How To Destroy A Successful AMC Meet.
Below is the former page of the AMC SouthWest Regional file
off my website. The meet is defunct, (at least the name is) and this is it's story, at least from my
side of the fence. It sadly shows how those who are sometimes entrusted by
others (officers) to make a 'fun hobby' for everyone, can well, screw it up
royally for everyone. Nuff said. Chances are I'll remove the stuff below one
day. Not sure when. Many of those who caused all the trouble stepped down,
however, damage is/was done. Sort of like a Enron AMC 'Triad of Texas Clubs' I
guess. Now that the meet has zero vendor support, those who only go to these
meets to find dwindling parts, well, don't go, so attendance is also in toilet.
Only those folks whose cars are 'already done' bother, which is sad, maybe they
forgot what it was like being 17 years old and having their first car....a AMC....and
trying to find stuff for it, get it painted, new carpet, saving up for a new set
of tires, ect. It is a hell of a lot harder to recruit people into the AMC hobby
when you are taking time to isolate some, and run off others. Especially the
younger people who have decided to take a chance on a AMC vehicle, not spend
their money on a ricer. I call it "forgetting ones roots". Others call
it being a asshole, same feeling a stray AMC fan would feel at many Mopar meets,
not all, but many....just...out of place....Ford man at Super Chevy Sunday. Ugly
Red Headed stepchild, I could go on, point made. In a time that many clubs are
suffering from lack of dues paying members, many national meets are struggling
to hit 100-200 cars, and the cars themselves have vanished at a tremendous rate
since the mid 1990s for a variety of reasons; price of steel, environmental laws
and lack of parts/cannibalism, you would think some would go above and beyond
the Call of AMC Duty to recruit new people, and think of the next gen of AMCers
instead of themselves. Not so I guess. There is a huge lesson to be learned
here. There is a right way to do shit, and a wrong way to do shit.
You figure out what the right way is. The wrong way and it's consequences, are
fatal.
Just ask Mitchell.
======================================================
It is 4:01pm. Saturday June 11th, 2005. Houston, Texas. About now,
trophies are being awarded to those who braved the heat at the "Lone Star
Texas AMC" Regional or whatever it is called now, in San Antonio, actually,
Seguin, TX, roughly about 2 1/2 huors from me. I had a number of calls and
emails in the past month from AMC fans wanting to know if I was going to be
there. I had two cell phone calls today from people at the meet who were
told in advance I would be there. I donated about $150 worth of door prizes but
had no intention of going. A person don't go where they are not wanted. And
seems Andre Jacobs of South Texas AMC wasn't wanted either, so you have
the two largest vendors in Texas not supporting this meet. I talk to AJ,
who has been a friend of mine since the early 1980s and I get a earful. (Yes, AJ
is a friend of mine and no, there was no beef with him NOT being at the AMC
Nationals in 2001 here in Houston either, he chose not to come, his decision,
and i support him on that.) Seems he
is not happy with former officers from the Houston,
Dallas and San Antonio chapters who he said talked smack about him, and his
business. All these officers have mysteriously now given up their positions as
presidents, vice presidents, saying 'it was time to let someone else do it'. AJ will give you a earful, but only limited earful as he fumes.
Can't blame him either, same people did same shit to me years ago because
"I had too much influence over this meet". Well, duh, I founded it.
Time will tell with AJ. With me? Simply apologies would have sufficed as I
forgive people as per my religious beliefs.
So as one fellow on a cell phone asks me today "gee, how did it get to this
sorry state and why?" I told him to go to this long time file of my
website. And read it. And read it again. You want this meet to
explode in growth you need vendors. People go to these meets for parts. He (the
caller) mentioned that his wife asked him several times "where are all the
cars at?" as they were frequent visitors to the AMC SouthEast Regional
(wow, you didn't see officers all get together in secretive Roswell-type meeting
and attempt to blackball WSC, Hillicks, and other GA vendors; nor did you see
them change the name to "Georgia only AMC meet") but both called today
did have fun at the meet, but were disappointed there were no vendors, and about
40 cars. You can thank those former officers and their abuse of power (and
rumors) for that. And I would guess I sit
here in air condition comfort (would rather be loading/unloading one ton of
parts in 100 degree heat however) and think about the THIRD AMC SouthWest
Regional (no, I don't recognize it by the crappy new name) I have missed, and
after talking to Andre for as many times in the past month......
there are some lessons to be learned here.
