mlr1951 Report post Posted August 31, 2012 Is there or will there be a schedule of events and a list of commercial exhibitors available before the rally? This will be our first rally if we decide to attend. Thanks Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oatew Report post Posted September 1, 2012 Thanks, Mike, for your inquiry. If you will go to the Eastern Area website www.easternarea.net you will find the entertainment schedule & a registration form which lists the various activities. As far as scheduled vendors, at this time we don't have a complete list. There will be show coaches as well as a variety of indoor exhibitors. We will also have seminars, both product specific, educational & technical. If you have specifics questions, please contact John & Jayne Reynolds. Their email address is gear2012john@aol.com . Again, thank you for your inquiry. Hope to see you at GEAR 2012, York, PA. Otho Tew Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EaglesNest Report post Posted September 2, 2012 I just signed up yesterday for our first FMCA rally (gear). We are not new to rallies but are new to FMCA rallies. The thing that drives me crazy about these rallies is that you have a minimal amount of information before you arrive. A veteran knows the ropes but someone new knows very little. With Good Sam State rallies we have noticed that if you aren't there for the food when it starts you had better not be there for the last half hour or you won't get any. They start cleaning up in the last 1/2 hour that the food is supposed to be served and aren't very nice to you if you arrive at your destination and are rushing to get parked so you can get there to eat. The times are not posted anywhere before the rally and you only find this out when you receive your packet upon arrival. This doesn't make a good first impression on a first timer. I realize that this is not your organization but it is an example of how nice it would be to have advanced information. I am a planner and I like to know what I might like to participate in so I won't miss out on something that would have been on the top of my list. Things listed for the gear rally that we have no idea about are: Parade Who is in this parade and do we need to bring anything for this? Seminars A list would be nice so you could plan in advance what you might like to participate in Vendors Again a list that could be updated periodically would be nice. Nice to know where I might like to spend our money Motorhome Rodeo What is this and do we need to do anything for this? Coach Displays What brands will be there? Chapter Fair Will this be things for sale, food for sale or raffles, etc? Craft Classes What crafts will be available and at what cost? I am not sure what will be in our confirmation packet when it arrives but this could certainly be posted on this forum and updated weekly or every couple of weeks with no problem. I have yet to figure out why the reluctance to give out this information early. The forum would certainly be at no cost and not really that much maintenance. If new people were informed it might entice more to join in on things that they might be really interested in. I know that you can't put all this info on the registration form but you could add an info line on there to tell people where to go to get the info that they want. People are wondering why the younger generation isn't joining in on the organizations. The "IMAGE" that is portrayed is that these organizations are a bunch of 80 year olds that walk with canes and don't do anything fun that they would be interested in and that they are so set in their ways that they won't relate to the younger crowd. This is not necessarily true but they need to see that there are fun things that they can do and that there are other younger families that they can relate to. Play up these things and show them what you have to offer. Don't be so general in your descriptions. Sometimes detail is what will win them over. Most younger folks still work too and can't necessarily attend these rallies that are mid week. This is not how they want to spend their precious limited vacation time unless you give them something to make it worth it. That makes it harder for them. Older folks are so much more free to do what they want when they want. Just some ideas. Thanks for listening and maybe you can consider implementing some of this. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mlr1951 Report post Posted September 3, 2012 Well said EaglesNest. I'd like to know what's going on before I take off work for several days. We are new to this and would like to attend as many seminars as possible so it would be great to know what they are going to be about so we can plan which ones we want to sign up for if we decide to attend. Someone must have some idea what and who is going to be there. Thanks Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EaglesNest Report post Posted September 6, 2012 Mike If I get any information in the packet and no one else replies to this, I will try to post whatever info that I receive. If you decide to come, you will have to look us up. Sounds like we might have a lot in common with wanting to be in the know.... I have been told that this is a GOOD RALLY, I just hope I am not disappointed. We have been wanting to attend an FMCA rally for some time now. Our Holiday Rambler Admiral will have the Virginia license plate EGL NE5T on it if you happen to run across us. Until the next post....... Joy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EaglesNest Report post Posted September 6, 2012 Mike I just read the 2010 Gear Rally post and it sounds like none of the information that we are looking for will be in the mailed packed but that you get that in your Welcome packet upon arrival. I guess that leaves us out for any pre-rally information that would help with what we want to know. I know more about who is going to be at the Hershey Show next week than I do about the rally that I have paid 10 times more for. It is sad that this forum is not being used to it's full potential for this information. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rossboyer Report post Posted September 6, 2012 I suggest that you send your questions to John Reynolds, National VP - Eastern Area, at jreynolds@fmca.com. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mlr1951 Report post Posted September 8, 2012 Thanks EaglesNest. We decided to sign up and check it out. We live in York County so this is probably the closest rally we will ever have the opportunity to attend. Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EaglesNest Report post Posted September 8, 2012 Mike Good for you. I contacted a friend who has gone to the GEAR rally in Richmond and he said that there are many vendors and Techs that can help with any units problems. He told me to just go because it is a good rally. We will arrive on Tuesday as we will be in Lancaster for the previous weekend and it will be a short trip to rally. Now I just have to get someone to cover me at work. I got three days covered just need to get 2 more. I also sent an email to the guy suggested above. I told him to check out this thread and maybe he could answer some of the questions we had so I keep checking but as of yet still no response. Hope to see you there. Joy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ctcamper Report post Posted September 11, 2012 Hope this helps a little bit. Have a good time and maybe we will see you there Parade: Who is in this parade and do we need to bring anything for this? Parades usually have to do with the theme of the rally itself and chapters of the FMCA will organize and participate. Motorhome Rodeo: What is this and do we need to do anything for this? Sign up when you get there. If it's like the one a year ago Essex they will supply a coach and you take the coach around obstacles or back up to a cone and get as close as you can. Coach Displays: What brands will be there? You never know. Depends on what the dealers that are going to the rally bring to display. Chapter Fair Will this be things for sale, food for sale or raffles, etc? Chapter Fair is where the chapters of FMCA set up tables, supply information about their specific chapter, and try to get you to join up. Craft Classes: What crafts will be available and at what cost? The list will be in the welcome packet you get after arriving along with the list of seminars. Another thing you don't know until you get there as to what is offered. FMCA members offer their time and skills to do a seminar so it varies rally to rally. Cost is usually for materials if they are needed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EaglesNest Report post Posted September 12, 2012 ctcamper Thank you for that much information. It's more than we had before. I don't think I have ever seen a Motorhome Rodeo. Should be interesting. Does anyone have a rig count yet? I sent in $ to include electric and was wondering if we would get it since it is limited to just so many rigs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
