That time has come - please read

[guest7]

I've had a fairly hellish year between the tax man and various other things. However I'm heading back to sanity, albeit at the cost of a massively increased workload.

I left Uttoxeter last year revitalised and full of plans to get the club back on track. I won't go into details of what happened next but I ended up deeply fed up with the business of being the chairman. I love the club, but I don't love the admin and I don't enjoy the hassles.

I'm happy to get back to producing newsletters (electronic and/or paper) and posting them out. I'm also happy to deal with club stands, merchandising and marketing materials. However I am not happy running the club and I in fact haven't done so for a while now.

Basically I am useless at anything that involves admin, lists and money. We have a fantastic treasurer at the minute so that side is covered, but the club needs people with time and talent to do the paperwork and keep things neat.

If this means that I am no longer the chairman then that's fine, whatever it takes to get the club up and running again is what's needed and as most club members would agree I am not the bloke who can be trusted to do the paperwork.

This isn't a resignation, it's a request for other club members to step in and take over after 11 years of my dictatorship. I don't really want to be too involved in any discussion about club direction because I think my poor performance precludes it.

Damn this is hard. I started this club from a desk in a boring software company and it ran away from me. Within a couple of years we had fantastic annual rallies, an amazing website (thank you so much Steve) and people ringing me from around the world asking to join. And now I feel that I have fucked a lot of that up. Me continuing in any sort of administrative role will kill this club stone dead.

This doesn't affect Uttoxeter or any other current club business, but once I made my decision it needed to be said.

Let me say here that I am deeply sorry I let things get this bad and I would especially like to apologise to Steve H, Steve D, Boyd, Colin Hilliard and Bob Cannon who have all put in fantastic efforts to organise shows and rallies and all the good stuff. Of course this apology also applies to all the old faces who have made the last decade so much fun.

I'm sad now 

GC

[Ian]

Graham
           I havent known you long but in that time i do realise you have put effort in far beyond the call of duty. I can understand how you feel and I think most other like minded folk on here do also. Just keep on doing what you feel comfortable and sod the rest..lol!

Best Regards

Ian

[tj63]

You'll always be the Chairman, Graham, whether or not you run the club.  Well done for sticking at it so long.

I had seven years running an internet bike forum so I have a bit of an idea how you feel.  Neither Ian nor myself have been with the club very long so we don't know how good it used to be, but in my opinion it's not bad now!

As Ian says, you've earned the right to do as much or as little as you like for this club now, and I don't think anyone should have a problem with that.

All the best, chin up and see you in Uttoxeter.


Trevor

[guest24]

I've been a hanger-on for 6 years, 7 years? or something and I think it has improved in a lot of ways. I find this forum to be excellent even if it is camping stoves that are being talked about. I'm a bit of a lay member (sounds like there should be joke in there) as my rally attendance is pathetic, but I am still a member and Graham is still the chairman. The club continues, it is good. I have absolutely no complaints on the way the chairman has run things; we thump on and try not to mention weather girls. What I am trying to say, albeit very badly, is dont panic as nobody is putting up a motion of no confidence in you.

[guest7]

Nice of you to say so, but the simple fact is that the club used to be run better than it is now. There's little to no chance of me being able to improve on matters so we need different people to step in.

I know that last year some members put their names forward for tasks such as keeping the membership lists. These offers weren't taken up through lack of interest, but rather my crippling inability to delegate.

GC

[guest40]

Don't take it to heart Graham, we all must realise as we grow older our lives change with kids and family work and interests. Life cycles (scuse pun) like a sine wave and we all go up and down not necessarily landing ,or for that matter wanting to land where we left off.
You have done an excellent job and over the years I have seen many members come and go and there was always continuity of values and interests  for all.


 

[themoudie]

Aye GC,

I've said my bit before and don't think I need to repeat myself.

Agree with other respondents so far and like Kurt's sine wave analysis, reduce the amplitude and frequency where possible, but for Gauld's sake don't flat line it!  That is very boring.

Thanks for the ignition, but you don't have to keep working the bellows, that's why a blacksmith has an apprentice!

Toodle pip, Bill.

[beeman]

Hi GC

I like the idea of a sine wave analysis. Life moves on for better for worse, but we develop into the person we are.

I look at my life like a book, with different chapters. As a kid, then teenager/ youth, getting married having kids, paying for kids as they leave (that's where I am now)etc. None of it I regret now, it has made me the person I am. I've made mistakes along the way who hasn't.

Things change, nothing stays the same, and we must adapt with it. In biking terms if we didn't move on I would still be lusting after a fizzy like my mate had when I was 15, I can remember it as clear as it was yesterday riding it from our house, in hot bright sunshine, down the lane. Mind you I should have been revising for 'O' levels.

What I am trying to say GC is that the past can hold us back from doing things in the future. I for one have found your chairmanship of the club brilliant I do not like formal clubs, which this isn't, I like the way all ideas can be put forward and all types of rider/motorcyclist is accepted. The forum has been the main link with the members many of which do not attend rallies and never will.

