Want to Help Charter a New Unit in New Mexico?

[AZstreamin]

Originally Posted by klevan

Thanks AZ we have the Den-CO Autumn Leaves Rally 6-9 October, and the the Balloon Fiesta through 15 October. September is open for us. Is it already booked up for you?

We were thinking Luna Lake, Arizona State Park might be a nice place to rally in September, with another rally at Deadhorse, Arizona State Park in April 2007.

I thinkk we are already having our first experience trying to reconcile calendars!

Ken..You are correct! There is an outside chance weekend of Sept 16th could be a possibility I'll know after we get back from Chicago next week. We are Airstream bound to San Diego Labor Day weekend and Monument Valley last weekend of Sept. I have not been to Luna Lake but it looks great Alpine is an area we would love to explore. We really love the White Mountain Lakes..Hawley Lake is our new favorite destination. October is the month that has the most open weekends right now. November is booked we're going to Sanibel Island Florida. April '07 should work for us. March weekends are dedicated to Spring Training. So there you go that's our schedule..

[Alumaholic]

Originally Posted by 2airishuman

hi kleven

i noticed the oct caravan from colo 2 new mexico...followed by this rally,
but other than dates and contact people, i cannot find any other info on either. check the wb website the den vac site, az and nm sites..

i 'm planning a western loop running along this way bofore heading north along the coast. starting late sept/early oct.

any other info on the caravan or rally?

thanks
2air'

Here's the Den-CO Unit website: http://www.wbcci-denco.org/

As I understand it the Aspen Leaf Caravan begins 1 Oct in Clifton, CO and terminates at the Autumn Leaves Rally location in Angel Fire, NM. Everyone who signs up for the caravan includes the rally, but you can attend the rally (6-9 Oct) without joining the caravan. Perhaps InsideOut will confirm this for us an tell us how to sign up for either or both.

[dscluchfc]

Well, I am going someplace about Friday...for about a week.
Either to Grand Canyon North Rim Area, or to Monument Valley to Moab, UT area.
I will probably flip a coin.
September 2nd Texas Tech Football Season kicks off, and I am busy every weekend on the sidelines for about 12 weeks....then the bowl.
So, I have to get my running done now.

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by klevan

Here's the Den-CO Unit website: http://www.wbcci-denco.org/

As I understand it the Aspen Leaf Caravan begins 1 Oct in Clifton, CO and terminates at the Autumn Leaves Rally location in Angel Fire, NM. Everyone who signs up for the caravan includes the rally, but you can attend the rally (6-9 Oct) without joining the caravan. Perhaps InsideOut will confirm this for us an tell us how to sign up for either or both.

I just posted the DenCO August Newsletter last night. It has detailed info for the August & September Rallies/Caravans. The next issue, September's newsletter (usually comes out just before the new month) will have the detailed info for October's rally/caravan.

Currently, I can confirm that the dates are October 1-9 based on the Upcoming Events.

I am not personally planning on attending this caravan/rally...gotta work sometime! So, I don't have all the details. If you would like additional information before the next newsletter come's out contact this year's Unit President Forrest McClure via PM to "Forrest" or email forrest@mcclurefamily.org you can talk to him about it at the RMVAC Rally.

Shari

[Alumaholic]

Originally Posted by klevan

Two other Airstream Forums members and I are exploring the feasibility of chartering a “new” Southwest Camping WBCCI Unit to compliment existing units in Region 11 and offer expanded opportunities for Airstreamers weherever they may live in the Southwest and beyond. Members of this unit will travel to interesting destinations throughout the Western U.S. and Mexico in pursuit of the following objectives:

· To routinely conduct outings to places of scenic beauty, geological interest, historical significance, and recreation opportunities with a minimum of organization and structure;
· To encourage and assist to fellow Airstream enthusiasts, including those outside the Unit, in the selection, purchase, maintenance, restoration, and renovation of Airstream products of all ages.

We envision a unit friendly to kids, dogs, cats, and Vintage Airstreams with members of all ages who are more inclined to take a hike or go fishing than play cards and who prefer more remote locations of scenic beauty than commercial RV parks.

Right now we are checking to see if we have sufficient interest to charter such a unit. Please let me know if you would like to be a “Charter Member” and in which office you would like to serve if any. Please offer comments and recommendations as well. You may respond by PM if you prefer. I should also say that this unit will rely heavily on the internet for communications and information sharing.

Here we are almost a week since we began exploring the feasibility of a dynamic new WBCCI unit in the Southwest U.S. Here are the numbers so far:

Arizona 3
Colorado 2
Kansas 1
New Mexico 7

Of these prospective 13 charter members, 8 are currently members of WBCCI. The other 5 were waiting for a unit like this and will be new members of WBCCI.

We need about five additional committed charter members to get this going. I would like to demonstrate to Region 11 that we can generate the requisite 10 members for a new unit over and above current members.

