2012 Dates

[breakaway500]

Personally...I don't think the scoring format makes any real world difference in a competitors potential attendance decision.
However,I do favor counting all events toward any championship awards,as it just seems proper.

[chaos4NH]

Let me clarify "no evidence to the contrary". Some on the BOD questioned whether dropping an event last year encouraged participation. There was no evidence that it did (or did not for that matter).
Some felt the survey was tainted as it included "old" votes from last year and they could not be separated from the "new" votes from the more recent survey (which I never received by the way).A new, clean survey MAY have swayed enough votes in favor of dropping. However, it would be like combining the results of the past 2 elections to determine a winner?

[breakaway500]

This is how I make my attendance decisions...

[John F]

I remember when I had hair like that!

[6PAK72]

Troy and Will, both nicely stated.

I have been heads down in 2 massive projects for 2 months so I missed the poll. I would have opted for drop one.

After destroying the blue car on the first run of the year, I needed the next 2 events to build another. It was challenging, but enervating, to know that with the drop one plus some good driving and a bit of luck I could still be in the running at the most competitive grouping, that of the mid-pack ST4 drivers.

Nick hurt his car in NJ, and had it pulled together by the next event. Tom blew up at WGI and pulled off an epic rebuild for the following event. Both those drivers earned the Mulligan, IMHO.

I respect the alternate perspective, I am amazed with the work delivered to us as members by our BOD, and I will advocate for a new vote and for a reversion to the drop one format over the coming season.

Where, perhaps, I will not kill a car...

[imgon]

I believe I voted in the survey about which format to go with (I chose drop one event) and here in my rationale. I would dearly love to go to every event, however my wallet, family obligations, other hobbies/interests and lack of infinite vacation time prevent that from happening. ( I think that probaly covers 90% of the club) I have never stood a chance at even being close to class champion since I joined the club, but this past year I was in the hunt for at least a respectable podium finish. I knew I could not make a couple of the away events and the drop one format allowed to me to feel like I still had a chance. I don't see either format promoting or discouraging attendance. I suspect most of us go to have fun but do enjoy the competitive nature of a points chase, some enjoy the chase more than others and maybe are willing to spend big money to get a $5 trophy. I go to have fun, learn, see some friends and if I get a trophy at the end of the year that is icing on the cake.

If someone is fortunate enough to be able to attend all the events but is a slower driver they will likey end up falling a few points behind the faster drivers who can only attend most of the events and thereby missing the class champ title. If the slower driver did win the championship, it really is an attendance award not a performance award. If someone is attending every event simply to get a championship trophy, they may have too much cash, we can help them spend it!!

In the case of two (or more) reasonably close drivers, a missed event caused by a stroke of bad luck (crash, mechanical failure, etc) could still have a chance for the overall season. In this case if we had the keep every event format and the person was just coming for the overall championship they might actually stop coming as there would be no way to make up for the lost event unless one of their competitors had the same problem.

I think that attendance at any given event has more to do with some lucky timing (no other date conflicts with potential entrants), the track (either location or history) and the finacial mood of the general population. When times are good more people have more money to play with their toys (or even have them). When times are tough, hobbies like ours are the first to go.

That being said, I think our leadership has done a fantastic job of promoting the club, continuing to get new members involved and keeping the club moving in a positive direction. The general membership also has done a good job at making attending any given event an enjoyable experience and that will keep people coming back. I have made a ton a friends over the past few years that I never would have met if not for our shared passion for driving and their desire to share their knowledge or experience.

[escortracer]

Just like Sam I to did not get the survey.

[DanDarcy]

The survey was seriously flawed and can not be relied upon.

It is difficult to win a class championship To win it by attending all events is not just an "attendance award" as you also have to be a very good driver in order to accumulate enough points . We only award 2-4 points for attendance than you must place well to get an appreciable number of points. 6th place gives you no additional points and 5th place only gives you one additional point.

If you win a Com Class Championship be very proud a win is a win ---period

[breakaway500]

I got a big kick at watching Troy and Jeff duke it out this year.If you believe they were taking it easy,you were not paying attention...! Well done guys!! That's the spirit that makes COM shine,in my book.

