Why do so few members of the NYCC attend club meetings?
Express yourself, and tell it like it is!
Club Meetings
Wed, 10/15/2003 - 10:16am
Wed, 10/15/2003 - 10:39am
#1
hold the meeting at the amsterdam billiard club and i'll show up
they don't serve food but they have a bar and 30+ tables.
(herb, i'll still play you with one arm for pushups)
don
Wed, 10/15/2003 - 6:12pm
#2
Wrong sort of tables
and the tables run a high hourly cost. But Blondies has a bar, a back room and those yummy wings
Wed, 10/15/2003 - 10:00pm
#3
hey...doesn't blondie's have a pool table? :)
.
Thu, 10/16/2003 - 12:35pm
#4
Don't think so
But... a billiards night might be a fun addition to our off season / off the saddle routine... Problem with a location like Amsterdam Billiards(or Blondies) is that it is very convenient for some of us (like me) and very bad for others.
Fri, 10/17/2003 - 9:23am
#5
it's all about the topic
I generally go to 2 or 3 meetings a year. The determining factor is topic. If it's something I'm interested in, I'll show up. If not, I do something else that night. I've enjoyed the meetings I've attended and never thought attendance (or non-attendance) was a problem. If it ain't broke . . .
I will say that I've only eaten the dinner once--I can do better for $20. All other times I've just shown up for the meeting, and I appreciate the option of not eating the dinner but still having the meeting.
Imho the meetings seem well put together and exectued, and there's a nice variety of topics.
hannah
Fri, 10/17/2003 - 9:32am
#6
Club Meeting Attendance
"Why don't more people attend the meetings?
* People are busy
* The meetings are ""cliquey."" Newcomers are ignored (alternatively, they're ""hit on"")
* Speakers may not be compelling to most people
* $20 for a buffet and extra for drinks? $6 for a draft beer?
* Most club members do attend meetings. They're called rides."
Thu, 10/16/2003 - 11:30am
#7
Club Meetings
This is a really good question, and I would recommend posting it somewhere else. I think the same small handful of people, for the most part, participate in the message board regularly, and what you need to do is reach a wider variety of members. Maybe you could talk to whoever does the newsletter about putting it in as a poll, asking people to email their comments (and/or on the front page of the website). It would be a great way great to learn if there are others who would like this to be a friendlier, more social club, and how they might recommend bringing that about...
Fri, 10/17/2003 - 4:04am
#8
For Some, monthly meetings are not essential
"A few thoughts:
1. This is a physical-activity orientated club. What matters is bicycling. To that end, meeting at the Start point and then riding is the key. We find out this information from the newsletter, weekly email, or a phone call from a fellow member. The monthly meeting does not necessarily facilatate increased ride participation
1a. On a parallel thought, I belong to Central Jersey Ski Club. I went to meetings to sign up for bus trips, Since moving to NYC, I do my signups by mail, or by phone and show up to meet the bus. But even if I still was back in NJ, I wouldn't go to many meetings just to sign up. The mail is efficient in doing so. But CJSC has a full year round schedule of sailing, golfing, drinking, cycling, hiking, drinking, tubing, wine tasting, road rally and other events that has good attendance (oh, did I mention that we have drinking events). Still, the monthly meetings generally gather those who live close by, and/or those who want to have a drink.
2. If NYCC were, oh a coin - collecting Club, then regular meeting attendance would be efficient to meet other people with coins. The meeting are a means to the end. But for the cycle club, the monthly meeting are not the means to go cycling.
3. Perhaps the attendence is a sign of the times -- we have cell phones and emails that eliminate the need to meet before an activity. Perhaps by not meeting people face to face as often as we once did is isolating ourselves from society and we must make active efforts to meet our fellow cyclists other than on rides??
4. Personally, I am not as knowlegable about cycling, or as ""into"" cycling as others. Those topics and presentations at the monthly meetings are not compelling me to attend. This is not the fault of the presenters, or the club -- it's just me. But others may have similar tendencies. So in contrast to Jody's observation, friendliness is not an issue. I can't think of any NYCC members that I have met whom I would consider ""unfriendly"".
5. I always refer potential new members to the website, and the Boathouse on a Saturday morning. I didn't think people would join a cycling club by referring them to a meeting near GCT the 2nd Tuesday of each month.
6. Maybe more cultural events, like the Museum event today will boost attendance, but not necessarily at the monthly meetings. Maybe the club doesn't have as many drinkers as it once did (LOL)"
Thu, 10/16/2003 - 1:20pm
#9
My Situation
I try to keep a high level of fitness and also work somewhat long hours; therefore, attending any weeknight event before 9:00 PM is difficult as work and training takes precedence over club meetings. However, I do like to have some balance in my life and make exceptions, such as for the NYCC Christmas party, or when a scheduled meeting speaker is of particular interest to me. I think the venue is sensible; being next to GCT, it is in a location convenient to most.
Fri, 10/17/2003 - 1:23pm
#10
Excellent Topic
Thanks Geo for bringing this up.
I've also noticed that meeting attendance has steadily declined from the old days when meetings were held at O'Hara's downtown. Everyone complained about the location and the food yet it seemed we always had a much larger crowd than we have now. I don't think it's because the speakers were any better then than now or that people have all of a sudden gotten more busy. It may have more to do with the composition of the membership and meeting attendance may actually have an inverse relationship to the increase in membership. When the club was smaller, perhaps more people knew each other and felt more comfortable at meetings because they new most people who would attend and the meetings felt more like social gatherings with friends. Now that the club is bigger, the membership is more fragmented with many smaller groups or yes, cliques. The groups (cliques) get together on the their own to insulate themselves against people they don't know and have no need or even desire for an institutional gathering like the monthly meetings.
Yes, we are a cycling club but I've always considered us a social club as well. You can be social on a ride but again, that is a very homogenious experience. After members have been on a few rides, they tend to choose rides where they are pretty much guaranteed to ride with the same people every time out even though they represent only a fraction of the club membership. I am also sympathetic to the difficulties for new members at meetings, I experienced them first hand when I first joined. We veterans can certainly make it easier for newbies and I personally will make more of an effort, I hope my fellow veterans will as well.
So consider this all you groupies, cliques and newbies (does that cover everyone?), instead of always getting together on your own, how about making the monthly meeting part of your social calendar. $20 may seem like a lot for the food but believe me, it ain't easy finding a venue in this town that will offer a better deal. We've held meetings at several locations over the past 6 years, none offered a better space, certainly not a better location nor were they any cheaper. As far as speakers, I invite all members to send us suggestions. You can send them to our new VP programs... oh wait, there are no candidates. Well heck, how are we going to have interesting programs with no VP? You see where I'm going with this one. Anyway, for those who've never been, give it a try and for those who have tried and felt unwelcomed, give it another try. And for those who feel the price is too high, I've paid a lot more than $20 for a lot worse and a lot less food. The monthly meetings offer an opportunity to meet different people in a different setting than you might on a ride and you might learn something that will help your cycling, fitness or general well-being in the bargain. To me, it's a great way to expand your NYCC experience.
Sat, 10/18/2003 - 6:00pm
#11
I don't attend meetings because they conflict with another activity of mine that meets on Tuesdays. This particular activity meets once a week, so I reserve my Tuesdays for it, in the same way that I reserve my Saturdays for bicycling. I would guess that there are others in the club who have Tuesday evening conflicts as well.
