Fixed or Random National Meet Locations.

Gary,

So why do you think they didn't really come? Especially all the California folks...?? I find it strange that you would have low attendance as well.. but am curious as to why it was so poorly attended. I go to both Marc/Mafca events....btw.. didn't you use to be in Wisconsin region, 1986 World Meet country?
Thx.
Larry Shepard
St. Charles, MO
 
Being a west coaster, last year was an opportunity to attend both a MARC and MAFCA meet in two weeks which was too much to pass up. It was my first MARC meet and I enjoyed it. But I think the question Will asked is like asking if the glass is half full or half empty. There will be as many answers as there are people replying with no clear mandate as shown by the answers to date. I know if future MARC meets were all held in Oshkosh, it would be hard for me to get interested in attending as we had "been there, done that". And for that reason I would vote for the moving location. Believe me one location would get stale after a few years and I have seen examples of that in northern California at local meets hosted annually by one club.

As an off the wall suggestion that could help get regions to host a meet, maybe going to an every other year meet would help. I have always been amazed that MARC has been able to solicit regions to step up for an annual meet and it has been great but maybe not something that will continue. If there was a MAFCA meet one year and a MARC meet the other it might work well for the Model A membership of both clubs. Something similar has been suggested in the past for both club's magazines--one on even months and one on odd months. Know it might be heresy to suggest something like this but sometimes difficult times require difficult decisions.
 
larrys40 said:
Gary,

So why do you think they didn't really come? Especially all the California folks...?? I find it strange that you would have low attendance as well.. but am curious as to why it was so poorly attended. I go to both Marc/Mafca events....btw.. didn't you use to be in Wisconsin region, 1986 World Meet country?
Thx.
Click to expand...

Larry, my personal opinion is there is THAT much difference between the two club's mindsets. I will tell you that S/D was a very well thought out and run Meet! The hotel was very nice, the flowers (& fragrances) were unreal as you walked to different locations, the meeting rooms were expansive, the place was big but was intimate enough it did not feel "big" ....all in all it was fabulous with the possible exception of traffic around the hotel.




In everyone's opinion, what is the true purpose of why we attend the MARC Meet? If we narrowed it down to 7 or 8 basic criteria, maybe this is why?

* Fellowship with Friends & Fellow enthusiasts
* Fine Point/Touring Judging
* Fashion Show
* Swap Meet
* Seminars
* Board & Special Int. Group Meeting
* Sightseeing


Maybe there is another one or two I'm missing? (maybe like Ice Cream!?! :D ) Is there others?
 
Oshkosh to us was a very good meet but an unremarkable venue.

Marquette on the other hand was a GREAT venue and we plan to go back again just for the fun of being in Marquette!
 
Brent,
I've been to more Mafca regionals than nationals.. as the Nationals are typically more west coast located, time and money are factors for me.... but I don't pick them by club, I pick them by geography or where I want to go and what they are having. In my opinion the best meets are those with scenery, good planning,seminars,swap meet, and organized tours and activities ( ice cream optional). Even though I appreciate and have judged at nationals many years ago and enjoy the fine point and originality side... I see the "touring" side the driving force to the success of the meets. Maybe the recent National (or they could be regional) Tours is part of the wave of the future....
Personally I liked French Lick.. I would probably go back a 2nd time but not a 3rd. I think change of venue is necessary to continue to pull interest of the larger masses.
Personally I think it's been great MARC has had an annual meet... as it gives something to plan for and be excited about going to. . I think before they reduce it to alternating years that other options be explored. Like the V8 National usually has a "Grand" National every 5 years.. it use to be in Detroit... well ours could be at the "MAFFI" museum area venue or something of the sort.... maybe that would help? Food for thought...
BTW.. the Natchez Trace and BRP were awesome!! Definitely trips of a lifetime.
My words to folks that haven't been to a National or tour... are... "What are you waiting for"! start enjoying memories and adventures.... so there's a little heat or the element of breaking down. Get your car up to snuff and drive and enjoy... you won't regret it. My Pikes Peak trek in my "A" was fog laden so bad I couldn't see 20 feet in front of me at times.. but it was still worth it. An adventure to remember.
Will, if you need a helper for a National meet or project count me in!
Larry Shepard
 
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BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Larry, my personal opinion is there is THAT much difference between the two club's mindsets. ...
In everyone's opinion, what is the true purpose of why we attend the MARC Meet? If we narrowed it down to 7 or 8 basic criteria, maybe this is why?

* Fellowship with Friends & Fellow enthusiasts
* Fine Point/Touring Judging
* Fashion Show
* Swap Meet
* Seminars
* Board & Special Int. Group Meeting
* Sightseeing

Maybe there is another one or two I'm missing? (maybe like Ice Cream!?! :D ) Is there others?
Click to expand...

