Why join?

[Rich]

This may come across as a troll-like question, but that's really not my intent. Can anyone explain to me what value there is in joining the club for those outside of SoCal? I sent in my check on Feb. 8, and it hasn't been cashed and I still haven't received my calendar or any other information. Should I just call my bank and cancel the check? The year is 3 months old, and I only joined for the calendar. I don't see any events in my area and have no idea what the "vendor discounts" are that are listed on the site. It looks like there are only 4 threads that have been posted on this site this month, so it doesn't seem like there's much activity here either.

[MickOpalak]

Which club are you asking about?

[kestrel74]

EliseTalk- The Forum for Lotus Cars in North America > Community > Club111

[zOOmz]

Rich,

I am checking into it for you.

zOOmz

[RacyTracy]

I do wonder if it wouldn't have been more profitable to sell the calendars outright, than to link the purchase to a membership. My free bank calendar doesn't look nearly as nice as last year's Elise calendar on my fridge.

[MattG]

Good question. The benefit does vary by geographic location. For example, in Northern CA there's a series of Club111 autocrosses throughout the year (where participants usually get 12-15 runs!), and occasional group drives. In my mind, one of the biggest advantages of Club111 (next to the calendar) is the liability insurance it offers to its members for club events. This can be a nice thing to have in case something happens on a group drive, and it's something that's often a necessity if you want to use someone else's facilities for a Lotus group event (like a parking lot for an autocross, etc). For people who do not have an active Club111 chapter in their area, they can still take advantage of this if their event is approved by the Club111 staff as an official Club111 event ahead of time.

[exarkun1178]

i think the beginning of feb, i paid via paypal, no calendar, no mailing, no reg card, nothing. i asked at a club event two weeks ago, but i got no responce.

i emailed the pres. about tree weeks ago, no answer.
your not alone in the boat.
rob

[Steve W]

Rich,

As you can probably imagine, I send out calendars in batches, and I check the Club111 mail box about once every other week. I got check about the end of Feb, and as I moved house on the 5th March I didn't get to sending you anything until the beginning of this week. I'm sorry about that, but you should have your calendar and membership by now.

Steve

[Steve W]

exarckun,

I'm sorry that you don't have your membership.

I've just been through all my Paypal records since the beginning of the year, I have no payment from a 'Robert' and I am totally up to date with sending membership packages out. Did you use a different name for your Paypal order? please PM me or e mail treasurer@club111.net with more information.

[exarkun1178]

sent an email

[exarkun1178]

thank you for getting back to me! what happened, i paided v paypal, however the paypal information hadnt been updated since having moved three years ago. paper work sent to old address. the problem clearly was not on the clubs side, but rather on my side3 with regards to not having updated address information. join with confidence!

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Steve W

Rich,

As you can probably imagine, I send out calendars in batches, and I check the Club111 mail box about once every other week. I got check about the end of Feb, and as I moved house on the 5th March I didn't get to sending you anything until the beginning of this week. I'm sorry about that, but you should have your calendar and membership by now.

Steve

Thanks for the update Steve. The calendar arrived today.

[pianomaniac]

Club 111 seems to be dormant at this time (except for a calendar). No offense Steve...not referring to you. You may be the only breath left in it.

Maybe MyElise has a point. Time for elections?

[Randy Chase]

Not really totally dormant, and it has been winter. There are a couple events coming up. There is a Club111 Car Control Autocross in San Diego, along with a mini-meet next month. There is the East Coast Lotus Meet in the northeast. Things do seem a little quiet, but there never has been a large number of activities. The main issue is not leadership, though I would welcome someone to take my place. Please. The main issue is local people to step forward and make things happen. That has always been true.

And recall, we all agreed to not put on any major event this year that would conflict with LOG 27, as we support Lotus LTD and LOG. I would not be surprised to see a major event in 2008 with Club111 involved, we all did a great job in 2006 and we can do it again.

