Whats your club like?

[Devon_Archer]

Pantherman

I know what you mean with appeasement

But what you said actually backs up what I meant when I said "blackmail doesn't work"

Your nice longbowpeoples stood around waiting to shoot while others did the work, no amount of discount would get them working, so blackmail fails

Obviously they don't have a pride in their club so tell them to sod off, if they have no pride in their club and no commitment to the club, then why should the good hard working members have any commitment to them

double their fees, no treble them, they obviously have more money than commitment to your club so if they dont like it, why carry passangers ?

[pantherman]

Hi Devon
I agree with the thought, but with £3000 rent, rates etc. we have to get 60ish members to exsist. We could of course put the fees up to £100 for the 30 odd who do the work or as we have done £60 for non workers £30 for workers and keep the membership over 100.
Part of the club consitution is 'to promote archery and all be great chums'
telling a fellow archer to s@d off, how ever tempting is not what I or the club is about.

[Devon_Archer]

Hi Panther

I agree that being part of "the club" whosever it is, or wherever it is situated and it should always be a club resolution "to promote archery and be great chums", some of my best friends are from the archery world and I value all of their friendships

But it does cut both ways, the people you mentioned standing there waiting for others to do the work, making no effort to help, and waiting to get on with their shooting, while their "friends and buddies" are working hard to make all of their archery club better, hardly show the same friendship and support back to the workers, do they ?

I do understand when some archers are unavailable due to work, holidays or family commitments, that is natural, but to stand there and do nothing and just wait patiently or impatiently for the workers to finish, is to me an insult to those that do their honest best to make their club better and maintain it

I know that my ideals aren't what others think, and I do respect what you say, but when it comes to the s@d off principal and attitude don't you think the non contributors are really saying that to the rest of your hard working club members

I bet that those that stood around waiting to shoot are realy saying to your other members

S@d off I am the last to get to the club and first to leave so they don't have to hump any heavy targets and risk my shoulder, that is for my shooting

S@d off I am the first to ask that worn out faces are changed, but hardly ever will bother to change them myself while someone else will run around for me

S@d off I know that competitions run themselves, and I get all the benefits for no work so why should I bother

I can imagine what those members are thinking

£30 so someone looks after me and I don't have to get my hands dirty or sweaty and I can concentrate on doing my archery and practice while everyone else is busy working hard or is tired out from doing the work, I don't care about their scores through lack of practice as long as mine are good, sounds a bargain to me

[gunmender]

Just a thought - only put up your target for the night and let them have the rest of the field to shoot at?

They will soon get the idea when the trolley is left at 100 yards and the boss is in the club house


A well aimed comment could be sent across to them as well


they may not need a boss being the bent stick shootes!!! straw and grass are related

Ducks and runs fast

[pantherman]

Hi Devon
I agree with everything you've said there, but probably like every club commitee member can't think of anything else. It's a like it or lump it situation.
You only have to look at the trouble in the NFAS when one club didn't want to let independant members shoot thier competitions. Personally I could not blame them, we have NFAS members who use us for somewhere to practice during the week and never see them at weekends.
Of course they are the first to moan if we don't put the 3D's out often enought but never help with the course set up, etcs.
To some we are a club, to some a shooting ground, it's just about getting the payments right to please the club members........

[oldy]

As someone who has been in the sport for nearly 40years I think it's amazing how nothing changes as far as people are concernd.I used to help put out 40 bosses at a target shoot each year and it was always the same 8 of us.Amazingly some of those people who never turned out to help still belong to the club 30+years later and still do s*d all .I have even had helping put into the club rules as well as mentioning it at the A G M but it makes no difference .Talking about AGMs do you notice how these people never come to them incase they get roped in for something?.There will always be parasites in all aspects of life. Perhaps us helpers will get our reward in the next life.

[FlightyRachel]

I agree that some people are major p*sstakers in this respect, but I do feel that we can't be all things to all clubs.. I took on the secretarial duties at Mayflower and I am a parent governor at the kids school, and tbh that's about as much of my free time I want to give up! So, I don't volunteer for the PTA, the preschool committee, etc, maybe to these groups I seem like a lazy mare?

[pantherman]

Hi Rachel
Again I don't disagree with your point, we all put in to archery/club running as much as we enjoy doing. To look at it from the other point of view.
Should someone who only wants to take their kids to shoot a couple of times a year have to
1 pay twice as much as anyone else to join.
2 be made to feel like a second class citizen just because their not putting every minute of their spare time into running the club.

Even at our club I get made to feel guilty for not turning up for something or not doing something. I do archery because I enjoy it, if it's made not to be fun I'll stop. I do the commitee thing because after 20+ years I want to put something back, unlike some I try and keep Mr Ego out of it!!!!

I know there are lazy buggers who should do more, but work Sundays are quite fun, in the woods playing lumberjack.........

[FlightyRachel]

No, I'm sure we wouldn't want to be unfriendly to the more casual member, and we are all united in this thread against that hardcore of people who think a club runs itself, that targets magically pput themselves out and away, that grass cuts itself etc etc...

[pantherman]

Being honest I do my best to be friendly to all archer's at the club. (Although this is not always easy, I'm sure you know Rachel who else is on the Panther commitee.....)