Questions - Student Org Night

[Jake]

In the interest of transparency... I did text all four officers this morning after my post, strongly encouraging all of them to get on here and read/reply ASAP.

Two responses back, who both have not posted here yet. Lincoln is entirely MIA. Was not going to post these but this thread's been active all day and only Matt has replied thus far.

[Ken]

I was going to say a couple months ago, from my visits to JMU and visiting with some, that the club is fragmented to say the least. As I understand it some in the club no longer even consider one another friends, that's an issue. It sucks to see because, as others have mentioned, this club brought me awesome memories and several good friends. I belive the root of this issue lies (lays? i never know lol) in the fact that few even (truly) wanted to run last year for office.

[Cody]

I'm really bummed out you all would let this blow out of proportion in 3 days because of my absence. I understand people haven't been stoked on the officer leadership so far this year which is understandable. I put sometime into things over Christmas break and I believe I've finally figured out a way to keep all of us on the same page and involved (involvement was a big struggle for some last semester). January ran smoothly for officers, we have a planner focusing on week by week tasks and we have ALL of our major events for the year posted up on Google calendar for everyone to see. For those of you suggesting change up of officers maybe you should have put your money where your mouth is and ran for a position. Better yet, if you want to get involved just mention it to me and I'll be glad to give tasks to members leading up to the car show ( I definitely think it's important to get potential future leadership involved in tasks now). Matt I appreciate your truth and trust me, I know what it feels like to not have a car and how it can bum you out (I finally got mine back this weekend). As for work with Red Bull, yes Julie it is my job and quite honestly I skipped over this thread because I missed it on the forum. Over these three days I've been up before 5 am driving to various mountains and making sure my biggest event of the year runs smoothly (incase you're wondering it went great and we kicked UVA's ass go Dukes). I certainly plan to show the same promotion skills and support of our MM events with the same enthusiasm. I see us as in the off season right now and while we're working on tasks behind the scenes with MM I needed until this week to really kick things into gear which I finally have a chance to do. I'm hosting a top gear night on Thursday for who ever is game to come over. I've mentioned before that if something is developing on the forum and I'm not noticing it, it's not cause I don't give a shit we just have crazy lives sometimes and other things have our attention at the moment. MM kicks ass and I intend to step our game up in big ways this semester.

[Tyler.M]

and teh shit storm. It begins.

[goodWIN]

I have checked and been on this...I have a project due at 5 and would rather work and finish that before I can logically write down my 2 sense/cents without being a total idiot. I will respond later, like I said.

[Cody]

Also Dan has approached me about more social events which I'm definitely excited about. I finally have a car up here and can put my personal effort into hosting and driving people around. I'm glad some people are getting frustrated because quite frankly I have been for quite sometime. I don't see the initiative and idea generation from some of our officers and it's really killed our swag. Just let it out, speak your mind and we can deal with things like adults and have everything running smooth.

Also on VIR- waiting on Matt to get the hear back on worker positions, as soon as we get info we'll let everyone know.

[Kaan]

I'm really bummed out you all would let this blow out of proportion in 3 days because of my absence. I understand people haven't been stoked on the officer leadership so far this year which is understandable.

try 6 days. I posted knowing there was no participation. instead of reading "we werent able to make it, there was a paperwork issue. we are trying to resolve the issue but in the mean time we mailed out flyers"... i got zero response

I put sometime into things over Christmas break and I believe I've finally figured out a way to keep all of us on the same page and involved (involvement was a big struggle for some last semester). January ran smoothly for officers, we have a planner focusing on week by week tasks and we have ALL of our major events for the year posted up on Google calendar for everyone to see.

since there is proof of the awesome interaction between officers... are you guys really talking to each other about your tasks? there hasnt been much movement in the last 20 days on the officers forum related to the car show. if you define missing student org night as a smooth month for officers, we can both agree we define "smooth" differently.

For those of you suggesting change up of officers maybe you should have put your money where your mouth is and ran for a position. Better yet, if you want to get involved just mention it to me and I'll be glad to give tasks to members leading up to the car show ( I definitely think it's important to get potential future leadership involved in tasks now).

i'd calm down just a little bit. most of the alumni have been in your shoes and are questioning things. explaining yourself and the others to the current students will always go over better than attacking people.

Matt I appreciate your truth and trust me, I know what it feels like to not have a car and how it can bum you out (I finally got mine back this weekend).

I'm going to save this for historical record... i was wrong, you guys have agreed and been nice to each other once.