[Alumaholic]

Originally Posted by dscluchfc

Well, I am going someplace about Friday...for about a week.
Either to Grand Canyon North Rim Area, or to Monument Valley to Moab, UT area.
I will probably flip a coin.
September 2nd Texas Tech Football Season kicks off, and I am busy every weekend on the sidelines for about 12 weeks....then the bowl.
So, I have to get my running done now.

...Dead Horse Point State Park north of Moab. Airstream25 and I were there this Spring. Check our member photos if you need inspiration.

Be sure to make a reservation. http://www.stateparks.utah.gov/visiting/tour.htm

Consider taking a rafting trip down the Colorado River with Canyon Voyages Adventure Co. http://www.canyonvoyages.com

Have a great time!

Since you spend all your free time in NM, AZ, UT or CO; would you like to be a charter member of our new unit?

[dscluchfc]

Originally Posted by klevan

...Since you spend all your free time in NM, AZ, UT or CO; would you like to be a charter member of our new unit?

Ken, I don't spend all my free time in NM, AZ, UT, or CO. I do spend quite a bit in East Tennessee, been there three times in the past 18 months.
And I do like Nevada and California, too.

The limited 20 amp service at Dead Horse concerns me since it is hot as hell according to www.weather.com in Moab.

I am thinking maybe Moab Valley RV Resort www.moabvalleyrv.com or maybe Riverside Oasis RV www.riversideoasis.com or maybe Spanish Trail RV Park www.spanishtrailrvpark.com so I will have plenty of power for the AC.
Any experience with any of these?

Seriously, you guys will do almost all these rallys at times when we can't go due to other committments with the wife's school teaching the Kindergarten kids, and my weekly games with football season and my duties on the sidelines with Texas Tech Radio. I am not sure I would be much of a member when most of my travel is business realted, or of the seat of your pants no planning, "pack your bags, I can squeeze five days out right now and not hurt my business" variety when the wife is off duty. I am not sure membership would fit my situation although I am open minded enough to listen.
I mean, right now it looks like we can go this weekend for a few days....and by Friday I may be up to my neck in alligators trying to drain the swamp on some business deal and not get to go at all....it can be that unpredictable.

[Mike Lewis]

Ken--- I can see something developing here that you'll have to decide how to deal with when it comes to having a unit that's less structured than the regular WBCCI unit. To Illustrate ::For years wife and I road our motorcycle all over the country. On the spur of the moment we would meet friends in Phoenix for dinner on Sat night and come home sunday,a 900 mile round trip.There was two years in a row we put 30K miles on one and still worked full time jobs. When talking to other riders there was always those who said "that sounds like so much fun, give us a call, we'd like to go with you". Come friday afternoon I would call and say we're headed to the Grand Canyon in the morning. Meet us at Dennys at 7:00 am. Then we get "could you wait until 9:00 I need to get a sitter, or I need to put a battery in the bike or would you mind stopping by moms house on the way, or I can't stand dennys could we eat somwhere else."!!!! It was like that so much we developed this rule.{and I hate rules} My responce would be ,"we'll be at Dennys at 7:00, leaving at 7:30, if you miss us maybe you can make it next time." Bottom line
If we are the GUEST we'll go on YOUR schedule or not at all. We expect the same in return. You will never be able to satisfy everyone ,whether it be where or when or how long events will be. Having to vote on every event will bring about the same confusion. I can see from some responses the scheduling is already showing signs of,"we like to go but"!!!!!--Pieman

[eubank]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

Ken--- I can see something developing here that you'll have to decide how to deal with when it comes to having a unit that's less structured than the regular WBCCI unit. ...--Pieman

Yes, that's a problem, but not a terrible one.

Certainly, you schedule some nice camping trips well in advance. These would be the official rallies. They may or may not be occasions to enact anything official, but scheduled events do lend themselves to club business, if any needs to be taken care of. In general, though, you try to do as much as possible of the club's business by electronic means.

At the same time, it's easy and inviting to have less structured get-togethers within the structure of a WBCCI unit: You put out a call via some club-internal electronic list or via AirstreamForums to camp someplace and see who shows up. It doesn't mean that it's an official rally, or that club decisions would be made on an impromptu basis, or that club money would be used on the trip.

My feeling, though, is that the move toward a new unit in New Mexico is not really all about the rallies per se. Yes, certainly, the NM unit needs to be more open to new rally locations and new faces. But it also needs to be less enamored with decorum and almost cult-like adherence to tradition -- things that Wally himself would probably not have liked very much, either.


