I was just wondering what everyone thinks of car clubs? I'm not talking any certain ones in particular, just what is your take on the good, the bad, and the ugly of being associated with a car club. Has it helped or hurt you more? The reason I ask this is because a friend of mine was in a car club for several years and then got out of the hobby for a while. While he was out there were some shady doings within the club ( owe money to several businesses in town for supplies and stuff for shows and gatherings they put on and never paid the bills and don't plan to) and they got a real bad name and now he is being labled as "one of the crooks from that group" because of his past association with the club. What's your take?
Clubs are like buying a house. Seems it would be really good if you could take a few things from each and make one good one. Kinda like building a car too. -Jason
You get out what you put in. So if you're putting good stuff in and being a good car club member technically you should get good in return. No matter what you need to remember this is a hobby and you should be having fun, if your club sucks and you're not having fun, quit and find a different club. Your buddy should make it a point to talk to the folks that his former club owes money to, just to clear his own name. Not showing up to any of their events and trashing the shit out of them might help also.
Create your club with good people from the start. Quality not quantity. Our club is small but like a family.
you really have to hang with potential club members quite alot before you let them into the club.You have to search alot of people out to make sure they are honest,trustworthy and are going to hold up the club name not drag it through the shit.I love clubs because they add a real traditional aspect to the car hobby.It allows people to help each other and share ideas about what to do with your ride.Our club has rules that everyone follows,and we meet regulary to talk about shows and work that is to be done.Basically you have to pick the right minded people who have the right attitude or your club turns shitty and fails.
You also have to consider that anytime you join a club or an organization you are making a commitment to the members of that organization and they are counting on you as much as you are on them...
Sounds like most of you have had good experiences so far. That's good to hear because I was thinking of joining a club but am a little leary becasue of this. Any advice on picking a good club to join?
Politics, egos, misunderstandings and people wanting to dictate to others have ruined many a car club. "leaders" abscounding with the treasury, selling T shirts on EBay, and acting the drunk fool at high visibility car shows have taken their share of clubs to obscurity when they were trying to get famous in the magazines. I won't name names but there has been a lot of that going on much to the detriment of real true commited hot rodders who just want to build cars to race and show and enjoy the car, not the pose.
i agree with seldom scene,this is a huge problem with clubs.People start to act like dicks at shows and give the club a bad rep.We have kept that shit under control,you fuck up ,your out-no return.We enforce that hard ,as well as no drugs,back stabbing,criminal shit or anything that brings the club in to dissarry.Mutual respect is everything and most important respect for your club and what it represents.
Wow, I read this initial post with an expectation that this would be a "flame fest" for car clubs. It may still turn into that 'cause this post is pretty young at this point, and the HAMB is historically anti-car club... But if you read the posts that precede mine, there is a huge insight to car clubs that some people just don't seem to "get". Thank you guys. First off.. "you get out, what you put in" Could not be said better! Be involved! Any car club "is" what it members "are". The club becomes a reputation that precedes you, so be very careful about who is brought in. Your best friend might be a cool guy, but if he doesn't understand that his dealings now reflect on you... you might have a problem. You have to be proud of that shirt / jacket / plaque that you run. If you feel like you need to apologize, or are embarrassed of your colors, or another member, it's time to move on, or it's time for action so be ready for the drama. The members of the club are owed a guarantee of quality from the leadership. That's what makes it valuable to it's members. The leaders must be responsible and have the ability to maintain this quality of members. So... I get suspicious when I hear about someone that doesn't want to be in a club because of their club's dealings. More frequently it is one member that is giving the club a black eye. Are you sure that the former member isn't the reason for the 'breakup'? I could NOT be more proud of the guys that represent my club.. ALL of them are me, and I am them. sinners cc.
I think you can live without being in one, as many hotrodders do, but try it out, if its not for you, then its not for you.. Anthony
kind of like a fraternity. its either good or bad. just pledge with them for a while, if you dont like it, get out. if you do, give it your all. Me, well Im a loner now. I dont have the time to give to a club, so I know that I shouldn't even try.
Personally, I will never join a club again but I hang out with guys from all different kinds of clubs... mini-trucks hot rods muscle cars 50's cars and even a few AACA guys... I have had good and bad experiences with being in a club, but the one thing that keeps me out of a club is my daughter. I would rather spend the time with her. We still go to the local shows and cruises and she enjoys them. She even enjoys "helping" but I don't need a club logo on my car/truck to enjoy it...
