—Friedrich von Schiller

we had a nice turnout for what I believe was our fourth "Winter’s gone—lets do lunch with cars" gathering at the Concord Papa Razzi. Twenty-seven Alfisti attended what has become an annual must-do for the Club.

Why "must-do"? Well, it does get us out with our cars for the first time of the season (we hope); it’s nice to reacquaint friendships and start new ones with fellow enthusiasts. And hope does bloom in the Spring—that’s what this season is all about! Hope that our cars run well this year, with a minimum of work; hope for fun events to do; hope for good weather to do them in and great people to do them with. "Hope to see you at our next event!" Lots of hope.

One thing we should not hope for, however, is that the events will just happen and that "someone besides me" will do them. As a club, we are an organization of all volunteers; no one gets paid to do this stuff. It’s fun to sit and talk about the days to come, and the events we’d like to do. But we have to remember that those events are not someone else’s job—we all have to put in an effort—maybe not all the time, maybe not by ourselves—just sometime. Think about what kind of events you like best. Autocross? Picnics? Tours? Rallies? Concours car shows? Travel to distant motorsport events and watch the races with fellow club members? Long weekends in the company of a nice line of other Alfas wending their way on a tour of the coast with an overnight at an inviting resort? Sound beyond your reach to organize and set up?

Not really, when you think about it. For instance, have you ever thought about how you’d love to get away for a long day’s drive on some great roads, be they up in the mountains or down by the sea? Pull out a map of the area and look at the route of your favorite stretch of road; looks doable, right? Now, after figuring out where you are going and how to get there, why not write it down, communicate it to your other club members, and call it a tour? If you want, throw in a trickier route and gimmicky questions about things that you can see along the way and you’ve got a "fun" rally. You should run it once in advance, of course, to make sure the roads are clear and free of construction, heavy traffic or other annoyances. While you’re at it, notice what else the area offers that might be fun to stop and check out during the drive.

Got access to a big parking lot where the owners will let you run a few cars around cones on a weekend? Then you’ve got a site for an autocross—pick out a date, contact the members, and get it in the newsletter (necessary equipment will be located for the event). Have a neat "pro" auto race at a New England area track and want to go see it with your fellow Alfisti? Just make the announcement, and tell folks where they can meet you the morning of race day to caravan there. What could be easier? A little planning, a few phone calls and emails, and you’ve got your event.

And these are just a few possibilities; there are many more. But none of this stuff happens if you don’t take the initiative. That’s a big, painful word, but it just means that you have to get off dead neutral if you want your club to be a positive experience. Again, not a lot of effort—otherwise, it wouldn’t be fun. The idea is to do something that you, on your own, would do, and then when you share the experience it is that much better.

We had a lot of ideas for events at the Kick-Off Meeting—some planned, some just "trial balloons"; grab one and make it yours! It’s easy! Here’s hoping we’ll see you there.

Home ∙ About AONE ∙ Current Issue ∙ Past Issues ∙ Next Events ∙ Photo Gallery ∙ Our Sponsors
Info Center ∙ Tools For Loan ∙ Classified Ads ∙ Club Store ∙ Search ∙ Forum ∙ Links