Brent,

I know we've gone round and round on this in earlier threads, but could you please spell out for those of us who are not in-the-know what the differences are? I belong to both clubs, although our local chapter is MARC, and I just don't see it. Sure there are strict preservationists and borderline hot rodders, but we all get along and respect each others' passions, and enjoy looking at each others' cars. You've given a great list of why MARC attendees go to meets; do you really feel that list doesn't apply to MAFCA folks too? I bet if merger were put to a vote of the membership (not just the leadership), there would be overwhelming support to eliminate the silly, and maybe ultimately tragic, wasteful duplication of effort and division of resources. It seems to me that once common Judging Standards have been agreed on and the precedent of joint meets has been set, the heavy lifting has been done--the rest is just politics, making excuses, and denial of demographic realities. Isn't it sad that a third magazine (Model A Times) was needed to do product reviews, and yet a fourth organization was needed to make the Museum happen?

Steve
Kalamazoo
 
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I've been avidly watching this thread, which has contained some very well reasoned and thought out responses. My wife and I have had discussions almost every day about this and the greater problem almost all auto clubs are facing of declining memberships. Our consensus is that a fixed location is probably not a good idea for the primary reason that a large part of the attraction is the variety in locations. We both loved French Lick, but probably would not elect to go back this soon. We also are just recently without school age children that would have made travel prior to June and after August difficult and relegated us to the hotter months (we were at the meet in Williamsburg which was a wonderful locale, but hotter than Hades). However, the national should look to attracting younger members which means staying away from school schedules.

Our local club, the Active A's, have sponsored both membership and national meets in Lancaster, PA, and were asked again by the national to consider one. The club decided against making a bid mainly because the club had aged and most of the members just couldn't see having the energy to host another. Perhaps part of the answer is the National Meet Region which could be a rotating membership open to the whole country and who would develop expertise in hosting national meets and chosing varied locales rotating between East, West, and Midwest independent of having a local chapter in the area.

We've lately been attending the Model T Winter Tours in Florida each March. Those meets move around Florida, and the attraction of a warm locale in March is considerable. But we both agree that the primary attraction of the Winter Tour is the people on the tour. These are quite a bit smaller than a national though. We also thoroughly enjoyed the Blue Ridge Parkway tour. We are already planning our next years events to include the T Winter Tour, and the Early V-8 national in Gettysburg, no A events so far. Why? Distance and venue.
 
rosenkranswa said:
I've been avidly watching this thread, which has contained some very well reasoned and thought out responses. My wife and I have had discussions almost every day about this and the greater problem almost all auto clubs are facing of declining memberships. Our consensus is that a fixed location is probably not a good idea for the primary reason that a large part of the attraction is the variety in locations. We both loved French Lick, but probably would not elect to go back this soon. We also are just recently without school age children that would have made travel prior to June and after August difficult and relegated us to the hotter months (we were at the meet in Williamsburg which was a wonderful locale, but hotter than Hades). However, the national should look to attracting younger members which means staying away from school schedules.

Our local club, the Active A's, have sponsored both membership and national meets in Lancaster, PA, and were asked again by the national to consider one. The club decided against making a bid mainly because the club had aged and most of the members just couldn't see having the energy to host another. Perhaps part of the answer is the National Meet Region which could be a rotating membership open to the whole country and who would develop expertise in hosting national meets and chosing varied locales rotating between East, West, and Midwest independent of having a local chapter in the area.

We've lately been attending the Model T Winter Tours in Florida each March. Those meets move around Florida, and the attraction of a warm locale in March is considerable. But we both agree that the primary attraction of the Winter Tour is the people on the tour. These are quite a bit smaller than a national though. We also thoroughly enjoyed the Blue Ridge Parkway tour. We are already planning our next years events to include the T Winter Tour, and the Early V-8 national in Gettysburg, no A events so far. Why? Distance and venue.
Click to expand...

I agree with everything you said except ............ :eek: Surely you are kidding about the "warm locale"!! I thought we just about froze our hind-ends off on that tour!! :D Those frosty mornings were absolutely brutal in an open car! :o The hospitality & fellowship was indeed awesome though.
 
Yeah, a bit chilly in the mornings - but still better than 30 degrees all day.

Maybe it was the idea it could have been warmer...
 
