New frag swap date

sorry, had to throw it out there. The events are great, but the space is too small for the turn out... I don't know why CMAS won't look for a better space.
 
You seriously need to give these guys a break. They are all volunteers who have full-time jobs, families and problems of their own. They are going out of their way to try and create these events of the betterment of the hobby and for our education and enjoyment. They don't get paid to set up these frag swaps. They do it because they want to give everyone a chance to enjoy this hobby.

CMAS is looking for a better space. It is just very hard to find a large space with tile floors and adequate power at a reasonable price that is willing to deal with all the water, mess, and potential flood damage that a frag swap entails...

CMAS isn't a private club. It is open to anyone willing to pay the modest yearly fee that helps to pay for all these events. If you think things can be done better, please come to the meetings and voice your opinion. Every single meeting is started off with an open forum for issues such as this.

In short, if you know of a better place to hold the frag swap, let somebody know. If you have specific requests or ideas for meetings, let someone know. Want to see a certain guest speaker? Let someone know. The point here is this: The more members that are active and supportive, the better our club will be.

-al stanford, active CMAS member-
 
Well said Al. I've been to a few there, and it's literally 5 minutes away from my house. Sure, it could be a little bigger/nicer, but I always have a good time shopping for sweet frags, meeting new reefers, and stuffing my face full of pizza. I always go home happy :)
 
Really Al?...really?! Its not that hard to call around to quote out/find new places. Almost all clubs are volunteer based and clubs continue to grow and improve as volunteers. I was president of a 50+ unit condo board for 3 yrs and that was an almost full time volunteer job. So don't lecture that because people are volunteers improvements can't be done. With all the members here, a call out for suggestions can be made and gone off from there. I've given my help in finding a new place and was shot down quickly (by the last pres), twice.

-Eric, active CMAS member-
 
I think the club has out grown the vfw for frag swaps. The meetings at Devry have plenty of room and parking, but the we seem to be hitting the limit on for frag swaps. I think we need to come to terms that we are a huge club. We have one of the biggest forums on RC, and our swaps getting to be bigger every swap. As to where we should go i have no idea. Who Should we address these idea's to? The President or a committee member?
 
Frag Swap

Frag Swap

I think the club has out grown the vfw for frag swaps. The meetings at Devry have plenty of room and parking, but the we seem to be hitting the limit on for frag swaps. I think we need to come to terms that we are a huge club. We have one of the biggest forums on RC, and our swaps getting to be bigger every swap. As to where we should go i have no idea. Who Should we address these idea's to? The President or a committee member?





You are exactly right about CMAS. Huge club with a very sucessfull Frag Swap. The Board is very much aware of this good situation and will be discussing the matter this Saturday at our annual Leadership Breakfast. The obstacles that have come up have been venues with not enough power outlets, not enough parking spaces or carpeted floors. Any comments about new Frag Swap venues can be sent to me at rsosolik@cmas.net

:debi:​
 
Really Al?...really?! Its not that hard to call around to quote out/find new places. Almost all clubs are volunteer based and clubs continue to grow and improve as volunteers. I was president of a 50+ unit condo board for 3 yrs and that was an almost full time volunteer job. So don't lecture that because people are volunteers improvements can't be done. With all the members here, a call out for suggestions can be made and gone off from there. I've given my help in finding a new place and was shot down quickly (by the last pres), twice.

-Eric, active CMAS member-


You are exactly right Eric! It is not hard to call around. Finding the time to call and calling when there are people at these potential venues is a problem. Don't forget there is a new Sheriff in town! Contact me anytime with ideas! With your presidential skills, I expect you to be in the next election;)!
 
I think the club has out grown the vfw for frag swaps. The meetings at Devry have plenty of room and parking, but the we seem to be hitting the limit on for frag swaps. I think we need to come to terms that we are a huge club. We have one of the biggest forums on RC, and our swaps getting to be bigger every swap. As to where we should go i have no idea. Who Should we address these idea's to? The President or a committee member?





You are exactly right about CMAS. Huge club with a very sucessfull Frag Swap. The Board is very much aware of this good situation and will be discussing the matter this Saturday at our annual Leadership Breakfast. The obstacles that have come up have been venues with not enough power outlets, not enough parking spaces or carpeted floors. Any comments about new Frag Swap venues can be sent to me at rsosolik@cmas.net

:debi:​

A nasty surprise BNARC had with one location was when after signing the contract we found out we were required to get a certificate of insurance for the fest which was not cheap. There is more to these than meets the eye. I appreciate the work so many do to make them happen and agree that the more that help the easier it gets.
 
it's not possible to do the swap at devry? i dont know the building well or anything but i think that would be a good centralized location near the highway.
 
it's not possible to do the swap at devry? i dont know the building well or anything but i think that would be a good centralized location near the highway.


I looked into a Frag Swap at Devry 4 years ago. Can only have it in the commons area, which is the cafeteria. Not enough power outlets to satisfy the requirements needed . :debi:
 
Have you guys considered increasing the time of the actual swap? If you think outside the box a little, I am sure we could figure out a way to pack in the same amount of people but over an extended time. I know that there are 3 things people want from the swap - pizza, corals, and the RAFFLE. The way you currently run the swap, anyone who is not willing to give up any of the above is at the swap the entire time. I haven't been to one of these at the VFW in a year or two, but I have seen the pictures and agree that something needs to be done.

Idea:
What if you started off the swap in the morning? I am picturing a schedule kinda of like this:
7:00 AM - seller set-up
8:00 AM - Swap starts
11:00 or 12:00 (or both) - pizza is served (2 times would help split the crowd up for this as well
4:00 PM - Swap ends and Grand Prize(s) are drawn.

I know you guys normally do the raffles as must be present to win, but if you split the raffle into 5 parts and drop that requirement for the Grand Prize Drawing you might be able to get the traffic to flow through better. You could do hourly raffle drawings (9:00, 10:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, and 4:00; 11:00 and 12:00 would be skipped due to lunch). IMO most people if they want to be part of the raffle want a chance to win the big stuff. The problem is that most people that are that serious about the swap and reefing, also want to be there first thing to get first pick of the corals.

I could probably go on and on but this is a long enough post... just wanted to toss out an idea. I am sure that if you continued to look for alternatives, you could find more that would help organize the event without having to find a new location and still accommodate the needs (food, frags, and free stuff)!!!

I hope to be able to make this one as I finally have my tank setup.
 
Look, I wasn't trying to lecture about anything and I wasn't trying to single anyone out. I was just trying to show a different point of view and that there are two sides to every story. I am sorry if I offended anyone- that was not my intention.

On the plus side, it seems that we have a good dialogue going for suggested improvements and possible alternatives. We should keep it going or open a CMAS suggestion box thread of some sort.

-al-
 
my only complaint is make is more central (like closer to 53/290), but not a huge deal. I was at the swap last Jan, it was crazy crowded, but kinda fun/intense...I went to the last one in the fall, it was much less crowded and relaxed. Honestly it didn't matter to me...I dont disagree about the room issue when it's crowded, but easier said than done considering the requirements.
 
Have you guys considered increasing the time of the actual swap? ...

Having traveled with YZReef for 2 years and nearly 40 shows, it's my opinion that making the day longer just makes the vendors have to stand around and wait longer. At the end of the day very few people are buying anything and most people just stand around talking waiting for the raffle to end.

As well many vendors would prefer to have AT LEAST 2 hours to get set up. And the earlier you have set-up start the earlier they have to leave their origin.

Just figured I'd throw my opinion in, having been on the other side of things.
 
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