Reinvention of WBCCI

[sunnygirl]

Originally Posted by Jason in TX

I'm one of the new airstream owners "who cant think" (according to a post above) who has been touring for 15 years with the Ford Model A club nation wide. In that club there is a fear of the hobby dying and always talk of trying to bring in new younger members. The thing that always comes up is they need to make coloring books and that will bring younger members. (what?)

Airstreams are very trendy right now. They are photogenic and provide experiences. This is what the younger generation with money is looking for. Less young folks are buying large property to show their status, and investing in travel and that "picture perfect" lifestyle. This is what shows that you've made it now.

I think this re-design is a step in the right direction if the club is looking to add growth to their future. If growth is not an important factor for the WBCCI ... or WBCII... (sorry I can't think or remember the letters according to one poster above. I just remember Wally Byam) then stay the same.

I would like to tour with our trailer like we have with our antique car to both coasts and multiple national parks. We drive and move around. I looked at the schedule of an up coming "Caravan" and it said
1. listen to sales presentation about a hitch
2. have lunch
3. listen to a sales presentation about an oven
4. have a snack
5. listen to a sales presentation about a tongue lock.


Um... Where is the sense of adventure or the "photo op" with this kind of gathering. I hope this new club brings something fresh to the hobby and I would LOVE an original Wally Byum Caravan across the states, to a foreign country, multiple stops, talking to locals, experiencing new culture.

Perhaps new in this case is ok.

Good afternoon, Jason. I'm not sure of the source of your information about the schedule of an upcoming "caravan" but these activities sound like informational seminars that are sometimes part of a unit rally not a caravan. We have taken two national caravans sponsored by the WBAC and I can assure you both were incredible experiences. The caravan leaders in both cases unselfishly gave an enormous amount of their time in planning the journeys. Even though we've made several trips across the US on our own, we saw places and things on the caravans we would never have seen had we planned the trips ourselves. Plus we've made many new friends from all over the US and Canada. In my opinion, the WBAC caravans are a wonderful benefit of being a WBAC member.

Susan

[Florida 55]

Originally Posted by Jason in TX

I'm one of the new airstream owners "who cant think" (according to a post above) who has been touring for 15 years with the Ford Model A club nation wide. In that club there is a fear of the hobby dying and always talk of trying to bring in new younger members. The thing that always comes up is they need to make coloring books and that will bring younger members. (what?)

Airstreams are very trendy right now. They are photogenic and provide experiences. This is what the younger generation with money is looking for. Less young folks are buying large property to show their status, and investing in travel and that "picture perfect" lifestyle. This is what shows that you've made it now.

I think this re-design is a step in the right direction if the club is looking to add growth to their future. If growth is not an important factor for the WBCCI ... or WBCII... (sorry I can't think or remember the letters according to one poster above. I just remember Wally Byam) then stay the same.

I would like to tour with our trailer like we have with our antique car to both coasts and multiple national parks. We drive and move around. I looked at the schedule of an up coming "Caravan" and it said
1. listen to sales presentation about a hitch
2. have lunch
3. listen to a sales presentation about an oven
4. have a snack
5. listen to a sales presentation about a tongue lock.


Um... Where is the sense of adventure or the "photo op" with this kind of gathering. I hope this new club brings something fresh to the hobby and I would LOVE an original Wally Byum Caravan across the states, to a foreign country, multiple stops, talking to locals, experiencing new culture.

Perhaps new in this case is ok.

It would be helpful if you told us which "caravan" description you are speaking of. Doesn't sound like any of the WBAC caravans I've experienced. Caravans move from place to place and visit scenic areas, historic places, and other locations of interest. I've never been on a caravan where there was a sales pitch or instructional seminar about a product. Your description of a caravan sounds more like some rallies which hold informational seminars.

In my experience caravans are one of the great benefits of WBAC membership. The leaders do a great job of scouting out interesting places I would never have seen if I had planned the trip myself with a stack of guidebooks. Given that costs are pooled, and there is no "profit" to a tour company in the cost, caravans are an economic way to tour with a group of people. In fact, caravan leaders spend unpaid hours negotiating group discounts for campsites, attraction entrance fees, and restaurants which provide an added economic benefit to the entire group. Leaders book the campsites for the group (included in the caravan fee) which removes the hassle of trying to get reservations in hard to book campgrounds at prime locations. The social aspect of a caravan is excellent too. My wife and I have made great new friends on the caravans we've taken.

One thing to remember, WBAC caravans are not a commercial venture. The WBAC doesn't provide any financial backing, nor does it reap any financial reward. The caravan leaders are all volunteers. They develop the plan, get approval from the WBAC, and make all reservations and other arrangements. They also take a financial risk when they make deposits for campsites and attractions before all of the money is collected from the participants. Since the caravans are led by unpaid volunteers, the destinations reflect the interests of the leaders, not a route mandated by WBAC headquarters.

