A serious thought about supporting NSXCA

[NSX GT]

Confession: I'm a little late on my $40.00 dues. Please don't take me to collections.:biggrin: I promised May at ALMS that I would pay up. Payment in the mail:biggrin:

I've met a lot of great people from NSXCA-BA. I think it just needs a stimulus package and some hot sunny days to get the enthusiasm back.

 

[BATMANs]

This thread appears to do more damage to supporting people joining and paying their dues.

The RX7, GTO, Supra guys don't seem to be part of a paying club.

They just drive their cars, meet up for dinner, shoot the shit and leave.

This is repeated over and over again.

I suspect that many don't have time to commit full time to the club so irregardless of the $45, they don't feel that it's worth joining.

 

[mickeylex]

CNN just reported that nsxca will be eligable for a bail out. You can only reap the benifits if you join. I plan on becoming a member soon but like others I don't want to do the paper work. They should elect one person in the club to take club payments on spot and do the paperwork. Im too busy buying things for the cars when Im on the net. Just my .02.

I know who you are. :wink:

If you are busy buying things on the net, then you can easily sign up at www.nsxca.org and pay via paypal.

I'm going to bug you from now until you sign up...:tongue:

 

[mickeylex]

As an Officer in a local NSXCA Chapter, I can tell you our attitude is the more the merrier. We invite members and non-members to come to our events. Eventually, the non-members sign up (mostly due to my nagging :biggrin.

People wonder - what will the club do for me? I tell them what the club will do for them and then ask them what they will do for the club? My hope is that they see the two way street.

So what does paying your dues get you? It gets you money subsidy (sometimes) for events but more importantly, it gets you time subsidy from those who organize events (club officers, committes, volunteers, etc). If you take advantage of that time subsidy, you should consider becoming a paying member.

 

[whiteNSXs]

Do you speak for NSXCA? What is your affiliation with it?

Your original post and your respone to RYANS is a huge turnoff for me too. I really hope you are not related to NSXCA in any official manner becasue I dont like the way you come across or your repsonse to RYANS.


Also after reading Mike C and James's response it doesnt seem like you know what your talking about anyway.

Am I affiliated to NSXCA? Yes, I have been a member since 1998 or 1999. However, I don't speak for the club in anyways. My post is just from a member who has been seeing the decline of membership and yet I do not see a decline in event participations.
Many of you have CLEARLY stated that "because I am not getting anything in return from the club, I am not going to pay the membership to support this club." And yet the same people would want to continue to PARTICIPATE in the club events.
In other words, these guys still will continue to PARTICIPATE and TAKE ADVANTAGE of all the free unpaid efforts donated by our diligent club officers. But when it comes to SUPPORTING a club that you fully take advantage of, you refuse to even put in a small fee to keep it going.
OBVIOUSLY, these guys have no clue what a CLUB is all about. A club is an organization which are formed by people who have common interests and it has activities organized by the members and participated by members. Especially for small clubs like the NSXCA, there is simply no other income to fund the operations other than your monetary support.
To those people who SHAMELESSLY stated that " I like and would participate in all the NSXCA events but I am not going to pay for the membership because I get NOTHING in return", yes, in my opinion, YOU ARE A CHEAPY FREELOADER!
I have been supporting a few charities and public organizations. For example, I really enjoy many PBS programs. I like what I see and would like to continue the same. I have been a long time member because I want to see these guys continue to have the resources to perpetuate such awesome performances. Am I getting any monetary return? No. When I do want a DVD or a CD, I simply donate the higher bracket.
As I have stated from my original post, this has nothing to do with people who just want to meet here and there on their own. They can meet and drive however and whenever they want to.
But most importantly, if people who have participated in the club activities, enjoy the activities, and would like to continue to participate, membership should be required. That's all.
It is not a rocket science to understand and do these simple decencies.
Steve

 

[whiteNSXs]

I went to check out one gathering for the first time and paid for my food, I hope that's not freeloading.