Lynn

[dscluchfc]

Pieman-
You have hit exactly a main point of frustration with many people.
Right now I am tossing Monumrnt Valley/Moab around along with Grand Canyon North Rim....IF I can still go Friday, I will flip a coin sometime before Gallup and decide West or North?
If someone said to me, "I would love to go to Moab! It might help me decide on Moab as a final destination over Grand Canyon, and I would tell them my tentative plans for getting there. If that works for them, that's fine, and if it doesn't, then that's fine too.
I guess that is the East Tennessee version of, "here is my plans, so "Y'all Come!"...if you can, and if you can't, that's fine, too.
I have been CEO and Chairman of a large political action committee, and can attest that events can be planned to death, and you still can't please a high percentage of the people involved.
So, you just lay it out, and it either works or doesn't for those people....and you move on.
(Never underestimate the power of stupid people in committees....these are the ones whose mothers always told them, "Never look stupid, always have a question or input.")

[Alumaholic]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

Ken--- I can see something developing here that you'll have to decide how to deal with when it comes to having a unit that's less structured than the regular WBCCI unit.

Thanks Pieman. I think Lynn has the right response to the issue you raise. Unlike motorcycle clubs where the "ride" is what you share, I envison our unit as an extended family of Airstreamers who converge on "destinations" from the four points of the compass. As in most most families, some will aririve early, others will arrive late, others won't make it at all because of school, or work, etc. And that's okay. Campouts should never require quorums.

[Ken J]

David

I have stayed at Spanish Trails in Moab - its not my favorite, but it is really nice. We tend to stay at Canyonlands because it is walking distance downtown where we hang in the evening.

Its just my opinion, but I think this new club could easily accommodate west Texas - at the top of my must go list is Caprock Canyon State park - I understand that there is a really cool mountain bike trail that is an old RR bed - goes through tunnels etc - also want to do Palo Duro and Ute Lake is not far from you.

Ya know the other thing we have not mentioned that I would like to see in a new club is FOOD! One of the things I really enjoy when camping is eating all those things that you don't let yourself eat at home - we have had some incredible feasts with a couple of vintage clubs. Everybody pitches in - not the everybody sits around while one person cooks hamburgers that I experienced in a former WBCCI club...

And then there was the Margarita machine - - - - oopps! big fopah.....

Nevermind.......guess thats against the rules.....

Ken J.

[eubank]

Originally Posted by Ken J

... Its just my opinion, but I think this new club could easily accommodate west Texas - at the top of my must go list is Caprock Canyon State park - I understand that there is a really cool mountain bike trail that is an old RR bed - goes through tunnels etc - also want to do Palo Duro and Ute Lake is not far from you. ... Ken J.

Caprock Canyon is nice. Of interest is the main ranger who used to run the place was also an Airstreamer. He and his wife used to escape from time to time and come up and stay with us. We tried to recruit him into WBCCI, but ...

At the moment, this area of northern New Mexico stinks. We've had it with rain and would dearly love to close the damned park, pack up, and head out to someplace dry. (I know that a lot of folks are suffering in this summer's heat, but personally, I wouldn't mind heading out to someplace where I wouldn't have to wear a jacket, at least for a few days!)


Lynn

[dscluchfc]

Caprock Canyons is 100 miles from me...should be about 100 degrees there today.
Palo Duro Canyon is also about 100 miles from me...upper 90's today.
You want hot and dry....the Texas Panhandle is the place to be.
Trade places, Lynn?

[dscluchfc]

What happened?
Did everyone go camping the past two days?

[Airstream25]

Originally Posted by dscluchfc

What happened?
Did everyone go camping the past two days?

Yes, just got back to Albuquerque from a week in Colorado;Telluride, Aspen and Poncha Springs.

[Airstream25]

Originally Posted by klevan

Here we are almost a week since we began exploring the feasibility of a dynamic new WBCCI unit in the Southwest U.S. Here are the numbers so far:

Arizona 3
Colorado 2
Kansas 1
New Mexico 7

Of these prospective 13 charter members, 8 are currently members of WBCCI. The other 5 were waiting for a unit like this and will be new members of WBCCI.

We need about five additional committed charter members to get this going. I would like to demonstrate to Region 11 that we can generate the requisite 10 members for a new unit over and above current members.

Any update on the numbers?

[dscluchfc]

I think klevan must be gone camping....this thread has died the past few days...

[flyfshr]

Klevan has gone to the Rocky Mtn. Vintage Airstream Rally in Creede this weekend and I wish I was going too.

Brad
FF

[Alumaholic]

As Flyfshr correctly stated, I have been at this year's Rocky Mountain Vintage Airstream Club Rally in Creede, CO. It was great! While there I discussed our new unit with a number of folks and garnered the support of the President of the Den-CO Unit.

The Region 11 First Vice President has asked to meet with Airstream25, Ken J and myself to discuss and clarify our proposed unit objectives. He lives in Portales, NM. We hope to meet with him at some halfway point as soon as the three of us can synchronise our schedules. Here are the numbers for Prospective Charter Members at this time:

AZ 3
CO 3
KS 1
NM 7

Total 14

We gained one from Colorado and two from NM since last count, but we lost two from NM so that number stays the same.

I'm off to the Manzano Mountains and will be offline until Thursday or Friday.