong.

 

When I first joined the Buick Club of America as a recent graduate,

I didn't know how clubs worked.  I thought someone would call me

and make me welcome.  But all I got was a magazine in the mail.

Remember:  It's a club, not merely a magazine subscription.

So I never participated locally and my enthusiasm gradually waned.

 

Also:  Include later antique cars in our magazine, Antique Automobile.

Collectible Automobile and Hemmings Classic Car do a good job at that.

Currently, there are no 1980's car articles, and few 1970's except muscle cars.

I'd like to see real insights into such things as a 1974 Lincoln Continental 4-door,

a 1976 Dodge Royal Monaco, a 1974 Imperial, a 1981 Chrysler New Yorker,

just as much as someone else wants to read about a 1930 Hupmobile.

This is a prime time to be including them, because the designers of them are

likely still living and could provide great insights if an author did thorough research.

 

Edited November 17, 2022 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Pfeil]

Even though I don't belong to a club anymore there are plenty of car things to do in my area.

Every Friday there is a lunch cruise to a local restaurant, four restaurants in a month, a fifth Friday month to someone's house for a barbecue. Email out every Wednesday for location information, there are over 100 guys on the list.

Every Friday from early spring to November there is a cruise night to various places in the month.

Every Saturday morning there is a coffee & donuts cruise, after that there is breakfast with car buddies.

Not to mention car shows spring-Fall

POCI, OCA, VVCA, AACA are not represented locally.
 

[Hans1]

I READ LOTS OFTHINGS THAT WE THINK SHOULD BE DONE...............

 

ONLY LIST THE THINGS YOU WILL SEE GET DONE.........................

 

 

[Borough Essex]

Excellent thread and thanks for all the great comments; am furiously taking notes.

[Restorer32]

I have talked to several folks who wish AACA could hold more shows in interesting areas instead of the current trend toward "settled" shows at the same venues year after year, Hershey excepted.  I understand the difficulty and expense in arranging and holding shows where a show has not previously been held.  My wife, a non car person, thoroughly enjoyed the show in Stow Vermont a few years ago. It's great to have other non show things to do and sites to see.  Why are there few or no shows in New jersey, Connecticut or Mass?  I suggest a show in the DC area.  Judging by the cars in our shop there are many, many car enthusiasts in DC and Northern VA.  Also, before the pandemic, a place in Hershey that houses and displays antique autos would send a tour group of 5-8 folks to our shop and another local shop several times a year and the participants enjoyed seeing cars in various stages of restoration.  Just my random thoughts.

[TAKerry]

19 hours ago, Avanti Bill said:

Our local region AACA club just recently voted to disband.  There lots of reasons but the bottom line was we were down to about 10 active members who would come out to a meeting and I was one of the youngest at 64.  For me personally I feel as a club we lost our mission or focus.  Our club had become a social club due to the aging membership, we just quit doing things with the cars.  Lots of members still had cars but no longer drove them for a variety of reasons.  I was the only member who stilled showed cars at AACA events.

 

I started a cars and coffee to try to recruit members and though it has become successful with about 100 cars each Sunday we have not been able to recruit one new member.  In talking to people I think there are several reasons for this, here are a few.  Way back if you wanted to see old cars you had to go to a car show sponsored most likely the AACA or one of the Marque clubs, now there is a cruise night every day of the week with no requirements or commitments, just show up and enjoy.  The younger generation doesn't feel the need to belong to an organization for lots of reasons.  My last point is the most controversial, the current trend is toward modified cars, hot rods, rat rods, pro touring and so forth and so on.  Very few people I meet at our weekly event have any interest in doing original cars.  All my cars are original and most are somewhat rare and interesting, they draw a lot of attention, people seem to love them.  However when I talk to those admirers they ask me things like why didn't you put a 500 hp crate engine in it if you were going to spend that much money or why didn't you install air conditioning.  About 75% of the cars that show up every week are modified in some way.  To me they just don't get the point but it is the reality of the current hoby.

