Why is it costing so much to eat at the dragon events why does someone have to pay 75 bucks to setup shop for sell there items. Registration for a public road?, what does that cover for 5 bucks? It almost seems like someone is making a lump sum of green for "hosting" a public road. Should it cost over 20 bucks a person to eat a $5 meal, where is that extra cash going back to the community there or in someones pocket or both. I know some of you people are going to bash me, but to each is own.

 

Your sentiments are understandable, and you are not the first to express them... however I think there are a few factors you (and they) are neglecting to consider. I'll try to answer your points one by one.

The meals at the Dragon are catered meals in a very remote location. The cost of setting up those meals is signficantly higher than in a more densely populated area. It is not a fair comparison to a big city! The meals are optional, so if you find them too expensive for the convenience, everyone is very welcome to drive a good distance to another area in order to dine elsewhere. There are other benefits to attending the big meals too... especially the farewell dinner... but you'll have to attend them to find out.

Setting up as a vendor is a profit venture. If that profit venture is done on the backs of this fine website, not to mention the organizers of the entire event, then some form of compensation is appropriate for all of the effort involved in making the event happen in the first place. That being said, vendor space is free. The $75 is only for a sign up schedule associated with a link in the vendor column.

When did you ever go to a hosted event where you were not charged admission... state fair, car race, convention? The "public road" is only one part of the entire experience. Events, the planning of those events, and the ultimate social experience are equally important reasons why people come. The non-driving events are largely hosted on private property and there is an associated cost, but not a mandatory entry fee. Tell me, if "it's just a public road" makes it seem no big deal to you, then why are you choosing to come on this particular set of dates? Why not come some other time? That being said, organizing an event of this nature places the organizing groups in a potential position of liability, simply due to their involvement. The $5 coverage helps to protect those who are choosing to volunteer their time (I'm referring to ALL involved clubs and other individuals) to make the event a success from potentially frivolous lawsuits, ruining the fun for everyone. Beyond that, the $5 basic registration fee also gets you a program guide and a registration badge, so there is something tangible too. However, we aren't checking badges at the gate, and there is no charge for parking. Pretty good deal in my opinion.

As for the concerns about community involvement, there is a strong tradition of charitable donations coming about as a result of MINIs on the Dragon... and this year is no exception. There are already several charity-related events, and more charitable involvement will soon be announced too.

So you see, it's not as "cut and dried" as it seems at first. Organizing an event for 550 people is nothing to sneeze at... and everyone is always invited to participate and volunteer in their own way, to make the entire weekend better!

I hope I have been able to shed some light on this. I mean no disrespect.

 

Hey trplezero,

I intially shared your thoughts as many of us probably have. I have organized many small trips and vacations for smaller crowds and know how time consuming those were. I can only imagine all the effort and time that goes into running the dragon and the individual events and meals. I not paying $20.00 for a hamburger (it's those darn condiments ), I paying for the opportunity to gather with over 200 people that share a passion like myself for a unique little car. (alright it's "cute"). Just to be in a room and not feel like I'm obsessed about my mini cooper is worth the cost alone! . Like edge said, there's a catering service involved and it's in a remote location, and someone had to step up to the plate and organize and I have no problem with them making a couple of bucks if thats the case. Kinda like going to a concert, the music usually sucks due to acoustics but the atmoshpere more than makes up for the cost of the ticket

 

if anyone brings this up in a negative context (i'm not saying you did) I might have to stab them in the face....


Besides, it's a buffet, not a single burger. I believe that there will be a additional incentive at the Welcome dinner too, in addition to my surprise I concocted for the Farewell dinner.

 

If more people were to think like this, there'd be no more Hard Rock Cafe.

 

If I'm not mistaken. A portion of the cost of registration and the basic registration covers event insurance. I believe this was talked about before last years event.

 

DCMM holds a commercial general liability policy. Part of the registration price goes toward making the events at the Dragon covered by this policy. It provides an extra layer of protection, especially for those organizing events.

Please keep in mind, this insurance does not replace anyone's automobile insurance policy or its coverage. We are all responsible for our actions on the roads.

If anyone wants to get into detail about the policy, feel free to drop me an e mail at president@dcmetrominis.org.

We certainly hope it is something we never have to use.

 

I had a feeling that's what it was...

 

due to the outrageous price of gas, i will be chraging people for rides on the Dragon

 

If anyone brings this up in a negative context I might have to stab them in the face...

 

i've been holding back on making a comment on this.......
.......but coming from you i'm shocked and have nothing to say (speechless)
but i'll bring eye patchs anyway............just in case

 

Good call Kool on charging for rides. Dragon driving does really stab fuel economy! LOL

 

I think I'll be relatively easy to spot at the Welcome dinner. It'll be pretty obvious if you show up for it. (That's all I'm saying).

 

you'll be the guy with the eye patch

 

Trplezero... here's a perfect example .. if you're so concerned about "community involvement" why haven't you looked into my charitable event?.. It's to benefit the American Heart Association. I'm a heart patient and the MINI community also lost Ed "Maxamini" Smith to sudden heart failure last year. It's a good cause. I don't know anyone who hasn't been affected one way or another by heart disease.. either they've lost someone really close to them or they themselves have something..

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=64811

 

No, he'll be the one with a big knife

 

And a custom made Tshirt with a special statement for people like you.

 

and it will be soaked with the blood of my enemies

 

Can't we all just get a long???

Herbert

FYI, For those who want to think the event is too expensive after driving from wherever to the Dragon, bring lots of frozen foods and beverages and stay in the room the whole time. This will keep the cost of the Dragon down.

 

I was actually thinking of going to the local Army/Navy surplus store and picking up a couple MRE's.. that'll hold me over for a couple days

 

We've used the new MRE's several times and they are quite tasty. But then I remember eating c-rats and thought they were good too!!

....Les

 

yeah... problem is they can uhhhh.. how shall I put this.. bind you up..LOL! I'm bringing survivalist bars for the trip (http://cgi.ebay.com/ER-2400-Calorie-...QQcmdZViewItem).. the key to long distance driving (IE: staying awake a long time) is lots of calories.. usually when I drive from NH to FL I eat the survival bars.. they're like 2600 calories... a little pricey, but they work.. you don't nearly as drained or yucky feeling as eating "Mickey D's" and Bk the whole trip.. I figure I'm going to get very little if any sleep that w/e so it'll be time to ramp up on calories...

 

"yeah... problem is they can uhhhh.. how shall I put this.. bind you up..LOL"

Nah, only after a good week or so of straight MREs. Just gotta make sure to up your water intake.

 

True.. sort of.. certain MRE's though were designed to make you NOT go.. I forget which ones, but they are for SEALs and Special Ops types who go out into the field and won't have the opportunity to do the deed.. snipers and people like that benefit from them.. supposedly, they don't even get stomach cramps or nothin..LOL!..

WOW! what a total threadjacking..LOL!..

sorry about that folks!

 

ok.. back on topic... Dragon is quite reasonable in price considering the huge effort people have put into doing this.. you should see the registration fees, etc. for MINIs On Top and that doesn't even include the hotel rooms, etc.. but it's worth it as well.. that's our big event up here in NH... 200 cars to the summit of Mt. Washington.. it's a really fun weekend.. and a great group of people... They even go through the effort every year to get the governor to declare a day in June (this year it's the 18th, I believe), New Hampshire's official MINI Cooper day.. pretty cool proclamation actually... you can read it here http://www.minisontop.com/albums/MOT2005/Proc_Pg2.jpg