Nationals 2023

[Piginvet]

Now its all calmed down from the show, can I just say how disappointed i was in that the club no longer has enough money to buy and then place some banners out on the road at the entrance of the show field? (I cant recall a year in the past 18 that we havent!)
I, along with several others i met, were playing a processional 'follow the leader' out of EVERY turning along that road after being directed by sat nav, i presume!
I couldnt even rely on last years knowledge as we wernt even in same field!
I mean, it clearly had to be that we didnt have any, as, after finally finding our way in, and after questioning 2 commitee members about it, i was informed 'it was windy yesterday' and 'go tell stuart',
Well Stuart it appears, was busy at breakfast, (at show ground opening time.... Really?)!
When I did track him down i bit later, he just looked at me, then the entrance and scootered off, the opposite way!
To get some i hoped, but the flags, bunting or signs NEVER did appear!!!
So please, for the clubs sake and external appearance can we BUY some banners or something to mark the entrances in future, and direct the cars once in, even it it means another £1or so on the membership?

Sorry if it appears to be a rant, but after driving for nearly 2hours i didnt relish the 'round the industrial estate 'round the hotel carpark' and then stop in a gravel park looking for a sign to confirm that i was even in right place... and then to be ignored when pointing out an ' oversight' well you can see how this could be viewed as a rant.
Constructive feedback is how it should be viewed, but please load up your guns if you want!

 

[Pitre]

Thanks Alan.
Constructive feedback is welcomed (as are helpers!) and we will certainly look at all comments that we get at our next committee meeting as we'll be having a debrief then. There are always opportunities for improvement and your point is fair so I'm sure it's something we can address next year.
Any other suggestions are welcomed, however, personal criticism of Stuart is unfair and unacceptable. Stuart himself worked very hard in the weeks up the event and during the weekend itself to make the nationals a success (which it was). Of course there are always things that can be done differently but the weather (on Friday particularly) was awful and putting up extra signage was simply not practical and attaching gazebos to fences and pinning them down was a priority for all those who were helping to set up.
This was a free event for all and (almost) all had a great weekend, given the dreadful weather for mid-July.

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Now its all calmed down from the show, can I just say how disappointed i was in that the club no longer has enough money to buy and then place some banners out on the road at the entrance of the show field? (I cant recall a year in the past 18 that we havent!)
I, along with several others i met, were playing a processional 'follow the leader' out of EVERY turning along that road after being directed by sat nav, i presume!
I couldnt even rely on last years knowledge as we wernt even in same field!
I mean, it clearly had to be that we didnt have any, as, after finally finding our way in, and after questioning 2 commitee members about it, i was informed 'it was windy yesterday' and 'go tell stuart',
Well Stuart it appears, was busy at breakfast, (at show ground opening time.... Really?)!
When I did track him down i bit later, he just looked at me, then the entrance and scootered off, the opposite way!
To get some i hoped, but the flags, bunting or signs NEVER did appear!!!
So please, for the clubs sake and external appearance can we BUY some banners or something to mark the entrances in future, and direct the cars once in, even it it means another £1or so on the membership?

Sorry if it appears to be a rant, but after driving for nearly 2hours i didnt relish the 'round the industrial estate 'round the hotel carpark' and then stop in a gravel park looking for a sign to confirm that i was even in right place... and then to be ignored when pointing out an ' oversight' well you can see how this could be viewed as a rant.
Constructive feedback is how it should be viewed, but please load up your guns if you want!

We took 15 club flags, 5 gazebos, lots of CCCUK banners and miles of bunting. Apart from two flags to ID the entrance to the display area and one gazebo to give the welcome ladies some shelter we had NO choice to not affix the remainder due to the high winds and clearly you don't understand rules around live airfields! Thanks for your feedback. Oh and by the way, I was out in the field at 07:15 Sat and Sunday and only managed to get some breakfast scraps at 10:00am like I said, thanks. Fancy organising it yourself next year?

It was the same entrance last year by the way.

I don't remember our 'encounter' but if I fobbed you off I apologise, I probably had a few things more important than dealing with someone's rant about a missing TURN HERE sign (160 other people had no trouble!?)

I'll do it again next year though as one miserable, ill informed, inaccurate feedback doesn't detract from the great feedback I and the rest of the Committee have recieved.

Happy Corvetting

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Hotel rooms for 59 couples
Gala dinner for 90 people
12 trophies all individullay designed
Trophy sponsors
Trade stands
Feature displays
Welcome drinks
AGM planning
Field toilets
Refuse bins (with lids as per airport)
Programs
Goody bags
Raffle prizes
PA system
Etc, etc

Glad you enjoyed the weekend (4 days on site for me btw)

Now you've got me thinking..

 

[Chuffer]

For what it`s worth , I imagine the adverse weather forecast brought about a far less ` professional` image than has always been the image the club presented at past nationals at Sharnbrook . I was unable attend Sywell last year so have no point of reference for how things were presented last year .

