Just got back from Reno....

[Deleted User]

Howdy,



Took me about 9 hours to get there and 9.5 hours back. Left Tuesday at noon and left there this AM.

Not how sure how many total Hudsons showed up as the convention. I was the 104th car counted and #344 to register (around Wednesday AM). Somewhere total around 200 cars? More Stepdowns there than anything else (no surprise here). Lots of nice cars (and a few not so nice too). I learned a few new things and spent $250.00 on new weather stripping from k-gap. Saw a nice stepdown visor for $250 which I thought was a good price. Also saw a NOS Stepdown rear shade set for $250. Seems everything I liked was $250. Lots of old rusty parts, fenders, etc. No repro door sills!



HET are you listening?... There were quite a few of us who wanted to go to the museum tour but couldn't because it was sold out due to the food limitations. I was told that the caterer put a limit on how many could attend. Is this true?What a bunch of crap. I didn't want to eat, I wanted to see cars. Why HET let the caterers make the decisions I don't know but there were quite a few of us who couldn't go because of this. They should have planned that particular event better. They could have made a second tour or let a second group in and let us out when the food was going to be served. I deal with these operational issues daily at work... no big deal. No excuses, just get it done! OK, no more bitching on this item.



Overall, it was / is a big positive, everyone there was extremely nice and helpful. Many, many members just came up, introduced themselves and were very pleasant and helpful. It was great to see how closely everyone checked out each others cars. A great way to learn about Hudson's.

I am in admiration of some of these guys work on their cars. I saw one guy who took out and replace his tranny right there on the spot and another had one side of his car up on stands doing something or another.



I'm 47. I was one of the younger guys there. It got me thinking. HET already knows that they need to recruit new members. I think this forum would be a great place to start a thread on ideas on how to increase membership.

Here's one to start: I think HET should have considered being a sponsor for the "Hot August Nights" cruise / car show that is in Reno all week next week. This is easily one of the biggest events in the country. It is heavily funded by commercial interests and the whole city of Reno is sold out. For next year, why not sponsor an event or raffle away a nice Hudson, or? Let's think out of the box.... Niels

Aaron D. IL

Niel I have plenty of out of the box ideas for getting younger memebers to join and become the next generation of HET'ers. I am a younger memeber myself and there are a few of us. But the thing I know is this......institutions are slow to change and I have no illusions as to HET's generally conservative nature. Many of our veteran memebers are used to back yard barbecue meets rather than public ones and there's a small percentage of us that only care about Hudson's and aren't that interested in a car show with other makes of cars. That said, HET has a lot going for it like being a drivers' club and not judging for trophies and encouraging cooperation rather than competition. Being involved needs to stay affordable for youger people and that's easier said than done if every Hudson part a younger guy buys is $250 it adds up quick, and if he's working from a crap job like Walmart that's probably 2 weeks pay. The days of picking up 2 good junk-yard Hudson's and making one good one for $50-$500 are pretty much gone. Even so you still need gas, insurance and stickers on the car when you can drive it and then driving to a meet halfway across a state can set you back minimum $20. If it's a father-son project maybe the kid has a prayer. We need to use economies of scale with our whole memebership and I know getting car folks together is like herding cats.....I have some other ideas but bottom line is HET can either steer change for the next 50 years or we can be dragged along by it kicking and screaming. That's the choice before us.

[Deleted User]

Hi Aaron,



Some good points. Parts are getting expensive but relative to some other makes they are still are pretty cheap for the main mechanical components. Replacing all the weather stripping on a car is a key investment. A rear window shade is something thats "nice to have".

I am still surprised how relatively bargain priced Hudsons are. You can still get a pretty decent Stepdown Hornet or Commodore for $6- $7 grand. If you are mechanically inclined, much less than that. Prices on these cars are finally going up. the younger "Walmart" hourly guys are going to have problems funding any car. With that said however, the inner-city "Tuner Boyz" always seem to find money to screw up their cars. It's an expensive hobby that's for sure.

In my opinion, the biggest thing we need is exposure to the "X" brand crowd, specifically, the large multi-make clubs. Sponsoring some door prizes, some advertising and most importantly attendance in these larger multi-make clubs, etc. Again, exposure to what the Hudson product was and is will generate interest in both the Hudson cars and in membership.

I suspect that there would be significant interest from the AMC crowd aswell.

Specifically related to Stepdowns, the selling points are those that we already know:

- Dramatic, ground breaking styling. You can tell a Hudson shape a mile away.

- Legendary performance

- Good purchase value

- Exclusivity: Being the only one on the block or at a meet with a Hudson



While at Reno, I learned an appreciation for the other Hudsons aswell. I've always been a pickup truck guy and I love the all the Hudson pickups. Every decade Hudson has great attributes.



I believe most current HET members recognize that we need to grow the club. Some will not want to change, like the way things are and that's fine for them. But most will want to pass the torch to the next generation. We can Look at the obituaries in the every monthly HET magazine. That says it all.

Recruiting membership was an agenda item at one of the meetings in Reno. Hopefully some others will add to this thread and HET will consider some of the input. Niels

rambos_ride

As far as The HET club goes – I’m still an outsider! I’ve been impressed by all the good things people say about HET club and I have definitely interacted (at least online) with some very nice and knowledgeable people who are part of the club.



I’m 43 so I’m one of the ‘younger’ folk that you are trying to get to join, that being said, my reluctance to join is not about the fees involved – but more to do with my perception of what I get in return for those fees.



When I see posts on this forum from HET members wondering if the newest White Triangle news, or the HET roster has been shipped that doesn’t bode well for my confidence in membership benefit return.



At one time there was a post about the HET roster and putting it on cd/online and making it searchable/sortable etc…



Since I’m a programmer by trade I offered my services to help do this in exchange for a membership (I charge my customers 65.00 an hour so a 30.00 membership is a steal in return for programming) – but was told HET is too cash poor to ‘comp’ a membership – at which point I offered my services for free, but was never contacted again.