I recommend you go on the WBAC website and look at the variety of caravans offered and the itineraries. Currently there are caravans going to Canada and Mexico in addition to many US destinations. Unfortunately the days of Wally Byum and other Airstreamers loading their trailers and tow vehicles on cargo ships and taking them to Europe, Asia, and Africa are a thing of the past. However, I'm sure the WBAC would consider a caravan outside of North America if an intrepid caravan leader volunteers to organize and lead it.

[Jason in TX]

Originally Posted by sunnygirl

Good afternoon, Jason. I'm not sure of the source of your information about the schedule of an upcoming "caravan" but these activities sound like informational seminars that are sometimes part of a unit rally not a caravan. We have taken two national caravans sponsored by the WBAC and I can assure you both were incredible experiences. The caravan leaders in both cases unselfishly gave an enormous amount of their time in planning the journeys. Even though we've made several trips across the US on our own, we saw places and things on the caravans we would never have seen had we planned the trips ourselves. Plus we've made many new friends from all over the US and Canada. In my opinion, the WBAC caravans are a wonderful benefit of being a WBAC member.

Susan

Thanks for the reply Susan. I believe what I saw was a Rally taking place in Texas that had seminars by vendors each day. My mistake in using the word "Caravan" I can't go back and edit. I believe everyone was parking their Airstreams in town around a courthouse and attending seminars all day.

I'm sure there are also very active chapters and not so active chapters as is the case with the old car local clubs and the national club. I do see the benefit in being a part of the enthusiast clubs for friendships and knowledge, but I've also been exposed to the veterans putting off the new blood. They express a lot of discouraging messages and opinions to the less educated but often most excited newer participants. Membership numbers struggle as a result.

I was commenting that perhaps what has always been done doesn't mean that will forever be the best that something can be.

I bet a majority of us, including myself have that drawer of spoons in our kitchen that is where the spoons have always been, but it's 6 drawers down from the stove. Why not move the cooking tools closer? Well, it's just always been that way.

[wayoutwanderer]

I think maybe WBCCI should have lived on for older units past a certain age, perhaps as more of a "vintage" designation. ACI would be more inclusive as designs and demographics of owners change. You could belong to both if you wished and had a qualifying unit. I'm sure there's more to it than that, though.

This is from the perspective of someone who is NOT a member and has been an Airstream owner for less than two years. My wife and I are both in our forties and purchased our 2018 Serenity in January of last year.

To be honest, when you purchase your new Airstream the club info very quickly becomes a front-and-center topic with mailings, magazines, local clubs reaching out, etc., and your are certainly exposed to it while researching your purchase beforehand. You see an organization named after an aged fellow, who is right there on the logo (in a beret no less), and who seems almost idolized by some pretty militant folks. I certainly read up on the history (mainly to figure out who Wally Byam was) and appreciated the respect to tradition, but from someone just getting into the culture, the emphasis seemed to be more on the "cult" part. Quite frankly it was a little intimidating and possibly bordering on creepy.

Now I know that likely wasn't the case as is the testament of many seemingly fine folks here, but that can be how it comes off to others who aren't in the know or don't have some personal family history tied to it. I love the idea of being in a club, just like any hiking or camping or automobile or boating or whatever hobby club, but this one takes a leap of faith that you're not opening a can of crazy if you read more than two pages into any thread.

I think the new look and presence does well in balancing history with modern inclusiveness. I find it a little more welcoming, yet direct to purpose. As a new owner I wouldn't find this rebranded look and modern website intimidating, and I would probably want to show my support for like-minded enthusiasts by joining as the next step of ownership. The only deterrent is the apparent negative attitude of some members toward "younger" owners, as was demonstrated earlier in this thread.

I don't mean any disrespect or offense and I apologize in advance for any given. I'm just sharing the initial impression from an outsider.

[Hittenstiehl]

Wayoutwanderer

Welcome to Airforums.

I didn't have an issue with your post I thought it was another good perspective on this thread.

If you don't mind me pointing out a couple of things that I interpreted, right or wrong, when I read it. Again my interpretation or, what I heard with my ears.

You said the only deterrent is the apparent negative attitude of some members towards "younger" owners.

Then further down you described Wally as an aging fellow in a beret no less.
Then you refer to him as almost being idolized by some pretty militant folks. Then you said the emphasis is on the cult and bordering on creepy.

You likely were only using that particular verbage to get your point across but that could seem pretty judgmental and attitude also.

I think for the most part people want change in all the areas where it needs improvement and to hold on to history and tradition.

Again if I join a club I would surely want to know its history and its values before I became a part of it. I don't think I'd disparage the founder or imply that he was irrelevant or out-of-date. (I am not saying you did that I'm just saying I would not do that) I also don't think I would imply that younger folks need crayons and a coloring book.