Of course that's not freeloading. We welcome nonmembers to come to the gatherings to see if they want to be part of the club. My post is really just addressing the people who repeatedly participate club events year after year but unwilling to support the club. I ALWAYS hear the same reason: "I am not getting "anything" out of it" and yet these guys continue to participate and take advantage. Really, if one keeps going, there has to be SOMETHING that one gets out of these event. Bottomline, if a club is NOT good enough for you to give $45 to support nor to "get anything out of", then why even bother participating? In other words, these guy are saying that unless they can get $45 worth of merchandises or $45 dollars worth of discounts of something else, they are not going to contribute. Fortunately, the world is not all cluttered by these noncontributory people or else no charity will exist.
Steve

 

[whiteNSXs]

Looks like somebody didn't have their Wheaties this morning...I find your statement very unprofessional (especially coming from a doctor) and childish. That to me is huge TURNOFF and leaves an impression of you being a snob.



Way to go of showing how good it is to join the NSXCA...


+1

What does my profession have anything to do with this topic? Because I gave a thumb down to these people who regularly take advantages of club events but unwilling to support the club, you are calling me unprofessional?
Get an education and learn something about "privileges and obligations" instead of dumbly displaying your ignorances. A "snob" because I think people should put in their share of the membership? Do you not think that you need to buy ticket to watch a movie, or pay a membership to be part of a club?
If you can read, what I wrote is not to say anything about people who PAY and SUPPORT the club, but people who just take but won't give back.
Steve

 

[whiteNSXs]

I'd like to post a semi-formal response to this issue (speaking specifically about the Bay Area chapter - though I believe the other chapters and regions are run in a similar fashion):

Events and meets that are planned by the club that are free or where the participant is expected to pay for their way in full (no subsidy from the club), the events and meets have always been open to anyone. For example, we've had people who have attended a meet or event because they were perspective buyers or just fans of the car and they wanted to see them up close and personal. Those people are always welcome to these events. Non-owner participation at these free events is encouraged because we want to support the interest of fans of the car.

Events that are subsidized by the club are sometimes limited to club members, but more typically an unsubsidized fee would be charged to non-members. The most obvious club member-only events have been NSXPOs and the ALMS events, for obvious reasons.

Specifically for the Bay Area, we haven't had much in the way of operating funds so we didn't organize any subsidized events last year. The Christmas dinner was the exception where club funds help offset the total cost to participants. But now that we've gotten a few dollars in our budget we're putting together more events that will be subsidized by the club. Of note are the Lombard street photoshoot (the national club's insurance policy is being utilized at a much lower rate than would otherwise be available to meet the city's insurance requirements), a karting event, and a Bay Area picnic. Because the Lombard shoot will be using the national insurance policy, we're required to make this a member-only event but the karting and picnic will be open to anyone with a higher cost to non-members.

I don't know that there would ever be an NSXCA-sponsored drive. Once under an officially sponsored event, the club opens itself to possible litigation and so the club insurance policy would need to be used and I don't think anyone would ever want to pay for a drive.

I can't envision an event that would be covered 100% by the club other than the afore-mentioned free events.

Ryan, you should try to make it out to our meets more often. It's not like what it sounds like on this thread. We shared a nice meal, looked at some local art vendor's work and even had a cool conversation with local law enforcement who were admiring our cars.

The club magazine is a bigger expense than some of you might realize. But it is an expense that cannot be removed because there is a big group of people who like receiving their magazines. The Sacramento chapter has been lobbying, unsuccessfully, to change the magazine to an online publication rather than a paper publication. If you all would prefer this, I encourage you to start a thread in the NSXCA forum for national visibility and see if we can change how we receive NSX Driver. I assure you that the national board is listening.

All of the money transactions by the club are completely transparent. At our meet yesterday we gave an update of our running balance, including where the added funds came from and where the payments went to. More specifically, the money we receive goes into the club account and is used to subsidize events. As I said, there haven't been subsidized events in the past for the Bay Area but now that we have some money to work with, we've got some really fun things planned. Members have been getting e-mails regarding all of the planned events so far, and non-members will see them on Prime as each event draws near.

There hasn't been any free-loading by anyone. We haven't had any subsidized events by the Bay Area chapter yet, so there was nothing to free-load. Going forward, the intent is to always offer a subsidy when available and appropriate, and offer full-rate or maybe make some money off of non-members.

I hope this helps clear the air...