I was told once that there are 3500+- HET members –if that figure is true - I’m sorry but @ 30.00 per that’s about 105k a year. I can tell you with absolute certainty that if I were running a club and had that kind of revenue per year on memberships alone you wouldn’t be hearing complaints about things being late, or being technologically behind the curve.



OK now that I’ve vented a bit here are some suggestions on what I would do If I started a car club and wanted younger people to join



1. Younger people will be more attracted if you have a World Class Web Site:



The HET website is extremely un-impressive IMHO.

The information available online is sparse and rarely updated – with no real way to know what was updated.

Things such as the membership roster, registered cars and the White triangle news should be published in a “members only” area that requires a login.

There should be an online “parts bin”, “vehicles for sale” and potentially HET specific marketplace or auction pages that would let members congregate parts for sale or trade in one place (why not get some of that money ebay is making?)(see #2 below)

Each member should get their own web page and photo storage on the server as part of their membership dues – this way more Hudsons can be cataloged and available for reference – and just to show off your junk!



2. Hudson Parts – without a specific place and format for old Hudon’ers to sell their parts online except ebay, and with little aftermarket vendor support for new replacement parts this can keep many people from even wanting to get into a Hudson at all and have them running to brand “X” -



So – people with parts if you aint gonna use them start getting rid of them!



3. I don’t know what exactly you get from HET when you join but you should get a packet of information about the club and at a minimum some kind of hat or t-shirt with a cool logo emblazoned on it or something of that sort so that you can be noticed and recognized (think of the yellow “Hamsters” t-shirts Arlen Ness has his club wear – very identifiable)



There’s some of my thoughts – anyone want to join my new Hudson club?

Unknown

Hi guys,



I'll join in at this point. I've noticed a particular hurdle in getting this heading in the direction people are talking. I'm one of the younger ones as well (45 is young? LOL) and I got my car from my grandfather, which creates an interesting perspective for me.



First, I have absolutely no idea how he managed to get this car restored to the point it was at without the Internet. Just in the short time I've been working on it, I've gone to the Internet almost every time I've run into a problem.



But, therein lies the problem. My grandfather, if he were still alive, would have absolutely no idea or interest in dealing with the Internet. When I was talking with one of the guys from the HET, I was in a bit of a hurry for a part and asked if he accepted PayPal (let's not start that argument, it's not the intention.) His response was NO, I'm a retired old guy doing this in my spare time. Send cash, check or money order, but you'll have to wait for the check to clear.



Unfortunatly, it's all the old guys that have the parts that we young guys need to keep cars running. It's a different time these days, and if we can't find what we need easily, we're going to go somewhere else. If this car wasn't sold new and subsequently re-acquired by my grandfather, I'm not sure I would have any interest in a Hudson. I believe all I read about them, but we need to find an easier way. Having the HET club not respond to free services is just not smart.



I did join because I see benefit in the WTN publication. I think most of the money is going there. But, if we don't move the club at least into the '90's, it will be difficult at best to attract enough people to keep this moving forward.



My .02 (and Rambo, count me in)

TOM-WA-

I also got back from Reno on Wed this week. It was my first national and I had a great time. The wife and I attended and we were joined there by my life long friend and his wife.



We were impressed by the friendly reception of all the members and the free interchange of ideas and help on all levels. Our friends (Non Hudsonites) also are into

attending car shows. He has a restored Mustang and a restored Corvette and he made the comment that our club was the most close nit group of car nuts he had EVER seen.



That being said I too have some concerns about the future....Our club is growing Old and will need to increase its base to a younger following if we are to survive. How to do this is the issue. Our cars are certainly affordable from a collection standpoint when you stop to think that some of the YOUNGER crowd will spend as much on a Sound System in their lowered Honda as it cost for my entire car. I don't buy the cost prohibative argument for one second. Our issue is EXPOSURE...



I take My car to as many mixed meets as possible..The response is fantastic and in many cases I can't keep up with the requests for information.. If you don't get these cars out of the garage they are Never going to generate anything more than DUST.



The Parts issue is a real problem.. I am personally aware of two members who combined probably have in inventory possibly a million dollars worth of assorted cars and parts.. The problem is that with these folks and others like them we are dealing with a generation of people who have NO INTEREST in the New technology. NO FAX, NO INTERNET and everything is done over the phone on a catch as catch can basis.



Ok so lets see if some of us PUTER GEEKS can be of help...Who among us is willing to put down their Triple Mocha Grande and go to these locations to set up a HET parts store for these folks....It can't take long all we are talking about is taking a life time of parts collecting and slapping it up on a Web site, then maintaining an updated parts inventory and establishing a method of distribution...Kinda like setting up an Auto Parts Store.



Piece of Cake huh?.......don't see it happening personally..so for now it looks like word of mouth and exposing our cars to the public will have to do.

rambos_ride

Sitting on a million dollars worth of parts means they must have gobs of cash laying around and don't need the money!



Seriously - I think it's difficult for many older folks to part with things they've collected over the years - or the cars they are going to restore when they retire, because of the era in which they grew up.



TOM-WA's challenge to put the lattes down so us geeks can help is not without merit.



Cataloging someones parts and taking pictures is the hard part. Setting up the code for an 'online-parts-store' is not entirely easy - but once the code is written it is mostly a maintenence issue.



If there were enough interest someone like myself might be able to make a modest living helping the older folks to catalog and list parts and cars for a small percentage of the sale amount.



The worst thing is unfortunatly many of the older folks will pass on without their heirs knowing what valuable parts and pieces they have and then junk them, thus losing the parts forever...

Unknown

TOM-WA- wrote:

I also got back from Reno on Wed this week. It was my first national and I had a great time. The wife and I attended and we were joined there by my life long friend and his wife.