[chaos4NH]

As Dan said, the survey was seriously flawed. The new survey SHOULD have been a measure of the members satisfaction with the decision to drop the one event from 2011. Unfortunately, we still had the results from the earlier survey mixed in. As I recall, the choices given were:

Count all events
Drop one event
Drop two events
Drop more than two events (or something along those lines).

Because there were more than two choices - count all or drop one - how do you score the votes for dropping two or three events? Do you add them to the drop one event results? Or were those votes ONLY supporting the notion to drop 2 or more events?
That is what, in the minds of some us, gave the results a bad twist. Let's have another survey where there is only the choice to count all or drop one. The BOD members who voted to keep all events would certainly like to have a clean shot at the member preferences.
On another note, when the question was first hashed around back in 2010, one purpose was to find a way to encourage attendance, from that aspect, no data was evident that it happened.

[6PAK72]

Sam, FWIW, my feeling Is that it DID encourage my attendance. I had a decent shot at Third and I made two events I may not have done otherwise.

I know that Chuck, Robert, Dave and I were all egging each other on, each of us had some challenges or dropped days, and that it was pretty exciting there at the last NH event driving my ass off trying to pull off the points.

But valid date requires 30 inputs....

[boltonite]

As Dan said, the survey was seriously flawed. The new survey SHOULD have been a measure of the members satisfaction with the decision to drop the one event from 2011. Unfortunately, we still had the results from the earlier survey mixed in. As I recall, the choices given were:

Count all events
Drop one event
Drop two events
Drop more than two events (or something along those lines).

Because there were more than two choices - count all or drop one - how do you score the votes for dropping two or three events? Do you add them to the drop one event results? Or were those votes ONLY supporting the notion to drop 2 or more events?
That is what, in the minds of some us, gave the results a bad twist. Let's have another survey where there is only the choice to count all or drop one. The BOD members who voted to keep all events would certainly like to have a clean shot at the member preferences.
On another note, when the question was first hashed around back in 2010, one purpose was to find a way to encourage attendance, from that aspect, no data was evident that it happened.

I will respond to a few things since I had a big hand in this survey (and the initial one) as well as the email blast.

First, the survey (link) was emailed to every active COM member, it may have been treated as spam or bounced but several hundred emails were sent out, I have no idea why any particular person did not receive it.

EDIT: You can test email by sending yourself an email via the reg site, via the Member Directory page. If email not received, pls let me know. END EDIT

Second, the rule change to drop an event was approved after members made it clear that was their preference.

The decision to recind that ruling was made in the absence of any supporting evidence. The burden of proof was on any proposal to rescind the current rule, not the other way around.

EDIT_2: To clarify this: if the survey results are indeed flawed and (by all accounts) no compelling evidence pro or con was presented, then wny would a rules change be warranted? END EDIT_2

Lastly, no board member took the initiative to conduct the survey that they themselves had mandated. Every board member was given SurveyMonkey account access to do so. Any board member can still launch yet another survey.

Regardless, a majority of board members voted in favor of overturning the current "drop 1" scoring, presumably with the best of intentions. If the board (or any member) truly cs to know what the majority wants, our club bylaws allow any member to submit a petition - with 15 signatures - to force a full membership vote. This may be the best option rather than conducting another survey or relying on a board vote since it seems you each have well-defined and entrenched view points.

See you at the banquet!

[breakaway500]

"our club bylaws allow any member to submit a petition - with 15 signatures - to force a full membership vote'" Is that vote outcome binding?

[n1gzd]

When will the final list of 2012 dates be published? My calendar is filling up fast.
Rebecca

[chaos4NH]

When will the final list of 2012 dates be published? My calendar is filling up fast.
Rebecca

Date Track Days Note
======== ============ ========= ============================
4/23 NHMS Monday (test day)
5/7-8 Summit Point Mon - Tue
5/28-29 NHMS Mon - Tue (Monday is Memorial Day)
6/30-7/2 NHMS Sat - Mon 3-day event with Relay Rally
7/30-31 Mosport Mon - Tue
8/25-26 NHMS Sat - Sun
9/10-11 WGI Mon - Tue
10/13-14 NHMS Sat - Sun