Sad news about NG17

**alexw3000gt** · 07-10-2017, 10:58 AM

Eh the platform is far from dead. I along with several other people I know within a 50 mile radius own multiple of them, and are building and rebuilding them all the time.

The vendors are far from struggling. 3SX is releasing new stuff all the time, Chris is always posting about new stuff and orders, a new player (IMR I think) has just started making new things and selling them on FB. Aaron is still picking up and parting out failed builds and such, which in turn goes out to 20+ other people who need the parts to finish their builds.

I know at least a dozen 3S people will be at the Shootout, I'm lucky in that it's local to me. Don't know if I would attend if it were more than a few hours away. For what it's worth, I placed 4th or 5th in the AutoX last year on stock turbos. The 3S is very competitive against the DSMs.

No, the platform is alive and kickin'. The problem is that forums are outdated and dead. All the action is on the Facebook groups.

**Spyder95VR4** · 07-13-2017, 02:38 PM

For me it was just distance. There should be an alternating venue. If it was Memphis I'd be there in a second. When I went to the Indy NG that was really too far but I made the sacrifice. Had a blast! I understand the reasons for the location change but for a lot of people it was just too far away.

You guys have always done a great job with the event, don't let the comments here feel like a personal attack. I read the whole thread and I didn't see them that way. You asked for constructive discussion and you got one. I can see why someone would be upset about the trophies. Imagine putting all that effort into the car and the commitment to the trip and only get a piece of paper? I would be kind of disappointed also regardless of the backstory of why. There are fewer and fewer active members and running cars these days too. With that you are going to have to branch out and use social media. Gotta get the word out there across the nation. A National Gathering should be exactly that. With the event being so far away it felt more like a regional gathering. A national event should be more centrally located or at least alternated locations. I cannot add much more than what's already been said.

You guys have done an amazing job for sure. If you can no longer have it then we will need someone to step up next year. Or at the very least have a joint event with another group. I know Alan was concerned about that but it's better than not having one at all.

**The Linchpin** · 07-17-2017, 06:01 AM

Was bummed to read this.

**Lori** · 07-17-2017, 09:21 AM

Originally Posted by Spyder95VR4

For me it was just distance. There should be an alternating venue. If it was Memphis I'd be there in a second. When I went to the Indy NG that was really too far but I made the sacrifice. Had a blast! I understand the reasons for the location change but for a lot of people it was just too far away.

You guys have always done a great job with the event, don't let the comments here feel like a personal attack. I read the whole thread and I didn't see them that way. You asked for constructive discussion and you got one. I can see why someone would be upset about the trophies. Imagine putting all that effort into the car and the commitment to the trip and only get a piece of paper? I would be kind of disappointed also regardless of the backstory of why. There are fewer and fewer active members and running cars these days too. With that you are going to have to branch out and use social media. Gotta get the word out there across the nation. A National Gathering should be exactly that. With the event being so far away it felt more like a regional gathering. A national event should be more centrally located or at least alternated locations. I cannot add much more than what's already been said.

You guys have done an amazing job for sure. If you can no longer have it then we will need someone to step up next year. Or at the very least have a joint event with another group. I know Alan was concerned about that but it's better than not having one at all.

Thank you for your comments. There was really only one person here that I took as a personal attack, but that person has always been hyper-critical so I ignore it. I understand people being disappointed about not getting trophies, but I also hoped they'd understand that we had to make a choice between a trophy and an event, which ultimately would have eliminated both. It is what it is, and what's done is done, but of course it hurts me to have someone say that I essentially slapped them across the face. I can only imagine how they would have felt if we'd canceled a race event instead. Maybe road course, since that one didn't have trophies. It's a fine line we walk with that.

Unfortunately, I don't think we'll find anyone to step up and take over. We put the word out there that we needed help for this year. We received inquiries, people who said they were interested, but then ultimately never made the commitment. I had one person who said he'd find out if he could commit to us only if we wanted to commit to him first. The whole thing kinda showed me that we don't have the commitment to the event that we used to have.

I know everyone wants a date sooner, but I've already explained how the process works. We tried planning an event and getting others to join. That didn't work. So now the only way to continue is to join other events. That puts us at their mercy for getting dates. It's just not a great place to be...

**2fnloud** · 07-17-2017, 11:26 AM

I have noticed Kenny showing glass drink ware as his received trophy, is this something that could be looked into?

