Car show question......

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This is probably going to upset a few, but I always try to see things from both sides. While I agree about not giving them a free pass for food, what is in it for their club? Putting on a car show is a big PITA. Did you expect them to perform all the planning, beating the streets for sponsors and prizes, advertising, provide judges, managing the show, and everything else that a show requires with no benefit to their club? I'm not saying you did, I'm just asking.

Our club put on a show a few years ago and donated all the proceeds to a charity. It was a lot of work, especially for those in the planning process, which didn't include me; I helped on the day of the show. It was also difficult to find volunteers, especially if a club has older members that are into classic muscle cars; usually they are an older crowd and I'm including myself in that category.

Every year our club judges two shows and it is a struggle sometimes to get volunteers. Every year it appears to be the same members that volunteer, while all members benefit from the money raised. I'm not slamming those that don't volunteer to judge at the shows; many cannot due to health issues, but volunteer for other activities in the club.

Members now-a-days just want to show up to car events, not run them. Just look at the responses here that said they'd rather go to a cruise-in instead. Look around at most of the recent start up clubs; no offense, but many of them are what some of us call Facebook clubs. They have many members, but they don't have a lot of overhead or management requirements. What I mean by that, someone posts "Lets go here" and they do exactly that. They don't have board members, board meetings, planning committees for events, none of the headaches or BS; they just meet and hangout. It's basically an easy button car enthusiasts. I'm not saying that it's right or wrong, just observing what is happening in our hobby.
 
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I recently went to a high level show event at the Autorama in February, and observed what I believe is exactly wrong with the higher level car clubs of today! Without getting into too much detail, there was no small amount of lobbying, infighting, he said/she said, and hurt feelings when a friend of mine was trying to get into one of the clubs! It ended up with him being invited to join a rival club, which infuriated the club he petitioned, even tho they had already had their "meeting" and was blackballed by a member and didn't get the required number of votes!! All on his 40th birthday!! It was a ridiculous display of hierarchy, chest thumping, and a complete and final confirmation of why I won't participate in shows at that, or any level, unless it is charity based!! It was an embarrassment to the hobby that played out right in front of the public!! Nope, not for me!!!
 
I recently went to a high level show event at the Autorama in February, and observed what I believe is exactly wrong with the higher level car clubs of today! Without getting into too much detail, there was no small amount of lobbying, infighting, he said/she said, and hurt feelings when a friend of mine was trying to get into one of the clubs! It ended up with him being invited to join a rival club, which infuriated the club he petitioned, even tho they had already had their "meeting" and was blackballed by a member and didn't get the required number of votes!! All on his 40th birthday!! It was a ridiculous display of hierarchy, chest thumping, and a complete and final confirmation of why I won't participate in shows at that, or any level, unless it is charity based!! It was an embarrassment to the hobby that played out right in front of the public!! Nope, not for me!!!

"A bunch of bitchy little girls"
Around here it's always the same people in the same clubs that win the shows every time.
I personally don't care because I go for the interest in the cars, and can do without most of the sitting around in a parking lot all day anyway.
Piss on the shows, and just give me a cruise to go on, as that weeds out most of the trailer queen trophy collectors.
 
"A bunch of bitchy little girls"
Around here it's always the same people in the same clubs that win the shows every time.
I personally don't care because I go for the interest in the cars, and can do without most of the sitting around in a parking lot all day anyway.
Piss on the shows, and just give me a cruise to go on, as that weeds out most of the trailer queen trophy collectors.
Absolutely correct! I like cars and they don't have to be numbers or even company specific. We have one guy that sports an early mustang with a 440! Do I care-NO,lots of people love the earlies-they sold a bunch of them-and 440's speak for themselves! Build em-drive em and don't worry about"correct"!!!
 
Just tell them you'll have trophies, and the entry fee will be nominal, and donated to your favorite charity, and suggest that he talk to the local pizza place or Subway or whatever about setting up a table and raising money for charity?
 
Absolutely correct! I like cars and they don't have to be numbers or even company specific. We have one guy that sports an early mustang with a 440! Do I care-NO,lots of people love the earlies-they sold a bunch of them-and 440's speak for themselves! Build em-drive em and don't worry about"correct"!!!

Well, lets just say the Mustang is taking care of the Mopar motor for when it's needed. :D
 
This is my two cents. I only go to very few car shows. Turkey Rod Run, Garlits Mopar Show, and the local Mopar club. I too prefer cruise nights. Low pressure/tension. Mostly. Why should I pay $20 to sit in the hot sun hoping I get some cheap trophy? Too many times I've seen the judges go to the same cars, look them over like they had never seen it before. Or they put you in the same class as somebody with a new Challenger that he just wrote a check for, and he gets a trophy. This might be backwards, but what other group produces a work of art (all our cars are in our minds) and has to pay to show it? Do painters? Sculptors? I did all this work. I should be paid to bring it.
But back to the subject, around here, whoever wants to put on a show, goes around the cruise spot putting flyers in the cars.used to be when you went to a show, you got fed, and they gave you a goody bag with goodies. Now it's just advertising.
 
Pass out flyers for a cruise in at local car shows and race tracks. Post info about it on social media and let the cards fall where they may.

I'm not a fan of car shows at all for this very reason. Too many old stuck up jerks with a sense of entitlement because they have a nice car. I love going to cruise ins where there is no entry fee and no awards for people to cry over.
 
I think what we are after is more of a cruise in event.
 
Pass out flyers for a cruise in at local car shows and race tracks. Post info about it on social media and let the cards fall where they may.

I'm not a fan of car shows at all for this very reason. Too many old stuck up jerks with a sense of entitlement because they have a nice car. I love going to cruise ins where there is no entry fee and no awards for people to cry over.
speaking of which, have you heard anything about the Milford cruise inn relocating to the lot next to the closed Logans in eastgate. Don't mean to hijack.
 
we use our local wendy"s on eve other wed night and the town does 2 during the summer wed night is free just fo car people to talk show thre work , networking its win win
 
Rusty, Its nice to hear that your company would entertain giving the local car owners a place to display their cars and the work they have done to them to them. It gets harder all the time to find places to do this. My dads car club, which up until this year would hold a show once a month May thru September, had to get a liability Ins to cover them in case there was anyone hurt during the show. Of course that is an extra cost that the car club may incur and maybe thats why he ask about whats in it for them. As for my thoughts which arent worth much, I would much rather go to a cruise-in for many of the reasons others have stated. Plus a cruise-in eliminates the crying trophy whores that only care about their own car versus what other car owners have worked hard on but might not have the money or the experience to make it "cherry or numbers matching" but still take great pride in their accomplishment!
As for the remarks in some of the reply's referring to Chevy or Corvette guys, those are really unfair statements. I wont elaborate any deeper on that since this is about Rusty's car show and I dont want to highjack his thread.
Rod
 
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