We were impressed by the friendly reception of all the members and the free interchange of ideas and help on all levels. Our friends (Non Hudsonites) also are into

attending car shows. He has a restored Mustang and a restored Corvette and he made the comment that our club was the most close nit group of car nuts he had EVER seen.



That being said I too have some concerns about the future....Our club is growing Old and will need to increase its base to a younger following if we are to survive. How to do this is the issue. Our cars are certainly affordable from a collection standpoint when you stop to think that some of the YOUNGER crowd will spend as much on a Sound System in their lowered Honda as it cost for my entire car. I don't buy the cost prohibative argument for one second. Our issue is EXPOSURE...



I take My car to as many mixed meets as possible..The response is fantastic and in many cases I can't keep up with the requests for information.. If you don't get these cars out of the garage they are Never going to generate anything more than DUST.



The Parts issue is a real problem.. I am personally aware of two members who combined probably have in inventory possibly a million dollars worth of assorted cars and parts.. The problem is that with these folks and others like them we are dealing with a generation of people who have NO INTEREST in the New technology. NO FAX, NO INTERNET and everything is done over the phone on a catch as catch can basis.



Ok so lets see if some of us PUTER GEEKS can be of help...Who among us is willing to put down their Triple Mocha Grande and go to these locations to set up a HET parts store for these folks....It can't take long all we are talking about is taking a life time of parts collecting and slapping it up on a Web site, then maintaining an updated parts inventory and establishing a method of distribution...Kinda like setting up an Auto Parts Store.



Piece of Cake huh?.......don't see it happening personally..so for now it looks like word of mouth and exposing our cars to the public will have to do.

I bought my 1929 Hudson in 1987 and thought how in the heck am I going to find what I need in parts & information about this car. I had no computer, all I had was very little money, legs, a mouth and a phone. I started going to swap meets, old car shows, Hemmings among other mags.and asking MANY questions. I then Joined the HET club and a couple of local HET clubs in my area. My wife and I went to a couple HET national meets. Kansas and Portand in 1989. The Portand meet was great for me seeing I owned a 1929 and this was the 80th for Hudson so a number of 29s were there. People like Jack Smith drove his 29 from Canada towing a camping trailer. Another couple also trailerd theres from Canada. Another named Billy Willson brought his total restored rolling chassis. His car was at the Peterson Auto Museum along with 2 other local area 29s.(So Calif.) Now I sit here looking for help on this thing wanting it NOW. LOL. I am 54 (OLD)? My car was a driver when I parked it about 8 years ago. Now I am getting in ready to get back on the road only now more computer info instead of the legs. It takes time but most times then not, what you need is there someplace just keep looking and ask. Like broken exhaust manifold on 26Hudson. People will look in there stash or give advise on a fix but you have to take it to a few welding places to see what can be done to repair it. I am sure the people that run the HET Club do not get much credit for what they do. Its most likley a thankless job among there own personal jobs & lives. Thanks Ron

hudsontech

And now a msg from an old geek!!!!! At the age of 68 I am enough of a realist to know I ain't going to be around forever. Over the years kids and bills, and a military salary, kept me from buying a Hudson -oh, I've had a couple, but couldn't afford the resto cost, and that was back 15, 20 years ago.

Over the years I've gotten to meet many, many great people and have developed some great friendships. I've learned that HET is not totally about the cars - that the people were almost as important as the cars. I wanted to give something back to this great club that had given me so many great memories. So I went into the tech info collection business. It became easier once computers arrived in our household. Now I had a medium that I could use to share this info with my fellow club members.

Sad to say I have met much indifference to my efforts. Now, that said, I will admit that, for example the General Information Handbook I put together, a lot of this is "year" oriented. Using the General Info Handbook as an example. I can see why the owner of a 1950 Hudson might not find interest in the fact that only a page or two applies to his car. I understand that - but it does show the narrowness of the human mind. The info in this book covers so much - for example, you're at a swap meet and somebody has a starter, but doesn't know what year it goes to - with the handbook info you can tell if it's a Hudson starter, and if so, what year.

Now I've managed to put together a complete set of Hudson Merchandisers from 1949-1954. Ok, it's on CD. Well, there's a lot of members with computer and they have 1949-1954 Hudsons. So why the "So what" attitude.

John Fromm makes excellent videos of the Nationals - I have one of John's videos for every National I've been too and they are fantastic momentos. But he's giving up, from what I've heard, this year. And why. Indifference from HET members. I understand John only sold 30 videos this year.

I'm not asking for everybody to run out and buy videos or tech info, or whatever - my point is we need to support these people - yeah, me included - that are out there working their butts off for HET members. That's all I'm saying.



That's my soapbox for today.



Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

(Yeah, I'll put my name where my mouth is)

rambos_ride

Although I complained loudly above about some of the HET website stuff (please don't take it personally L.M. - it's not easy to keep up on stuff part-time or on volunteer basis, I know...) Ron P makes a great comment in that the current people running the club don't get enough props (credit) for what they have done. So even though I am not a member - HET and those involved Id like to say thanks to those people for keeping as many of you Hudsonites and cars together as you have over the years!



Also, I realize there are more things going on behind the scenes running HET than just publishing a website (I've been in and helped run other car clubs) - but the question was "What to do about getting younger people into the mix..." - and to do this YOU HAVE TO BRING TECHNOLOGY INTO THE FOREFRONT and this will require time and money to be brought to bear!



This forum is a perfect example of new technology - out of all the general categories which one most active? GM, Ford, Chrysler..? NOPE - HUDSON! In fact with close to 7000 views it bests the #2 (GM) forum by 6500 views!



New Technology not only in presentation, such as the club web site, but also in bringing new technology to bear on time consuming repetitive tasks like publishing the roster or the WTN news - How much time and money would HET save if those who wanted could view those publications online - saving publishing costs?