As an aside Stuart , did you have the bunting , flags , gazebo etc from Mike Lacey ? He claims he has very little club equipment now and I need things for Silverstone Festival . Without it the club display will look very lack lustre on our 70th anniversay . Hopefully the committee will `get behind ` this big event and give things a shove but we are rapidly running out of time now .

 

[Brads]

Well, as a fellow committee member I feel the post is very misrepresentative of the amount of time and effort that goes into these events. Every one of us do the roles in our own time and out of the goodness of our hearts for the club members. We (I certainly do) welcome constructive criticism as there's always something that can be done better, but comments like the ones above make you wonder why we bother.
Yes there could have been signs outside on the road, but given the extreme winds there was no way we could take the risk of putting anything on a public road. The wind was that extreme it lifted a gazebo that was 6m x 3m and tied down.
As we know the event was in exactly the same venue as last year and I personally think the organiser did a fantastic job and we know we will never please everyone but some comments are unnecessary.

@ Mike (Chuffer), I have some bunting, a gazebo and I can get some flags, I will message you and come up with a plan.

 

[Roscobbc]

With a memberhip currently hovering around 1000 people I have always found it equally frustrating and irritating that so few members are prepared to offer help to the club or stand for committee positions.
If we include the numbers of current committee members and regional representatives it will represent less than 1% of our membership numbers. With a thousand members there will surely be many with the requisite skills and life experience to assist the running of the club.......yet so, so few do!
As one time Vette News editor (and later chairman) I used to find it really irritating when individuals would complain about certain aspects of the club or the people administering it.
The 'individuals' concerned were never, ever prepared to help run the club and address/rectify the issues they may have been incensed about.
If we were a commericial organisation it would be simple enough.....we'd employ professional administrators on the basis of their experience. As with any commerical organisation if they didn't carry out their duties correctly they could be replaced.
But we're not a commericial organisation and therefore very fortunate to have members who are prepared to give-up valuable time and resources.........for zero return except the thanks of our members. Keep up the good work guys and gals of the CCCUK committee and regions!

 

[Chuffer]

Well, as a fellow committee member I feel the post is very misrepresentative of the amount of time and effort that goes into these events. Every one of us do the roles in our own time and out of the goodness of our hearts for the club members. We (I certainly do) welcome constructive criticism as there's always something that can be done better, but comments like the ones above make you wonder why we bother.
Yes there could have been signs outside on the road, but given the extreme winds there was no way we could take the risk of putting anything on a public road. The wind was that extreme it lifted a gazebo that was 6m x 3m and tied down.
As we know the event was in exactly the same venue as last year and I personally think the organiser did a fantastic job and we know we will never please everyone but some comments are unnecessary.

@ Mike (Chuffer), I have some bunting, a gazebo and I can get some flags, I will message you and come up with a plan.

Brads , thanks for the tip off about gazebo etc . I will wait to hear from you . As for the nationals and the signage issue I am with you all the way . Signage set up on the public highway requires approval from the appropriate authority as far as I know but guess many people don`t seek that approval . A CCCUK sign blowing onto the highway and causing damage or an accident could leave the club legally vunerable . If people cannot find 140 Corvettes parked on an open airfield then the mind boggles !!

 

[Chuffer]

With a memberhip currently hovering around 1000 people I have always found it equally frustrating and irritating that so few members are prepared to offer help to the club or stand for committee positions.
If we include the numbers of current committee members and regional representatives it will represent less than 1% of our membership numbers. With a thousand members there will surely be many with the requisite skills and life experience to assist the running of the club.......yet so, so few do!
As one time Vette News editor (and later chairman) I used to find it really irritating when individuals would complain about certain aspects of the club or the people administering it.
The 'individuals' concerned were never, ever prepared to help run the club and address/rectify the issues they may have been incensed about.
If we were a commericial organisation it would be simple enough.....we'd employ professional administrators on the basis of their experience. As with any commerical organisation if they didn't carry out their duties correctly they could be replaced.
But we're not a commericial organisation and therefore very fortunate to have members who are prepared to give-up valuable time and resources.........for zero return except the thanks of our members. Keep up the good work guys and gals of the CCCUK committee and regions!

Unfortunately it is ever thus Ross .

 

[Invetterate]

Hotel rooms for 59 couples
Gala dinner for 90 people
12 trophies all individullay designed
Trophy sponsors
Trade stands
Feature displays
Welcome drinks
AGM planning
Field toilets
Refuse bins (with lids as per airport)
Programs
Goody bags
Raffle prizes
PA system
Etc, etc

Glad you enjoyed the weekend (4 days on site for me btw)

Now you've got me thinking..

Having held various committee roles, now a Regional Rep and doing various support functions for the Club, I fully commiserate with you, Stuart. Most people enjoy the fruits of our labour which is why we do it but few commend us and then you get those that moan whilst doing naff all to help. It can be very demoralising indeed. Given that most major clubs have their own premises and actually employ people to do some or all of the roles we volunteer for, I think we do very well overall and the Nationals is a good example of just that. More power to your elbow, Sir!