 

I think we need to embrace a wider group of people if we want to survive.  I realize there are lots of pitfalls to this thinking and I am not sure how to make it work within the all original community but the number speak for themselves and will ultimately control what happens.  

Its a shame your local club has to call it quits. I will ad to this though that I am 20 minutes at the most from Bel Air (not sure where your club met) and had no idea there was a local AACA branch. I was on a road rally last month and talked to a couple of fellows that were in the Newark DE AACA chapter, another one close to me that I did not know about.

[ch1929]

 

6 minutes ago, TAKerry said:

Its a shame your local club has to call it quits. I will ad to this though that I am 20 minutes at the most from Bel Air (not sure where your club met) and had no idea there was a local AACA branch. I was on a road rally last month and talked to a couple of fellows that were in the Newark DE AACA chapter, another one close to me that I did not know about.

I remember when the Harford Region held the car show at the Equestrian Center way back when. It was a nice show and I always wondered why it stopped. Living in Bel Air I did not know anyone in the Harford Region and never reached out to them. Still working full time I just do not have time for meetings. I do enjoy emails for upcoming events and hopefully I can participate in them. 

[EmTee]

11 hours ago, TAKerry said:

I enjoy car shows but this past summer I realized I was getting burned out on them. I had more fun driving to and from than sitting at one for hours. 

I agree; more 'day-trip' or short tours would be great.  There's a weekly Friday evening cruise-in that I enjoy because there's a group of regular attendees that i like visiting with.  That aside, I like driving my cars.  I drove my '38 Century in the Glidden Tour back in September.  That was my first major, organized tour.  It was fun, but also a fair amount of work -- just ask my wife/navigator... 

 

On the other hand, to prepare for the Glidden I made a number of day-trips (100 ~ 150 miles round-trip) over the summer.  Both my wife and I really enjoyed those excursions.  My daughter, son-in-law and grandkids followed us in their car when we visited Cooperstown.  It would be nice if people considering such 'day-tours' had a way to post prospective plans for others to see and join-in.  I attempted to do this for the Buick community earlier this summer.  The destination was the Northeast Classic Car museum in Norwich, NY.  Ultimately, it was hard to coordinate a date where everyone was available.  It wound-up being me and another Buick from northern NJ, so we didn't actually tour together.

 

But, maybe a way to coordinate such one-day activities across smaller clubs (or local AACA chapters) that would allow non-members to sign-up and participate would be helpful.  That could ultimately lead to increased club participation as a side benefit.

 

[ted sweet]

being able to completely register on line for events

[1937hd45]

5 hours ago, Restorer32 said:

I have talked to several folks who wish AACA could hold more shows in interesting areas instead of the current trend toward "settled" shows at the same venues year after year, Hershey excepted.  I understand the difficulty and expense in arranging and holding shows where a show has not previously been held.  My wife, a non car person, thoroughly enjoyed the show in Stow Vermont a few years ago. It's great to have other non show things to do and sites to see.  Why are there few or no shows in New jersey, Connecticut or Mass?  I suggest a show in the DC area.  Judging by the cars in our shop there are many, many car enthusiasts in DC and Northern VA.  Also, before the pandemic, a place in Hershey that houses and displays antique autos would send a tour group of 5-8 folks to our shop and another local shop several times a year and the participants enjoyed seeing cars in various stages of restoration.  Just my random thoughts.

Back in the late 1980's? our Region hosted an AACA National Meet in Danbury, Ct. just running the meet took all we could do to pull it off, tours to unrelated tourist points was never part of the planning. Bob

[Pfeil]

So, I looked up the AACA 2023 event schedule for the closest tour. 

I HEAR YOU TAKerry

September 25, 2023 - September 29, 2023

2023 AACA Western Divisional Tour

Location: California Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley Sponsor: AACA Santa Barbara Region

 

That's a 9-hr. drive from me. So now I would need a truck and trailer. Price of fuel in Ca.????  