J
NW Regional Rep - NSXCA

James,
I think you need to distinguish the differences between a CLUB event and just a informal gathering. The old first Saturday meeting, Friday night meets are all informal gatherings among NSX owners and enthusiasts. These are all private matters. They can go driving whereever they want and take picture however they like it. These events are open to anyone off the street who want to shoot the breeze. A "club" organized event simply should be for members only. A club is an organization which has more than one member. The NSXCA are made up of NSX owners and enthusiasts who have common interests and desire to promote camaraderies and knowledges about the NSX. Each member is required to pay a membership fee so that they have special privileges and benefit to participate in the club events. With these activities, we hope to attract more people to join the club so to broaden the NSX interests and also procure more available resouces such as funds and manpower. Such membership distinguish people who want to support, enjoy CLUB activities, and belong to such club from people who simply want to be on their own. Club events should be for members or for perspective members only. People who want to enjoy these privileges simply need to join by paying their dues.
To say that NSXCA activities are open for anyone is nothing but wrong. If these activities and benefits are open to anyone, then why should anyone become a member? An "open" policy defeats the purpose of a "club" which needs supports from members. As club officers, you and your fellow colleagues have responsibilities to enforce the bylaws of the club and promote its memberships. With that goal in mind, we hope to maximize members' supports so more resources can be directed to member's benefits and increase its interest further.
Bear in mind that there ARE REQUIREMENTS to be a member of ANY club. Someone on this thread used the word "snob". The guy obviously is clueless. If a club requires you to be some millionaires who can only afford certain big time luxury items, have some blue blood or whatever colors of blood, and some old money background in order to be a member in addition to some astronomical membership fee, it is simply a very exclusive club. Some guy might call it a "snob" club. However, NSXCA practically has NO requirement of any kind other than the most BASIC $45 membership. One does not even need to be an owner of an NSX. THAT's the meaning of an OPEN MEMBERSHIP. Open membership does NOT mean anybody can participate, but a mere membership fee will suffice. In this case the membership costs $45 which obviously is too "snobbish" for many of the posters to pay. Many of the entitled crowd feel that NSX OWNERSHIP is good enough to be part of the CLUB. They intend to participate and to benefit from the club activities but refuse to support the club. I really don't know what to call these guys other than freeloaders.
Yes, we want more and more members who have the same interest and goal. We at the same time want the members also share the value that they have to contribute at least a very low fee of $45 if not the addition free hard work you and many have donated to the club. More membership just mean that that we can afford more benefits for the members. The LAST thing you want is to thin out the resources to nonmember.
For example, there are only limited spaces for many Club events such as Harry's annual drive and lunch, ALMS, and many Holiday dinners. If these official Club events are open to anyone off the street, then the true NSXCA members will have less chance to get into the events. Does it sound right?
Now, you are talking about having a Lombard Street photoshoot which requires certain liability insurance. This of couse will cost the Club or use the Club status for discount and approval. If this event is open to anyone, that means that if these nonmembers get into certain liability troubles during event, would you think it would be fair or appropriate for the NSXCA or the members to pick up the tabs when these guys are simply too cheap to support the club with the $45 dues?
I urge you and your fellow officers reexamine the Club bylaws. The NSXCA and myself as a member both have open arms welcoming anyone to join WITHOUT any membership requirement other than the no brainer membership fee.
Steve

 

[whiteNSXs]

Hi Steve,

I'm curious as to what compelled you to post this thread?

Mike

Mike,
What compelled me to post this? I thought my post is very clear. I see many nonmembers year after year participate in official club events and enjoying most of the same privileges that a true member has and yet UNWILLING to contribute and support the clubs. These people are simply not doing the right thing but continue to clutter available spaces intended for the club member. If this trend continues, a few years later, when members like me continue to move onto some other sport cars, the NSXCA is going to die by losing membership without any repleting from new members.
Recently, I see more and more people giving up the NSXs. In fact, last June I almost jumped ship to buy a F360. I can really see the interest for NSX is really declining. I probably will remain a NSXCA club member because all these good friends I made at the Club. But even these guys are moving on.
I surely would hope this club will go on forever but in reality I just see a buch of guys taking advantage of all your and fellow's hardwork but have absolutely no desire to support the club.
Time has changed.
Steve

 

[whiteNSXs]

I just wanted to ask what would I get paying to be ur friend? I havent seen any real events here in the bay.Thats why Ive never joined. And where does this money go someones pocket? Sorry if I come off wrong just woundering and I know I dont know any of you nor do you no me besides NSX GT from when I bought his nsx-r wing from him last yr.

