 Posted: Sun May 27, 2012 9:34 am Post subject: |
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Lancsbreaker, great to see you on here Richard, pleased to see you still have a passion for the 33.  (on a personnel note, many thanks for the 155 bits you sent me)
I think the AROC subscription fee is fine, it's a good source of info & the magazines are well done. |
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 5:56 pm Post subject: |
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| Ive just used a discount through the owners club for airport parking.
Got a really good deal on meet and greet valet parking at Gatwick. Did all the comparison searches and this was by far the best deal I could find. Another good reason to be a member  |
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 12:17 pm Post subject: |
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| Did you write that yourself Paul???? | |
| Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 9:41 am Post subject: |
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| Very interesting discussion. Something I have just been discussing with my local section. Is it worth the money? If you pay just to receive the magazine and are only interested in one model then it is a fairly expensive one. If you take more of an active part it becomes better value, but then again it depends what you want to do. Colin Metcalfe is looking into member benefits at the moment and it is something I have said needs to be very visible to members and non-members.
Sites like this take over part of what the club would have done pre-internet times. Highlights in the past that I was pleased to be a member: The two trackdays at Donington were superb value events. (Great to go around a famous circuit). The laps at Brands Hatch organised by The Kent and East Sussex section was also a highlight - and was free! The trackday and museum visit to Haynes Motor Museum was excellent. The trips organised to LeMans by the Sussex Coast/Surrey section were excellent. The skidpan course organised by the Goodwood section was informative and fun. The trip to Goodwood Festival of Speed with full Alfa Romeo hospitality was quite special. The treasure hunts I organised for the Sussex Coast section were really superb !!!! as were the ones organised by Simon Novis. The inter-section (Sussex, Surrey, Kent) go-kart meet was superb. Even the Kent vs Sussex Coast ten-pin-bowling challenge was fun. These are the kinds of things and many others (eg test drives of other or modern models) that make being a member worthwhile. Of course although the SpaItalia trips (which have been brilliant) have been organised through this site the advantage of AROC organising events is that they have (or should have) more clout and can therefore negotiate bigger discounts. |
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| Posted: Fri May 04, 2012 11:07 am Post subject: |
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I think Richard answered this question in his reply? Although the Forum is members only the main AROC website isn't and there are details on there of this years opportunities. http://www.aroc-uk.com/motorsport |
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| Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:48 pm Post subject: |
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| A big thanks to lancsbreaker, for popping in on our little community, much appreciated.
Heres my penneth. Takes me back to when I worked for the Royal Mail, I was the the union rep for our branch and whenever the union came up in conversation there was always a groaning voice or 2 saying "so what does the union do for me?" Reply... "its your union, what would you like it to do for you?" Silence 
I for one am a member of AROC and have been for a few years. Its up to us to go to local area meets and discuss what we want from our club and put forward ideas. If you spend money joining and then dont get involved then yes its money wasted. If you just want to sit at home and use forums then its not worth joining. I personally like to get out and meet with fellow enthusiasts. I read the magazine usually from cover to cover, but always go straight to Mr Hide's contribution (to see if he's actually written it himself ) first.
There are also benefits to be had from being a member such as discounts from a varied assortment of companies. Trouble is I was unable to find a list of them in the magazine or the aroc website. There is something in the aroc forum but you need to already be a member to access that which seems a little silly. If you want people to join then surely this info needs to be advertised. And quite alot of insurance companies give a discount if you belong to an owners club or motoring organisation of some sort. So I personally would say, yes join and get involved, clubs are about people and shared interests. |
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| Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:36 am Post subject: |
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| speaking about track days, how about running some sprint sessions?
I'm sure there are a lot of people interested in this. |
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| Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 11:13 am Post subject: |
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As a member of the AROC board, and I confess an infrequent visitor here - so many Alfa forums, so little time  - I of course would say I think its worth it - if you are prepared to put a little in as well as your subs....