And that's why;

Even though I don't belong to a club anymore there are plenty of car things to do in my area.

Every Friday there is a lunch cruise to a local restaurant, four restaurants in a month, a fifth Friday month to someone's house for a barbecue. Email out every Wednesday for location information, there are over 100 guys on the list.

Every Friday from early spring to November there is a cruise night to various places in the month.

Every Saturday morning there is a coffee & donuts cruise, after that there is breakfast with car buddies.

Not to mention car shows spring-Fall

POCI, OCA, VVCA, AACA are not represented locally.

[Steve Moskowitz]

6 hours ago, Restorer32 said:

I have talked to several folks who wish AACA could hold more shows in interesting areas instead of the current trend toward "settled" shows at the same venues year after year, Hershey excepted.  I understand the difficulty and expense in arranging and holding shows where a show has not previously been held.  My wife, a non car person, thoroughly enjoyed the show in Stow Vermont a few years ago. It's great to have other non show things to do and sites to see.  Why are there few or no shows in New jersey, Connecticut or Mass?  I suggest a show in the DC area.  Judging by the cars in our shop there are many, many car enthusiasts in DC and Northern VA.  Also, before the pandemic, a place in Hershey that houses and displays antique autos would send a tour group of 5-8 folks to our shop and another local shop several times a year and the participants enjoyed seeing cars in various stages of restoration.  Just my random thoughts.

Thanks for all your thoughts.  Some good suggestions here and some things I believe in as well.  Just thought I would make it clear that we would prefer to have an abundance of NEW locations for events.  We love getting to visit areas we have not been to before. Having anchor events besides Hershey is relatively new and mostly the result of not getting enough regions or chapters stepping up to agree to host. There is no real cost advantage to being at the same place.  So hopefully we can change this scenario.  We are looking at a couple solutions to this problem.

[30DodgePanel]

With gas prices and the fact so many of our members are living thousands of miles from any of the main activities and meets I would ask everyone to consider how vitally important digital tools can be in helping others remain engaged who may not otherwise be. Remember, some folks may not have the ability to meet up in person and ALL members are important.

 

One thing I was hoping would be discussed is utilizing the benefits of the internet age to promote more exposure. I'm not seeing it so I'll add my two cents in hopes other more knowledgeable folks will expand on it's many possibilities and benefits of sharing digital tricks and file information. Because so much of the membership of any given club can be located in many parts of the world our exposure tools need to be more user friendly since a lot of those members have important documentation that may help sustain a brand. In addition, paper literature and advertising are becoming less interesting and practical in our world today (unfortunately). If we want to survive longterm we must adapt. Afterall, most of us carry our cell phone when we are in the shop don't we, but how many of us write a letter sharing manufacturer literature to another club member? Sure some of us still do but not many. Nother wrong with either method but since the digital options are becoming more practical why not take advantage of that?

 

I think it's important for all clubs to have a willingness to streamline access to other club websites of similar interest as well as research tools in order to help sustainability longterm, especially in the era where one can navigate to and from so easily. To me this is a glaring utility tool that is missing from most club sites that a webmaster or designer is overlooking in order to maximize exposure. 

 

This snippet below is from the DBC home page so anyone that visits can clearly see the AACA forum link and navigate with ease, to me the example below is a benefit most websites aren't using properly. Having links to other related sites will take club members becoming more involved in order to make ongoing petitions to implement these changes, I get that... However, I often wonder if a designer may at times overlook those details because they don't allow themselves to walk in the users shoes. Those are some of the small details I think benefit everyone and help prolong membership as it instills a passion for research and learning even on a subconsience level. Let's face it, if a website isn't freindly to navigate then it won't get used much by it's members or anyone on the fence, therefore having the potential for decreased membership. 

 

We at the DBC are in a transition period so I'm sure we'll see changes soon, but for the sake of discussion I'll use our website as an example.