Really, if there is nothing that a club appeals you, I agree that there is really no reason to join and my post is certainly irrelevant to you. Even you don't know any of us except NSX GT, by asking a question such as "where does this money go someones pocket?" I have some idea what you are like.
How much to pay? No, you don't need to pay anything to be my friend. One just needs to be conscientious of the concept "give and take" and will contribute at least his fair share and do the right things.
Steve

 

[whzzbad]

A few suggestions:

Post member only events in a private forum or notify by mail list.
If public is invited, post in public forum.
If there is limited space, make members preferred.
If it is club sponsored, offer members a discount.

Some people prefer the freedom of informal gatherings, just meeting people with the same interests whether they belong to a club or not. Everyone is treated the same, can come and go as they please and pays their own way.

 

[DocL]

Steve, I feel the same way about club dues and events. I believe that only members in good standing should be allowed to attend "NSXCA" sponsored events. I like to make the analogy of taking the bus. Just because the bus to going to stop at your destination doesn't mean that you don't have to pay for the ride. There is a service being provided and payment to participate is required. I like supporting the NSXCA whether or not I attend an official event. I would even like to have the option of paying for a lifetime membership even though I know one day I will no longer be an NSX owner. I think the peple who don't see the value of a club membership are just misunderstanding why they should join, not a matter of being cheap.

 

[yojack1]

Mike,
What compelled me to post this? I thought my post is very clear. I see many nonmembers year after year participate in official club events and enjoying most of the same privileges that a true member has and yet UNWILLING to contribute and support the clubs. These people are simply not doing the right thing but continue to clutter available spaces intended for the club member. If this trend continues, a few years later, when members like me continue to move onto some other sport cars, the NSXCA is going to die by losing membership without any repleting from new members.
Recently, I see more and more people giving up the NSXs. In fact, last June I almost jumped ship to buy a F360. I can really see the interest for NSX is really declining. I probably will remain a NSXCA club member because all these good friends I made at the Club. But even these guys are moving on.
I surely would hope this club will go on forever but in reality I just see a buch of guys taking advantage of all your and fellow's hardwork but have absolutely no desire to support the club.
Time has changed.
Steve

You must have been reading my mind.

My red 05 is going up for sale today! Mov'in on to healthier brands with more action.

 

[Dtrigg]

You must have been reading my mind.

My red 05 is going up for sale today! Mov'in on to healthier brands with more action.

What a shame Jack. We'll miss you and Yolanda.:frown:

Best,

Doug

 

[yellow-scorpion]

Ok, I signed up and it wasn't so timed consuming. I actually signed up because of the shirts they're offering. My wife (who many of you know) liked the nsx crew so much that she went and picked up a 94 nsx from monterey this last weekend. See you guys at the next meet or sooner for a coffee run. Her car will be at Shads next week to get suspension and exhaust and redo the AC. If any sac guys are reading this where do we sign up for the shirts?

 

[MikeC_587]

You must have been reading my mind.

My red 05 is going up for sale today! Mov'in on to healthier brands with more action.

Noooo!!!! Say its not true, you can't sell your NSX, because you told me the other day you were going to keep it and you can't go back your word. Jimmy just put his NSX up for sale the other day and I see Ryan posted his 95 for sale the day after.

I hope we all can still hang out every now and then.

Mike

 

[NSX GT]

Although NSX prime has no affiliation with NSXCA, I think it does indirectly. If you look at most (not all) DIY threads and "How to....." threads, many of the experts that have provided solutions, also happen to be NSXCA members.

I have donated $ to NSX Prime as a way of giving back and supporting this forum. I've learned a lot of good tips, tricks, sold many parts and met a lot of great people on Prime. Without Prime would we not have been able to communicate and form NSXCA-BA. I view NSXCA as a sub group of NSX prime and will also continue to donate funds.
Just my .02 cents.

UPDATE: Let me add, I also got a great deal a while back on a HID's and set of SSR-GT 7's with tires.

 

[whiteNSXs]

Although NSX prime has no affiliation with NSXCA, I think it does indirectly. If you look at most (not all) DIY threads and "How to....." threads, many of the experts that have provided solutions, also happen to be NSXCA members.

I have donated $ to NSX Prime as a way of giving back and supporting this forum. I've learned a lot of good tips, tricks, sold many parts and met a lot of great people on Prime. Without Prime would we not have been able to communicate and form NSXCA-BA. I view NSXCA as a sub group of NSX prime and will also continue to donate funds. Just my .02 cents.