Tedious tasks such as membership list maintenence and publishing can be greatly automated, and enhanced through technology now - thus saving more time and money to promote the Members and their Hudsons.



So the question is - are those whom are 'in the loop' making those kind of decisions and investments into the club to move it forward?

Unknown

hudsontech wrote:

And now a msg from an old geek!!!!! At the age of 68 I am enough of a realist to know I ain't going to be around forever. Over the years kids and bills, and a military salary, kept me from buying a Hudson -oh, I've had a couple, but couldn't afford the resto cost, and that was back 15, 20 years ago.

Over the years I've gotten to meet many, many great people and have developed some great friendships. I've learned that HET is not totally about the cars - that the people were almost as important as the cars. I wanted to give something back to this great club that had given me so many great memories. So I went into the tech info collection business. It became easier once computers arrived in our household. Now I had a medium that I could use to share this info with my fellow club members.

Sad to say I have met much indifference to my efforts. Now, that said, I will admit that, for example the General Information Handbook I put together, a lot of this is "year" oriented. Using the General Info Handbook as an example. I can see why the owner of a 1950 Hudson might not find interest in the fact that only a page or two applies to his car. I understand that - but it does show the narrowness of the human mind. The info in this book covers so much - for example, you're at a swap meet and somebody has a starter, but doesn't know what year it goes to - with the handbook info you can tell if it's a Hudson starter, and if so, what year.

Now I've managed to put together a complete set of Hudson Merchandisers from 1949-1954. Ok, it's on CD. Well, there's a lot of members with computer and they have 1949-1954 Hudsons. So why the "So what" attitude.

John Fromm makes excellent videos of the Nationals - I have one of John's videos for every National I've been too and they are fantastic momentos. But he's giving up, from what I've heard, this year. And why. Indifference from HET members. I understand John only sold 30 videos this year.

I'm not asking for everybody to run out and buy videos or tech info, or whatever - my point is we need to support these people - yeah, me included - that are out there working their butts off for HET members. That's all I'm saying.



That's my soapbox for today.



Hudsonly,

Alex Burr

(Yeah, I'll put my name where my mouth is)

I agree with Alex. I do not have much to offer I mostly look for info instead of having something to give. I thank you and all the people that have helped me and many others along the way. Way to many names to mention from way back in 1987 when I got this car. I just got a email form a place that has points, condenser, rotor and cap for my 29. I got the information from (here) for this. Just saying there are people out there in this Hudson family that are good folks. Thanks and hope to meet all of you someday Ron

Club Coupe

I've been a HET member for over 30 years and in that time I've seen many changes in the Club. When I joined the WTN was a plain paper, black & white picture pamphlet of around 20 pages. Now it has grown to a slick page magazine in full color. There were few (if any) local Chapters that I can recall when I joined, let alone regional directors. This Club has grown since 1959 and the growth was all from volunteered labor, sweat and love for the purpose; to keep the Hudson automobile alive. I've seen turmoil, complaints, bickering and the rest over the years, but the Club remained strong. In the 70's a new Club was formed the THE (Terraplane-Hudson-Essex), but it didn't last long. When I first joined, members would give and exchange parts, now they're sold, but parts were more plentiful then. I'm all for change, but the change should come from within. If you're not a member, don't complain. If you are a member, become an officer and volunteer your time to make the changes that you desire. Whatever happens, we all need to step back and realize the history of the car and of the club and above all honor that history and the people that have given their time to provide a home for the preservation pf the Hudson.

[Deleted User]

Rambo makes a good point- HET needs a top notch web-site where parts can be posted, bought, sold, etc. Someone mentioned a couple of longtime Hudson guys having tons of parts...they do. I've seen one of these guy's shop and it would boggle your mind to catalog it all and post it. However, this is why God made hourly labor.If I were this person, I would pay someone to catalog and inventory it all. It would be a solid investment and would increase his sales twenty fold. Downside is that this person does not need the money and in IMHO is not motivated to do anything. I had this person do over $1,700 work on my car and I was extremely disappointed in his work and lack of concern. Loose motor mounts, leaking thermostat housing and head gasket, wrong vent glass in the door (tinted in an untinted car...) Prior to that I had already spent over a thousand dollars worth of parts. Like I said, I was really upset at the work he did and he actually told me to take my business elsewhere and that I would have problems finding parts for my car if he cut me off. Ha! This guy is a Dinosaur. I buy all my stuff from the back of the HET White Triangle News, Hemmings and e-bay. These two guys don't own it all. There are still lots of parts out there and old cars to be salvaged, parted out, etc. As Rambo said, we need a 1st rate HET web-site to post parts, cars, this forum, car shows, etc. HET needs to spend some good money on this. If we get a good website then those "two" guys no longer control the parts market. Look how E-bay changed the way people do business and how easy it is to find something odd from around the world using their search engine.

I feel that everyone who uses this forum (yes you Rambo!) should join HET. This helps us all. Let's make it happen. Niels

Unknown

Sounds like we haved a few arm chair quarterbacks. No offense, but if you dont like it, do something about it. If you are a computer guy, offer your services. If you are an event planner, call the club and tell them you want to help out next year. B****ing on this board does nothing except make you sound like a whiner. Ok. I feel better now.

Jon B

As Rambo said, we need a 1st rate HET web-site to post parts, cars, this forum, car shows, etc. HET needs to spend some good money on this.

Not meaning to be argumentative, but we HAVE a website, at http://www.hudsonclub.org/ , with links to this forum, to chat, to an Hudson events page, to the Club's information, membership and store, to the vast Hudson photo "album" page, to a list of H-E-T members' e-mail addresses, to contact information for the Club's 40 chapters, to a condensed history of Hudson, and to numerous helpful Hudson webpages. It is maintained by (naturally!) one overworked Hudson club member (Lewis Mendenhall) who already does a great number of things for the Club and his chapter. It doesn't cost the Club a dime, for the webspace is generously donated by the Classiccar company (in fact, H-E-T member Dave Sollon worked with the original Classicar group to set up the company's chatroom and forum, with Hudson as its 'prototype', several years ago.) The website's URL is regularly published in the WTN.