As for work with Red Bull, yes Julie it is my job and quite honestly I skipped over this thread because I missed it on the forum. Over these three days I've been up before 5 am driving to various mountains and making sure my biggest event of the year runs smoothly (incase you're wondering it went great and we kicked UVA's ass go Dukes). I certainly plan to show the same promotion skills and support of our MM events with the same enthusiasm. I see us as in the off season right now and while we're working on tasks behind the scenes with MM I needed until this week to really kick things into gear which I finally have a chance to do. I'm hosting a top gear night on Thursday for who ever is game to come over. I've mentioned before that if something is developing on the forum and I'm not noticing it, it's not cause I don't give a shit we just have crazy lives sometimes and other things have our attention at the moment. MM kicks ass and I intend to step our game up in big ways this semester.

I'll believe that when i see it. there was big talk in peoples election threads and i ahvetnn seen it pan out. you have one major event and MM hasnt even talked to one of the biggest and easiest supporters of that event.

[DavidM]

But in all seriousness, I too have been a little disappointed in the general state of affairs this year. In fairness to the officers, a lot of the work that goes on is behind the scenes, and people who were never officers (and I know the majority of the people in this thread were, but for the sake of argument) might not see how much effort had gone into things. That said, the evidence of work going on is seriously lacking...campus events are rarely posted up on the forums, and major events are often not discussed or attended (or in some cases even known about?) by current students....that's an issue to me. One of the things I learned as an officer is that you can't make anyone do something they don't want to do...and if people aren't interested then fine. But the key is to make sure everyone knows about all the great opportunities the club provides, and thats on the officers and older members. I do appreciate the frustration from some of the non-officers, but one of the great things about MM is that you don't need our permission to do anything - if you're bleeding your brakes post up and see if anyone wants to come learn. I can't even count how many times David, Jake and I were out in the PRun parking lot doing god knows what and had various MMers stop by to lend a hand or learn something...to me thats the basis of the club. Sure not everyone can come out to VIR for the whole weekend, but most people can spare a an hour or two on the weekend to come learn about to change pads....

So I rambled a lot, but the thing I want to see more of is the information sharing...post up here and on Facebook when things are going on..that will do a lot to increase the participation as well as the perception that something is going on. Oh, and for God sakes tell us something about the car show, have we even figured out a date yet? I remember the first weekend back in the spring Jake and I were working on getting the lot reserved, lining up sponsors for raffle items, and reaching out to other local clubs.

[Cody]

if you're bleeding your brakes post up and see if anyone wants to come learn.

You hit the nail on the head. His is how the social/ hands on things happen. I get seriously bummed out when I hear after the fact.. ohhh I swaped this out, put in this part, worked on this. I really need to hear about these things from people (simple as giving me or one of the officers a call, posting it up on FB, or on the forums) and we can spread the word like wildfire and go have a fun time.


Can we just all go get Kline's sometime this week and be happy? In all seriousness though.

One last thing- I'm more than impressed by the willingness of the alumni to step up and help out. I don't take anything you all do for granted, your support has really helped me get by w/o having the car. Now it's time to GSD

[Jake]

OK, I'm not gonna quote Cody's wall of text but this is in reply to it.

Those suggesting a change in officers are voicing their opinion. Taking that and merely saying "why didn't you run" smacks of little kids going "Oh well you loooveeee chocolate? Why don't you marry it?!" The idea here is not to oust the four of you, it's to improve the way things are going for the three-ish months you have left to make an impact on the club and on its' members.

Not having a car or license entirely, and not having a car capable of attending an autocross (a Liberty is terrifying to drive in a straight line on a paved road) are two different things. Just saying.

Regarding Red Bull. It's a really cool job that you have with them. I saw what you were doing on Facebook with the ski/board thing. I know you're busy. But let's take that into a business perspective since, well, you're a Bidniss major and all.

Right now, I'm essentially the editor-in-chief for the website I work on. My boss/editor-in-chief left right as I was made full-time. Therefore, I'm doing her job and mine at the moment. I have people who report to me and help get stuff done (kind of like your officers), some higher-ups who oversee me (Drs. Thomas & Borg) and both internal and external partners who provide content and insight (hrmm, sounds like alumni).

Like I said, I have a lot on my plate right now... just like you and Red Bull and MM. The problem is, I can't disregard our social media, editorial and partnerships to focus entirely on, say, analytics. I have to keep a hand in all of that, every day. It's not that I'm doing groundbreaking work every single day with everything, but if I don't show some involvement, my performance will get called into question. That's what this is all about.

