HDC club business

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alia176

alia176

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Tijeras, NM
It's time to start back up our monthly meetings so let's have a discussion on this. One possibility is to pick a place like Sonic that's central to everyone and we have a standing monthly meeting there on a Friday, after work. Perhaps this may encourage members and non-members to come out for meet & greets. We need to pick a place that has a large parking lot where we can congregate, check out the rides, swap lies and have a good way to start out the weekend. :D If club members want to host a get together (not a HDC meeting) at their place of residence, that'd be great too!

I'd like the club members to get more involved in meetings, trail runs, camping trips, etc. Our membership base needs to increase and we need to get the word out that we actually exist. One possible way to increase membership is to throw in a T shirt and a club sticker with each new membership. How does that sound?

Trail runs - we need a monthly trail run of ANY kind. When I say any kind, I mean it's up to the trail boss to pick the weekend day, camping, what type of trail, etc. It can be a simple drive through the Jemez, a picnic at a park or a weekend camp out. We are surrounded by beautiful country and we need to explore it more before the trails get inaccessible. Trail boss has the right to pick easy trails to gnarly trails.

Our club website http://www.hdcruisers.org/ needs to be maintained, new pics uploaded and maybe sell T shirts through there as well. Are we a chapter of TLCA, I didn't think so. This line should be removed if it isn't accurate. Relying on members to work on the website in their spare time is challenging at best and hasn't worked out well in the past. Please post up ideas on how to keep the website up to date and dynamic. Do we need to hire a vendor to do this? Do we have any ins with website developers in house?

Let me know if you want to discuss any other items.
 
I like it. I think a standing monthly meeting is a good idea, and Sonic is as good a place as any. The FSB guys that I hang out with are having a meet and greet at the Sonic on San Mateo this Saturday at 4:00pm. They have a large parking lot and don't seem to mind the "loitering".
 
I think it is a good idea too. :cheers:a change up is maybe what we need to get this thing rolling better again.
we did stay as a TLCA chapter, just quietly dropped the requirement if people didn't want to join. though I don't think we've sent in a chapter in good standing roster in years. I recall they rarely ask for one. I do say it's good to reflect that on the web page.
 
I believe we should keep our affiliation with TLCA but also not require people join it to be members of HDC.
 
So how about a monthly meet and greet and then quarterly potluck/meetings at members' houses? I'm guilty of not being terribly active in the club but I'm afraid that the club is slowly disintegrating.
 
Outsider Opinion

I am all for your suggestions Ali. I was starting to think the HDC's were having runs and such without posting them on Mud, and I was missing out on opportunities to get to know people. I haven't been to any meetings, because I have 5 kids under 6 years old, and it's a catch 22: If I leave my wife alone while I go have a good time, I'm an a******. If I intrude into someone's home with 2 Kindergarteners, a Pre-Schooler, a terrible 2 year old, and an 8 month old I won't have time to relax as I'll be chasing them constantly. Anyway, those are my personal issues... but a public meeting place would ease some of those anxiety issues.

I haven't paid any dues, (which I'd be happy to pay) but I also don't know if I have "passed the test" to be a member? See above info on missing meetings, that's probably why I'm in limbo.

I understand having certain requirements to become a member, and feel it's important to explain the membership plan/requirements when you have visitors on a run. An "everyone's welcome" message, and a "who's who" of the club, could go a long way to introducing existing members to potential members on the website. That also could go a long way to increasing membership or prospects on trail runs. I'd recommend using a blog format for your website, to document trail runs, trips, etc... or God forbid... Facebook.

I'll shut up now, and go back to limbo. :popcorn:
 
Good input Blaine, sounds like a public venue might make it easier for you!

Our club is open to practically any Toyota 4x4s so you shouldn't have an issue. We got 4Runners, Min trucks so FJCs are a shoe in!

Quarterly potluck is also a fine idea Marc. Since we don't send in our club info on a regular basis to TLCA, not sure what the benefits are of being associated with them. I could be missing something.

Keep the ideas and suggestions coming folks.

What are our thoughts on giving away a free T-shirt to new members?
 
BionicCruiser said:
we've done that in the past. I have no problem with it.
Click to expand...

We did? That's good to know. It must've been before I joined the club back in '06. Do you recall if membership base increased/decreased with this type of incentive?
 
I think you were around when we did that. I don't think membership went either way.
 
If the goal is to grow membership, I think the key is reaching out to the FJC/Tacoma (4x4) crowd. You will see 20 of these rigs for every LC. New LCs are $80k and classic LCs are hard to come by and not the first choice for someone looking for an all purpose vehicle. My guess is most people with Tacomas/FJCs will buy a 40/60/80 after spending a few months in HDC and realizing how bad-ass LCs are.
 