And I personally am not sure what the solution might be to turn this once growing and nationally recognized meet......into the BIG FUN MEET it used to be before some people (officers) decided it was in "their" best interest to make it "their" all-inclusive, we-must-approve-you meet. This is not a slant towards the NEW officers who have taken on duties recently. These folks got their work cut out for them to heal wounds the former regimes left behind in a scorched earth policy. My AMC logoed hat......and my support if off to those who have volunteered to run their respective chapters. Good luck to all of you and I would say ya'll are a breath of fresh air in a otherwise stale room.
Nonetheless. I have a lot more to say, but not here. If you want to know
what is up with AJ, you talk to him, not me, he is listed in my Planet Houston
Vendors List. And I am not sure how much he will tell you, he gets pretty irate
about it, as he should, and has every right to. I do however hope that those who
attended today's Regional had fun in Seguin, as that is what the damned meet
is/was supposed to be all about to begin with. Fun. That was before you had a
few officers who have never had a position of authority, not even a school
crossing guard in 6th grade, decided to 'exert their authority' the best, and
possibly only way they knew how; which screwed it up for everyone except their
little clan.
===================================================================
AMC Southwest Regional
My side of the story: Summer 2003
The AMC SouthWest Regional meet was founded by me in 1991 after our local
club, The Greater Houston Classic AMX Club seceded from AMC World Clubs due
to the politics, and joined AMO. AMCWC did not wish to even sponsor nor have
anything to do with the meet, even though a meet this size in a area of the
country that usually does not get a lot of recognition, well, the positive
exposure factor was high, but also the number of people who would have
stayed away if it had anything to do with AMCWC would have been higher,
from vendors to attendees.
There was a lot more to the defection of our club
from AMCWC, but soon thereafter six other national chapters followed suit,
and today that is the smallest of AMC clubs with little vendor support, and
the smallest of 'nationals' more of a cruise night sized show. And no
vending by major vendors. Hell, their so called 'national' in 2003 had a
whopping 15 cars and zero vendors. Hope that asshole Mitchell enjoys his
retirement in Utah next summer after selling off all the club property
members paid for all those years like he is doing currently on ebay. If you
are still stupid enough to be in that cesspool AMC Squirrel Clubs, and few are, that final
fleecing of you, and other members serves you right.
Never mind.
AMC Squirrel Clubs FOLDED in 2004.
Our local club was struggling, as it was almost AMX inclusive and had become
more of a clique of AMX owners. Being a vendor, I deal with AMC owners
daily, and there were many people who did not like being 'looked down' upon
'like a ugly red headed stepchild' just because they owned a Pacer, Spirit,
Rambler or other AMC non performance model. They simply felt they were not
welcome at any of the local chapter's picnics, getogethers, anything. And
being a vendor and dealing with AMCers daily, I was reminded of this! So at
a club meeting, we democratically voted, all paid members who attended had a
voice, one member Cliff Osborn even taped the vote. A majority of people
voted to go with AMO, which allows all AMC owners and represents them in a
positive light, and also change the name of the club to the American Motors
Club of Houston, www.amcofhouston.com
also reflecting the new direction the club was going! The
non profit status was then changed at the Harris County Courthouse to the
new name, good thru 2009. The bank account was also changed at the Bellaire
Bank, from the old account to a new account, whereas three members had
access to it. The old bank stagnant bank account was closed and a new one
opened in the new club name, but same bank. Some old timers
in the club groused, but it was for the betterment of the club, those that
bitched were usually the ones who never volunteered of a office, content to
just pay their dues and bitch about how the club was being run, or lack
thereof, some of you probably know some in your chapter. Sit in back while
the club meeting was going on whining about how much money they lost on the
Oilers game. Membership grew, some people who before would not join, brought
their cars to the meeting that night and joined, but not before voicing
their opinions on why they would not join before. The influx of Gremlin, Pacer,
Eagle, Rambler, Javelin and other model owners breathed new life into
a struggling chapter. But the key was they joined, and
supported the club! More members! More dues! New name, new national
affiliation, new direction!
The club had in year's before had things like picnics, poker runs, and super
bowl parties. But nothing on a national or regional scale. So I decided to
put the Houston club on the map, first securing a meet space out at Bear
Creek Park, setting a date, then using my own Planet Houston Mailing List of
AMC & Rambler owners in TX and surrounding states, to let them know that the
club was going to attempt to do something never before done in these parts!