I've been aproached by a few clubs to prospect. A few motorcycle clubs too. I just cant commit to something a may not have time for. My wife decided we would be the DEUCE BAGS. I agreed as long as I didnt have to go to meetings, pay dues, or what ever. Now we have around 10 close friends that cliam it. We meet whereever we happen to be. Keeps other clubs from aproaching about prospecting too.
Car Clubs are what the members make them... Are they worth looking into? I think so... some do alot of good things like "Toys for Tots" "Coats for Kids" and other charities as well, If organized clubs can be very successful by hosting events like cruise ins and swap meets and you get the added buying power of a good discount on a group buy. But the old addage hangs true for car clubs as well......A few bad apples ruin the bunch.....It doesnt take much for a club to get a bad rap for something. It is what you and the other club members make it..... just my .02
hunh? Not from where I sit. Now the HAMB has been historically anti-stupidity. or anti-jacket-club. But there are plenty of clubs here that the HAMB has been supportive of from day one. And still is. A lot of the best shows are put on by HAMB friendly clubs. Hell the HAMB Drags is our unofficial yearly meeting.
Most of the car shows and cruise nights around here are hosted by car clubs. And they also give a lot of money to charitys. Our club is a nonprofit organization and all our proceeds go to local charities, except for a small prudent reserve so we can run the club. So ya, most car club are good club. There always will be clubs and hot rodders that give hot rodding a bad name, and that sucks for the rest of us.
Personally, I'm not much of a joiner of clubs. That said, I think clubs are great. Companionship with people you share a common passion...that cant be bad. Typically clubs do good things for the community. For example, The Rusty Nuts guys in Maryland that Toe organizes for the Jalopyrama. All really good guys doing a neat thing for us to participate in and plugging the $$ in to charity's....most excellant all around. Then there is the history...without clubs much of the 40's and 50's history would be lost. I will say that the Democrat and Republican Clubs each suck! To bad they dont read thier own history.
I agree. I believe some guys are anti car clubs because of bad experiences. Our club doesn't let members just join, thats not what we are about. The guys who have come on since the begining have started to hang around, weither it be the garage or shows or just going to shows and eventually they get asked. Or they have to sleep with a founding member. Thats just a bi law. But joining to join is not what I think it's about. Hang around the guys in your potential club and see if that's what you really want to do. Jack of the Cheaters
Look at it this way. No club, no LA Roadster Show. No club, no Bonneville. No club, no Roundup in Austin. If you want to start a good club, pattern it after a club that works. If you want to join a club, be a participant - not a spectator.
As an active member of the same car club for over 30 years I can say that my experience with Tri-City Rod & Custom has been nothing short of positive. The club was started in 1972 because a few guys were build T-buckets and model A hot rods,,they came together to help each other and share knowledge,,the tradition continues to this day,,36 years later, We have the distinction of being the oldest car club in the state. Over the years we had had people join and drop out for many reasons,but the majority of members have been active for years. We still have 1 founding member,sadly 2 of the other founding members have passed away in the last several years. As said in a previous post,,,you get out of a club what you are willing to put in,,,we don't have a lot of rules and now demands are made on your time,,,once a month meeting but most of us see each other 2 or 3 times a week. With any club ,,including Tri-City,,,there are that handfull of members who show up at every meeting or cruise-in or club sponsored show and they are the guys that do what needs to be done,,, The cars are what brought us together but the friendships are what keeps us together.HRP
I've been in a couple of different clubs over the years and they both had their good and bad points. Being in a car club should only be a part of your lifestyle as an auto enthusiast. People tend to be social creatures and yes forming or joining a club invites politics but that's part of the human experience. Choose your friends wisely, we are all judged by the company we keep
Hey Wicked Tin, why don't you start by joining Minnesota Street Rod Assoc.(MSRA). Since you live just into Wisconsin you can probably make most of their events. It's fairly cheap and you get a magazine every month. Show up to the member only events and its all free- food, camping, drag racing. Its a good deal and you will start to meet good people in smaller clubs that you may be interested joining. Maybe you already are a member,but it doesn't show on you profile, so I'll get off the soapbox now!
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