Successful events happen because a few people have stepped up and made them happen.

In answer to the first question posed, let me start by saying "why is there a club?"

The club was started because we needed an entity of a sort. An entity not set up to make money, but one that could provide insurance for activities. We wanted to create events for the community and in order to do that, we needed insurance for the venue and for the event organizers. Not having insurance is foolish, but also means many venues would not touch us.

So a club was created. That is what the club's reason for being was. To enable the community to have events. So the insurance costs money, so that means a club fee of some sorts. And then people expect something more visible or tangible than an insurance policy. Well, okay. We started with a newsletter, a good idea. But the problem then was all the work being done by one person. Not fair and not workable in the long run. Seems a lot of other car clubs have also gone down that path. In order to make a publication work, it requires a lot of people and paid advertisers, which requires people to manage... and none of us wanted to do that.

There are pseudo-benefits that clubs offer...that give the appearance of a value. One is a discount, and I guess we should pursue that, though most places are happy to give a 5% discount as a referral so its a no-brainer. But then someone has to manage it, contact vendors, etc.

So we decided maybe some of that would happen in the future. But not right now. There is just not the bodies to do it. Instead, we thought the calendar would be a good token. Most people would be willing to pay close to $25 for it, so offering it as a membership value seemed like it should appease most people. Even if the reality is, that you are really paying for the club's insurance policy.

But it is understood that the insurance policy is a thing that would be of more value, if you attended an event. And right now, the events are more regional than anything. Some activity in Norcal. More in SoCal. Some in the northeast. A bit of a chicken-egg thing. It takes people to create events and attend them. It takes people joining a club to make that happen. And if people don't see the events, they tend to not join a club.

There is some positive things. I had a talk today about a region that wants to start an active chapter. And as I said, there are a couple events coming up.

This is just my take and some historical content (which is silly I know.. 2 years of history!). People should decide what they want the club to be and do. If you want to become involved and help create an event, or contribute to making one happen, then do so. If you want to be part of the people running this show, then let us know. I keep waiting to be replaced, as I have said, I don't really have the time to do much since my business is consuming my time and energy right now.

[pianomaniac]

Thanks, Randy. You're stellar! I realize that you are doing your best and are stretched like many of us. Hell, I've only had 5 days off since Jan 1,07. I wish I had more time to be involved, but I haven't even had time to drive my car, let alone attend any events.

So, I wasn't busting your chops! I guess we are all very busy.....and it is winter. You consistently contribute way more than we mere mortals.

I don't want to push the issue, but would it help the organization to hold elections and possibly find some willing souls to get involved? If you don't agree, I'll shut up......trust me!

[khamai]

Originally Posted by pianomaniac

So, I wasn't busting your chops! I guess we are all very busy.....and it is winter. You consistently contribute way more than we mere mortals.

I don't want to push the issue, but would it help the organization to hold elections and possibly find some willing souls to get involved? If you don't agree, I'll shut up......trust me!

Piano... warning... from my past experience your post is akin to a campaign speech! You might just get elected!!!

Cheers,
Kiyoshi

[pianomaniac]

Originally Posted by khamai

Piano... warning... from my past experience your post is akin to a campaign speech! You might just get elected!!!

Cheers,
Kiyoshi

Like I said....I'll shut up now. Thanks, Kiyoshi.

edit: one more thing to say..........

[pianomaniac]

Kiyoshi for President of Club 111

[SweetDaddyD]

I just viewed it as a calander purchase from the beginning. But I'm glad to learn that my contribution provided an insurance benefit to someone on the other coast as well.

[Steve W]

Originally Posted by exarkun1178

thank you for getting back to me! what happened, i paided v paypal, however the paypal information hadnt been updated since having moved three years ago. paper work sent to old address. the problem clearly was not on the clubs side, but rather on my side3 with regards to not having updated address information. join with confidence!

Thank you for posting that, I really appreciate it.

Steve