 

As I look at the example below my opinion is we should have a new link for the AACA library and the AACA home page and other links for Graham Brothers trucks as well as all related clubs and websites (DeSoto, Plymouth, Chrysler, HahtiTrust, etc..) or at least file drop down options in order to create that traffic and exposure that viewers may have an interest in. I'm not a webmaster and not sure if it's financially feasible but it seems like it would be very easy and inexpensive for clubs to design and put these tools into action so guests or "anyone on the fence" can see the benefit.

 

And lastly, two points 

1.) I wish more members from all clubs would allow themselves to use the snippet tool as they share information and source materials. It's a free tool thats available on virtually every computer in existence in today. In my opinion tricks like the snippet tool help folks to see the problem and/or benefit along with a description.

2.) It would benefit each club to have someone willing to train it's more tenored or less mobile members on navigational uses so they can remain engaged (if they want to and if they like to learn new tricks) in order to pass along important knowledge and information as they remain engaged and excited to be in the hobby. We all know literature stuck on a shelf benefits no one. Hopefully this in turn will encourage others to share vital documents in return that will benefit each club both short and long term..

 

Edited November 17, 2022 by 30DodgePanel (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

Another idea:  Make sure that all of our national meets

and tours are accessible to the public.  Our events in

various locations are traveling ambassadors for AACA

and the hobby.  For example:

 

---Advertise each National Meet substantially in the

media where it is to be held.  Let the public know it's there,

that admission is free, and that they can see many interesting

things!  Even better, locate the meet somewhere that the public

will see--a large town park, a college campus.  I've been to some

national meets of other clubs that are "in the parking lot behind

the Marriott, just off Exit 32."  The public will never happen upon

such a hidden, impersonal, sun-baked location unless it's well advertised.

 

---Let the public know that a National Tour is to be in their locality.

On a certain night, for an hour or two, have the cars accessible to

visitors.  It will be a car show that has come to their town!

Naturally, have owners there to explain their cars, and a large table

to broach the benefits of AACA.

[Walt G]

3 hours ago, Steve Moskowitz said:

.  Just thought I would make it clear that we would prefer to have an abundance of NEW locations for events.

Our national club can't do this on their own, everyone needs to "Step up" to help out. Even if it is in a minor capacity  - ie you are the one that volunteers to go out and get something photocopied to save some time for the person who took the effort to create it for the club. Because you pay your dues it shouldn't make you and armchair participant awaiting to be served . Yes, time plays a big factor to all of us ( what time we have to devote to help or what time we have left on this earth) but every small faction helps get a great event/tour to become reality. I have helped more in the past then I do now. Helped run a Glidden tour here on long island, ran tours that ended at a restaurant for a pay for your own meal ( but was the one to warn the restaurant that 30 people would show up! well before hand)  Some time ago I used to organize a "no nothing tour" no club, no fee, no nothing. We would gather and do a 40-50 mile tour and then go out for a meal at the end. cars ranged from brass era to early 1950s. I like to drive /use my cars. We would try to caravan on the tour but allow /make room for "modern" traffic to get around us. You need to be pro active. Reread what Steve M. says , think about what can be developed over the winter then GET OFF YOUR DUFF and do something.

Edited November 17, 2022 by Walt G (see edit history)

[Restorer32]

I have often wondered why there is no "Nation's Capital Concours de Elegance ?  I also think our judging system and standards need looked at.  Why is a First in Class at Pebble or Amelia generally more esteemed than an AACA Grand National Award ?  I would like to see AACA judging made tougher.  When there are very few Seconds or Thirds awarded at our shows and many, many Firsts and Seniors I feel it weakens our system and our appeal. Again just my random thoughts.

