[FC] CORSA - Challenges and Proposals

[Bill Hubbell]

Well, Mike (and others), to excerpt from my "Official" statement (to appear
in the Communique)

"I do not have a set political agenda, although I certainly am interested in
attempting to promote more club interest in certain areas. Some of these
include promoting and recognizing efforts to restore and preserve Stock
vehicles, finding a more fair way to deal with the issue of Trailered
Concours vehicles, promoting attendance at local and National conventions,
and encouraging more people to drive their Corvairs on a regular basis.
Certainly the biggest issue facing our club is that of the aging of our
membership, and the resultant attrition that accrues. If CORSA is to
survive, we must reach out to a younger crowd and instill in them the same
enthusiasm for these marvelous vehicles as we ourselves have. I am proud to
have done my part on a smaller level; my 22 year old son, Geoff, when given
a choice of automobiles for his college graduation present chose a 1965
Corvair over all others, including a brand new 2003 automobile"

I should also like to add that during my first year as President of TCC we
added eight new members and, thanks in part to my "2003 President's
Challenge", 3 non-running Corvairs were returned to running and licensed
status.

I think the best way to promote our club is to encourage people to drive
their Corvairs - as often as possible.  Yet, I also realize that as our cars
age, some choose to restore and protect their cars, so I want to be fair and
give all sides the best chance to enjoy thier hobby.  Show cars should be
cherished as much as driven cars, and stock cars must be recognized and
protected for they represent our common heritage and preserve our history.

We need to make the Museum bigger, better, and most important, More Corvair.
We need to take a more public role in promoting the positive attributes of
our car and in dispelling the negative myths about it.  Such a position
would improve our ability to attract new and younger members to our
organization.  I would like to see certain Corvair publications offered to
mainstream retailers - "The Corvair Decade" and "Corvair Basics" from CORSA
publications.  I hate walking into a Barnes and Nobles bookstore and finding
books that disparage our automobile with no authoritarian publications
available for rebuttal..

I personally believe the best way to encourage new members is to get them to
go to a Corvair show - whether local or National, and we need to all do our
part to promote that.  I offered several incentives in my club and will look
into ways that could be incorporated at a national level.  Certainly for me,
attending my first National in 1979 (Detroit) was a BIG factor in my
continuing interest and enthusium.

Yes, I also think it is time for CORSA to explore affiliations with other
car clubs of similar interests, such as Classic Chevrolet or even (gasp)
AACA.  We don't need to give up our (fiercely guarded) independence, but we
could open more dialog with other clubs which struggle, as we do, with the
problems of aging cars and membership.  I would love to see an official
CORSA presence at such show as the annual AACA fall event at Hershey.
Wouldn't it be neat if we could teach them a few things about how to really
judge a Corvair!

I am not so one minded (in spite of the "Earlies are better" thing) as to
think only my ideas are important.  I want to protect the right of all CORSA
members to enjoy their Corvairs in any non-disparaging way (even if that
means cutting one up, occassionally, as I, myself, have done -- sniff).
Racing is very important to the future of Corvairs and I will support it
fiercely, even if I don't engage in it.  Modified Corvairs are just as cool
as stock Corvairs, even though I personally will always prefer a Stock car
to a modified one.

I could go on, and I suppose in time, I will.  That sohould give you enough
to chew on for awhile, anyway.  As for now, I have a more important task -- 
time to go watch "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" with my
daughter!!

Bill Hubbell
TCC President 2003-2004
CORSA Eastern Division Director Candidate 2004




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Stillwell" <yenko117@yahoo.com>
To: "Bill Hubbell" <whubbell@umich.edu>; "Virtual Vairs"
<virtualvairs@corvair.org>
Cc: <vv-talk@corvair.org>; <corvanatics@corvair.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 17, 2003 9:24 AM
Subject: Re: <VV> CORSA BOD - Eastern Division Director's Seat (LONG)


>
>  Bill, Since you offered... What problems do you see
> CORSA facing in the term you are applying for and how
> do you plan to work towards resolving such?
>
>  Regards - Mike
>            YS-117