MCA tips on how to put on a car show

[mustang_fan]

I would like to hear from the MCA veterans who would have input on helping out regional clubs with having a car show. With new regional clubs forming, maybe MCA could help them with a checklist on how to have a regional club show which could lead into maybe one day hosting a national show. This would be a good tool to give to newly chartered regional mustang clubs. What do you think?

[JoyceE]

There's already a lot of information on this website on how to host both a Regional and National show.
Some of it takes a little digging, but it's here.
If you're doing a Regional show and nat a National, just modify the guidelines to suit your club.
Here are few of the links I found that might be useful to a regional club.

http://www.mustang.org/content.php/2...how-Guidelines

http://www.mustang.org/content.php/119-about-mca

http://www.mustang.org/content.php/1...Judging-Sheets

Good luck,
Joyce

[probkauz]

Attending someone else's show is always helpful, talking to the organizers, seeing what they are doing and how it's run.

[carlite65]

recommend you locate & talk to chuck brenner of the central illinois mustang club. thay had one of the best organized shows ever.

[probkauz]

I know the Virginia Beach show committee last year did a great job too. We are in the planning stages for the 2012 Grand National, would be happy to help if you have questions. We have put on a few shows in Mustang, OK, and other than the heat, lol, they went off well.

[57158]

Bobby,

Here is sort of a checklist of considerations for hosting a car show. This is not a comprehensive list so others feel free to chime in.

1. Pick a charity for the event

Decide on a charity to support with the event, name recognition is helpful in securing sponsorship. Cancer, hospice, or kids related charities will get instant recognition from sympathetic sponsors. Make a conscious decision to support local or national organizations. If your club is not organized as an IRS section 501(c)(3) , then explore coordination with the charity to leverage their designation when approaching sponsors. Many potential sponsors will require a copy of the IRS letter granting 501(c)(3) recognition for their documentation.

2. Format of the show

Decide if you’re hosting a Mustang show, an all Ford show, or an open show. The implications of which include participation, awards, judging, venue, sponsorship etc. You won’t find many GM dealerships interested in sponsoring an all Ford show and likewise not many Ford dealerships will be interested in sponsoring an open show but they may be interested in sponsoring the Ford classes of an open show.

3. Funding

Prepare a realistic budget for the show. Cash outlays for insurance, trophies, t-shirts, dash plaques, facility and equipment rentals, permits, traffic control, etc. must all be considered. Offset these with participant and vendor registration fees and anticipated turnout. Factor in contingencies for weather and its impact on the budget. If your break even budget is based upon 50 registrants and it snows on the evening before your event and only 10 brave souls show up then what? Analyze the budget carefully then decide if you want or need sponsorship from the business community. If you plan to seek sponsors to help defray some or all of the costs, then develop a presentation that offers multiple levels of support. Some that you approach may be willing to sponsor the entire event, others might be interested in sponsoring a class or a specialty class like best paint, others may be willing to donate items that can be raffled off or given away as door prizes.

4. Advertising

Create a show flyer as soon as possible with all the pertinent information about the show and use every means at your disposal to get the word out about the show. Enlist the support of sponsors to help. Many sponsors will require a flyer for their documentation so you’ll need one prepared before soliciting sponsorship.

5. Judging

Decide how judging will be conducted and under what rules. Popular vote, as simple as tallying the forms, top xx same thing, judged classes requires guidelines, training and work. The MCA is available to help out through documented judging rules as well as certification and training programs. The best case is to have MCA certified judges who have participated in judging at a national level to conduct the judging. The reality is that there are few if any members in a single regional club that fit the criteria. If your club is lucky enough to have one then let them lead a judging class before the event to train others. If yours is a new club then you’ll need to find a volunteer to get up to speed with the rules and take on the training task with the emphasis on consistency. You’ll need enough judging volunteers to judge each class as a team. A judging team will need to judge the entire class to keep things consistent. Expect complaints with the results. Your only defense is to have the documentation (judging sheets) where each deduction is identified and documented. Finally, if you have specialty classes try to get a sponsor or a charity spokesperson to do the judging.

6. Venue

a. Location
Consider space not only for participants, but for spectator parking, trailer parking, and foot traffic. Consider entrance and egress paths, proximity to other business and their busy times. Consider water runoff (just in case). Consider access to facilities like electricity, water, restrooms and trash receptacles. Consider any special needs of vendors.

b. Timing
It is not just weather, consideration must also be given to other events in the surrounding area and not only car related. If there is a free Toby Keith concert going on across town on the day of your event, your participation will be affected.

c. Amenities
Will you need to plan on having food and drinks available? If so will this be run by the club, a sponsor, or a vendor?

d. Ancillary Activities
Will there be ancillary activities offered to the participants and/or their families? Will the show be conducted in conjunction with another event such as a street fair or on track event?

7. Insurance

Don’t even consider hosting a show without liability coverage. The MCA is here to help in this regard. You will have to consider your venue and sponsor liability as well. You may need to indemnify them as well as the club. The MCA’s insurer will guide you through this process.

8. Organization

a. Volunteer Army
You will need to identify all of the day of event jobs to be done and line up your volunteers. Assign a volunteer to a job and make sure they have what they need to fulfill their assigned duties. Keep in mind that they will need a break once in a while so make sure you have enough backups.

b. Registration & Check-in procedures
Make sure you have enough forms, writing utensils, change, placards, and volunteers to handle the rush when twenty cars show up at once.

c. Layout & parking
Layout the parking for the show field and make sure you’re parking volunteers know the layout and scheme to expedite getting everyone in place. The judging can be greatly simplified by parking classes together. This is a noble concept that never works out because friends in different classes want to park together. Be courteous and accommodative to your paying guests who are supporting your cause and want to join with you in having a little fun.

d. Judging tally
When the judging is over you will need volunteers to tally the results, arm them with calculators, judging sheets and registration forms for this task.

e. Awards ceremony
Be prompt. If you advertise awards begin at 2pm then start on time. Be sure to thank everyone involved and mention the charity being supported.

f. Clean up
After the show and all the participants have left, organize the volunteers to make sure the venue is as you found it.

[probkauz]

Good work, Phil, very good examples.

[mustang_fan]

Phil that is a great checklist! I guess what my point is can we get MCA to make up something like this for every regional club when they get their charter from MCA rather than digging aroung a website trying to find things that would apply to them.... Is MCA trying to be the focal point for evrything mustang? Lets make the regional clubs feel welcome. I dont think this would be that hard to make a checklist like what Phil had made up and make it available here on the website for the regional directors to be able to print up. I still feel when a regional club gets their charter this should be in a welcoming packet from MCA.... Phil the club I belong too club will be hosting its first car show this weekend. I learned from the other regional clubs in the area by going to their shows. It is still a major under taking that could be a litlle easier if a tool like what you put together could be available. Thanks again!

[MrFarmdog]

Great post Phil! Lots of info!

[mustang_fan]

So is MCA going take this info Phil put out and make it a checklist like I suggested or should I just quit trying to be involved with MCA?