As to whether the website is 'first rate', that can only be answered by those who patronize it.



The burden of maintaining the Club's many services to fellow Hudson owners, like this website, falls on the shoulders too few people.

[Deleted User]

Dennis,



Call it whining, b****ing, whatever. Sorry Dennis but it seems as if you don't want to rock the boat? This is what a forum is for. There have been no bad words, insults, etc. This is contructive discussion on an important subject. The "Volunteering" aspect is not a cure all and is cliche'. It sounds great but at some point real, tangible changes need to be made. For a first rateweb site- We need professional help here. It takes money,direction and somebody with the technical and professional expertise who knows how to do it. Someone who is compensated to do a professional job- Like create a superior HET web page. Those who are not retired cannot necessarily dedicate the time needed nor have the capabilities to do everything the club needs. Perhaps the vendors who rely on us buying their parts, products and services can pitch in some coin.... OK. I feel better now too. Niels

[Deleted User]

Jon B wrote:

Not meaning to be argumentative, but we HAVE a website, at http://www.hudsonclub.org/ , with links to this forum, to chat, to an Hudson events page, to the Club's information, membership and store, to the vast Hudson photo "album" page, to a list of H-E-T members' e-mail addresses, to contact information for the Club's 40 chapters, to a condensed history of Hudson, and to numerous helpful Hudson webpages. It is maintained by (naturally!) one overworked Hudson club member who already does a great number of things for the Club and his chapter. It doesn't cost the Club a dime, for the webspace is generously donated by the Classiccar company (in fact, H-E-T member Dave Sollon worked with the original Classicar group to set up the company's chatroom and forum, with Hudson as its 'prototype', several years ago.) The website's URL is regularly published in the WTN.



As to whether the website is 'first rate', that can only be answered by those who patronize it.



The burden of maintaining the Club's many services to fellow Hudson owners, like this website, falls on the shoulders too few people.

Jon B.-

Your point is well put and well taken and no offense to you guys who work so hard on this stuff. My strong opinion is that there should be money to take away some of this burden and make some improvements- most specifically a parts supermarket / locator / listings and be able to even purchase it on line. This is a win/win for everyone. Regards, Niels

rambos_ride

No matter what - HET will get my 30.00 a year (my cash flow is real poor right now though so… 30.00 for the HET membership or 30.00 towards parts ) because IT IS a valuable Hudson resource and there are just too few of those resources to go around! We don’t all get along – but I would hope someone wouldn’t dismiss me, talk down to me, not listen to suggestions - or worse yet – not sell me any parts because I’m not an HET member yet!



The changes and suggestions being made on this forum for HET to try and get new blood should not entirely be dismissed as idle ‘b***hing’. The owners and longtime members of HET should embrace the CC forums member’s suggestions intent – to make the whole Hudson experience better for us all.



My issue,…MY perception is that a car club with a possible 100k a year in revenue (no one has disputed this claim - yet :rolleyes: )) has not done enough to bolster their online presence. And it definitely is not my intent to undermine nor malign the current/past web manager(s) as to their technical competence – I just know from professional and personal experience that trying to implement major technical changes or features and doing it only on the nights and weekends (or when a volunteer or retired member can get to it for free) will mean only 1 thing – they’ll never get anything substantive done and nothing will change.

[Deleted User]

I live in Canada and I am a member of HET. We have no HET meets in Canada if we want to attend one we have to travel to the States. Which isn't so bad. I get the WTN and the roster and thats about it. I joined because I wanted to make sure it keeps surviving. Its only $30 US or $400 CAN LOL. I have worked with many clubs over the years and this story is the same as all of those. The set in stone rule is no matter how many members you have only 2% of them will help out. It never ever changes and to think it will is naive.



In my discussions with the HET members who run the club I have heard alot about the grey wave and how most of the members do not have computers or care to have computers. This makes it hard when you want to launch new technology at things you have to look at return on investment. On this forum I think we have about 75 people looking in and about 35 Huds commenting. Thats a low, low percentage of HET. Slowly this will change as the membership turns over. And sad to say, turn over is through death. Another car club I am a member of the new members joining on some months equals the members dying. Sad fact, but a fact none the less. We have our own forum and 25 of us use it out of 1558 members. One of us donates it, because if not we wouldn't have it.



I was lucky enough to run into a guy who sold me 25 years of WTN's which I read from cover to cover and over the years the WTN has lost a lot of the guys who wrote the tech articles. Some really nice articles about restoration in the old WTN. Maybe we could start reprinting the old articles again. Or bring out an annual with reprints in it.



I think everyone who has voiced an opinion so far is right and I have found that people who do not care about a subject will not comment on it so to see a lively discussion tells me that people are passionate about the Hudson community and we can probably fill in the weak spots with what we have now. I have my own Hudson portal at www.hudsonmotorcar.org and silverone has a Hudson portal at www.hudsoncollector.com and Rambo has his own site. We would all be happy to help host part information and really we can't expect the "club" to do this for us because we are the "club" so if we want it done we should start doing it. I don't ask anyone when I go around searching for parts and listing them on my site and one of the big parts guys I dealt with offered to sell me his barns of parts. If I had the money I would have taken him up on it, but its not beyond the scope of reason to think some of us can't create a syndicate and buy the parts and do it ourselves. I have $50 bucks burning a hole in my pocket so I am in.



So finally if you have a website and you want to get stuff rolling add your website to your signature like some of us have so fellow Huds can find you and visit often offer a word or two of support ask for parts and you may find we have them or can find them and if you post your lists we will soon have the electronic parts store so many want.



my 2 cents.......