I don't really care how busy you are. I've been there in college and my life sure as hell hasn't slowed down since graduation. You need to make the time to read and post on here and be accountable for what your club is doing, or what it appears to be doing. We aren't in HBurg, we don't know what is going on, and all we have to go on is what we see on the forums and who shows up to events... both of which have been lacking this year.

You have an Android phone... spend the $3 to download Tapatalk and reply to this stuff on the bus, or in between classes. It takes so little time, which is why we're all so incredulous that we don't see anything from three of you. Three days of absence on here is an eternity - if you were in a really busy patch with some other stuff, as it appears Kristin is, then a reply such as hers would have been the proper thing to do. That way, we at least know you're keeping abreast of things and will be back later. If you don't do that... then it looks like you just don't care. It's a perception thing.

I gotta get some stuff done before I go home today, but I think this about covers what I wanted to cover.

[Jake]

I get seriously bummed out when I hear after the fact.. ohhh I swaped this out, put in this part, worked on this. I really need to hear about these things from people (simple as giving me or one of the officers a call, posting it up on FB, or on the forums) and we can spread the word like wildfire and go have a fun time.

Well said, but when you aren't posting much yourself, it doesn't really go a long way to um, foster more involvement from members.

[Jewels]

I get seriously bummed out when I hear after the fact.. ohhh I swaped this out, put in this part, worked on this. I really need to hear about these things from people (simple as giving me or one of the officers a call, posting it up on FB, or on the forums) and we can spread the word like wildfire and go have a fun time.

Well said, but when you aren't posting much yourself, it doesn't really go a long way to um, foster more involvement from members.

This is where I'll agree. Rex and I are around H'burg. We don't want to be old boring people all the time. We'd love to see a wrench day we can stop by for a little while, offer some assistance and move along. Or a night out at Dave's Taverna, or El Charro, grab some beers and some food and let Rex tell you some his classic stories. It'd be really nice to have something to tell our friends (read: alumni) that you all are doing. Just sayin.

[Sully]

Not having a car or license entirely, and not having a car capable of attending an autocross (a Liberty is terrifying to drive in a straight line on a paved road) are two different things. Just sayin

Perhaps it hasn't been clear, I have a vehicle up here now but I have never been called into service to give rides yet this year


Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

[Cody]

Jake, quite honestly I'm not huge on the forum. It's an awesome tool with alumni but no matter how many times I mention it with current members it doesn't have the same audience it used to within the club. I've seen it as a good point of reference for more specifics (more involved events), working out details, and for those who are more involved pitching the ideas. Obviously it's crucial for us officers to be on them but we get a lot more out of our efforts on other venues. WOM, emails, mentions at meetings, and FB have been far more effective for on and around campus happenings.

[Jake]

Not having a car or license entirely, and not having a car capable of attending an autocross (a Liberty is terrifying to drive in a straight line on a paved road) are two different things. Just sayin

Perhaps it hasn't been clear, I have a vehicle up here now but I have never been called into service to give rides yet this year


Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

No, it's not about your lack of giving rides. It's more of a response to the cleverly worded "I finally got mine back this weekend" which to me sounds like it was broken down or otherwise out of service... where the issue there lay in the lack of a drivers' license.

Jake, quite honestly I'm not huge on the forum. It's an awesome tool with alumni but no matter how many times I mention it with current members it doesn't have the same audience it used to within the club. WOM, emails, mentions at meetings, and FB have been far more effective for on and around campus happenings.

OK, well, sorry. Your argument is a chicken-and-egg thing. It does you no good to mention it to current members when current officers elect not to use it. So... get active and then your encouraging others may have more of an impact.

I do agree that Facebook is very handy for last-minute reminders and such.

[Cody]

I'm not trying to argue with you. It's not so much a chicken and the egg thing as it's, I was once very involved and posting frequently and didn't get much of an audience of current students but I'm willing to give it another shot.