Just being able to create and keep the club running for this length of time takes commitment. I know many others have played there part and indeed are still doing so and I am thankful that they do.

GC if you feel like taking a back seat feel free I for one will be sorry if you do but Family and work should always come first. I too found myself in a dire financial mess which for the last 21/2 years I have been working out of, and may need to plough on with long hours for another couple of years. I understand that sometimes we can get a bit down about the situation, but in the end we get through it. When things get bad I only have to look at others who are worse of in the world and realise how lucky I really am.

In no way do I feel you have let me or the club down in anyway. If you eventually choose to stay chairman I would be happy. If not I hope you intend to play an active role in the clubs future.

Sorry about the ramble
Beeman

[guest7]

Thanks for that, I am happy continuing in the role of chairman, but we need people to process the memberships, etc. If the role of chairman can be hived off from the admin side of the club then that's fine, but if not then I will gladly step back to let someone else do the good work.

There's no danger of me vanishing from the forum and I still intend getting to as many club events as time will allow.

GC

[SteveC#222]

In no way do I feel you have let me or the club down in anyway. If you eventually choose to stay chairman I would be happy. If not I hope you intend to play an active role in the clubs future.

I'm 100% with Beeman, you've done a great job in all the time that I've been a member. Being involved with a club is hard work, I know very well  how much it can intrude on your family life and eat up your free time. You've done a great job starting one the best bike club's I've been a member of - and thats more than a few - but times change and at the end of the day family and work have to come first.

The thing we need to do now is decide what to do next? I think a lot of the members like the informal feel of the club, me amongst them. What posts do we NEED to have? Steve H is doing a fantastic job with the website. The informal get togethers seem to sort of organise themselves - do we need a 'rally' co-ordinator? At the moment we aren't charging membership - does this need to change? If not do we need a membership secretary?  If we want a newsletter/magazine I'll hold my hand up.

We are basically on online club and this seems to work very well.  Personally I think we should keep the 'official' side of the club to a minimum.

OK Thumpers over to you - discuss.

[mini-thumper]

Fellow Singletons
I have to agree with all the folk before me. Over the nearly ten years I've been involved with the club there have been lots of very good times and equally some really pi**y low times, but thankfully the former FAR FAR outweigh the latter. For what its worth I think it may just be a case of letting the club continue to be what it has become - a loose knit interest group, that doesn't pay any fees, have any newsletters, who meet occasionally, and don't take things too seriously. Last year I was fairly vocal in wanting to oust GC, or at least get him to stop sitting on the fence, in order to turn the club around membership/rally wise. One year older, and possibly a little wiser, I realise that all the background politicing was not what the club is really about, and to paraphrase the Bennets advert "It should be mostly about the bikes!". After all we are all adults and can, as many have over the years, vote with our feet and take our minority interest where we please. If the club needs finance, to pay for the web site etc., don't bother tail chasing for membership and just ask for donations. Most folk on here seem(ed) more that willing to support the club in the past and I can't imagine they won't in the future.

I can hear the wood straining on my soapbox so I think it's time to................aaaaah!

Hopefully see some of you at Uttoxeter (or the MonoTreffen). You'll recognise our Uttoxeter stand by all shiny single cylinder motorcycles (not in most cases), cardboard, gaffer tape and coffee machine.

Cheers
Boyd
PS My type of wave is not sine but asystole!
  

[guest24]

Boyd posted an interesting point there about money and donations to the club. How is this website funded? Does Steve H pay for out of his pocket money?

[Steve Lake]

After all we are all adults

Speak fer yussel matey.....lifelong big  kid 'ere.

OK...seriously for a moment.....
I seem to remember I volunteered (along with others) to take up some part of running the club....and as I too am fairly cr4p with money....I'd be more than happy to run the membership list.
I certainly agree with everyone that you GC should be Chairman....and get shot of all the other cr4p thats bu55ering you up right now.
I have to disagree with Boyd (even if he is bigger than me) I feel there should be a membership fee, sufficient to cover the overheads of running this most excellent website (fine work SteveH), cover the cost of production and distribution of a newsletter, maintain the membership list and top up the kitty a bit.
I'm not saying that we should have committee meetings and all that boring stuff, but think that a formal membership policy is a starting point for moving forward.

OK, thats my ha'porth, and thanks to you GC for keeping the show (almost & most of the time) on the road

[Richard]

I like this Club.  It does what I want, good company being the main item.  Even getting to trallie4s is a pain in the a**e becasue of my bosses idea of shiftwork and work-life balance (whoops, nearly turned into a rant there).

I'm not sure I need a newsletter though, the website does it for me and I would be happy to pay towards its upkeep.

Richard

[themoudie]

Aye, to website. 

Aye, to donation for website. 

Nae, to 'Rag', more minced trees/china clay to clutter up the house. [I am thinking of recycling all old mags!] 

Note to 'Mother', "How's your knee?" Falling off soapboxes won't do the cruciate bit any good! As for your 'asystole'! Does Jeyes 'medicated' relieve the condition or skite off?     

Ciao, Bill.