Never having done anything like this I simply called a number of other
vendors and hobbyists to get ideas and suggestions. I was the sole sponsor.
About $400 was spent by me, $200 more by the club to make flyers, stamps,
direction signs, a few 'best of' trophies, cases of sodas (it is Texas in
the summer, expect 90-105 degrees at these meets) and other expenses. But
being a vendor helped as I 'leaned' on a number of friends in the hobby who
are vendors, and many of them donated a number of door prizes and goodie bag
items. One local member, Ozzy, spent money out of his own pocket to have
tshirts made! The tshirts are highly collectible now and read:
"I attended the First Annual AMC SouthWest Regional Meet, July 27th, 1991,
Houston, Texas"
Sponsored by Greater Houston Classic AMX Club
(we were then a pending chapter of AMO)
Other members donated food and beverages, of which sales of
those went into the club till!
It is a lot of work I assure you, many of the local members pitched in from
cooking hot dogs, to helping me place road assistance signs on Interstate 10
at midnight the night before the meet, some helped me lick envelopes to send
out weeks before, over 600 mailers were mailed out! Everyone pitched in,
some more than others, to make this meet a success. Come show day, there was
72 AMCs at the park during the six hour show. Lots of door prizes, goodie
bags, and even some trophies were given out, although this was more of a
informal get together "show and shine" event. Seems everyone had fun a
many
wanted to do it again the next year, so the AMC SouthWest Regional was born.
The name was originally the Annual AMC SouthWest Regional.
Many of the people who busted their butts to pull this first meet off were
in no certain order: Larry Roberts, Phil Coleman, Kevin Dalley, Ted Davis,
Keith Freudenthal, Randy Helm, Lindsey Johnson, Terry LaFerriere, Chuck
Jensen, Joe Maginot, Randy Marino, Cliff Osborn, John Cook, Mike Thomas,
Doug Tipton, the late Dennis Raffensperger, there are probably a whole slew
of locals I have forgotten (Paige also!) who did the grunt work to pull this
first ever AMC Regional off in Houston, Texas. But it was a wild success,
with cars coming as far away as Kansas and Mississippi. And it would lead to
friendships with other AMCers in different parts of the state who would then
later form their own chapters like San Antonio and
Dallas
Many of these folks also pitched in and attended and
supported the meet and for that everyone, myself especially, is thankful!
Without their support and help this meet would not be possible.....
There was a lot of great exposure for this meet in national publications as
I had taken a many photo of all cars, from beaters to concourse, written a
article, made copies and sent them in. Sure, it costs money but it would be
well worth it. And yes, most of the money from the stamps, envelopes, 600+
flyers, hours spent at Office Depot, countless phone calls, developing
photos, sending articles and what not, most of this money was mine, make no
mistake about it, few club funds were used except mentioned above, chances
are it was more than the $400 listed when it was all said and done. I would
only hope and pray that come show day we had good weather and I would
recover some or all of my investment selling parts and literature to make
sure everyone had a great time and would come back for following meets!
The key here was putting on a show that hopefully everyone had FUN at. I go
to many, many shows where the people are all too anal about winning a damned
little $3.00 plastic trophy, or how their car is judged and so on, where
their car is placed on the showfield, and so on. Everyone wants to be
recognized for their individual efforts with the restoration of their car.
This is fine, but not at others expense.
Make no mistake about it, there are many great AMC vehicles that should be
recognized and awarded. And by having it judged you learn the ins and outs
of judging, and what you car needs to compete with the big boys. Whether at
a Five Star ISCA event at the Astrodome, or at a AMC National Event. I
highly encourage people to restore their vehicles to the best of their
abilities and knowledge. Some however take it a little too seriously,
nothing wrong with that at all, just not my cup of tea anymore with putting
together showcars for a circuit. Many more go to meets simply because of the
parts, and if you do not have vendors, you have eliminated a ton of people
right off the bat who would otherwise come. Sponsors, and vendors, can make
or break a meet of any kind, ask some who have been there. You don't go to a
old car meet to buy quilts or beanie babies. Everyone should be recognized
for their individual efforts on their respective vehicles, but to me,
trophies are trouble. It might be why we see a number of old car meets
getting back to their 'roots' and more of a show and shine even with no
politics and no pressure, and hassles. This is not my opinion, but the trend
nationally it that more shows become more relaxed instead of a
intense competition among a few. And fees to enter meets have also been
lower, just my own observation. But there should be room on the showfield
for the car in primer as the one that has had a $20K restoration.
If you lose the fun aspect of a car show then you lose people.
And people do wish
to have fun at these meets, it was the original intention, not a social
club, but a celebration of the cars we drive and collect and the people who
own them.
One individual who was a good friend of mine used to restore some of the
highest quality concourse AMCs at many meets, but due to lack of judging
he
quit showing his cars. Not sour grapes on losing a first, as he had a room
full of those, but many meets had judges which did not know AMC products, or
they were inconsistent in the judging, or lack thereof. You have probably
seen me write about the Muscle Car Nationals here in Houston where the
judges wanted to deduct 10 points off every 68-70 AMX as 'the owners had
removed the factory rear seats' or the huge Houston AutoRama, now in it's
47th year, which the judges judged my car twice, but forgot the 72 Javelin
next to mine in the display. I guess my 70 r/w/b Donohue Javelin should have
won twice!
There is no AMC Judges Handbook I told him so judging will vary from meet to
meet and from judge to judge, and well, they are all volunteers but should
be held to a certain standard and hopefully know the cars.
Volunteers. Unpaid. Remember that word as I will bitch about it until death.
We had the Regionals here in Houston for many years in the 1990s, the record
number of cars was, and still is, 86 cars in 1992. The highest attendance
was 1998 when the club had the meet at the sprawling Trader's Village
complex in NW Houston and over 5000 people passed thru the display,
unfortunately only 49 cars were present, but there have been some meets
where you have 70 cars and less than 300 people attend so it goes both ways.
I may add that when I talk about involvement in different stages, one thing
that chaps my ass is folks who drive hundreds of miles to the event
(whatever event it may be, mixed make, swap, show, whatever) then leave
their cars in the parking lot. If we could have gotten the 18 AMC owners in
1998 to bring their rides inside, we would have had 67 cars, not 49. One
year the meet was buffeted by squall lines from a tropical storm off the
Texas coast! Another year the host hotel, Holiday Inn on I-10, bumped us
from the parking lot one day before the meet as 'not enough rooms had been
pre registered for us to use their parking lot' so we had to move the meet
on the day of show down to a restaurant parking lot which hardly fit all the
cars. Then it rained, so some meets go better than others! Sometimes the temps in
the Texas summer hit 98-102 degrees, so judging a car underneath can be
tricky with temps on the ground about 140+ degrees.
In the mid 1990s, a group of San Antonio AMC fans formed a club and as a
gesture or good will, the officers of the Houston club awarded them the
meet, so the Regional was headed for a different city for the first time
ever. San Antonio did a great job with it too. Later in the late 90s, Dallas
would organize a chapter and the meet would move up there, and the Regional
would then become a rotating event among the three cities each year. Dallas
also did a great job with this meet 2000. The meets have been held in the
following cities:
1991/Houston 1992/Houston 1993/Houston 1994/Houston 1995/Houston;
1996/Houston; 1997/Houston; 1998/Houston; 1999/San Antonio; 2000/Dallas;
2001 There was no AMC SW Regional was Houston was the host city to the
American Motors Owners Association International Convention, boy was it
huge, and hot; 2002/San Antonio; 2003/Dallas. 2004 will be Houston again,
2005 San Antonio and 2006 will be Dallas.
And as I write this, a large dedicated group of AMC fans in Oklahoma are
attempting to form a chapter of which I am compiling a large list of AMCers
from my own database to help them! And with their enthusiasm, chances are
they will be the NEXT AMO chapter....and the AMC SouthWest Regional will
move to The Sooner State for the first time ever in a show of support by the
Houston, San Antonio and Dallas chapters! If you are in Oklahoma or upper Texas
and would like more info on this forming chapter, please contact:
Gary Greenwall ggreenwall@earthlink.net
The meet has continued to grow, and for the first time since it's founding,
I did not attend it in Dallas 2003; had to work, new job some of you can
probably relate with 8.8 million people out of work in the last four years.
Paige offered to go up there and vend for me, but she wouldn't been able to
take the one ton of parts out of the truck, as I normally load up one ton,
sometimes more, of items to vend on the Thursday before the meet, drive up
Friday, then unload them Sat AM, vend, then reload them Sat afternoon,
sometimes driving back to Houston same day, sometimes Sunday AM, then
unloading them again Sun in my warehouse. That is moving 8000 lbs of AMC
junk in 3-4 days so it leaves you really wasted. I also did not attend the
2004 Houston Regional. My dog Max whom was 7-8 years old, had been diagnosed
with kidney failure in December 2003 and was really ill. He was so weak at
the end of April I would have to pick him up so he could stand up, and after
a series of seizures Sat. May 1st, I took him to the doctor to be put to
sleep May 2nd. It was a tough week around here and the last thing on my mind
was AMC.
The name of the meet was changed in 2003 to the Texas Lone Star Regional,
something I didn't care for, (and still don't) as I believe it goes back to that 'clique'
mentality of all Texas only, no OK, LA, NE, AR, NM, MS and other states AMC
fans are welcome here. I personally think the name sucks and made my
feelings known on the name change as it makes the meet sound inclusive to
Texas Only. And I assure you folks from those states above are more than
welcomed.
I just think changing the name of a very well known, and respected meet
after a decade is stupid. It has zero to do with the meet taking a 'new
direction'.
Since the name was changed the regional has had two of the smallest turnouts in
it's
existence.
I don't see the AMC SouthEast Regional, the Cecil
County Meet, the Dick Teague Regional, or any of the other longtime well
known AMC Regionals changing their names.
Again, that is my opinion only, I was told the meet is growing and needed a
name change. I was told some folks would not attend a meet if I was associated with
it. That one could have fooled me as my sales vending at these meets were
always great, and I guess if someone had a problem with me they would tell
me, at least I hope they would. Some just look for a excuse to bitch and
whine, and one should realize that you won't make everyone happy in life,
whether spouse, co workers, kids, whoever.
This is what our local club had become in the early 1990s, a clique of AMX
owners. And looks like what it has returned to?
But the AMC SW Regional name change bothered me for that reason, and also that you
just don't take a very well known and respected meet and then change it. It
had a identity. Think of it as changing the Dick Teague Regional, or
Hershey, or Carlisle. It's just dumb, but I have no say so in it at all. And
not sure what I would say if I did have a say, probably have already said it
all here. I hope if a Oklahoma chapter reforms they will consider hosting
the event, but not sure what they would call it, maybe bring it back to the
original name. I personally would support and encourage this change back to
it's original name. The meet belongs to all AMC fans in the SouthWest, hence
the original name of the SW Regional when it was founded. Hopefully one day
it will revert back to being the AMC SouthWest Regional with it's wonderful
name recognition.
Since I am no longer involved in the Regional (except to show up and vend
and leave); nor a member of the AMC Club of Houston (was booted off as
Editor one month after the 2001 AMO Nationals; after being president, vice
president, treasurer, newsletter editor for 11 years, many times only one
who was all these jobs, no one else "volunteered" but left the club
one
month after we did the national and have never rejoined, even though still
contact many of the locals who I consider friends)..........................
My hopes for the AMC
SouthWest Regional are really simple.
1. I sincerely hope that it does not become a clique of people patting each
other on the back, giving themselves trophies over and over.
2. I hope that the host chapter reaches out to those almost 1000 AMC and
Rambler fans in Texas and surrounding states to bring them into their
respective nearest chapter or national organization like AMO (that is the
national club all three Texas chapters belong to);
3. I hope that those volunteers who bust their asses each year in the
chapters to insure the meet goes smoothly and successfully, I hope they
continue their hard work and efforts on behalf of their club and AMC owners
everywhere. It is appreciated not only be me, but by all those people who
take time to come out for one or two days, with or without cars, anyone who
comes thru the gate is more than welcome, and it is due to the hard work and
efforts of those AMC fans who volunteer.
4. I hope one day the name changes back to the original name it had since 1991
. I also hope that of all those many, many AMC fans in Texas and
surrounding states will support this event, and join one of the three
supporting AMC Texas chapters, and their parent organization AMO. I would be
absolutely thrilled to see this event hit 100 cars one day. And it will by
people getting involved, whether on a local level or national level or just
showing up the day(s) of the event and supporting it and those who worked so
damned hard to put it on for everyone.