Unknown

I agree with Rambo and most of the comments. I have had the same problems and have found almost all of my Hudson goodies on the web, and not over the phone. I also agree that the HET (of which I am a member) does need to get into the 21st century. When I first came around, I was scalded when I tried to find some Pacemaker taillites here. I ended up going to ebay, and now I have 14 Pacemaker taillites! (anybody need any '50 Pacemaker lens).

Billy

Unknown

:rolleyes: Gee ... what has changed?

When I joined the HET in the 60s my juices just boiled when I heard that the newsletter was being typed and that copies of this newsletter were being ... bootlegged ... from one of the members relatives who owned a print shop. I was too eagar to get that monthly missive so put my mouth in motion and got myself elected to be the newsletter editor. Wow ... now I would be the first to know ... whoops, it dawned on me not only was I to find a way to use the ABDICK duplicator I owned ... but I had to come up with the content, layout and printing all in one month! Ouch... I was working 10 hour days, had 30 bucks extra cash a week and now had the obligation to put out a news letter.... well guys and gals I did that for 12 months and at the annual meeting where we elected new officers I was first there and made the announcement that I was DONATING my ABDICK duplicator to the chapter ... and resigning so I could get some piece of mind back into my life.

I am NOT trying to make light of the comments made by those who post here ... what I am trying to tell you is that YOU make the difference. Those who have taken on the mantel of the Club officer position NEVER KNOW what is ahead. Unless you have organized assistance and it is bulletproof reliable ... YOU ... are the only one who will be doing the tasks.

Later in life the current WTN editor and I had lunch at a small restaurant in Claremont California. We had met so that I could pickup the tools of the trade to take over editorship of a HET Chapter newsletter. I was again full of the vinegar, I was sure new technology ( A new MAC) would allow me to shine. As we chatted over lunch I thought, how easy being the editor and publisher would be. I had the CPU, Laser Printer and the best page layout program in the world. This would be easy...well I should have heeded the advice Sam tried to impart... I remember him saying ... this task will take up all of your spare time. 30 years had passed since my last experience ... and I was not hearing any of Sam's sage advice. One month later I was spending most of my time working on getting material to put in the next issue ... and let me tell you most of those who have good intentions to help ... forget that promise the minute they leave the meeting where they made the promise. Two years later I gave up the newsletter ... and I got back all of my spare time.

What is the point ... what goes around comes around. If you want change stand up and make the point to the majority of the membership. I can tell you they are very quick to provide feedback. I am the one who recommended at that Golden Colorado Nationals to purchase a Computer for the membership manager. I was basically stared down. I too have the skills to do computer sites and data bases ... only because it is needed to survive in my chosen occupation. Those who frequent here do not even make up 1% of the HET membership. Of those who do have computers... Most do not participate. So where is the constituency for a change to more use of the INTERNET. How many of the national officers have posted to this forum? Two that I know of and neither is a regular. So, my suggestion is to realize that Hudson owners are by enlarge a group of friendly folks who for one reason or another like this marque. Many of the folks see no reason to change what works from them. A multipage color WTN is a long ways from the mimeograph pages I read in the beginning.

One last point ... the cost to produce the WTN is no small dollar exercise. I can tell you from experience ... producing a professionally printed copier weight color news letter for 100 folks each month cost $300 in 1990. The WTN is published in at a magazine printing plant ... that is no small undertaking. Those who are members can find out specifically what it costs by reading each annual financial report.

Having said all this... I am 58 and have been a Hudson Driver for 40 years and a HET member for 37 years. There have been many changes ... but one thing that has never changed ... the majority of the club has been over 45 years of age and resistance to changing the status quo is pretty much the rule of the day.

On a final note ... there a many folks who have collected Hudson parts over the years. Some have chosen to sell others have not. Those of us who know the owners of these stashed parts ... know something else, all to a person have been generous of their time and have given parts to others. To a person most have had the experience where someone has said something like ... you should sell me that ...xyz part and I will pay ...$abc. I, like them, would respond with ... if I want to sell that part ... then I will let you know. At that point many just close that door to all future sales. Believe me when I say ... there are several stashes of mainly NOS parts that will NEVER be sold due to the attitudes displayed by one or two people. On the flip side. there are two longtime Hudson parts vendors who have offered to sell their parts piece meal or as requested to only find that Hudson owners will NOT pay a reasonable price for the part. These vendors have even offered their complete inventories ... and got low ball offers and nothing more. Go figure.

Two cents ... no the experience of a person who has continuously owned and driven a Hudson for 40 years.

Please use the energy you put forth in this forum to create the avenues which bring to the Club new blood and volunteers who will take the club on for years to come.:)

Cheers

Unknown

Many, many well made points here. I started "hudsoning" back in 1972 with my first car and continued until early 1980. When I got the bug again, I bought an engine and transmission free Hornet from an old friend at a very reasonable price as it is as it was advertised: "rust free and pretty straight".



I have viewed this whole argument and tussling back and forth with some amusement. As Ken says, the club has always had the 'gray wave' and has been resistant to change. Does that mean that it can't be changed? Absolutely not!



Rambo is on the money for a lot of things. In his first post, he stated that he volunteered the time and it wasn't accepted. I think that in general today, something that is offered for free is viewed strangely as the recipient is waiting for the 'catch'. Kudos for Rambo on trying something. It is far more dangerous to try and fail that to sit on one's hands and complain about the situation.



Billy, I salute you for continuing on as a contributor to this forum and the support of Hudsons in general. I agree that you were blistered really good when you first posted here and, in my opinion, it wasn't deserved. This leads in to my next point. To get younger folks interested, you need to accept their outlook and vision in their personal expression of their car. If it's a slammed, chopped, fully boogied stepdown or an old fashioned fenderless highboy; the vehicle and it's owner should be welcomed as a brother in the Hudson fraternity. I know this ruffles some feathers but if the club truly wishes to thrive and grow, it will need to be more accepting to the popular 'craze' or fad of the day. There's room for all, whether fully modified, partially modified, "restified", driver or all out restoration.



