Dear friends,
I have been off the lists for several weeks (driving cross-country in
LBCs mostly), and now that I am back on the lists I would like to offer
a few comments and perhaps some clarifications relative to this thread.
First of all, I was a bit surprised at the mean-spirited tone of a
couple of the comments that started this thread. That is really a
departure for this list which has always been very courteous, positive
and constructive. Also, as any "writer" should know, if you want your
audience to get your message, you really ought to avoid distracting them
with a bitter, intolerant tone.
And you know, it's interesting. We have received scores of nice
comments and messages of appreciation via e-mail, phone and mail for the
unsurpassed job that Greg Kaufman is doing as editor of Austin-Healey
Magazine. Of course, those compliments were sent directly to him (or in
some cases, to me) only, but when someone has a complaint, naturally
they blast the entire list! Just for the record, the ratio of
compliments-to-complaints about the recent changes to Austin-Healey
Magazine is running roughly 500:1.
Now then, to respond to a few specific comments:
What's the big deal, anyway? So our mag and Chatter ran the same
article. Big deal. It has happened before, several times. In fact, for
a while a few years ago, the editors were even coordinating the
deliberate sharing of articles. I don't recall that practice ever
resulting in any complaints about duplicating material. This is a real
"non-issue." No harm was done. You must have more important things to
worry about. If someone sends an article to both mags, the other editor
will not know that it has also been sent to the other mag. So they both
run it. The sky ain't falling.
Regarding "social coverage," if you'll notice, the social coverage in
Austin-Healey Magazine is very minimal; in fact, it's almost
nonexistant. That is by design. This has been a principle that I
insist upon. 95+ percent of the club's members never attend any type of
"club activity," and we are well aware that the vast majority is not
really interested in that type of article. The problem is (or at least
it can be) that clubs are usually run by the active types who ARE into
the social aspects. The club publication of such an organization will
often therefore naturally reflect what interests that tiny minority of
socialites (to the detriment of the desires of the vast majority). This
is something that I believe we have corrected within the AHCUSA/AH Mag.
We strive to present material that is of _general interest_ so as to
appeal to any Healey enthusiast anywhere, and we try to avoid material
that would be of interest to only a small clique.
Regarding Sprite material, we'll print all the quality Sprite material
you can provide! We go out of our way to try to get it, but it is hard
to come by. Sprite enthusiasts take note: *We want your
contributions!* I'm a Sprite owner myself, but you've already read all
about my Sprite, "Chuckles." So please, no more complaints about a lack
of Sprite material...instead, flood us with good Sprite material and it
will be printed for the enjoyment of all!
Regarding the lionization of the Healey family, we do not lionize Healey
family members in AH Magazine. Naturally, Donald Healey will
occasionally be included in our mag because he was, after all, the
creator of our cars and we do like to run historical material which does
appeal to many members. If you notice, in our June issue I mentioned
him within an article about a visit I made to the site of the former
Donald Healey Motor Company, all within the context of marking the 100th
anniversary of Healey's birth. We also ran a short article from John
Wheatley about him. I think you'll agree that that was extremely
minimal coverage when you consider that it is Healey's centenary. (I
even mentioned in my June issue column that the club is about the cars,
not about the Healey family.)
Regarding whether the editor is paid, none of the AHCUSA officers are
paid. And none of us have travel allowances. And our business meetings
are conducted by telephone conference call (which ain't free, but it's
about one percent of the cost of flying all of us to one place for a
face-to-face meeting). Our books are open. The mag costs $$$ to print,
then there's postage costs (also $$$), some miscellaneous overhead,
insurance takes a bite (we'd be happy to drop that expense if everyone
would sign an agreement to never sue us...but come to think of it, even
non-members can sue the club, so that won't work), etc.
Someone said that "AHCUSA is a local West Coast Club which has national
membership throughout the world." That used to be true, but it is no
longer correct. We are not a local club anymore. That local/national
conflict was what I called the club's "split personality." But we cured
that. Our club is now an association of individuals, with no chapters,
which is spread all across the country. Fully 30 percent of our members
live in the Eastern Time zone. Members living on the West Coast receive
no more and no less benefit that a member living in Maine or Florida (or
Luxembourg or Guam, where we also have members).
My friends, the AHCUSA is operated by a few Healey enthusiasts, just
like you. We put in more hours than most of us care to recall, and I'm
very proud of the quality benefits that this tiny group of part-time
volunteers is able to provide you. Our club mag is on par with many
for-profit publications produced by full-time, paid staffs. Then there
are the other club benefits: the Resource Book, the calendar, the
discount on sales of books and manuals (you can easily save more than
the price of dues if you buy some books through the club), free
classified advertising that reaches an audience that you just can't
reach anywhere but in a club mag, back issues with a wealth of tech
material, and mostly just the contact with kindred spirits.
If you think that club membership is just a subscription, you don't get
it.
If it weren't for our club and others, you very probably would not be
driving a Healey at all anymore. If it were not for the high interest
in the marque that led to the formation of the clubs in the first place,
there would be no one making reproduction parts to keep our cars on the
road. There would be no businesses which specialize in the repair and
restoration of these cars which have not been made in 30 years!
The clubs unite us in a way that allows businesses to reach a target
audience through the club pubs, and therefore makes it economically
feasible to support our cars. We share knowledge via the clubs, and
that has kept our cars on the road. Without the club mags, it just
would never have happened (and this list came along far, far too late to
have saved the Healey from extinction).
There are probably only a few people reading this who remember the dark
days of the 1970s. BMC had ceased making Healeys. They had also ceased
making parts. Spares were drying up. You had to buy a parts car to
keep one on the road. Then you had to buy another parts car.
Cannabalism is not a good way for a breed to stay healthy and to grow.
As I said, I don't make any money at this and so I don't have to say it,
but I believe that if it were not for the clubs, the Austin-Healey would
now be strictly a museum piece (and you probably won't even know of any
other owners...).
The value of the clubs is inestimable in keeping Austin-Healeys on the
road. And forgive me, but I have to say it: if you think twice about
spending a measly $35 for a membership in a club that has done so much,
has made so much difference, which is run by an unpaid all-volunteer
staff, and which delivers such great benefits, then you really can't
afford to run a Healey anyway.
Join the club, pay your share to keep Healeys on the road, or buy a
Miata. Over to you.
Reid Trummel
President, Austin-Healey Club USA
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