2017 Fall Tire Rack Street Survival School

Details

Published: 10 October 2017

Co-hosted by Mahoning Valley SCCA
and Northern Ohio Chapter

The latest northeastern Ohio Tire-Rack Street Survival school will be Sunday, October 29, 2017, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Boardman Park's Southern Boulevard parking lot.

This one-day event give students the keys to safe driving with in-seat and group discussion experience.  For more information see our calendar posting.

A Change of Plans!

Details

Published: 05 October 2017

This summer has proven to be a period of transition and revaluation for a number of our Board members. While we became involved in the Chapter hoping to further the interest and camaraderie in the marque, frequently, and more frequently of late, other obligations demand our attention. Hence, we did not plan a drive for August and cancelled a mid-September tour in Amish country due to lack of registratoin.

Early October finds us threading through Cuyahoga Valley parks to a craft beer bar for a change-up from the traditional brewery visit. We end the driving season in early November with a progressive food-shopping adventure which might help with holiday menus and which includes historic sights and sites. We'll finalize our 2017 Board meetings that month as well. And, as always, we'll end the year with a low-key meet-and-greet social. And, as we transition into 2018, we'll debut a winter go-kart series to keep us off the streets and still "on-track." So, plan on attending one of our remaining 2017 events and look forward to the upcoming year.

Now, that Fourth-Quarter Board Meeting 2017, is a critical one for the Chapter, and, frankly, for all of you members. Elections will take place at that meeting and you have some serious items to consider. I cannot sustain being President, Secretary, Driving Events Coordinator, and Webmaster any longer. That means people have to step up and start taking some responsibility for the Chapter—or we shall not exist. And, I am sorry to say that each one of those positions requires a time commitment as well as a commitment to the policies and procedures not only that the Chapter has but, even more importantly, to the policies and procedures that the National organization requires we follow. Occasionally you might get a thank you for an event or drive well done and enjoyed, but those will be your only visible rewards.

Why does it matter so much? Well, I have heard differing stories over the past 26 years from those not involved in the process as to why we became a separate chapter. Since I was involved in the separation and wrote the majority of the separation proposal, let me set the record straight.

At that time, most of the founding Chapters within BMWCCA were located in metropolitan regions. I believe Buckeye was the first to attempt a statewide entity. In the early 1990s the majority of the leadership resided in the Dayton-Cincinnati area. There were some events in Columbus with the rest concentrated in the southwest quadrant. We were active in the Akron-Cleveland area with local events. However, we still had quarterly board meetings in Columbus and had to do quarterly reporting to an executive committee. We felt that having local governance with a direct line of responsibility to National and being committed to local members and events was a better fit for our constituents. Additionally, it meant that we could hold quarterly board meetings in a centralized area of northeastern Ohio during approximately two hours, rather than commit to a 14- or 16-hour day traveling to Columbus four times per year to discuss issues which sometimes held no interest for us or our members. Bottom line: We thought local governance and local focus better suited northeastern Ohio members.

However, we have to make the effort to keep it local and to keep it active and viable. Or, yes, we go backwards in time. Yes, things change and cooperative events with other areas can be considered in the future; however, having been in an alternative governance structure, I still strongly believe local management with a voice straight to National is a better service to our membership. So, consider stepping up to support the organization which has served you for the past quarter century. Details of the position requirements for Board members and officers will be available on the web site in short order. Contact me if you have questions.

I WANT YOU

Details

Published: 21 April 2017

 With acknowledgement to James Montgomery Flagg who created the original 1917 Uncle Sam recruitment poster.   

It looks like Spring finally has arrived!  The 2017 event and driving season is starting.  And, I'm looking for you.

In fact, I WANT YOU!

I want to see you, meet you, have you come out to drives, car control sessions, car shows, and socials.

To keep up on planned events, there's a calendar listing on every web page which shows the next five items on our schedule.  However, did you know you can view all upcoming activities from the navigation at the top of the page?  Select Chapter Info; the last item on the drop-down is List All Chapter Events.  By using this link you can keep up with everything organized for the year.

An upcoming item I would especially like to see members attend is our Memorial Day Weekend High-Performance Driving Experience (HPDE) at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course--one of the premier tracks in the country.

This event is an excellent opportunity for those who want to learn about their vehicles and gain valuable skills in how to handle these wonderful machines. We provide classroom discussion and training as well as on-track coaching with experienced drivers in the right seats of registered participants.

If you want more details about the experience, please contact a Board member.  Not certain if this type of event is for you?  Take a drive to the track that weekend, watch students (and club racers), ask questions.

We bookend the month of June with wineries--starting with a scenic drive to a new rural location and ending with a Gervasi Vineyard Cruise-In where we're the featured marque of the week.

July provides several weeks and weekends of opportunity to visit Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix activities which include car corrals, socials, and racing.  We've scheduled at least one group drive to Schenley Park for those who have never attended.

Plans for an August social similar to last year's 25th Anniversary are almost complete.  We'll debut a new type of participation-driving event in September:  Part scavenger hunt, part gimmick rally, part drive.

October combines fall leaves and unusual venues leading to a local brewery.  November will cover a progressive food-shopping adventure which might help with holiday menus and which includes historic sights and sites.

And, there will be some new events and surprises as we transition into 2018.  For example, we're investigating a go-kart series for the winter to keep us off the streets and still "on-track."

So, get the car out of storage, limber up your observation and driving skills, and meet me this year at an event.  I really DO want you!

Origins of Northern Ohio Chapter

Details

Published: 09 October 2016

When early BMW Car Club of America members joined the national organization in the mid-1970s, they became members of a local entity which was rather unique at the time. While most chapters were located around metropolitan areas, Ohio had one of the first—if not the first—statewide chapter, Buckeye.

After attending meetings and events in the Columbus area for a time, our lifetime member John Franklin contacted members in Cleveland, Akron, and other northeastern Ohio areas and created the Cleveland/Akron Area to have more localized events and management. At approximately the same time, members in the Cincinnati region also organized regionally as an Area within Buckeye.

Cleveland/Akron monthly meetings initially were held at the Franklin home and later in area restaurants. To pull members from Cleveland’s western suburbs, later meetings were held at the Elegant Hog—the current location of the Windham Hotel.

In the early 1980s, the Columbus Area turned over management of Buckeye Chapter to the Cleveland/Akron Area.  In the late 1980s-early 1990s, the Cincinnati Area became the managing force for Buckeye.

After Buckeye Chapter hosted their first BMWCCA OktoberFest, members of the Cleveland/Akron Area requested secession from Buckeye Chapter. The intention was to concentrate activities and governance in a more localized area, believing this would better serve local members. This request for secession was one of the first of its type for the national organization.

In late fall 1991 with agreement from the remaining Areas of Buckeye Chapter, Northern Ohio Chapter was formed, encompassing Ohio postal zip codes from 44000 to 44999, which corresponds to the northeastern quadrant of the state. The general territorial area covers from Castalia-Sandusky to Galion-Mansfield to Dover-New Philadelphia over to the Pennsylvania border and northward to the shores of Lake Erie.