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Nac Fest Suggestions requests

MrShaft696

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Blue Bell, PA
Im stealing this idea from the NW Chapter, but ive been to every nac fest since 2006 back at red ridge at paragon etc. This year was fun but different, raffle kicked ass as always. Camping was good as well as the fireworks.....
nacfest29.jpg


Only thing I would ask is people get some CB's for the trail ride makes it so much easier. Organizing groups in the morning was a major pain with no set time to do anything etc. made it difficult to get people motivated to move....Im sure other people will say otherwise but it was wierd.....
 
There was, and has been since I started coming in 2004, but most years the assembling of groups has been somewhat "ad-hoc", especially this year.

Jen (MsMDXJ) made a big difference in that, but then her day job involves keeping little kids organized (which bears an interesting resemblance to NACFest at times). Putting a thread up in advance in the NACFest Forum looking for trail leaders I think helped too.

Many rigs without radios does add challenges. I went to a Pine Barrens cleanup some years back where one of the organizers had stumbled on about a dozen old crystal-based CB walkie-talkies at a garage sale and snapped them up. He was loaning them out to folks without radios that day so they could communicate. I've always thought that was a great idea, and keep thinking I should scan eBay to see if I can score a couple cheap handhelds to throw in my Jeep for trail runs as spares/lenders, but haven't done it yet.
 
I picked up a CB from Ross while I was at NAC Fest so now I can be in the cool kid club
 
Organizing groups in the morning was a major pain with no set time to do anything etc. made it difficult to get people motivated to move....Im sure other people will say otherwise but it was wierd.....

any suggestions? How about staggering meeting times by group so theres less of a giant cluster at the trail head? Just a thought.
 
Hey all...this is msmdxj...aka Jenn
I regret not being able to make nacfest this year and thanks rob for reminding everyone that groups are normally pretty organized. I was not able to make it this year as I was six months pregnant at the time (and the doctor strongly frowned at the idea of me wheeling). The problem was that no one volunteered ahead of time to set up groups like they have been the past three years by me.
Normally a thread is set up to ask for trail guides and a meeting time is advertised. In addition to that I personally talk to every person at the park to get them in the right group and off on their merry way. I hope to make it next year, but just in case I suggest someone step up and volunteer or better yet run for a spot on the bod.
 
This is me so put up or shut up!!!!!
 
Yeah, the ball kinda did get dropped on organizing groups.

6 months along, eh? Congrats (albeit belated ones). Should we be thinking blue D-Rings or pink ones?
 
Blue
 
First off, some of the major players couldn't make it... with that said i hear those who did (ross and colin) did a great job given what they were handed.

Second if organization is what you want have everybody 1. have the paperwork done
2. Have everybody SHOW UP EARLY...early is the only way to get people going...i.e. airing down, paperwork, unloading, registering in the office and such.

If it was that easy everyone could do it... in fact what keith said step up

Just my $.02

STROKER
 
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Hey all...this is msmdxj...aka Jenn
I regret not being able to make nacfest this year and thanks rob for reminding everyone that groups are normally pretty organized. I was not able to make it this year as I was six months pregnant at the time (and the doctor strongly frowned at the idea of me wheeling). The problem was that no one volunteered ahead of time to set up groups like they have been the past three years by me.
Normally a thread is set up to ask for trail guides and a meeting time is advertised. In addition to that I personally talk to every person at the park to get them in the right group and off on their merry way. I hope to make it next year, but just in case I suggest someone step up and volunteer or better yet run for a spot on the bod.

I did all of what you guys are pretending this is hypocritical about.. and never heard back about any of it. Volunteered trail guide, ran for BOD, & volunteered to help organize groups, had my paperwork, so put up or shut up is silly & a unproductive cop-out. Its just weak sauce watching people stare at each other for 1/2 hr until for people who came to wheel and were ready to go....Ill volunteer all the same next year as well, it shouldn't have anything to do with who is there or not.

Billy no I do think think times need to be scattered, with the nac people its pretty simple, the guys who only want to wheel with certain people go do that, everyone else that needs to be organized in a group need to be reached out to by the trail leaders & grouped by skill level, the parking lot area is big enough now to line up groups by skill level by people that know who should go where according to what people are driving.... If you dont have a CB get in the middle of the group so trail leaders can communicate with people in the back...

& yes Johnny, his wife and Ross did allot of the work....
 
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My .02...

The one thing we learned is that this trail coordinator task has to be taken seriously, and there is a certain amount of prep that needs to go into it before trying to get everyone organized.

1. The trails coordinator has to be there early EVERY DAY and talk to EVERY SINGLE attendee to put them in a group, and do it quickly and efficiently.
2. They also need to have trail leaders in mind for each day, for each group.
3. A plan of some sort (form lines for trails, delegate responsibility to each of the trail leaders when it comes to their group size...etc...)

These are the 3 most basic rules to doing it well, and getting everyone in the woods by 9:30am each day. Lets face it, most times when we go wheeling, your with your buddies and you all know your capabilities. When your faced with 40 Jeeps from stock to 40's, it becomes a daunting task really quick (and as much as you try, you can't make everyone happy). Also, USE this forum to talk about trails and different levels before the event. This really helps a trails coordinator figure out who wants to run what. It typically only covers 1/2 of the attendees, but its something.
 
x2. 3-6 rigs I think is the perfect group size.
 
Could always take a lesson from golf.. allow people to pick 'foursomes' (albeit in this case 6ish)

Dump the rest in to default buckets at the end, then give them a pre made itinerary before they start, so they (and possibly a volunteer/trail guide can be assigned and meet up with his group before the start of the day, like say, the night before,
or even in a forum they could communicate days/weeks/months ahead of time to plan trails, prepare, and even so much as collaborate on spare parts and tools (if they wanted obviously)

Give each group a name, and a special sticker or something so they can be identified, by a organizer and each other.

Then Day of, you have 15 minute intervals (aka Tee Times) for each group to show and roll in the morning at the park, they miss the tee time they go to the back of the pack or trade if there is an opening.

little more planning up front.

very little day off reliance on "go to lady" for organization.

$0.02

:geek:
 
i like that
 
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