[pkhammer]

  Perhaps some folks who have good ideas (and are willing) need to step forward and volunteer to organize a Saturday or weekend tour that would appeal to folks within a days drive. Maybe a thread should get started to discuss HOW  one goes about organizing a one day or weekend tour. I know of some fantastic places to tour here in Virginia (and West Virginia) but have no idea what it takes to organize such an event. Afton Mountain, near Waynesboro, VA is the southern terminus of the Shenandoah National Park (Skyline Drive -106 miles long) and the northern terminus of the Blue Ridge Parkway (469 miles long) that together add up to 575 miles of beautiful, slow (35-45 mph max speed limit) winding, mountainous road that wind from Northern VA to Western NC. Perfect for touring (except maybe for early, low powered, easily overheated cars).  The traffic is typically not heavy and there are lots of overlooks (with great views) to pull over and take breaks. I am a very good organizer and used to plan motorcycle tours (for my local club) on these roads but would have no idea where to start to actually organize something with a broader list of possible attendees. There are bound to be others out there that would be willing to put something together but have no idea how to go about it.

  I recently joined a local AACA chapter that is pretty active so maybe I should be bringing this up to that group.

[Bryan G]

For me, the most important key: be welcoming. I've never belonged to a car club, though I've been around old cars all my life. No car club member has ever asked me to join; I have had members of the local group make disparaging remarks about my cars, however. Were I to join, I'd be their youngest member by about 20 years (and I'm 50!) Compare this to some civic organizations where they make an effort to twist arms, get younger folks in, and more importantly get them involved. 

[John_S_in_Penna]

8 hours ago, Bryan G said:

For me, the most important key:  be welcoming...No car club member has ever asked me to join...    

That's very important, Bryan.  I would have become an

active AACA member much earlier, even in high school,

if I had known about AACA and someone had ASKED.

 

There was a sizable group of antique-car owners who

had their cars in the Fourth of July parade.  I would 

watch them assemble and look closely at the cars.

No one noticed that I was interested;  there was no

indication, but it was the local AACA region.

 

Later on, after I graduated and moved, I found a fine local

car show that I looked forward to every year.  I had no idea

that it was put on by an AACA region.  I hardly knew about

AACA, if at all.  A couple people knew me, but no one asked

me to join.

 

If you see people enjoying themselves--such as neighbors

having a backyard barbecue--you don't go over and impose

yourself on them.  If you see a group organizing a festivity,

you're unlikely to have the temerity just to join in.  THE GROUP

SHOULD ASK YOU.  So AACA members should notice the

interested youth, the curious spectator, and ASK him to join!

[zdillinger]

50 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

If you see people enjoying themselves--such as neighbors

having a backyard barbecue--you don't go over and impose

yourself on them.  If you see a group organizing a festivity,

you're unlikely to have the temerity just to join in.  THE GROUP

SHOULD ASK YOU.  So AACA members should notice the

interested youth, the curious spectator, and ASK him to join!

I agree completely. My day job is in communications, preparing press releases, talking points, media replies, etc.. Having an "elevator speech" prepared for events like this would help immensely, i.e. a couple of prepared sentences/talking points for members to know in case they meet an interested person. Having this type of information in one's pocket, so to speak, can help overcome any shyness or reticence to share. 

 

Also, more media outreach. Having a local show? Do a press release. Starting a Cars and Coffee? Do a press release. Get a new local club president? Do a press release. Not everything will get picked up but any media mentions of the club will help garner exposure for the club in question. 

If people see value in it, I would be happy to put together a press release template that could make this process easier for AACA chapters, other clubs, etc.

Edited November 18, 2022 by zdillinger (see edit history)

[TAKerry]

Good Point, I know there is a car club in my little town. A lot of times when I am at shows I will see a couple of the guys wearing a jacket or shirt with the clubs name. I would have no idea whom to ask about joining, or anything else. To me I would feel out of place going up to a guy and asking if I can join his club.

[alsancle]

I’m sure Matt probably already said this somewhere, but I think the biggest issue with most clubs is that the tours are organized in a way that you need to be retired or wealthy or both to attend.

 

however, since I’m not the one doing all the work, I’m not complaining about anything. I’m just happy there are still shows and tours.

Edited November 18, 2022 by alsancle (see edit history)