 

[Mr. Cricket]

For what it`s worth , I imagine the adverse weather forecast brought about a far less ` professional` image than has always been the image the club presented at past nationals at Sharnbrook . I was unable attend Sywell last year so have no point of reference for how things were presented last year .

As an aside Stuart , did you have the bunting , flags , gazebo etc from Mike Lacey ? He claims he has very little club equipment now and I need things for Silverstone Festival . Without it the club display will look very lack lustre on our 70th anniversay . Hopefully the committee will `get behind ` this big event and give things a shove but we are rapidly running out of time now .

Hi Mike. Yes I did 'inherit' a load of flags both old style and new, bunting and some banners. I collected two flags from our treasured friends at Gliptone who generally ferry the product from show to show then store it but there is still 10 flags there for Alan to pick from including two new anniversary flags. I need to get the banners cleaned before they go out again but let me know if you need them? Do you want the 5 foot tall 70 display? I'll see what bunting I have but it isn't much so we may need to order some more.

 

[Mr. Cricket]

With a memberhip currently hovering around 1000 people I have always found it equally frustrating and irritating that so few members are prepared to offer help to the club or stand for committee positions.
If we include the numbers of current committee members and regional representatives it will represent less than 1% of our membership numbers. With a thousand members there will surely be many with the requisite skills and life experience to assist the running of the club.......yet so, so few do!
As one time Vette News editor (and later chairman) I used to find it really irritating when individuals would complain about certain aspects of the club or the people administering it.
The 'individuals' concerned were never, ever prepared to help run the club and address/rectify the issues they may have been incensed about.
If we were a commericial organisation it would be simple enough.....we'd employ professional administrators on the basis of their experience. As with any commerical organisation if they didn't carry out their duties correctly they could be replaced.
But we're not a commericial organisation and therefore very fortunate to have members who are prepared to give-up valuable time and resources.........for zero return except the thanks of our members. Keep up the good work guys and gals of the CCCUK committee and regions!

Well said Ross as always. Members can help out in many ways without 'signing up' to a regional or committee role. We had a meet today that brought together members from the NW, CN & Yorkshire regions and I had offers from regions outside of mine to come help erect the club stand at Passion for Power in August

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Having held various committee roles, now a Regional Rep and doing various support functions for the Club, I fully commiserate with you, Stuart. Most people enjoy the fruits of our labour which is why we do it but few commend us and then you get those that moan whilst doing naff all to help. It can be very demoralising indeed. Given that most major clubs have their own premises and actually employ people to do some or all of the roles we volunteer for, I think we do very well overall and the Nationals is a good example of just that. More power to your elbow, Sir!

Cheers Mark.

I'll be doing again next year and looking forward to the 1,000 + emails on the gala dinner alone

My last word on this thread

 

[Rich]

.......... I'll see what bunting I have but it isn't much so we may need to order some more.

We bought 500 metres of bunting in March 2021 !! Surely that's enough??

 

[Chuffer]

We bought 500 metres of bunting in March 2021 !! Surely that's enough??

I guess that might be the brand new bunting I picked up from Mike Lacey this time last year for use at Silverstone . That was more than enough for the large area we were assigned to and decorate the gazebo too.

 

[Chuffer]

Hi Mike. Yes I did 'inherit' a load of flags both old style and new, bunting and some banners. I collected two flags from our treasured friends at Gliptone who generally ferry the product from show to show then store it but there is still 10 flags there for Alan to pick from including two new anniversary flags. I need to get the banners cleaned before they go out again but let me know if you need them? Do you want the 5 foot tall 70 display? I'll see what bunting I have but it isn't much so we may need to order some more.

Hi Stuart ,
Thanks for the heads up . Four flags ( are they the kite type ?) would be enough for Silverstone and the Anniversary flags would be much appreciated . Bunting too . Do you have the white plastic boundary posts that we had several bags of ?
I will pass on the 5 foot `70` display as transport will be an issue and I have visions of it blowing away at Silverstone .

 

[Piginvet]

Back to the original enquiry and reply from someone who thought it was a personal attack....
I ACTUALLY HAVE helped organised it before....3 years worth!!
Thats when we had proper shows and familys came to view cars but we also had other events going on in an arena, namely dancing displays, JCB dancing displays, stunt bike riders to name a few....and it wasnt just a field and you park where you want like it is now...

Also done the NEC for what its worth!!,
So please, calm down...do as YOU suggest and DO YOUR OWN research before pen to paper maybe?
But maybe this was all before you were even a member?, Im not sure, but never saw you help then....

 

[Blackzed]

As a reply to the original post about directions to the event, you could use " what 3 words" to show the way to the various turns, and the entrance etc. I had a similar problem going to a flying experience at a remote airfield, apparently the postcode sends you to the wrong side of a major road.
I asked if they knew about W3Ws and they then used that to direct me there.
They now use it on their website as it was difficult to find.

As for the committee and the organisers of the nationals a big thank you for all the efforts over the years at all the nationals.