Subject: MOG 2010 - The final chapterTo all Centre Secretaries
I should be pleased if you would pass on the following to your members.
It may seem when the next issue of Miscellany drops through your letterbox that the comments in my column about MOG 2010 are somewhat bland. This is because in order to meet the copy deadline they were written a few days before the start of the event!
Now that it is over I have time to reflect on the occasion and collect my thoughts. There is probably little doubt that at least 1,000 members attended the event at some time during the weekend and much will have gone on that I was not aware of. Therefore, I should be pleased to hear what you got up to, what you liked and what, if anything, might have been done differently. The best medium for this might be within the pages of Miscellany so please write to Charles Neal (cc Brian Downing). We also need your photographs. I took my camera but it never came out of the box since I was preoccupied with other things!
What follows is my personal account of the event and since I was mostly based in the town forgive me if my comments do not embrace all that was arranged for you. Let me say from the onset however, that I am very very grateful to all those members, traders, dealers, sponsors and local services who have assisted me in any way, shape or form both during the period leading up to the commencement of the event and during the entire weekend. Without them it would not have been possible. I was especially gratified by the willingness of members to give me a hand at very short notice. Take for example, Sunday morning when it was brought to my attention that we needed a marshal on the gate at the hotel to relieve a member who had been on post for some time. When I asked for help and said "just for half an hour" and meant it, the response was without hesitation. During a period from 10.30 am to 3.30 pm the gate was manned in succession by 10 members (all from different centres throughout the country) each doing the requested half an hour. I am so proud of you; thank you very much indeed.
We were blessed with reasonable weather (for June) and it got better as the event progressed, culminating in a glorious summers day on Sunday. Someone said to me that if the weather had been awful and the staff at the chosen sites for the events had been indifferent you might have been calling for my head by now. However, with particular reference to the Barceló Palace Hotel the staff without exception were exemplary, efficient, hard working and exceedingly pleasant; nothing was too much trouble. I know that there was some apprehension amongst the staff but that melted within minutes of our arrival so thank you to all who visited the hotel for the manner in which you conducted yourselves. Yesterday morning I had a debrief with the hotel management and complemented them for their contribution to the success of the event. I will also be writing to express our appreciation to the head of the Barceló Group.
I managed to visit the Pavilion Gardens site briefly on Saturday and Sunday and particularly on Saturday afternoon there was quite a buzz about the place; the sun shone, the bands played well, the car displays looked magnificent and the public were entranced. Some feedback already from members has been that the opportunity for the club and the public to mingle was particularly good. For those events in the town there was a lot of interaction with local people and unsuspecting tourists, many of whom will now have a much better idea of what Morganeering is all about.
Before the event there was much banter on Mogtalk about the Concours competition and it was just that; banter. The rationale was of course to raise the profile of the competition which has sadly not had the support it deserves in recent years from our members. It is not good to hold a competition that has more trophies than the number of competitors! This is a shame and has been a disappointment when you consider that Morgan Insurance Consultants (a trading name of Headley Insurance Services Limited) has over the years donated many fine items of silverware to the Club for the Concours competition. In the thick of it during the weekend, much to my surprise, 5 of these were handed back to me but where are the other 4 trophies? We really need to get our act together for the future and save your Chairman the embarrassment of being in a discussion with the donor, unable to say how many trophies we have and why they are not on display. This is not a reflection on my team this year who did a magnificent job; they were as much in the dark as I was. So, if you know the whereabouts of the Three-Wheeler trophy, the Flat rad trophy, The Overall Concours Winner trophy and the Aero trophy please get in contact with me. Next year I will ensure that it is understood by the person responsible for the competition that he must take control and responsibility for the return of these trophies on time before MOG 2011. An arrangement that places reliance on its members to return them is just not acceptable. Our Awards Secretary leads by example and we should follow his practice.
I also managed to get up to the Gymkhana site on Saturday afternoon and cannot thank the organising team and marshals enough for their dedication in standing at post all day in severe weather conditions. Fortunately, that was an event that was strongly supported. Well done to them. Yesterday, on my way home I called in at the Bull i' th' Thorn and spoke to the landlord. Whilst disappointed at the number of members who camped on his site this was more than made up for by the numbers that called in for lunch and refreshments.