[Cody]

Julie- I'll take you all up on that if you'd like to do something next week with the officers. PM me what nights might work for you all

[01AUDIS4]

Apparently this has really hit the fan, hopefully what I have to say can answer some questions. However, let me first say that my goal is not to get into a little online argument, I am simply speaking on my behalf and stating facts as I see them.
1.I am never on this forum nor am I on any other forum simply because this is not how I communicate with people. I see forums as a informative source rather then a social network unlike plenty of members on here. I mean seriously, just look at this thread....ridiculous. How is everyone able to respond to all of the BS when the alumni are suppose to have full time jobs? Sorry but back home my job doesn't allow me to troll through and complain on something as meaningless as a forum so I don't understand how you guys do it. Furthermore, Students should be in class right? hmm...Lets realize this forum isn't a life-line for everybody. THAT being said....
2.I dropped the ball last semester and Im not going to even try to argue about it. Simply put, I was not NEARLY involved as I should have been. I was going through personal issues in my life that held me back from participating like an officer should. I understand my responsibilities and I have begun to take the steps to turn things around.
3.Stop bashing solely on Cody. I'll be the first to say that the two of us had some serious friction in the beginning of the year, but I feel as if he took the proper steps to resolve the situation. In response to Julie's statement about Cody and his RedBull, I have been affiliated with others who have tried to do what he has done (Snowboard Competition) and describing it as an overwhelming task is an understatement. Could we use that in MM? yea we definitely could but the HUGE difference is we have not been working like a team (as I am positive he did with others to make that competition happen). I feel as if there is no connection between people in MM anymore, bringing me into my fourth point....
4. Whose friends with who? I think there are 2 people I actually hang out with in MM and that really says something about the bad hand we got dealt this year. This is what really made me almost not proud to be in MM, WHERE ARE THE CAR JUNKIES????tearing shit apart for the fun of it, living life, doing fun and crazy (unsanctioned) activities....WTF! I relate everything to back home, and simply put...we are not a "Car" club right now. It feels like a god damn business or something. Im part of a car club my friend and I started back home and we have a close knit group of about 13 people who go out on CONTROLLED drives, car meets, car shows, we work on each others cars all the time but most of all...we all hang out together and party. I know I sound like an ***hole but someone needs to say it. I don't give a shit how many members we have in our club, whats the point if they really aren't into cars? I was good friends with a lot of people last year and it seemed as if this year was going to be the same, but honestly it was a flop. I miss last year and I want to try to build things back to where it was, but it will not happen over night. I could rant about this particular subject forever, and I feel like this was the poor foundation that lead us to this.

I want to apologize for anyone who I offended, but this thread has seriously ticked me off. I may not have been involved like I should have, but for those who(**really**) know me (maybe 4 of you?) I don't take others people shit and let them walk over me. I know where my mistakes were. For those looking for new officers....Officers shouldn't be the only ones making things happen, if you feel you can do a better job then step the F*** up and do it. Whats an "officer position" other then having admin. rights on Facebook and this forum??? this is a CLUB!!!! it shouldn't be run by 4 people it should be run by every member in the club. The officer role should really only be used to form large events such as G force and track days, everyone says they like cars and shit but i never see anyone wrenching? I don't see many people with personalized cars either...so my message to those people...step off, im sick of hearing your whining.

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE A FOLLOW UP TO MY POST*** call me and discuss your problems with what I have just said, I may not see your reply for a day or two...if its important CALL and we can discuss things without doing this petty online argument BS

[Tyler.M]

Not having a car or license entirely, and not having a car capable of attending an autocross (a Liberty is terrifying to drive in a straight line on a paved road) are two different things. Just sayin

Perhaps it hasn't been clear, I have a vehicle up here now but I have never been called into service to give rides yet this year

Well... I'd attend more events if A: They existed. B: Things weren't becoming factionalized, and C: if I knew about them in a timely fashion. Honestly, I understand the officers are upset that no one shows up to events... but then again, whats the pull of showing up to stuff with so much drama hanging in the air? It's like a friggin' sorority with less yoga pants. I understand the officers frustration of no one showing up... but whatever happened to MM texting? Whatever happened to FB groups? Seriously, I learn about the majority of stuff like a week before it happens when alumns post it.

And I agree with Jake. TBH, I understand why Cody continued to lead the club, but not having a car or license... in a car club? Several of these issues would've been solved awhile ago if the current president chose to step down after having his license revoked.

'Course, me being new, I didn't feel like its my place. But I am a paying member. Might as well say it now.

[Sully]

I understand you don't want drama but honestly, the last couple events have been planned where one us wouldn't have even been there not to mention there is no tension anymore between officers.

When we say events and participation, we are refering to local campus events that are a week notice type of events, unfortunatley the notices have gone out the day before.

Autocrosses and track weekends are covered at every meeting at least a month in advance
Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk