yu888

Since there were several threads on the main board asking what people wanted from a national S2000 club, I thought I'd throw this question out locally. We, in the Bay Area and Norcal area, have always been an informal organization which gets togeher as friends. But, seeing the potential liability implications of organizing, it may be in everyone's best interest to formalize our organization locally, get some insurance coverage, and maybe even show the rest of the groups how its done Ok, maybe not that , but seriously, what are you all interested in when you get together with your fellow Bay Area S2000 nuts ? What would you be looking for from a Bay Area/ NorCal S2000 club?

The NorCal area is very lucky in that we have a high concentration of S2000's here, so we can do some amazing things if we just put our heads together. Any input you can give would be greatly appreciated, as we are looking into setting up a regional club, regardless of what is happening on the national level at this point. This would hopefully include insuring that our events are covered by liability insurance so we can continue to plan fun meets and gatherings w/o that risk hanging over our heads.

Input anyone?

yu888

One more thing...the timing of this organizing does in fact coincide with the fact that the next big national event, S2K Days(Sponsored by S2KCA) in June, will be in Northern California, so being organized by then would definitely be a big plus. We are already one of the most active large S2000 groups, and our regional forum is probably the most active. Hopefully this will translate into an active Club regionally as well.

pll

I would like to see the local club host tech days and possibly keep a set of tools for these tech days (some jack stands and a good floor jack and a under car creeper). We should also partner up with a local dealership (maybe Menlo Honda) and try to arrange a special rate for services.

CRussel

Tech Days, definitely. And the idea of having a couple of key tools for them is a great idea. Rides and regular get togethers, also yes. But keep in mind that not all of us live in the south bay or penisula. But a formal enough organization that we could get coverage for our rides would be a huge plus. Don't much care if we have a formal relationship with one dealer -- frankly it's not likely to be the one down the street from me, or even one of them in the East Bay, so I'm not likely to use them.

umvue

I would say we should first list what a formal club can do that the current "club" can't do. Then we let the formal club hosts them. That way we don't exclude people who aren't that into a formal car club but still want to socialize with other owners.

Formal club vs the current "club"
1. Charge people yearly dues. This may exclude some fringe members.
2. More credibility, so someone probably will take it more seriously.
3. Create political problems. As we can see in S2KCA.
4. Serve as a formal representative of Bay Area S2000 owners

Here is a list of car club events I can think of:
1. lunch/dinner/get together
2. group drive
3. tech day
4. attend autox, track day, etc hosted by other organizations in a group
5. S2000 only autox
6. S2000 only track day
7. dealership discounts
8. coordinate events with other S2000 clubs more effectively

1. doesn't need a formal club.
2. need a formal club if we want the insurance coverage for the organizer. However, whether this is really needed is not really clear. I posted a thread and hopefully some lawyers in this board can respond.
3. I think we had some successful tech days by sylvainsf already. Can it be better if the club keep a set of tools? I haven't been to any of those days, so I am not sure.
4. doesn't need a formal club also.
5-8 really needs a formal club to pull them off.

I would say if there is a formal club, it will try to concentrate in 5-8. Occasionally, it hosts 1-4 but try not to exclude non-members. By doing this, it should maximize the value added ('cuz it does what it is good at) while keeping the cost low ('cuz it doesn't try to do something that it is not supposed to do).

My 0.02

yu888

THANKS FOR THE INPUT SO FAR! Great points! Please keep them coming.

RE: Insurance- I received a PM from Meat (Brad) of S2KCA, who is looking into the extension of coverage to S2KCA members who plan events, so the insurance coverage point may get covered that way.

The Tech day ideas are great, especially for those of us who are now looking to do our own work on our cars. Not so sure about how we'd handle the tools, but its defintiely an idea worth looking at, especially for any tools that dont get used too often. Again, insurance would be a good thing for tech days so as to cover the organizer (and host if different party) against anything that could potentially be a liability.

Anyone with more suggestions or feedback, please post ideas and comments! Thx!

sylvainsf

I'd have to vote against a "communal" tool set. This would be a nightmare. I have no problems letting people work on their cars at my house, but the last two times, I've considered making people sign waivers.. Insurance to cover the event would definitely give me more peace of mind (particularly if they happen to start their car in gear and crash through my pinball machine or something). I don't think we've ever been lacking for tools at a tech day. I have almost every tool you could possibly need to work on our cars.

I would definitely like it if Menlo Honda were our "official" dealership. This would be great for them, and great for us.

Our club status would make it a lot easier to make deals with parts shops, detailers, etc for discounts.

My .02...

jgirata

Is anybody interested in organizing rides, either on weekends, or other days, around norcal?

monkeymaker

This is a good idea. I'd be in if the following points were addressed:

1. the club maintains not-for-profit status,
2. the club has the blessings of BOTH s2ki and S2KCA so we would not be "banned" or discouraged from communicating through either forum,
3. the club members agree on a set of guidelines, a charter if you will, so elected officers can be held accountable to them,
4. the mission of the club is well defined, (I particularly like umvue's 5-8 as club purposes. )
5. members have an opportunity to vote on who serves the club as officers,
6. member dues do not exceed $50 per year, and
7. non-members are not excluded from social events.

As far as using a template for the activities and communication efforts of such a formal organization, the NorCal Porsche Club seems to know how to do it right.

I'm just throwing this out there, but another possible idea would be to consider becoming a (formal?) chapter of S2KCA. The pooling of resources in such an arrangement could better suit both club interests. The drawback that comes to mind though is I fear this may jeopardize our freedom to post as we choose (as club members) here on s2ki.

monkeymaker

hehe OMG I just noticed the date of the original thread! What ever happened with the effort?