Hot Rods to club or not to club

Haven't been in a Club for several. Was asked by an accquaintence if I would like for Him to sponsor me in to a Club for $100 bucks a year, (if the approved my car). That was 14 years ago, ain't seen Him since.

 

Been There, Done That ! I have been involved with different car clubs/race organizations for 50 years and like many stated, usually a PIA, politics, lots of talk/ideas, nobody wants to help/do, mostly just talk and the constant bitchin about something. I have met many good people also along the way, enjoyed racing/car hobby, no regrets with many good memories. Suggest you keep searching for a group or men with same interests as yourself, there out there and walk away from the BS part. Good Luck !

 

That pretty much sums it up for me. The politics, games, empire building, and back stabbing make for an undesirable situation for me. If I wanted to live in an HOA area, I would. It is very much the same philosophy as most car clubs.

 

I have nothing to add except to say " Been there,done that"!

 

I was the president of a few clubs for years. My honey and I ended up not in any clubs as the burden of the club's events always landed on the two of us. Everyone wanted to put on tours and events, but they never wanted to do the work. Besides that, most of the folks would simply bring their modern car because it was "too cold", "too hot", "too far" or just going to eat in a restaurant. BS. I am still in the Dodge Brothers Club and the Antique Automobile Club of America. I am NOT the president, so they is no pressure. I just include myself in those two clubs as they seem to be the best group to be involved with.

 

Modern drama (and politics) overshadowed by some individuals' insecurity... being first at every gathering, looking down the nose at some wannabe's ride instead of helping the individual rise to the level of kewlness, some feel they have the patent on... and on and on she goes, where she stops is at the waterfront Dave and Busters with new production kiddos lighting up their imports for the girlie girls. Anytime you drag folks together you get what you get.

Have fun, be nice, or go home.

It was probably cool once, and historically some of the best car gatherings in our area were once club sponsored gigs. Sadly nowadays it seem's reminiscent of a bygone era. The old heads are all older, or they graduated to the great cruise in the sky.

It's been said there's good and bad with everything, and it generally shakes itself out if you can cast that drama aside.

So far, I've never joined when asked... never saw the point.

I'd just like to find a pre-65 crowd of home builders, who still love to work on cars to share my time off with... not wasting away in an uncomfortable chair, waiting to punch my ticket, in a strip mall parking lot full of clowns making payments on new production crap, and other jokers of one genre or another, while someone yells 50/50.

.02

I feel lighter now.... aaaahh.

 

if you want to decide if a club is for you or not, look up the next car show in your area and call the number to register your car and ask them if they need some help with the upcoming show and volunteer your time. show up, do what they ask you (serve food/drink, direct/park cars, empty trash cans, etc) and while you are doing all of this just listen to the other workers around you who are probably club members. This will give you snap shot of what being in the club will be like. Then you can decide if it is for you. and it only cost you a few hours of time.
Personally, i am not much of the "organized club" type. I have a group of friends that I smoke cigars and go on motorcycle trips with. A few of us get together almost every night for a couple of hours for a smoke and BS session. We have a banker, paint and body guy, electrician, retired sheriff, two engineers, machinist/mechanic, school teacher, and retired military in our group... we are all pretty much "type A" personalities and there is no mercy when it comes to busting balls... if you can't take it and give it with equal measure you will get butt hurt and not last long. but when you are in you are in. You can call anytime day or night and someone will show up to help you. We even ran a new water main line to one guys house while he was on vacation in Thailand when it sprung a leak the day before he was supposed to leave.
I can't imagine being in a "club" that was organized with rules and dues...
Just my 2 cents
Chappy

 

I actually agree, when I was in a club with Dues and requirements for car to be in the club, it actually created divides that did not need to be. I used to have a group of friends who worked on their car's in the garage and shoot the crap with each other. but that went away when we all got married and moved away.
unfortunately I live in a money affluent area where people pay people like me to work on their vehicles, which leaves me to be alone wolf working in my garage or others garages on my own. beer always close.

dream club = no drama, guy BS talk, Beer,Cigar, old car hot rod or Vintage. either way, as long as their is no drama.

clubs tend to bring that. when I was at a meeting recently, the going over the meeting minutes and some other stuff made me feel like I left work, grabbed my car, then came back to work.

what really bothered me was that when I went to the meeting, only 3 of the people out of the 40+ brought their cars. I was like, What the F, its a car club meet and no other person brought their car, I ended up leaving and taking my car home because of the area and for safety of my ride.