Lastly, I appreciate the viewpoint of each person on this forum, even those viewpoints that I disagree with. I believe that if someone is passionate enough to post, they deserve respect for their views. THAT is what this country is all about.



My two cents worth...

Unknown

Heart Of Texas wrote:

:rolleyes: Gee ... what has changed?



When I joined the HET in the 60s my juices just boiled when I heard that the newsletter was being typed and that copies of this newsletter were being ... bootlegged ... from one of the members relatives who owned a print shop. I was too eagar to get that monthly missive so put my mouth in motion and got myself elected to be the newsletter editor. Wow ... now I would be the first to know ... whoops, it dawned on me not only was I to find a way to use the ABDICK duplicator I owned ... but I had to come up with the content, layout and printing all in one month! Ouch... I was working 10 hour days, had 30 bucks extra cash a week and now had the obligation to put out a news letter.... well guys and gals I did that for 12 months and at the annual meeting where we elected new officers I was first there and made the announcement that I was DONATING my ABDICK duplicator to the chapter ... and resigning so I could get some piece of mind back into my life.



I am NOT trying to make light of the comments made by those who post here ... what I am trying to tell you is that YOU make the difference. Those who have taken on the mantel of the Club officer position NEVER KNOW what is ahead. Unless you have organized assistance and it is bulletproof reliable ... YOU ... are the only one who will be doing the tasks.



Later in life the current WTN editor and I had lunch at a small restaurant in Claremont California. We had met so that I could pickup the tools of the trade to take over editorship of a HET Chapter newsletter. I was again full of the vinegar, I was sure new technology ( A new MAC) would allow me to shine. As we chatted over lunch I thought, how easy being the editor and publisher would be. I had the CPU, Laser Printer and the best page layout program in the world. This would be easy...well I should have heeded the advice Sam tried to impart... I remember him saying ... this task will take up all of your spare time. 30 years had passed since my last experience ... and I was not hearing any of Sam's sage advice. One month later I was spending most of my time working on getting material to put in the next issue ... and let me tell you most of those who have good intentions to help ... forget that promise the minute they leave the meeting where they made the promise. Two years later I gave up the newsletter ... and I got back all of my spare time.



What is the point ... what goes around comes around. If you want change stand up and make the point to the majority of the membership. I can tell you they are very quick to provide feedback. I am the one who recommended at that Golden Colorado Nationals to purchase a Computer for the membership manager. I was basically stared down. I too have the skills to do computer sites and data bases ... only because it is needed to survive in my chosen occupation. Those who frequent here do not even make up 1% of the HET membership. Of those who do have computers... Most do not participate. So where is the constituency for a change to more use of the INTERNET. How many of the national officers have posted to this forum? Two that I know of and neither is a regular. So, my suggestion is to realize that Hudson owners are by enlarge a group of friendly folks who for one reason or another like this marque. Many of the folks see no reason to change what works from them. A multipage color WTN is a long ways from the mimeograph pages I read in the beginning.



One last point ... the cost to produce the WTN is no small dollar exercise. I can tell you from experience ... producing a professionally printed copier weight color news letter for 100 folks each month cost $300 in 1990. The WTN is published in at a magazine printing plant ... that is no small undertaking. Those who are members can find out specifically what it costs by reading each annual financial report.



Having said all this... I am 58 and have been a Hudson Driver for 40 years and a HET member for 37 years. There have been many changes ... but one thing that has never changed ... the majority of the club has been over 45 years of age and resistance to changing the status quo is pretty much the rule of the day.



On a final note ... there a many folks who have collected Hudson parts over the years. Some have chosen to sell others have not. Those of us who know the owners of these stashed parts ... know something else, all to a person have been generous of their time and have given parts to others. To a person most have had the experience where someone has said something like ... you should sell me that ...xyz part and I will pay ...$abc. I, like them, would respond with ... if I want to sell that part ... then I will let you know. At that point many just close that door to all future sales. Believe me when I say ... there are several stashes of mainly NOS parts that will NEVER be sold due to the attitudes displayed by one or two people. On the flip side. there are two longtime Hudson parts vendors who have offered to sell their parts piece meal or as requested to only find that Hudson owners will NOT pay a reasonable price for the part. These vendors have even offered their complete inventories ... and got low ball offers and nothing more. Go figure.



Two cents ... no the experience of a person who has continuously owned and driven a Hudson for 40 years.



Please use the energy you put forth in this forum to create the avenues which bring to the Club new blood and volunteers who will take the club on for years to come.:)



Cheers

I am one of the people you speak of. When I bought my car I went all over looking for help & parts for my car. I joined the HET & a couple local chapters and got the help I needed. When I parked my Hudson I did not contact the people and clubs that helped me many years ago. NOW I am looking for help again and low and be hold here they are. I joined the HET and plan on joining the locals again. Nothing is FREE...Not even free TIME. I never want people doing something they do not want to do. But there are folks here doing it because they WANT to. Maybe raise the dues to cover all the costs ??? I think the dues are way to low for the work these people do. You try it and let me know..I for one could not keep up with them. 10 cents worth ???? LOL Ron

rambos_ride

Mr Cates - I'm a frequent visitor to your website and love hearing about the older technology battles from a long time HET member. I remember some of those same discussions on the TRT Racing Club I was in during the early 80's

... Having said all this... I am 58 and have been a Hudson Driver for 40 years and a HET member for 37 years. There have been many changes ... but one thing that has never changed ... the majority of the club has been over 45 years of age and resistance to changing the status quo is pretty much the rule of the day. ...

LOL - Funny how guys don't care about throwing our age around! (43 and counting...)

