BCA NATIONALS

[Mr Riviera]

The Nationals should be called the EASTERN BCA NATIONALS . Lets take a look - 2001 in New York - 2002 in Indiana - 2003 in Michigan - Seems to be a pattern here. Oh I forgot - no Chapters in the West wants to sponsor a meet. Cant our Leaders in the East solve this problem? If you feel that the West is being neglected call the West Coast Hdq. and complain - Better Hurry , its moving to the East as well . Not only will you have Big Air Fares to the Meets , now we will have Big Phone Bills. One Members Perspective. Dick Sweeney - San Diego

[ranchero]

Nationals in the West:<P>Oldsmobile Club National is in Denver this year. Pontiac was in Denver in 1997. Falcon Club was in Breckenridge in 1999 or 1998. There are three local Buick clubs in Colorado plus the Riviera club's home is in Colorado. The Riviera club has had at least two nationals, maybe more, in the Denver area. Buicks in Denver sounds good from Wyoming.

[John Frank]

Nah, you must be dreamning that it is always held in the East. Yes, this year's was in Buffalo and next year's will be in Kokomo, IN and then 2003 will be in Flint, but heck just look at the last few years. Let see, last year was in hmmnmnn....... Richmond,VA Then there was the year previous to that, and that was in, let's see, Columbus, OH. Well they must have gone West the year previous to that, certainly. Oh, Oh that was in Boston.<P>But of course they say there are no bids from the West. I seem to have read that they turned down a bid from Tucson when they picked Kokomo. Smart that, have 2002 less than 300 miles from 2003.<P>It will be a cold day in Southern California before one of the chapters there bids on a National. There was a nasty fight a few years ago between some past board members and a chapter over a web site that one of their most active members put up. To this day the BCA web site does not mention the web site of that chapter even though it is one of the better Buick sites.<P>Yeah, I think it is quite clear that they don't want to hold a National that is more than a few hundred miles from the Ohio Michigan border. I wonder why that is?

[Jeffrey R. Brashares]

I would be glad to weigh in on this one. <P>1. Just found out about the Web Site issue yesterday and am moving to make peace.<P>2. We DID get a bid from Tucson, but felt the date would not be conducive to a good attendance.<P>3. I have gone public and ask for a 2004 bid for the west.

[Guest]

I think a new Buick Club be formed starting on the west coast. Call it Buick Club USA.<BR>All the members who don't agree with the present clubs policies can join the new club.<BR>You would not want this new club to be a good ole boys club. I'm sure the founders of the BCA started out with that in mind.

[Centurion]

As another West Coaster, I too would enjoy more National Meets out West. I am not complaining, however, because I have seen that the chapters in my area are simply not willing to expend the time and energy required to host a National.<P>In many cases, if a chapter has even one individual who is willing to take initiative and motivate his/her fellow chapter members to action, this can be sufficient to get the planning effort started for hosting a National. I look forward to the day when I will have the time to be that "sparkplug" for a National Meet. In the meantime, I am grateful for the willingness of any BCA Chapter to host a National Meet.<P>I notice that the individual who posted the topic is located in the San Diego area. I'm sure that the BCA Board and a large number of members would be thrilled to attend a National in the San Diego area. If you would like to see a National in your area, perhaps you would be willing to start encouraging others in your area/chapter to take steps toward hosting a National Meet.

[Mr Riviera]

2004 - That sounds good - I hope some of the founding members of the Club can hang on. I would like it to be in San Diego for obvious reasons but an area like Sacramento is more realistic. We need to make it a nice ride for all and we have a lot of friends in Washington and Oregon as well as the South and South East! Central Calif. has a large group and perhaps with a little encouragement from the Top they would consider the task. Asking for a Blanket Bid from the West is a little cold. There is a problem here and the problem needs to be addressed with a little more vigor from our Elected Officials. Now if it is a numbers game all we need to do is look back and see what location drew the most people and have it there every year! I am not trying to be a troublemaker - just asking for a little consideration for the folks that cant afford the cross country trips ( Time and/or Money) but would like to attend a National. Between the ROA and the BCA I have flown into many East Coast meets but I am tired of it! Just one members perspective.

[Guest]

From what I've heard over the months is that the LA & Surrounding Counties are some of the most active and sizeable. I may be wrong, wouldn't be the first time. But I think a meet somewhere on the west coast has good potential, not just for the weather but the mass cruise line that could be formed.<P>my 2cents

[Jeffrey R. Brashares]

Good morning to all. I appreciate all the feedback on National Meet locations.<BR>If you look at the figures for the past 10 years, the largest National Meets (attendance and cars) are those that have been located in the Midwest. Columbus, Detroit and Indianapolis have drawn the largest attendance; Phoenix the least.<P>I personally believe the San Diego and/or Sacremento area would be a terrific venue for a National. All we need now is a Chapter(s) to volunteer!

