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PaulAdele Brezina

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Joined
Apr 8, 2003
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Location
North Richland Hills, TX
After reading several posts about the Dallas meet, I am a little upset and have to pose a question to everyone.



Why is it that many people complain about not having meets, then when there is a meet, everyone has 1,500 reasons why they can't go and why it is everyone elses problem but theirs?



And, BTW, people having been complaining about the meets ever since they started with the first National meet in Louisville!



After hosting 2 meets in Dallas, and spending around $500-800 EACH TIME, all anyone does is complain and blame the people hosting the meet. It wasn't done right, there wasn't enough things to do, it was too hot, there's no shade, it's too windy. Instead off complaining and telling everyone how it should be done, why don't the people complaining, HELP to organize these meets and find out how much work there really is?



We should all be greatfull to what is done, and help to make it better instead of complaining!



Just my two cents and I am looking forward to see if there will be some actual intelligent posts on what we can do to up attendence and make these meets better than last year, or are the days of these meets dieing out due to the complainers?



Paul Brezina
 
well, Paul since you used some of the things that I typed.......;)

I am just waiting for the others to do the same...

This is about the time where the planning has to be started, My email is no secret...

I will say this, I have no contacts, or names or the correct people to contact at Ford, Once I get this information or find it and others to step up, I am willing to help do this...

But as i said I am not good enough to do this by my self...:D

Todd Z
 
To up the attendance, a more central location could be used, but as we all know there really isnt ONE location that is perfect for all members.



Things happen, we all have lives that run at different ticks, the meets will never be perfect for everyone. It just has to be lived with. Having it the same date every year would help because people would know that next year on the same weekend the meet will happen. Many members such as myself bid on vacation time all at once at the start of the year. To know the date ahead of time, I feel, would get more members to the meet.





I really like my idea I had in anothor post about switching it from west coast to east coast every year......or maybe even having two meets on the same date for each coast???? I dont know. What I do know is that from NY to Dallas isnt a drive I want to make.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong but it was Ford that dictated where the national meet was held and the date, not Rich or anyone else. If we are going to change things (which is fine with me), it will mean taking Ford out of the picture.
 
This is really a dead issue. Go if you want to do, don't if you don't. If you went and hated it, you have the right to bitch, if you didn't, then you are just padding your post count. I am sure Rich does a lot of work (on his own time) to get this thing going and people should think of that.



Ape Out.
 
Tom T - Ford suggested Dallas as the site for this years meet. The option was open to hold the meet in Louisville, but with much less participation by Ford.



I think moving the location of the meet each year is not a bad idea. Brian from Ford suggested Detriot for next year, where we could get access to more Ford products and facilities. Louisville may also be good for next year, since the 2007's will be in production by then.
 
Fmarano, I don't think a location change is going to change the numbers all that much--it's just going to impact the demographics of the attendees. I suspect that Dallas drew mainly from Texas and other nearby southern states, with few from outside that area coming. Louisville drew mostly from the east, with diminishing numbers as you got further away. A west coast national meet would draw mostly from out there, with little involvement from other parts of the country. Same thing would happen if you were to have a midwest national meet someday--I might finally be able to attend one, but the total attendance probably wouldn't be all that improved, as people from the east, south, and west wouldn't be there in as great of numbers.



I think the biggest reason for the decline is the reduction in the "newness" of the event. (I haven't been to a meet, so I'm not basing this on any direct experience from the meet--instead it's based on my experiences with other newly-developed annual events.) The first year, everyone wants to participate because it's new. The second year brings not as many, but a lot of people who had fun the first year come again to experience that again. By the third year, however, it's become something that people have done before, and/or expect that they can do again some other future year, and the attendance numbers drop significantly. A good example of this is the annual shareholder meetings for the Green Bay Packers. When the team sold new stock about 10 years ago, the next shareholders meeting had thousands of people attending--they had to relocate to the stadium just to fit everyone. Many people made long trips--including from other continents--just to attend. The next year had a lot of repeat visits. But by the third year, the newness had worn off, and people knew they could attend any year without needing to attend every year--and attendance numbers went way down, allowing the meeting to be moved back indoors. In recent years, they've added some tours and other perks that have brought the numbers back up a little, but they've never been able to equal that first meeting after the sale, and likely never will.



Short of cancelling the meet for several years, and then having a "big" one in, say, five or ten years (kind of like a class reunion), I wouldn't foresee this ever coming back in the numbers from those first couple years in Louisville.
 
Bill you make a good point.. Maybe regional meets for a while...hmmmm....

I could do a nice North East regional meet.....

Todd Z
 
I'll be honest. When I have to drive 3,000+ miles round trip (I wouldn't go w/o my Trac), I won't go. I like to use my vacation time with my family (to drive that distance will require a good portion of it) and I am not bringing small kids to something that they wouldn't enjoy.



There is also the timing surrounding this. I went to the Seattle meet last year and I enjoyed meeting folks and hanging out...but this year just didn't work with my family's plans (bad year...3 deaths added to the scheduling misalignment).



Add the distance factor to the timing...and it is a challenge for me. I don't know this, but I'll bet the west coast contingent at the Nat. meets has been small from the beginning. And those that do make it are probably retired folks (nothing against them) because they have the time to make nice trips like this.



I could list several reasons why I would like to go...but there are too many reasons why it doesn't work for me.