 

My experiences years ago with a club in another high speed hobby wasn't great. We were a lose-knit group of like-minded friends having the times of our lives. Then we organized, gave ourselves a silly name, asked for dues and it was down hill from there -- and fast.

If you ain't careful, clubs can be a great way to f--- up some good friendships.

 

Since it’s only been said once. Clubs are for seals baby ones at that


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Lone wolf, no club. Been there, done that, probably never again.

First off, let me say I'm not a crowd person, crowds make me nervous. All my years being solo in a semi truck have made me to the point that I like my own company better than most other people. I was in a club once, for a while it was a pretty good bunch of people. We met once a month, had a cruise in where everybody was welcome, club member or not, put on a few charity shows, had some good cookouts, it was mixed folks, some married couples, some singles, ages ran from 16 to 70 with varied tastes in cars from restored stock to late models. Everybody got along, no drama.......then the money started to be questioned. There were no dues, only donations toward food, but we held some charity shows where money was collected to be given to charity. The treasurer was a lady who worked in the mental health field, and she wanted all the money to go to the agency she worked for. It was a good place for it, but some members had other charities they were affiliated with that they wanted a share to go to. Then the total collected began to be questioned, some seemed to think the treasurer was skimming off the take, and the bickering began. It always seems to, anytime there are humans and money involved, someone gets their feelings hurt or there panties in a wad. Accusations were made, friends turned against friends by taking sides, and the whole thing went to pot. And the politics were there too, quiet at first, but stronger before the end. We had a "member of the month", their car and profile were featured on the website, at first you had to be nominated and voted on by the members, then it got to the point that the officers just picked their friends or favorites. Older members got overlooked and their feelings got hurt, most felt they had put in their time and efforts to build the club up and were being overlooked in favor of some folks who only showed up for the free food and never stayed long enough for a meeting. We weren't there when it all blew up, for some reason we couldn't make it that week, but from what I was told it was a lot of accusations, a lot of finger pointing and cussing, and some shoving around. The guy who's shop we met at every other month put his foot down and told everybody to just leave, there would be no more meetings at his shop, just too much a liability if someone was to get into a fight and get hurt. So, that ended the club. I still see a few of the former members every now and then, some have passed away, but those I talk to are pretty much in agreement with me, no more clubs for them.

I do go to a couple of cruise ins and shows put on by a couple of different clubs, and have even helped them out when they were short of help. Never been asked to join either one, would turn them down if they did. I like doing things my way, on my time, when I want, and not be tied down babysitting a bunch of folks who are only there to be seen. I don't give a rat's ass who looks at my junk or who likes it, it's mine, I'm doing it the way I want, and I'm enjoying it.

 

^^^^^^
And that, my friends, is how they tend to end up. Congratulations to the folks that have lasted 20+ years, or more, but most do not for the reasons articulated above. It is people being people--no cure for that.

 

...we formed our club just so we could be incorporated/not for profit so we could put on a rod show/swapmeet,...we have 40 members and all get along great,..going on 13 years now,....guess we're the exception...

 

Hopefully one exception! ^^^

 

An update here, me and some buddies on my college campus just started an “all makes” kinda club that embraces most aspects of car culture. Basically just us deciding what shows to show up to as a group and debating the design for a window sticker so we can identify others in the club easily.

 

TO CLUB OR NOT TO CLUB


That's the question.

 

I am very pleased about being a member of my club. We are pretty open about vehicle type, and the majority of folks seem to be street rod and musclecar owners, but we have a little of everything.
I would guess that maybe part of the reason our membership seems to be open-minded or tolerant of car styles that are not in one's own area of interest is due to our area being somewhat rural in nature. Just having an interest in vehicles is "like minded" enough.
We start our meetings with the pledge of allegiance, which I am very impressed to see.
We put on an annual car show, and do various cruises and shop tours throughout the year (well, the part of the year with good roads...).
The local schools, the food shelves, and quilts of valor have all benefited from our club's support, as well as having a scholarship set up for young folks going into an auto/mechanical education.
For $30 a year, I get to see people that I wouldn't be nearly so likely to, as running 30-60 miles just to visit doesn't happen that often. It has been a good way to network new friends for ideas, trading, etc.
Should things evolve into a drama factory or similar shit-show, I will walk away. But there are no signs of that happening, and I find true value and satisfaction in being a member. I fully endorse checking out a few clubs in one's area before making a decision to not seek one out.