[Guest my3buicks]

Open your ears and eyes fellows. A national meet on the West Coast is not ever going to happen unless a Chapter or Chapters from that area undertake the responsibility of hosting one. It is not up to the Board or National Office to make chapters from the West Coast have a Meet, it is only thier responsibility to see that the bid for the National Meet goes to the Chapter that is going to put forth the best venue for the Meet to occur. So, if you want to have a Meet on the West Coast, get off your buns, join a Chapter, and make it happen. If you don't like what you read to bad, it's the facts!<p>[ 07-17-2001: Message edited by: my3buicks ]

[Mr Riviera]

Phoenix was a bad choice to start with. The Host Chapter tried there best but it is hard to overcome Mother Nature - All you have to do is look at the National Weather every day in the summer and the Handwriting is on the Map - HOT! The Population Centers in the West is not like the East(anywhere East of the Mississippi). If a meet is to be held on the West Coast - seems like it should be held in the Central part and that would draw from the North, East and South. Phoenix is like Key West Fla. or Bar Harbor Maine. - I guess Hawaii would be worse - Hey,that may draw a lot of people but not many cars! This is my last input on this thread. I appriciate our hard working leaders and thank you for putting up with my dialog. Have a Good Day!

[NTX5467]

Greetings:<P>I concur that a western meet's time is somewhat overdue. With respect to the 2003 meet, there is a great reason it's in Flint that year so it should be factored out of the discussion.<P>The last Phoenix meet had several disasters, other than the weather situation. I suspect that as many people east of the Rockies desire to drive to the national meet, they were scared off a little by the informative article in The Bugle (by someone of the host chapter) on how to traverse the desert. The intent obviously was to illustrate that it was possible to do, but might have changed some people's minds about attending in the process.<P>I suspect that as long as the meet will be in the July time frame, the Arizona location will not be a good one. But there is a good reason the meet is when it is with respect to many other things.<P>Attending a national car meet each year in Ohio and then in Indiana and then back in Ohio, it was observed that most of the driving attendees are within a 5 state area. As the greatest concentration of Buicks and their enthusiasts (as evidenced by where the largest chapters are), it is little surprise that the midwest venues are well attended.<P>The Cadillac national meet will be in Denver also this year, in August. I don't know why Denver suddenly has gotten to be a hot spot for national car meets this year, but it could also be a middle ground for a national BCA meet.<P>With respect to crossing the desert and the Rockies, BCA member Cecil Don (CA) has done that many times on his way to the 1996 National Meet we hosted in Plano, TX that year and also in later years too. In vehicles built before 1950 too! So it is possible. At the last Flint meet in the 1980s, I recall one rumble seat Buick roadster driven by a couple from CA that had driven that car to every national meet up until that time, without regard to location.<P>The BCA Board can only approve bids for meets when they are presented to them. It is not the Board's job to actively prospect for meets, only to find the best proposal and act on it. This takes a local chapter, or group of regional chapters, to put together a reasonably workable bid for consideration.<P>Before we did the 1996 National Meet in Texas, those of us in the North Texas chapter questioned our sanity for even considering such a venture. But after some of our members found out how things worked, we discovered that even a smaller chapter with modest funds can and could make it happen. But it took lots of planning and scouting of locations--about 2 years in fact--before a short list was put together and voted on. We also pooled our knowledge of the financial disasters at previous BCA meets and made sure we did not repeat them.<P>Doing a national meet is a large undertaking, no doubt. But, as it's 2001 and the next open date is 2004, then that timing would and should be right for someone out west to get busy and get their proposals together.<P>There are several of us that could offer mentoring to those chapters who might consider doing a national meet. Key thing is not to be scared of doing it and not have "invisible chapter members".<P>Whether that meet is in Denver or farther west is not important, I just don't want our western US members to feel left out for any reason. <P>The people out west are used to the heat in the summer out there, but it's a proven fact that those east of the Mississippi River are not. While it might be neat to drive a vintage Buick to a national meet, there are those of us who like the convenience of flying for various reasons. I recall that Al Eichelberger trailered his Roadmaster to Texas from AZ. And Mr. Brashares sent some of his Buicks also. There are other options to get to a BCA National Meet other than driving.<P>Looking at the chapter roster, I see a lot of chapters in CA. Not to mention Nevada. I believe the last BCA National Meet in CA was in Sacramento in the 1980s. I hope some of our western US associates can make a meet out there a reality.<P>Enjoy!<BR>Willis

[The Old Guy]

The statement was made" just find the place that has the best turn out ,and have the meet there every year" . the first three meets were in Flint in 71=72=73 and even though they were realtively small by todays standards it put such a strain on the host chapter that there was no 74 national meet. The meets in Flint in 78 and 88 were probably the largest meets we had, and 2003 will be the best ever from a participation standpoint. I have driven a Buick to every National and truly believe that there are members who will come no matter where the meet is held. More and more of the cars come in trailers , so that should not pose a problem with a large portion of the participants,and with the BDE promoting the driving of the Buicks ,you will also see more being driven . If you want a meet in your area , step up to the plate and volunteer to put it on . There are too many members that want things done as long as someone else does them.These people are getting tired and need help !! If you want something done O IT