Todd Z brought up a good point about the planning. This is when the planning for the '06 should be close to being finalized so people like us (who have great distances to travel) can make the appropriate plans. My military reunions do this. I go every few years....but I know when and where a year in advance.



I really want to go to at least one of these meets!!!!



 
What makes, IMO, most people upset about such a low turnout with the Dallas meet is because so many people wanted to go. We had a choice to either have it in Louisville or Dallas. As usual, the "me too" group spoke up then became a no-show.



Many members, like myself, knew from the start Dallas was a no-no for me because I have a new job with little vacation time. If it was my previous employer, I could take off a week without it bothering them. My new job is a little different. With that being said, Louisville would have been a maybe, but Dallas was a for sure no.



The majority of people that were all for the Dallas meet never showed. They did take the trip away from members that would normally drive from NY, OH, PA, MA, and even Canada. That is what makes me upset that only 20 showed up. So many people wanted it in Texas because it was centrally located. Aparently if it isn't at thier front door, it is too far of a drive. Even though, they might be too busy.



I have been to only 1 meet. The First meet in 2002, I was unable to make it because I have yet to take delivery of my Trac (It was being built during the meet) and I was out of town on business. The meet of 2003 I was able to attend. I had a great time and being able to meed members here was awesme. We have a really great group of people here. The 2004 meet, I just started my new job and it was during my probationary period so I had t be at work or I had no job. Meet 2005 was in Texas and it was a no-no from the start. Had it been in Louisville, I would have been able to make at least saturday.





Tom
 
Todd Z, If you want to do a Northeast Regional Meet i'll help you organize it! I think it' d be a lot of fun, and a lot of success, seeing as there seems to be a lot of STs up here. Email me with your ideas and we can get somethin goin for next year!

Thanks

Andy
 
I think we all realize that not everyone can make every Sport Trac meet. There are Job and Family committments and there will always be scheduling problems for someone.



The problem that I see is that everyone is pushing Rich in January for all the details about the upcoming meet and everyone seems to be keyed up about attending, but rarely keyed up enough to start making some plans themselves.



Yes, this years change to Dallas in September may have caused some serious scheduling problems for many people who would have likely attended. Many of those people made it very clear at the begining that they could not attend.



For years people have screamed that they wanted a more "Central" location, however, with the previous 3 National meets being in Louisville, KY turnout from the surrounding states was very small. The same group of people every year drive from Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, New York, etc.



However Dallas is about as central as they get with the exception of some wheat field in the middle of Kansas, and we got most of the same people from Georgia, Florida, Texas, and even several people from California. So no matter where the National meet is held, some people will go anywhere within reason, and others will not attend even if it's held in their backyards!



Some people will always make excuses while others will complain. Your excuses and complaints are just your own guilt trip. In the end, it makes no difference, since NOBODY REALLY CARES TO HEAR YOUR EXCUSES OR COMPLAINTS. The fact that you never show up to the meets speaks for itself.



Rich and the others did a superb job planning this years meet and all previous National meets. Nobody could predict the hurricanes, gas prices or the other factors. Everyone who plans even the local meets, needs all our thanks for a very thankless job. They only want to have a sucessful event and know that everyone who attended had an enjoyable time.



...Rich











 
Lets not tear each other up over this.



I could have done more to make this year's meet a better event with more attendence. Like everybody else, I have excuses as to why it didn't happen. Doesn't matter, does it?



The things that matter relative to the meets going forward is:



1) Do a reasonable number of Sport Trac owners REALLY want these meets, i.e., they will actually attend?



2) If the answer to #1 is yes, is there a group of capable volunteers who want to make it happen?



3) Applying the lessons of past meets to keep improving the quality of the event so it can sustain interest and attendence numbers.

 
Paul,



You know as well as anyone, that some folks have legitimate issues which come up at the last minute. You yourself missed the OKC meet last April at the last minute, and even though I was disappointed, I understood.



To everyone else - it really doesn't matter where we have these, because it is always going to be a disappointment to someone, because they won't be able to go. What's weird though, is you never hear the folks in Hawaii or Alaska complaining. Perhaps they have become accustomed to being in a remote area, and not having certain conveniences.



It really seems to be a trend these days, that people will complain about ANYTHING that doesn't go their way. Maybe our comfortable and convenient lives have spoiled us, and we now expect too much. :unsure:



I tell you what. Live on an island that is 7 miles wide by 12 miles long, surrounded by 900 miles of open sea for 27 months, and you will come to appreciate a LOT of things you take for granted. What's really weird, is that those months I spent in the Azores were the happiest time of my life, because I had real friends, that I still have today. :)
 
I agree with most of what is said. Like Todd Z mentioned the planning needs to start soon.



My Question:



Is there a large opinion that people want to go to Louisville for another National Meet? Ford seems to want to host us.
 
Just to be clear my original post on this topic was not to put blame on anyone. It was simply to find out why attendence is down for ALL the meets including regional meets. With that said, it's a common theme as I belong to other car clubs with the two other cars my family own. Attendence is down there as well. But, the excuses are very high...LOL



Thanks,

SST
 
If my schedule permits I will travel to Louisville, Detroit, or Dearborn, to me the differences are negligible. I was happy to meet people and share ideas. I look forward to meeting others and to get together again with those I met on this journey. I will work towards another National Meet wherever it may occur.
 

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