 

It's kinda sad to see so many members have had a bad experiences with car clubs, there was a time in history when there were thousands of clubs around the country which is evident when perusing Dennis O'Briens site with all the car club plaques he offers.

I have been a member of Tri-City Rod & Custom for more than half my life and we all get along very well, most of us are old farts and have hosted many shows but now we let the younger guys and the other local clubs take care of the shows. HRP

 

Clubs are nice when they first start but then it takes tremendous dedication
of a few to make them enjoyable.

 

Like a long marriage, everyone has to be willing to work together if you want it to last,and when that happens it's worthwhile, after more that 46 years we all still get along and look forward to our monthly meetings. HRP

 

Since youve been in and run a few clubs you know the drama that can ensue. I'd say that classic, antique clubs are likely more laid back just because the member's will be more mature individuals.

No reason you cant scope out a club before joining, needs to suit you and be a fit, theyre always a great way to meet others in the same game and get leads on parts.

Many clubs are geared towards putting on shows and getting trophys at shows and voting for each other at shows. Just not my scene, but it represents a large portion of the "hobby"

 

Nearly forty years ago I hung out with a few other guys that got together on a regular basis to work on our cars, drink beer, listen to music and swap lies. We all pitched in and helped each other out all the while giving each other hell. Many Saturdays were spent in local wrecking yards picking parts. Friday and Saturday nights were spent cruising and trying to impress the girls and then we'd usually end up at one of a few local areas where street racing was a common occurrence to see how our latest mods performed. We were all single and most still lived with Mom and Dad. Most had jobs and had some disposable income. Now those days were great fun and I remember them fondly but alas, we all eventually moved on, moved away, got married, started families, etc, etc.
I'll bet that sounds familiar to a bunch of guys here on the Hamb. I think some of us maybe even join clubs in the hope of re-capturing some of those bygone days. It hasn't worked for me. As others have stated, the minority does all the work while the rest complain. Personalities clash. Nobody wants to eat at the same places, stop at the same places or take the same routes on rides. I find it easier and much more relaxing to just do my own thing. I do envy the guys who still have like minded friends that like to get together, wrench on their rides and bust each others balls though.

 

Jim Forbes has it right. The only guys left alive in my club have heart trouble, cancer, bad hips, blown out knees, arthritis etc etc.

 

I'm afraid Jim's assessment hits close to home with our club, as young adults it was what we did to the car, what show we attended, where we went or recent conquest with the ladies.

Today it's what didn't get done, the recent prostate exam, newest ailment and when it comes to ladies.. we still lie about that! HRP

 

I have belonged to several clubs; most people that are here want to belong to a car club but do not have a car or has bought one and knows nothing about it. when we go on a cruise or a club meeting they bring there family car. I miss the days when you could ask a? and not be handed a card to talk to the person that did the work because they think the rear end is a mustang ll

 

I joined the local Early Ford V8 Club of America about 12 years ago and I enjoyed the people & the meetings I could attend, the membership is spread out around the upstate and most of the members are retired with no real schedule.

With Brenda still having a business to run the timing of a meeting wasn't doable, and this year I was ask why I have not rejoined the national club this year, my answer was I have never been a member and was told to join.

After I was ask to join the the National organization second time I decided I wasn't going to pay two membership fees to attend maybe 3 meetings a year, we parted ways on a friendly note. HRP

 

I've been in 3 different car clubs over the years and they all went the same direction. They initially start with a few guys who love working on cars. Soon, some of their pals who like cars but don't really want to work on them, want to join the club. As new members join up, the direction of the club gradually shifts from a few dedicated rod builders to a bunch of guys that want to party, do social events, charitable fund raisers, etc. This leads to committees, planning and commitment of time. Some of the guys aren't interested in doing this stuff so all the work goes to a few. Then comes the resentment, disagreements, and hard feelings. I tried once to rejoin a club I had helped start. It had been a year or so since I left. I couldn't believe what I saw at the meeting. It looked like a bunch of college boys at a frat house. I'll stay a loner, thank you.