Entry Fee for Beaumiont TX National Show ???

[hopeto1]

After going to poniesinthepark.com to register for next years national show in Beaumont I stopped dead in my tracks.
$75 with NO early or MCA member discount?? Really guys?
To compare: this years Grand National in Mustang, OK is $60 with a $10 discount for MCA members.
So Beaumont needs to be 50% higher??
Is the cost of your facility out of line?
I also noticed that a vendor space was $50? Someone that's attending to promote/sell a product should be able to pay their fair share. It takes the teamwork of the show organiser, car owners and vendors to put on a successful show
I understand shows are expensive to produce, but the cart needs to be pulled appropriately.
Perhaps hiring someone on a commission basis to sell sponsorships/advertising/vendor space, etc would help bring down your net cost.
My opinion is that your putting too much of the burden of pulling the cart on the car owner.
Just my 2 cents - carry on.

[jacostang]

Thats Crazy for a show $75, unless it includes an event shirt and dinner for you and a companion... WOW!

[b17drvr]

I let the club know about your concerns.

[Todd Q]

My name is Todd Quick. I am the Regional Director for Wild Horse Mustang Club in Beaumont, TX and Show Chairman for Ponies in the Park. I would like to provide some feedback to the message posted regarding our upcoming National show in 2013.

The MCA National Show committee proposed, and the MCA Board of Directors voted to approve changes to the National Show Guidelines (Rules by which National shows are operated) last October, becoming effective with the first show of 2013, which just happens to be ours.

One new requirement is that all show participants must be preregistered. There is no longer "Day of Show" sign up anymore, unless one opts for the Display Only class. Since all judged entries must be preregistered starting in 2013, that negates a preregistration discount which has been the norm until now. Also, new for 2013, to be in any judged class you must also be an MCA member, so with that requirement, MCA discount on registration no longer applies. Mr. Steve Prewitt, MCA President, wrote a very good article in Mustang Times outlining why these changes were made several months back. Also, fire extinguishers will be mandatory for each car in order to be on the show field.
So it is a bit of apples and oranges to be comparing any 2012 show to a 2013 show, as these are now operating with 2 different sets of criteria that must be met. As our Show Committee plans this event, we are all working hard to build in as much value for all participants in order to make this a great show to attend.

[aroth28]

Thats Crazy for a show $75, unless it includes an event shirt and dinner for you and a companion... WOW!

So for $75 you should get into the show ($25) a trophy ($10) Tshirt ($20) and dinner for 2 ($50).

You honestly have no idea what it takes to produce a top tier event.

$75 pfffftt! Do you expect the local club to have a loss? Attend one of the Shelby 50th anniversary events hosted by the local regions. In most cases $75 is the LOW end of admission.

Heck it costs $100 buck a day to go to Disney world AND costs $15 bucks a day just to park there.

Carlisle Ford nationals: $ 50 per car, $40 for trailer parking = $90

I'll gladly take $75 without complaining.

[flclassics]

While our registration is not out there yet, for the 2013 MCA Grand National Show, Mustangs at the Mickyard, I know that we are going to run into the same issues. It is going to be even more difficult for our show, since we have all of the fees at The Walt Disney World Speedway and the various Disney World requirments that we will have to meet. Most MCA members have no idea the costs that required to put on a quaility show, especially at a venue, not just a hotel parking lot. With the new rules governing the shows, there just cannot be anymore discounts for the members.

[aroth28]

While our registration is not out there yet, for the MCA Grand National Show, Mustangs at the Mickyard, I know that we are going to run into the same issues. It is going to be even more difficult for our show, since we have all of the fees at The Walt Disney World Speedway and the various Disney World requirments that we will have to meet. Most MCA members have no idea the costs that required to put on a quaility show, especially at a venue, not just a hotel parking lot. With the new rules governing the shows, there just cannot be anymore discounts for the members.

I completely understand. I was one of the primary event coordinators for the Shelby 50th event held at Carlisle, PA this year. We had 391 Shelbys alone on top of 2700 other Fords. The registration fees were $200 per person - $300 per couple. We also were heavily sponsored and yet even with the registration fees we were in the red. At a Venue like WDW where it's 115 per day just to park and enter a single park I can't imagine the budget needed.

What confuses me is how someone can spend thousands of dollars in travel costs, hotels, food, shirts, etc. in attending the show and then complain about an extra $25 or $50 in admission fees which includes trailer parking among other things.

Good Luck with the show, we are looking forward to it!

[hopeto1]

I am aware of those changes. It is completely apples to apples to compare a 2012 show cost to a 2013 show cost. I'm a member of MCA and preregistered for the 2012 Grand National - it cost me $50. I am still a member of MCA and am trying to preregister - my cost will be $75!!! You can't get any more apples to apples than that. Just because it wasn't required in 2012 and it is in 2013 doesn't change the fact that I meeting the same criteria and my cost is 50% higher. Whether it's a "new requirement" or an "option" (as it was in 2012), it's still the same guidelines being met with a 50% higher cost. I can't believe you would state it's "apples to oranges". Pretty simple - it is costing me $50 to register/attend the 2012 Grand National and it will cost me $75 if I choose to attend your show.
I'll bring up my point again that expenses need to be shared more equitably and you need to find a way to bring your net cost down instead of just passing it along to the car owners.
Thank you for your time.
Respectfully, Jimmy Austin

[hopeto1]

" Most MCA members have no idea the costs that required to put on a quaility show, especially at a venue, not just a hotel parking lot."

Try to make sure of your target before you shoot.

My point is to try and share the load more equitably. More income needs to come from commercial vendors, sponsorships, etc. You will meet a price point resistance from the car owner.

[FastDad]

" Most MCA members have no idea the costs that required to put on a quaility show, especially at a venue, not just a hotel parking lot."

....and evidently neither did the MCA Board of Directors. Welcome to a direct effect of the rule change discouraging non-MCA members from entering MCA national-level events. Like it or not those non-MCA "freeloaders" (as some are calling them), fattened up the attendance figures and in effect, allowed the entry fees to be lowered for the MCA members.

When you make a significant change to a system, you should carefully examine ALL the direct and indirect effects of that change before implementing it. Systems Engineering 101