5. Don't be a dumbass when planning a 'date' for this meet. It is not about
YOU. If you put the meet in May, you are automatically eliminating many
people who would normally come. Why? Many AMC people have KIDS. The kids are
the future of the hobby. Wake your ass up. You should not care if it is
fucking hot. It is hot in Texas from March thru October. AMC owners with
kids under 18 years of age, their kids are in school in May. To the brain
surgeon who put the Dallas Regional Meet 2003 in the last week of May, I
sentence you to 40 lashes with Pacer door weatherstrip! Get off the Xanax
and think about that. One, not a whole lot of working people can take off
Memorial Day, which was that Monday, and then the meet is Friday and
Saturday? No, not a whole lot of working AMC fans can take off two days in
one week. Furthermore, again, that is Finals Week for anyone with kids, even
college, duh. What where you thinking? I hope that Pacer weatherstrip makes
you squeal like a rodeo pig! As for whoever it was who had the brain fart to
stick the 2004 Houston Regional 2004 on May 1st, you are hereby sentenced to
walk on hot cataylic converters! Again, stay off the bong! Why would you set
the date the same weekend as Pate? Pate is the largest swap meet in the
south, attracting 8000-10000 vendors, it is Hershey or Carlisle of the South
for christssake! This instantly eliminated dozens of people who might have
came. Well, coupled with the fact that the meet was shoved in May again with
school. If any of those who like to hide in Saddam's spider hole in
Hearne,
Texas behind closed doors trying to decide a date for the meet, it is really
simple. I did it for over a decade. First, get the meet back into the first
weekend, sometimes second weekend in June. To insure a majority of schools
are out. Check calenders to make sure there are no major AMC Events like
Regionals in the South, or AMC Nationals (these are usually in July) or
major mixed make meets like Pate, Del Mar, Conroe, or other 'regional'
activities for that weekend. It is real simple to do and you do not have to
be secretive about it, after all, remember the meet is supposed to be open
to the public, and free. As long as someone decides the meet will be in May
you will continue to suffer in amount of cars and attendance, really simple.
I would like to see more volunteers. This means help judge, sell sodas, pick
up trash, park cars, anything the host chapter might need help in. More
participation. In other words, show up. If you drive 500 miles to be here
for the event, and you leave your AMC in the parking lot (like 18 did at
Trader's Village) for whatever reasons like 'my car is ugly' or 'I don't
have the $10 display fee' or 'it leaks oil' we don't care, bring your car
onto the field, as I'll pay your entry, we can clean it up, and my
Nicaraguan buddies can rebondo and spray your car there if you wish for a
case of beer. More vendors. More donations. More door prizes and goodie bag
items. If you have parts for sale or trade? BRING THEM. More exposure months
before the meet and then many articles after the meet. This was a fatal
mistake for the Kenosha 2002 meet, which was the largest AMC meet in
history, but the city/county did not advertise it in many different national
old car rags. There is life beyond a damned 200 mile Wisconsin border! The
meet could have had 2002 cars as planned originally if there was more
exposure a year before the meet. Don't think that a ad in only AMO, NAMDRA
will make people attend.
And please don't think a small blurb on the host club website is enough!
The host chapters must realize that the internet is 'not all that' it is
only one avenue on the street. I deal with dozens of AMCers daily and I
estimate that less than 40% of them are online! You have to place those ads,
contact those magazines, many months in advance, then stay on them for
MAXIMUM EXPOSURE. I'd like to continue to present my own Planet Houston AMX
Awards (for those cars showing the most promise: re/under construction) and
the Dennis Raffensperger Memorial Award (named after a longtime hardcore
AMCer from Lawton, OK who did a stunning restoration of a 69 Javelin while
undergoing chemo, and was a solid supporter of the meet from day one, thru
his death in 1998 four days after the AMC nationals) in other words, I give
out my own several trophies to those who deserve them, after all, these cost
me $50-$100 each meet. I would like to see all three chapters do a damned
better job of communicating. I was sent 100 flyers to give out with my
orders for the Dallas 2003 meet, but one person's contact number was
disconnected, and the other had a block on their email.