**DocWalt** · 07-17-2017, 08:47 PM

Said glassware... sponsored even

**mannavr4** · 07-26-2017, 06:37 AM

To Lori, I apologize for the slap in the face comment. I'm sorry I worded it that way and did not mean it as an attack. But the way that comment stays in your mind is probably similar to the way it feels to me to get a piece of paper. I meaningfully thank you in person every year for doing what you and Alan do. But the way am sure you feel from reading people's comments that just don't appreciate or understand the work you two put into these events is they way we all feel about our cars and getting paper awards. Sorry if it sounds mean as i don't mean it to. Just trying to show you at least my side. But even with all this said, I would still go to every NG and just could not go this year and was not happy about it.

**donniekak** · 08-20-2017, 06:31 PM

Shootout was great this year. More 3s's than last year.

**JohnnyTurbo** · 09-14-2017, 09:46 PM

My reasons for staying away:
1) (main one) TWC electrically died in Oct 2012 and won't start... cranks, but won't fire. I honestly haven't spent any time on the issue after the first hour or so when I got it home from the N.C. trip. It just sits in the pole barn with Carla's '92 R/T and my '93 VR4 (which is celebrating 6 years up on jackstands. (Oh yeah, TWC stands for The White Car) I guess the root cause can be described as " lack of interest"

2) vacation time - (as important as #1) I have to have vacation requests in by Feb 28th for the year. With being #5 on the vacation seniority list I can get just about anything submitted by that date. anything after that date is next to impossible to get a whole week off from memorial day to labor day because a group of people take mondays and fridays off all summer. with only 4 people allowed off at a time in my group, it's impossible to get a solid week off. So for me, the date would have to be in stone before Feb 28th.

3) hurt my car doing the drags on NG and broke it the next day on the road course. money paid and no RC fun

IMHO drags are detrimental to our cars and its time has come and gone as the participation numbers were showing. AND the St Louis boys dropping two driveshafts on the dragstrip one year cemented my position on the subject. Time and money wasted on track rental and insurance.

4) I don't drink beyond a few for a lot of reasons. The drunken recklessness of the shopping cart drags left a real bad taste in my mouth considering what could have happened. I know you don't like hearing about it, but if you had the industrial safety training I have had for work from OSHA and UAW/GM Safety Dept, you would see the event in a different light. People getting drunk in the parking lot, I had no problem with. I enjoyed talking and interacting with them... except for the gun, shopping carts and air bag cannon.

Thoughts: Planning the NG is a task where the accolades pale to the effort put forth. Lori can and has attested to this more than once over the years. If it weren't for her (and Alan's) efforts, the NG would have ceased a few years ago. Yes, I have locked horns with Lori a few times, but I'll also give her credit where she deserves it.
I see vacation time off and personal family commitments as the number one and two reasons for NG attendance drop off. I'll admit that the last one I attended the bang did not equal the buck for me and that could hold true for others. Step back as advised and simplify and streamline.
Dragway 42 in W Salem Ohio underwent a mega million dollar renovation and Akron Sports Car Club holds their autocross events there now. They are the ones that manage the autox event at Norwalk Raceway for Buschur's shootout and do a great job. (www.autox.net) A regular Sunday costs $40 - $45 with around 70 cars showing up, so I am sure that could be hired to manage a NG autox for a similar amount and there might be no insurance liability doing it that way.
I would also suggest having NG central a little south of W Salem on I-71 in Ashland Ohio where Mid-Ohio is just a little more down I-71 in Mansfield. Possible to piggy back on another group's event down there? For a car show there are a ton of Saturday parking lot cruise-ins around the area ( a few Quaker Steak & Lubes) that we could be a part of or go into down town Ashland around Ashland University and hold a 3S show like usual.
For the adventurists, a 60 minute drive right up I-71NB will get you to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Just some thoughts.

After thoughts: maybe drop the road course all together in favor of the ASCC run autox event ( which average a mile + course) and for the race adrenaline, the group could go to Dragway 42 on their Wed or Fri night program as customers, avoiding insurance costs altogether as that would be covered in the D42 admission.
Those who wish to beat on their fragile old cars can do so while the rest of us watch them and the other race cars run. Then a planned road trip into Cleveland to the R&R Hall O fame could replace the road course event time wise.