I would also staunchly disagree with the likely much older folks who even thought themselves bold enough to give Mona any flack for wearing a sleeveless dress on the cover. This is not a church she was representing but a camping, caravanning, outdoor club. My goodness people.

[janicemd]

I just have to say that I think the club is a lot more fun than the forum! I'm not sure why things get so...um, opinionated? We acquired our Airstream three years ago, a lot of solo camping, plus caravans, plus rallies, plus camping with new Airstream friends. Only one cross word was ever said to me and that was because I was not wearing my badge while walking my dogs at 6:30 am in Doswell! Ha ha! I bet that guy hangs out here.

Regardless, I like the new website a lot.

[twestover]

Originally Posted by Florida 55

Sadly, when I enter "Airstream Park", or the name of a specific Airstream Park, in the search engine of the new WBAC website, no Airstream park appears. Airstream parks are a positive feature of the Airstream community and some are owned by WBAC units and the rest have a high percentage of owners who are members of the club.

Does the new modern club not have affection for the "old" Airstream parks?

So do you mean when you enter "Airstream Park" on the new website search, nothing comes up? That's a great tip for improving the website, if that's what you are saying. I'll be passing that along right away. As I type this, we are staying in an Airstream Park in Minnesota - it's gorgeous! And so many Airstreams! Love it here.

[Florida 55]

Originally Posted by twestover

So do you mean when you enter "Airstream Park" on the new website search, nothing comes up? That's a great tip for improving the website, if that's what you are saying. I'll be passing that along right away. As I type this, we are staying in an Airstream Park in Minnesota - it's gorgeous! And so many Airstreams! Love it here.

Correct. When you enter "Airstream Park" or the name of any Airstream park in the search engine of the new website, nothing related to an Airstream park appears. On the old website, the Airstream Parks Association had a section and a description of each Airstream park, with contact information and links to park websites. It appears the Airstream parks were omitted from the new, improved website. From my perspective, Airstream parks should be listed under "benefits". They are open for visitation by anyone who owns an Airstream, not just the owners.

[PatLee]

Change is always hard.

[polarlyse]

I have not read all of the posts here but eventually I likely will but let me add a few comments in response to some that I did read. I seriously doubt that any unit rally would NOT welcome a fellow airstreamer not (yet) a WBCCI member. We traveled for 8 years before joining and were welcome at several rallies as well as Airstream RV parks. We were motivated to finally become members when we decided to give the caravans a try. Had to be a member for that step. We chose to put our numbers on and have never looked back. So, join or don't join, your choice. Participate in unit rallies or not, again, your choice. Join your local area unit or any other one that suits you. You won't know what you're missing until you try it out and see if it fits.

[rideair]

At least the WBCCI didn’t spend millions of dollars with millennial study groups to redesign their corp. logo like REMAX did this year, to now spend hundreds of millions of dollars to make all agents, marketing groups, hot air balloon teams, etc… update everything with the new REMAX logo. And yes, anything and everything with the old logo “must be destroyed”.

I'm sure someone was either offended by the lines crossing or couldn't easily read it and thus the reason for the change.

Unreal, just unreal.

[mefly2]

Originally Posted by janicemd

I just have to say that I think the club is a lot more fun than the forum! I'm not sure why things get so...um, opinionated? We acquired our Airstream three years ago, a lot of solo camping, plus caravans, plus rallies, plus camping with new Airstream friends. Only one cross word was ever said to me and that was because I was not wearing my badge while walking my dogs at 6:30 am in Doswell! Ha ha! I bet that guy hangs out here.

Regardless, I like the new website a lot.

And, we have been long time members here / love the forum and find it very helpful ... and dare I say possibly even more helpful than some WBCCI members (hush) ...

[Gene]

When we bought an Airstream and joined the Forum, criticism and defense of the WBCCI were constant. The club was attacked for military rigidity, officer spending, being representative of a long ago era, dress codes, and just about anything else imaginable. If you think this thread is argumentative, you should have seen what was said years ago. It was not an organization we wanted to join and many others felt the same way—the club was bleeding members.

Not all units were representative of that attitude. The Four Corners Unit was known for informality and sponsored the very popular rally at the Albuquerque balloon festival. We attended three of those rallies and they were fun. No one pressured us to do anything or wear anything (we did wear clothes and so did others, but no berets, ties or anything else like that). There was a quiet movement to take over the club and make it relevant to the present. It was fairly successful.

I am glad to see the club is modernizing. Change or die is a pretty real necessity for any organization. Of course, some people don’t want change and will be so petty to criticize an officer’s sleeve length. There are religions that enforce a woman’s sleeve length and that’s their business, but a social group brought together by common ownership of a brand of RV should stick to camping and caravaning and stay away from dress codes.