It is fine and dandy if you wish to have a little powwow 'officers retreat
in Hearne, TX' but publish the minutes of the meetings, decisions, and so on
on one of the websites, all three clubs have websites, and this stuff is not
rocket science and since it involves the public, then it should be
publicized, especially if it will involve people who might be heavily
involved in this event. Put it in the newsletters! Mail out copies to
sponsors and vendors! Even the national organizations publish their minutes
of the meetings' after every AMO National. I remember those well, sometimes
7 hour meetings with some breaks to go eat and smoke. In other words, this is a
public met and
the information regarding this public meets should be public record. You don't
see
any of the national clubs hiding behind closed doors, they publish their minutes
of the
meetings. Even many of the AMC chapter newsletters I still get have all their
cards
on the table for anyone, members and non members alike to see!
So lack of communication, more involvement, no cliques. No collusion. And
please no exclusion. If you must have a get together of officers for the
betterment of the meet, that is fine, just let everyone else know what the
other hand is doing. Possibly more input is needed from more than the
officers on the direction of this meet and where it is headed? Maybe more
suggestions from members and attendees to make it run smoother and more
people, cars, parts? Let's get this event back to what it originally was
founded for in 1991.... A well respected, nationally recognized, and well
run event with everyone having a damned great time.
Please remember that the kids/youngsters that can't afford to fix their car
up to Gold Levels and such need, and deserve our respect and help. There is
only a certain amount of American Motors cars left. And there is a
dwindling, and getting smaller daily, parts supply to put these cars back
into #1 to #2 conditions. If someone chooses to "upgrade" their shitty
original 65-71 Borg Warner trans, or upgrade their crappy 65-71 Bendix four
piston brake calipers, change the engine out to something they are
comfortable with, paint it pink, whatever, let them, and don't dissuade them
from doing such either. The alternative would be that car ends up in the
crusher like 8000+ I have seen crushed in Houston alone since 1983; or the
car rusts into the ground, or they simply move on and pick up something
easier to fix and find parts for like a Ricer or Chevy. So if anything those
with projects, builders, drivers, and especially youngsters should be
encouraged and lauded in their efforts to buy, and fool with a AMC Anything,
as they are the future of the hobby. It serves no purpose to discourage them
by degrading their vehicle, or ignoring them if they take time to attend
while you hang with your clique. And THINK before you open your damned
mouth. Why would you even say something stupid to a owner of a similiar car
like "if you want to see a real Rebel Machine, you should check out so and
so's!" I think you just lost yourself a longtime supporter and dues paying
member of the club by being a asshole with your mouth, so please think
before opening trap people.
A huge thanks to everyone thru the years who has had a hand, small or large,
in putting this thing on, some know more than others what a major pain in
the ass it is, but also know it is well worth it come show days to see all
the AMC fans come to your community from afar, simply for nothing more than
a car show and swap meet. More to follow, believe me, including photos, and
hopefully flyers from all the previous AMC SouthWest Regionals!
Eddie Stakes
PS: If you have read all this much, thanks. And I also wish to add that some of the best 'AMC Memories' I have in the AMC hobby, going back to even when a kid and dad working at a dealership, some of the best memories I have are from these meets. The people make them. Whether it was hand painting signs to hang on I-10, or stuffing envelopes and licking stamps at a meeting, or sitting around before the meet bench racing, or even after the meet on the long drive home. Thousands of hours and hundreds of good memories in there, and would not change a thing! And a big THANKS to all those AMC fans whose paths I have crossed at meets who made that meet special and different. And I'm sorry if some of the former officers of the Houston club "are tired of my shit". They should have considered the consequences of their actions, words, and deeds, many years ago by being mini mitchells. And no, while I have NOT been a member of the Houston chapter since the month after we hosted the AMC AMO Nationals in July 2001, I have however continued to send people to the Houston chapter; same with Dallas and San Antonio chapters. And I also have had links to their sites, and will CONTINUE TO, on my links page.
I do not have any animosity towards any of these people, if
they wish to be assholes, that is something they will have to manage. The
Regional has suffered because of their actions, which is a shame. It is above
any of them however to even realize the damage they did to the meet, and hobby,
of American Motors in Texas. So I sincerely hope those new people who are now
officers can clean up the scorched earth those before them left behind. And I
hope those who scorched the earth will realize somehow that is they want a
comparison to how to screw up a good thing, they can only look towards Larry
Mitchell and how his actions, and words, reduced a 1500+ member strong club,
with huge national meets......into rubble, and finally oblivion.
Yup, "it wasn't "my" fault.
My ass.