Thank you so much for looking to the members for a venue for input. This is nice of you.
I belong to a medical society that presents a national meet. We used to have local chapters put on the meeting. Each year we re-invented the wheel. Groups that did a good job would not share, groups that did a poor job, got blamed, poor comments and lost frustrated members.
To solve this we appointed a paid position of 'Meet Coordinator'. This person started planning events 5years out. While she had the experience to manage the meting, she works with the local groups, and she does most of the planning via the Internet. This is working very well.
I would like to see events in different places. We just went to the Museum opening. It was a great job, but it took a week of vacation to dive with a trailer 880 miles, 1 day at the museum, 1 day at the ford museum, then 880 miles home. Back to work the next day exhausted. Lots of $$ for gas, lot of $$ for hotels. Whole week of vacation for 2 days.
I vote we try a program like this, to have a national meet chairmen who would do the organizational work, while assigning tasks and projects to the local club.
I
 
spdway1 said:
Whoever recently called a member in our club was told "NO WAY", to bad because that is the feeling of few in our club and it was brought forward in a monthly meeting AFTER the fact. Some of us feel the wrong person was contacted, a topic like this should be brought up to the president first, not a random person.

The two National clubs should think about how a National Meet is operated, Take a look at AND MEET WITH the Goodguys Club and the American Truch Historical Society and make changes, yes changes. These two show formats would lessen the burden on the area host club, after all Model A members are not getting any younger.
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The national clubs should contact the OFFICERS OF THE CLUB in a formal way, not contact just one member who spoke for the local club without the club's knowledge.
 
ctvpa said:
Thank you so much for looking to the members for a venue for input. This is nice of you.
I belong to a medical society that presents a national meet. We used to have local chapters put on the meeting. Each year we re-invented the wheel. Groups that did a good job would not share, groups that did a poor job, got blamed, poor comments and lost frustrated members.
To solve this we appointed a paid position of 'Meet Coordinator'. This person started planning events 5years out. While she had the experience to manage the meting, she works with the local groups, and she does most of the planning via the Internet. This is working very well.
I would like to see events in different places. We just went to the Museum opening. It was a great job, but it took a week of vacation to dive with a trailer 880 miles, 1 day at the museum, 1 day at the ford museum, then 880 miles home. Back to work the next day exhausted. Lots of $$ for gas, lot of $$ for hotels. Whole week of vacation for 2 days.
I vote we try a program like this, to have a national meet chairmen who would do the organizational work, while assigning tasks and projects to the local club.
I
Click to expand...
JUST like the Goodguys Club and the American Truck Historical Society do!!:cool:
 
this is a small and unscientific survey, but all I have spoken to here at the Lexington meet about the "every year at French Lick" concept believe it's a bad idea. f.w.i.w.
 
Brent, I spoke to Steve Moskowitz re the AACA Fall Eastern Meet( Hershey). I stand corrected. Man, talk about a lot of work and investment for a Region. I was under the impression that National helped out. Nope.
 
You need to change it up. Consider decreasing the frequency of meets over a fixed location. I'm not a member of my local club because they do the same thing each month of the year, year after year. Once you've done it twice, you don't want to do it again. I'm one of the "younger" members and I believe that if you want to attract the future, it needs to be different every year. That's why you don't have the same seminar on tools every year. Different places have different perspectives and experiences.....
 
azmodela said:
You need to change it up. Consider decreasing the frequency of meets over a fixed location. I'm not a member of my local club because they do the same thing each month of the year, year after year. Once you've done it twice, you don't want to do it again. I'm one of the "younger" members and I believe that if you want to attract the future, it needs to be different every year. That's why you don't have the same seminar on tools every year. Different places have different perspectives and experiences.....
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You couldn't have said it any better than that...French Lick...3 times in 5 years!...like you said..."You need to change it up"!

Pluck
 
I feel that the National meets should be held in different places each time. I would go to, and have gone to most MARC and MAFCA meets for the last 30 years, and would not likley go if it was held in the same place very year. I understand the advantages of that concept, as it would be much easier to plan, but I feel that their would be less people each year.

I agree that the meets would be better attended if they were every other year, opposite of the year that the other club has their meet.

So, MARC meet in odd years, MAFCA meets in even years.

Just my opinion......
 
As an overseas member of MAFCA & have attended many national meets the one that piss me off the most is when two meets overlap each other , hence one after spending thousands of $$$ to get there can,t do both when with a little bit of planning they could be a few days apart, Clubs TALK to one another.I preffer a differant location each time as then we as tourists get to see more of your great country, I have never attended a MARC meet , some joint ones yes, I like SteveB31 idea of every second year as above , NZ holds it National meet every two years , being the off year to MAFCA . One of the best meets there apart from Reno 98 was the last year regional meet in Boise, Interesting disccusion & may the directors of both clubs take on board what members enjoy. Course a speed event adds to the icing on the cream cake, Derek from an icy NZ
 
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