We can only respond to members' wishes if we know about them, and as James points out, the editor can only publish articles if people write them. On the competition side, we are trying to build up this aspect again - this year we are continuing to run a Sprint series - its in its early days and we are considering how to develop it, maybe by engaging in Regional championships with an AROC class if there is enough interest - and we are also trying to re-establish the racing side - the first races are this weekend on Sunday at Silverstone with stand-alone races for the "Classic" Alfas, and AROC classes within Blue Oval and Classic Thunder Championships, subject to enough entries. Again this is a work in progress - we welcome any feedback from prospective competitors. With regard to Trackdays we have an arrangement with Javelin who have run a few for us, and more are in the pipeline, again subject to demand. We obviously want to respond to members' wishes wherever possible, although matching the different aspirations of approx 4000 members is never going to be easy
If anyone has any comments or questions feel free to contact me either by PM here or on AROC forum if a member (I'm RGWM) or by email at murtharichard@hotmail.com Edit: @ Oggie......please don't drag up this tired old "snobbish" argument again - although I'm not aware of any of the Board members having a 33 - I sold my Sportwagon to 888DEE of this parish recently, we all know that the reason that 33s are rare is that like many Alfas of the time (and a few current ones  ) they rotted away, and even in their day didn't quite have the cachet of the Sud...which is probably why I still have a Sud and a Sprint (tho I should sell them as I've also got 2 Giulias and a 75, as well as various Alfa "moderns") as do several of the other Alfa Board members. With the possible exception of some of the "Classic" racing fraternity, who maybe still haven't grasped the concept of front-wheel drive (but in reality are I think just wary of the ARCA "robust" racing", I' haven't come across any model snobbery for a long time.....reverse snobbery about more modern models, yes..... |
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| Posted: Thu May 03, 2012 10:40 am Post subject: |
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| I think it depends what you'd want out of a club to be honest.
If you just want 33 articles / advice then obviously the club isn't going to be anywhere near as good as this forum! If you have a wider general interest in Alfa Romeo then it probably is worth being a member. One thing I would say that is that if there is a lack of 33 articles then it is because only Paul writes any; if more people submitted something then it would very likely be printed. Of course you might argue that not much point writing something you already know as you already know it! But it would be an oppportunity to remind everyone else that 33s exist, are good cars and are part of the AR story as much as the 105 series vehicles! I do think there could / should be an Owners Tips / Tech Tips section in the magazine where we could submit relevant 'how-to' articles. Otherwise it is hard to see just what you could / would write about any particular model unless it is a historical piece... Motorsport - if well written then these can be entertaining (there is an excellent example of this on the AROC Forum at the moment from last weekends Cadwell meeting). A technical write up on prepping a car for a season would be interesting. Do most of the 33s race under the 'breakaway' AR series? Unlikely to have much coverage within AROC if so... Just a few thoughts! |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 8:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Cheers folks
I had pretty much thought this was the case! I will probably get more useful help advice and tips from you guys truth be known! Many thanks Gav |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 8:24 pm Post subject: |
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| This is my 1st year (in 11years) I have not subscribed, not enough of the motorsport section to warrant the annual fee and a real lack of 33 interests (except Paul's contribution), as much as I like other models the 33 is obviously the one I'm fondest of , the lack of good 33 stories and technical info somehow gives me the impression of snobbery still exists against our working mans Alfa, guess thats why we are thin on the ground now.
Like John has said I also prefer to read pratical classic/retro type mags if they grab my attention with big colour pictures of shiny shiny engines and stuff. Just my very small opinion. |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 4:02 pm Post subject: |
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| What benefits are there?
I am organising a track day at Brands Hatch in July, can we get discount? |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 8:49 am Post subject: |
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| If you think about it in purely monetary terms it works out at around 76p a week.
I have in the past used some of the benefits and I also like the mag (especially Mr Hides wonderful articles), so for me its just about worth it. |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 7:34 am Post subject: |
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| I haven't renewed this year as it hasn't represented sufficient value for me- but that is a personal thing perhaps.
I've enjoyed the bi-monthly mags but not enough to make it worthwhile for me. I'd rather buy the odd 'classic and sportscar' or motorbike mag when i see one that looks interesting. I've not used any discounts that membership may provide- if you can then it becomes worthwhile. John |
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| Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 3:19 am Post subject: Aroc is it worth the membership fee? |
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| Can anyone answer this question as I am thinking this could come out of my Alfa project savings fund!
Cheers gav |
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