Ash - Thanks for sharing your ideas - I think they are good ones. It seems that this club may just wither away without some changes.

I like the idea of meeting at a Sonic or somewhere similar, as long as the business is OK with a bunch of guys and trucks hanging around. I would guess we'd have to make it worth their while (spend some $$$). Or we could consider gathering at a park.

I like the idea of a T-shirt and sticker for new members - we should have enough cash in the bank to handle that with no issues, I would think.

I think there's some value to be associated with TLCA - our club members still need to be members of TLCA if they want to go to Cruise Moab, for example. I still like getting Toyota Trails. But we don't need to require it of people, and that's been our stance lately.

I don't have any suggestions for the website. That's not my skill set. Maybe we could look into paying someone - not sure how much that would cost.
 
my $.02:

I agree with T-Shirt/Stickers for new members. Also, I like the idea of meeting at a park, or restaurant would probably even draw in people who drive by to get a closer look at the trucks.

As for the website, I don't think I see much value in this anymore. I think it would be easier to maintain, and get more visibility to create a facebook "group". This is way easier for the average member to add content. The other benefit, is it is easier to be seen by non members. Each one of us probably have friends, or friends of friends that would see us comment on a post, and would instantly build into more eyeballs and more interest. I've managed a few of these in the past, and its easy to put several people as admins. Let me know, and I'll be happy to do this. The side-benefit, is $120 less expense to the club each year.
 
We used to have the meetings at restaurants - typically they were places that sell beer (I think Sonic is out for that one). More expensive than a potluck. I think at a park is a good idea.

Also, requirement for joining HDC has always been to own a 4wd Toyota with a transfer case. (sometimes thrown in was "or want to get one"). I started in the group with a '99 Taco TRD, then went to a '99 4Runner, then an '85 4Runner that I used to own and got back from my son - advantages of keeping vehicles in the family... Unfortunately somebody it wanted more than me and it ended up stripped and dumped in a field on the west side - mostly stripped that is - they couldn't figure out that the cross braces were welded on the All-Pro Bumper, and they didn't bother with the lockers. duh.
Then I went with an 80, then got a 40, then wanting comfort and better mpg than an 80 started modding my '99 4Runner. There are of course "cruiser snobs" as in "it's still not really a Landcruiser", but for the most part people realize the durability and dependability of the Toyota name extends to the mini's as well - they're just not built to haul a 5 ton trailer across Africa...
 
How about we do an experiment to set up the Facebook page like Ron suggested and see what sort of traffic and contact we get. I don't know if we can put enough information/details on the Facebook page to get people to figure out who we are, when we are meeting, what the requirements for membership are, etc. I don't think the FB page should replace the MUD forum, just supplement it and make it easy for folks to find us. Then it could direct them over here for the serious contact and discussions.
 
How would this information differ from IH8MUD?
 
I see Ron's point. we had talked about that once before (Ron even brought it up then IIRC), but nothing happened on it. I say lets give him the go ahead and see what happens. that's my vote.
 
If I had a vote, Facebook would die with the Obama administration. Oh well, guess we might as well try it
 
The Facebook angle is interesting. I'm not a huge fan of FB and don't necessarily like all the weird connections that FB seems to steer you towards but that's just me. However, FB would help with the exposure. Frankly, I don't give a hoot how many miles people are running/biking or what they're eating and where they're vacationing. Unfortunately, FB seems to connect everything together, which I guess is the site's intent, sort of a double edge sword!!

Not everyone has FB accounts nor will they get one. Some of the lab employees aren't allowed FB accounts due to security concerns. Most of us have IH8MUD memberships so discussing runs and calendar events should stay on this board IMHO.

Why we need to keep our HDCRUISERS.ORG site? Here's why, check out these guys' site: http://www.copperstatecruisers.com/ These guys keep everything in one spot. I love how they actually post pics of the runs, so non IH8MUD folks can go check them out. Our club needs to have such a depository of members' info, pics, rigs, tech stuff, etc. Also like their Schwag area so folks can order stuff. Yes, we have a place to post pics and such but it needs to be maintained by a paid individual. I also like the Who is who section.

As far as a monthly meeting venue, we need to come up with a place and it needs to be the same location every month. I'd like some sort of a consistency when it comes to meetings. 15 Toyota rigs parked in a Sonic parking lot WILL get more attention than in a park like setting IMO. If folks want to go socializing at a bar afterwards, then they can do that. If we pick a place like Sonic, families with kids can join and hang out if they want to. If a group wants to go have dinner some place, then folks can do that after the meeting. Quarterly potlucks at a member's residence or at an outdoor venue is a great idea.

Good discussion so far.
 
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