Talking of camping, on my way back into town after visiting the Gymkhana I called in at the Lime Tree Park camping and caravan site. By all accounts this was a very well chosen site and the owners and staff could not have been more helpful and accommodating. For once the Club appears to have got that right!
Friday afternoon was hectic; perhaps the pinch point of the entire weekend and at one stage I was dealing with query after query so having one of the Club's two way radios was invaluable and giving one to the duty manager at the hotel a very good idea. I think I was able to resolve most queries that came my way to everyone's satisfaction but considered it impolite to break off from dealing with one member's query to deal with that for another member. At one point I was approached by a member with a query and informed them that I would return within a few minutes to deal with it if they would care to wait, but first I must satisfy the query from the member I was currently dealing with. I did indeed return within a few minutes but the member had not waited. I am therefore sorry I could not respond to your query, but if you did not have the patience to wait there was little I could do for you.
The entertainment got off to a good start on Friday night at the Barceló Palace Hotel; the buffet service was first class, quick and efficient, there appeared to be more than sufficient food and the band played quietly to get us in the mood. When the barn dance proper was about to commence I had little doubt that Jean would drag me onto the dance floor to "lead by example." I was therefore staggered when within minutes of the first dance being announced you could not move on the dance floor; we were packed in like sardines and so it continued for the rest of the night.
Now, thank you to all those members who removed the flower vases from the tables on Friday night for safekeeping. However out of the 28 in use, 10 of them have not yet been returned. As these are Club property we want them back so if you know where they are please let me know so that we can arrange to get them to Cecile Povey, anonymously or otherwise. She put a lot of time and effort into acquiring these and getting them painted up to compliment the flower arrangements and we need them back for future use. I really do not want have to write to those members who took them but will do so if we do not get them back within a reasonable time.
The Saturday evening event at the Barceló Palace Hotel also went with a swing, with the dance floor being packed out for 3 hours solid from when the band started at 10 pm. Never have I seen so many people up dancing for so long and at one stage everyone in the room seemed to be dancing; not just those on the dance floor but everywhere I looked in the room. Wow, it was exhausting, especially to finish off with a couple of high energy Rolling Stones numbers!
Sunday was the best day for weather and those of you who came up to the Barceló Palace Hotel had a treat. We had fine weather and excellent entertainment. The fun and games competition was especially good, although not perhaps if you were on the receiving end of a wet sponge! The jazz band were, in my view, spot on and looked to be enjoying themselves as much as we were enjoying being entertained. I did not quite know what to expect of the Shrug Ladies but as they came on recommendation from Jim Kirby (member of Revival, the Saturday night band) I had no hesitation in asking one of my team to book them. I was bemused at first as my initial meeting with them was in the foyer of the hotel. As they were already in character I could not quite get comfortable with the fact that I was speaking and they were writing down their response on chalk boards. They were great.
I approached planning of the event in the same manner that I conducted my working life. So it was pleasing to receive an email from a member who noted the meticulous attention to detail that had gone on. One aspect of this detail was to ask Thornbridge Brewery, supplier of the real ale, to produce pump clips for display with the casks. You may have seen them on Friday night and I thank the member who, off his own bat, took them into safekeeping for me at the end of the night. However, as these have not been seen again I am very disappointed that my efforts and that of the brewery have been wasted. Although this might seem like a small point it was all part of trying to create a very professional and quality event. Had the brewer known, I feel he might have been incensed to know that for the whole of Saturday until Sunday lunchtime many people might not have known whose ale they were drinking. I did my best to address this by rushing off my own version of a pump clip so at least the brewers name reappeared with the casks. If you have these pump clips perhaps you might like to write to me and the brewery with an apology and explanation for your actions and your oversight. Please also return the pump clips. If anyone else knows where they are I should be pleased to hear from you.
Finally, the raffle was an enormous success in that it has raised potentially about £500 of profit that the Club can donate to WaterAid. I use the word potentially since we still have a supply of greeting cards for sale which I have factored into my profit estimation. If you wish to purchase any of these greetings cards please contact David Evans. Thank you for your generosity.
Once again thank you for your support.
Regards
Brian Lee
Chairman
The Morgan Sports Car Club Limited
Tel: +44 (0) 1246 237778
Website:
www.mscc.uk.com 
