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Kudos, sorta...

indygt

67-year-old Teenager
This is my 13th 'MOA International Rally since 1986 and I congratulate the organizers on the best-paced, most concise Saturday evening awards program I've ever attended. Yeah, the P.A. system left much to be desired, but they spread the prize drawings out to keep things interesting, spared us the usual inside jokes, the excruciating skits and other annoyances and got us in and out in about an hour.
But riding home to Indiana this morning, I realized it didn't feel like I'd been to a rally. The usual rally experience eluded me this time because the venues were so spread out.
It was a brave experiment to try an urban setting like Charleston. The local folks, especially the police, were exemplary in their friendliness and hospitality. It was also clear that they noticed we were spending a lot of money - a guy at the Ritz Photo store in the mall across from the Civic Center said their rally sales were comparable to an entire Christmas season and they were selling tons of high-end digital cameras to BMW folks.
But the cheers and applause for the announced return to a conventional rally setting in Spokane next year confirmed my belief that a lot of us like our rallies all in one place - not spread out. The sense of community is a powerful draw for a rally and it was seriously compromised by Charleston's multiple venues. It was my wife's first 'MOA International Rally and she was very disappointed and kept asking me what the big deal was about these events. All I could say was, "This one is different. I'll show you how they're supposed to be next year in Spokane."
 
I agree with IndyGT completely. It was an interesting experiment, but having the vendors and closing ceremony geographically separate from the beer tent/camping/music didn't work out too well. On the other hand, I did not mind the rainy nights while lounging comfortably at the Embassy Suites...


Having lived in WV some years back, I was glad to see so many people dropping some significant cash into an economy that needs it desperately.

Looking forward to Spokane next year. One suggestion I would make is that they have a professional do the awards ceremony. Surely among all the attendees there has to be a radio or television person...somebody with some personality, and a lot more patience with a crowd that could not hear a word of what was going on.

Uber :clap
 
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UberXY said:
One suggestion I would make is that they have a professional do the awards ceremony. Surely among all the attendees there has to be a radio or televison person...somebody with a little personality, and a lot more patience with a crowd that could not hear a word of what was going on.

Not a bad idea. I wonder what it would take to get one of those Speed Channel guys or a Moto Mag guy to do it.

MarkF
 
Rally Review

UberXY said:
I agree with IndyGT completely. It was an interesting experiment, but having the vendors and closing ceremony geographically separate from the beer tent/camping/music didn't work out too well. On the other hand, I did not mind the rainy nights while lounging comfortably at the Embassy Suites...
(SNIP)
One suggestion I would make is that they have a professional do the awards ceremony. Surely among all the attendees there has to be a radio or televison person...somebody with a little personality, and a lot more patience with a crowd that could not hear a word of what was going on.

Uber :clap

I liked the West Virginia site for its warm friendly people, and great natural beauty.This is the first time I did not go to the beer garden and I therefore missed seeing the campers (my fault). I found the weather less than ideal, but that is a variable that really can't be planned a year in advance.

With the rainy weather and heat when it didn't rain, I thought it was great to visit the vendors in the comfort of air conditioning. On that basis, I would say that the Charleston site was superior in that respect. I have to admit that I liked the rallys in Trenton, Ontario and Redmond, Oregon better because of the central location for all.

I am glad we had this type of rally because it was a bit different. If I were asked to vote however, I would vote to return to traditional types of locations.

There is something that I wish to express here. There was plenty of evidence of planning and hard work in the Charleston rally. I want to thank everyone who participated in making the rally an enjoyable experience this year. I am certain there are plenty of things to gripe about if you want, but I saw a lot of thoughtful planning that went into this years rally.

The PA system at the closing ceremony was bad but the persons using the mikes did the best they could with what they had. I too am glad the ceremoney length was reduced.

See you all again in Spokane, Washington
 
Re: Rally Review

aperris said:
There is something that I wish to express here. There was plenty of evidence of planning and hard work in the Charleston rally. I want to thank everyone who participated in making the rally an enjoyable experience this year. I am certain there are plenty of things to gripe about if you want, but I saw a lot of thoughtful planning that went into this years rally.

Amen to that. There is no doubt that a lot of hard work went into this Rally.

Uber
R11S
 
I agree. This rally felt kinda like the Honda Hoot, and I really didn't have much fun there. I live in a big, urban area to begin with. For vacation, I like to get away from all of that. Although it's impossible to do anything about the weather, I can't help but feel that I would've had a lot more fun DESPITE the weather if everything were in one place. Having to travel for MILES to attend a seminar or some other activity was certainly discouraged by the uncertainty of the weather. I know there were free shuttles available but hey... I ride a motorcycle, not a bus.

We were kidding around that if they want to do rallies in big cities, then lets have the 2005 Rally in New York's Central Park! Plenty of camping space in the Sheep Meadow, lots of room for vendor tents and what not... and the GS riders would have their hand full navigating New York's pot-hole ridden streets!!
 
My .02

Thanks to the folks that put in all the hard work and took a lot of heat from the disgruntled. I camped on campus. It was great having HOT showers and snacks avilable 24-3. The staff at the university was great. The road were awesome. The entertainment was top notch and I hope that future rallies have the same caliber bands.

Some consideration should be given to locating 7 or 8 great sites in various parts of the country and sticking to them. As a midwesterner, I suggest that 2/3 to 3/4 of the rallies be east of the Rockies where the predominance of the membership lives. It's tough getting two consecutive weeks in July to travel to the west coast. Besides, I hate riding through the Great Plaines

Despite the weather I had a great time and will do my best to secure the vacation time so I can join you all next July in Spokane.

That's my opinion. I could be wrong.
 
Re: Charleston and Kudos

This rally was different and the multiple site made it somewhat problematic to see / do everything that that I had planned. However,........out of the three rallys that I've attended it was the friendliest. I'm not just talking about the attendees but the locals and business owners. I had more positive contacts with locals than at the other two rallys combined. They seemed to be really glad that we were there.
It is surely a matter of preference and I enjoy the wide open spaces for riding as much as the next person but travel has always meant to me an opportunity to meet new and interesting people as well as seeing the best that nature has to offer. In that respect I feel that this rally was a roaring success.
I also met and had a chance to interract with more riders / attendees at Charleston than at my previous rallys.
Can't say I would want to attend an urban rally often but it seemed like a nice change of pace.

Rick
 
As a group we don't do new things well. Remember the mid week rallies. They were the best of both worlds for me. I would like to see more of them but they didn't go well with others.

I think the multivenue rally was a daring experiment. I am glad I could be part of it, but will be happy to go to Spokane next year for a return to a traditional foremat.

WV was a great ride for this midwesterner. My tires have more wear on the sidewalls then ever before.
 
rally experience

I spent my time at my very first rally riding some of the best roads to be found....try Northern Kentucky from Olive Hill to Vanceburg on 59 then hop on 10 west for a real treat.

Southern Ohio was equally wonderful. Wayne and Gallia County are full of roads that will amaze and delight....lots of gravel for the GS crowd.

The urban venue was disappointing. The vendor spacing and accomodations were top flight and I'm sure they did record biz.
 
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