Let's Discuss The 2023 Show - In Detail

This thread is to start very detailed discussions regarding the 2023 show & swap meet.  And amoung other things we need to discuss what classes we have, who does the voting, manpower leading up to and during the show, and when we have the show.

Classes: Traditionally we've had 6 classes that cross all years: Best Paint; Best Engine; Closest To Stock; Best Upgrades; People's Favorite; & Farthest Driven.  But it has been suggested that since we are a Bullnose forum that we segregate things differently.  My concern with that is with only 37 entries this year we wouldn't have had enough to do that, but perhaps I'm missing something?  And, by the way, of the 37 we had 5 of the 1961-66 generation; 8 of the 1967-72; 7 of the 1973-79; and 7 Bullnose.

Voting: Also traditionally we've let everyone that comes into the show vote.  In other words, even kids and adults that don't know a Ford from a Chevy get to vote.  And some of the ballots have been "straight ticket" with the same truck getting votes for every category.  Should we change?
 If so, to what?  How are other shows run?

Manpower: Heretofore I've done essentially everything to get ready for the show, and then people who show up volunteer for the various tasks, like setup, photography, admittance, etc.  But if we are going to make this grow it would help if others would undertake certain aspects of the show.  And the people doing some of these tasks wouldn't even have to come to the show.  For instance there's contacting vendors and getting the freebies, certificates, etc.  And there's advertising, which includes Facebook, forums, etc.  What else can you think of?  Anyone willing to take on one of those tasks?

When: We've done two polls, shown below, and the 2nd week after Labor Day has won in both of them.  Having said that, you'll notice that I didn't vote in either of the polls, and one reason is that Janey and I've traditionally taken off on some kind of a trip about the 2nd weekend after Labor Day.
 So while that appears to be the date most want, we will have to develop our plans for next year before I can commit to that.

Anyway, please chime in, regardless of whether or not you think you can attend.  I'd like to get as much input as possible, and it is likely that I've not even thought about all of the topics to discuss.

Hi Gary,

Maybe am I much too enthusiast, but I cannot keep my idea bouncing under my scalp without sharing it.

I understand that probably more than 97% of the members are living in Continental US.  But looking at the members map, I also see that a huge proportion are based all round and at four corners of USA.  In fact, these friends are as far as I am from the Show.

Next one will go on 2023...  I understand that James Kirk will born 210 years ahead, but some technological tools are already here with us.  Is it crazy to imagine that a part of the Show could be streamed over the web?  Don't know, maybe the prizes section, couple of minutes this kind.

And — why not, let's wander some more!  — maybe a kind of Zoom or Teams link that would enable each of us to log in and discuss in a "real" Ford Lounge, for half an hour?

Now, let's talk about the date.  The US Labor Day is always the same date, no matter if in the week or the weekend.
So, if my foolish idea is gaining ground, the Show should be on a weekend, to enable most of us to participate, since couple of "non-US" members are probably working on the Labor Day.

OK, the seed is planted, now let's see what will happen.


Ciao!

Well, finally someone has responded.  Thanks!  Let me see if I can respond to your suggestions, Jeff:

Video: This could be done via Zoom, but more likely would be Facebook Live. We could do that, assuming that we have someone that is willing to do that.  I've been so busy at the shows that I frequently don't get to eat.  So we will have to have someone willing to do it.  And if we have then we could do whatever we wanted.

And we could do two different things.  One, the dinner the night before, which is mainly for forum members, could be set up for just "us".  But then on the day of the show we could make that open to all.

Date: The show is always on a Saturday, not Monday.  So when we say "Labor Day" we really mean the Saturday of that weekend.

Gary Lewis wrote

And we could do two different things.  One, the dinner the night before, which is mainly for forum members, could be set up for just "us".  But then on the day of the show we could make that open to all.

Gary,

This would be very cool during the dinner. I use MS Teams for online meetings almost every day of the work week, and find it easy to use. I think the most we've ever had on a meeting was 12 or so. I could probably set that up as all it involves is sending email invites. If you had a laptop or computer screen with a camera near the table or wherever you're having dinner, some of us could join in remotely. If you're interested that is. I could even get some BBQ take-out and eat along with you guys;).

As for something during the show, I don't know how that would work, so I can't comment there, but if you wanted to do something during the dinner I'm sure I could administer that for a few forum members.

That sounds good, Cory!  I'll take you up on that.

But do they need to be on a Windows device to use Teams?

Gary, sorry for the late response.....busy on my end.

Be advised Gary, the virtual stuff is just one more thing that you most likely will have to do and we are trying to reduce that. If you can't find someone to do it, are you sure you want to mess with it?

BTW, I have offered to take photos and will gladly do that.  

I'm at work now, but will post my thoughts on the other things later.  

Gary Lewis wrote

That sounds good, Cory!  I'll take you up on that.

But do they need to be on a Windows device to use Teams?

I don't think so Gary. I also use Teams on my Samsung S51 work phone, and I just checked and I see I have the Teams app installed on my iPhone XR as well, although I don't think I've used it on my iPhone. I usually use it on my PC laptop in my office, but I have used the Samsung phone on occasion, and some of my coworkers do the meetings on their phones all the time. I'll try to test it on my iPhone sometime soon and see if it works OK.

Just throwing it out there as an option at least. A virtual meeting is easy enough to set up. All it requires is emails to send invites to, and then people join in at the set time.

We've been using it since just before the pandemic for meetings and training, etc. As long as everybody has a decent internet connection, it works fine.

Cory - That sounds good.  

John - Cory has volunteered to do the video bit on the dinner, although we'll have to set up something like this laptop for our end.  As for a Facebook Live event for the show, if we could get someone to walk around with a phone to show all of the trucks that would do the trick.  But I can't commit to doing that as I seem to be consumed, timewise, at the shows.

Gary it won't let me vote

Are you trying to vote in this thread?  Those are just pics.  Go to Round Two: When Should The Truck Show Be In 2023?

And on the subject of free stuff for the show, we really do need several people to work on this.  Apparently there are lots of places that will contribute.  For instance, I just found this on Eaton Springs: Free Stuff For Car Shows.