We sold our Airstream because it didn’t fit our lifestyle anymore. If we had kept it, maybe we would have joined the club since it changed. We are close to the Four Corners geographically and otherwise, so we would have joined that unit.

We are pretty much independent travelers and while rallies are fun sometimes, seeing things all over the US and Canada worked for us. We met many people through the Forum and that was good too. Social media is replacing lots of things (remember newspapers?) including clubs like the WBCCI and if the organization survives, it will surprise me. I don’t want that (or to lose newspapers), but it may happen.

How are the membership numbers? Have they recovered or even better, gone way up? I will be surprised if the organization survives without a strong social media base. I hope the club, whatever it’s name survives. I do think the new logo could be much improved and the strange combination of letters is really weird looking. Wally Byam was a consummate salesperson and knew you have to satisfy the public’s [I]contemporary[I] desires to sell your product. I don’t think he would have cared if his name was dropped or minimized if it helped sell Airstreams. The caravans and the club was about promoting the product. Now the purpose of the club seems to be to bring people with Airstreams together and to do that, it is a good plan to be flexible and not make people feel they aren’t the right type to be a member.

[66Overlander]

To answer one question in Gene's last post, club membership numbers have been growing for the last 5 or more years, though I don't know the exact numbers.

[twestover]

Originally Posted by 66Overlander

To answer one question in Gene's last post, club membership numbers have been growing for the last 5 or more years, though I don't know the exact numbers.

We are at about 8,000 rigs

[patriciahawk]

Originally Posted by wayoutwanderer

I think maybe WBCCI should have lived on for older units past a certain age, perhaps as more of a "vintage" designation. ACI would be more inclusive as designs and demographics of owners change. You could belong to both if you wished and had a qualifying unit. I'm sure there's more to it than that, though.



This is from the perspective of someone who is NOT a member and has been an Airstream owner for less than two years. My wife and I are both in our forties and purchased our 2018 Serenity in January of last year.



To be honest, when you purchase your new Airstream the club info very quickly becomes a front-and-center topic with mailings, magazines, local clubs reaching out, etc., and your are certainly exposed to it while researching your purchase beforehand. You see an organization named after an aged fellow, who is right there on the logo (in a beret no less), and who seems almost idolized by some pretty militant folks. I certainly read up on the history (mainly to figure out who Wally Byam was) and appreciated the respect to tradition, but from someone just getting into the culture, the emphasis seemed to be more on the "cult" part. Quite frankly it was a little intimidating and possibly bordering on creepy.



Now I know that likely wasn't the case as is the testament of many seemingly fine folks here, but that can be how it comes off to others who aren't in the know or don't have some personal family history tied to it. I love the idea of being in a club, just like any hiking or camping or automobile or boating or whatever hobby club, but this one takes a leap of faith that you're not opening a can of crazy if you read more than two pages into any thread.



I think the new look and presence does well in balancing history with modern inclusiveness. I find it a little more welcoming, yet direct to purpose. As a new owner I wouldn't find this rebranded look and modern website intimidating, and I would probably want to show my support for like-minded enthusiasts by joining as the next step of ownership. The only deterrent is the apparent negative attitude of some members toward "younger" owners, as was demonstrated earlier in this thread.



I don't mean any disrespect or offense and I apologize in advance for any given. I'm just sharing the initial impression from an outsider.

Haven’t any of the new folks (age doesn’t matter) heard this from the movie We Bought a Zoo? “Benjamin Mee : You know, sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage. Just, literally, 20 seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it.”

That’s exactly what we did. We bought our Airstream, joined a unit, and made a reservation. Walking up to a group who we figured knew each other and had already built friendships was a bit intimidating. We took a deep breath, walked up, introduced ourselves, were welcomed, had a wonderful time, and have met several times now. Any unit outside of ours has also welcomed us and allowed us to join their events as well.

We literally are “happy campers.” Thank you Northern IL Unit, Region 5 , and the IA Airstream Club for a great beginning.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

One thing that keeps popping up: What unit to join. They are each a bit unique. We belong to two. One where we live and hang out for about 4 months. Another where we often seem to camp and are likely to be for at least 2 or 3 months each year. So far we have done more with the "camping" unit than the one where we live.

Bob

[Bumpy]

Originally Posted by patriciahawk

We literally are “happy campers.” Thank you Northern IL Unit, Region 5 , and the IA Airstream Club for a great beginning.

A group becomes what it's made to be. If we are unhappy we need to be an agent of change.

If we are happy then so be it. Why be an agent of drama? Don't we already have more than we wish to have?

[LY007]

I’m a lapsed member of WBCCI, but I like the look of the new website.

[Dirtyairhead]

Unscuribe link won't work for me.

Please unscuribe me.

Thank you