That is how a upstanding NSXer should be and how you earn respect. I have respect for NSX GT who always does what he promises and does the right things. NSXCA is just like a boat in which everyone needs to contribute something to keep that boat going. Everyone on board should be paddling. If one just sits there not doing anything, one is taking a free ride on everyone's expense. Same goes for Prime who needs supports from us who use it for various reasons and gains.
Steve

 

[NSX GT]

I hope you guys don't jump ship to the F-car. Not that anyone can't afford it, but a friend of mine with late model 360 F-car spent about 30K in one year for maint. I thought that was a little high. You may as well just burn the money in your fireplace:biggrin:
Just kidding.

 

[mickeylex]

Ok, I signed up and it wasn't so timed consuming. I actually signed up because of the shirts they're offering. My wife (who many of you know) liked the nsx crew so much that she went and picked up a 94 nsx from monterey this last weekend. See you guys at the next meet or sooner for a coffee run. Her car will be at Shads next week to get suspension and exhaust and redo the AC. If any sac guys are reading this where do we sign up for the shirts?

Thanks for signing up. :biggrin: PM sent on your questions.

 

[mickeylex]

...and I see Ryan posted his 95 for sale the day after.

Ok, quit pulling our chains!
I saw Jimbo's post, but Jack/Yolanda NSX: for sale? Ryan too? No way!

 

[KooLaid]

Well it seems the authority has spoken. I won't let the nsxca door hit me on the way out. I don't see a purpose in putting money into something I dont use. I rather keep contributing to nsxprime where it can benefit myself and others through it's vast connections. Call me cheap but I'm not a damn freeloader, I've NEVER taken advantage of anything directly related to nsxca as a member or not. The closest I ever did was buy tickets to the car corral that I ended up giving back.

 

[mickeylex]

Well it seems the authority has spoken.

What authority?

I won't let the nsxca door hit me on the way out.

That's too bad.
Are you currently a paying member and are you saying you are not going to renew your membership? That's unfortunate, but you have to make the decision that is right for you.

 

[02#154]

One of Steve's points is that there are too many times when non-members can participate in events that he feels should be for members only. My thought has always been that we should tend to make all events available to all comers whenever possible. Perhaps if the club had more member-only events people would see more value in being a member since they can't play with the rest of the cool kids...?:biggrin:

The point being, currently some people don't see value in being a member because they can just tag along whenever they feel like it.

But starting to plan more events that are member-only is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, we *might* entice some people to join so that they can participate and on the other hand we *might* make the club seem like a fraternity that nobody wants to be part of because of a perceived "snobiness" (new word, copyrighted by me :biggrin of the members. For those of you who think there's *ANY* bit of snobiness, all you have to do is think back to the last time you went to a meet and thought to yourself, "man, what snobs". My guess is that there hasn't been such a time. I like to think we've all always been very friendly, members or not. We're not star-bellied sneeches!

I can see both sides but I think I tend to lean more towards an "open" club. I think that if the club can manage to plan events that people want to participate in and charge non-members a premium for attending, after a while people will likely start thinking "I just paid $40 more than members last year to attend the events I wanted to... I might as well have been a member and received the magazines and cool sticker":smile:.

For the record, I joined the NSXCA about a year before I owned the car.

J

 

[MikeC_587]

One of Steve's points is that there are too many times when non-members can participate in events that he feels should be for members only. My thought has always been that we should tend to make all events available to all comers whenever possible. Perhaps if the club had more member-only events people would see more value in being a member since they can't play with the rest of the cool kids...?:biggrin:

The point being, currently some people don't see value in being a member because they can just tag along whenever they feel like it.

But starting to plan more events that are member-only is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, we *might* entice some people to join so that they can participate and on the other hand we *might* make the club seem like a fraternity that nobody wants to be part of because of a perceived "snobiness" (new word, copyrighted by me :biggrin of the members. For those of you who think there's *ANY* bit of snobiness, all you have to do is think back to the last time you went to a meet and thought to yourself, "man, what snobs". My guess is that there hasn't been such a time. I like to think we've all always been very friendly, members or not. We're not star-bellied sneeches!

I can see both sides but I think I tend to lean more towards an "open" club. I think that if the club can manage to plan events that people want to participate in and charge non-members a premium for attending, after a while people will likely start thinking "I just paid $40 more than members last year to attend the events I wanted to... I might as well have been a member and received the magazines and cool sticker":smile:.

For the record, I joined the NSXCA about a year before I owned the car.

J

+1 - James well said/written.

Mike