Aaron D. IL

backtohudsons wrote:

Many, many well made points here. I started "hudsoning" back in 1972 with my first car and continued until early 1980. When I got the bug again, I bought an engine and transmission free Hornet from an old friend at a very reasonable price as it is as it was advertised: "rust free and pretty straight".



I have viewed this whole argument and tussling back and forth with some amusement. As Ken says, the club has always had the 'gray wave' and has been resistant to change. Does that mean that it can't be changed? Absolutely not!



Rambo is on the money for a lot of things. In his first post, he stated that he volunteered the time and it wasn't accepted. I think that in general today, something that is offered for free is viewed strangely as the recipient is waiting for the 'catch'. Kudos for Rambo on trying something. It is far more dangerous to try and fail that to sit on one's hands and complain about the situation.



Billy, I salute you for continuing on as a contributor to this forum and the support of Hudsons in general. I agree that you were blistered really good when you first posted here and, in my opinion, it wasn't deserved. This leads in to my next point. To get younger folks interested, you need to accept their outlook and vision in their personal expression of their car. If it's a slammed, chopped, fully boogied stepdown or an old fashioned fenderless highboy; the vehicle and it's owner should be welcomed as a brother in the Hudson fraternity. I know this ruffles some feathers but if the club truly wishes to thrive and grow, it will need to be more accepting to the popular 'craze' or fad of the day. There's room for all, whether fully modified, partially modified, "restified", driver or all out restoration.



Lastly, I appreciate the viewpoint of each person on this forum, even those viewpoints that I disagree with. I believe that if someone is passionate enough to post, they deserve respect for their views. THAT is what this country is all about.



My two cents worth...

I've just turned 27 years old and I prefer original cars....just my preference but I am a rare exception to the rule. You're absolutely right if you want to tap an under 40 crowd you'd have to allow for low-rider and fashionable rods and such. I think in that respect, the modified special interest group is a step in the right direction as well as the other HET interest groups. That is really a page out of the EAA (Experimental Aircraft owners Association) handbook. Guys in that orginization who own ultralights may not have much to say to guys who own warbird aircraft but they can still all be encounpassed in the same organization. Likewise in HET the Jet owner might not have much to say to the guy with a brass era 1916 Hudson but they can both be in HET. HET just happens to be friendlier than most and I've belonged to other organizations so the camraderie is apparent to me.

One thing I will say though on the internet thing, it has boosed our membership and every once in a while I'll find myself Emailing someone web addresses and membership details. Main thing is to boost our membership numbers. Maybe it is true that only 2% of us use the internet but 2% of 10000 members is a lot more people than 2% of 3500 members. Hudson news happens daily on the internet whereas Hudson news happens in monthly or bi-monthly cycles in print and some of us like that real-time connection. The other thing it does is close the distances since our membership is scattered all over the country and the world. Otherwise some of us would only communicate at nationals once a year......I know I know you could pick up a phone too

[Deleted User]

I suppose I'm one of the younger ones in this outfit. I haven't been active in the HET to any large degree and not for a long period of time. I don't know alot of the parts vendors, don't know where alot of the stashes are, and I certainly don't have a big pile of significantly valuable parts myself.



But, I do want to see this go on and evolve with the times. I can tell you this, the younger set are learning about Hudsons. Whether they want to Rod 'em or restore 'em, or even somewhere in between - you WON'T reach them without a very strong web presence. Had it not been for the web resources I found: HET website, Ken Cate's page, David Sollon's page, and getting to know some folks on the HET chat page - I seriously doubt I would have sought out a Hudson and become a member.



That being said, the younger crowd doesn't have the financial resources of the older. I'd love nothing more to buy out some of those parts hoards and keep the ball rolling for the Hudson - but I don't have that much money. I've got enough to handle with the two cars I have - and even that will take some time to do. I'm interested in parts, but there is only so much I can do/afford.



I did buy out a cache of parts lately - and have become the "7x exhaust adapter" man. So I am doing what I can at present, hopefully I can continue to do more.



There are still alot of Hudson's out there outside the realm of the HET. Giving those owners multiple reasons to join only entices them even the more to join. I pay extra for first class mailing of the WTN, I do not have a problem with an enhanced membership that allowed a "members only" area of a HET webpage. I definately wish some of the parts posessors had their stuff inventoried so I could look through a table to see what I wanted/needed - and how much they wanted for it (avoiding Ken's scenario). Having such information on the internet would be valubale to both seekers and sellers - I just don't see a downside to that. Even if they wanted to sell out - I wouldn't entertain making an offer without a detailed inventory on hand, you can't pay for something if you have no idea of the content.



Its kinda like a conversation I had recently with an older HET'er, He'd just as soon be rolling down the highway in his Hudson than worrying with a Hudson related business. I can understand that and will likely feel the same way in another 25-30 years.



I like Rambo's ideas - but he needs to get his posterior in the HET roster!



Mark Hudson

rambos_ride

`Hudsonator wrote:

...

I like Rambo's ideas - but he needs to get his posterior in the HET roster!



Mark Hudson

Sweet! Once I get my 49 on the road (it won't be complete - are they ever complete? - and Ill be looking for ss-trim) all you guys will get sick of seeing me and that's when I plan on letting loose of the 30.00 - when I can legally drive it on the road!



I'm probably one of the few people that ever bought a Hudson stepdown without ever riding/driving/seeing one in person first - how's that for taking a leap-o-faith?



After tearing her down and seeing the way they're put together Now - I'm hooked and just may specialize in stepdowns for the near future on my car builds.

Club Coupe

rambos_ride wrote:

Sweet! Once I get my 49 on the road (it won't be complete - are they ever complete? - and Ill be looking for ss-trim) all you guys will get sick of seeing me and that's when I plan on letting loose of the 30.00 - when I can legally drive it on the road!



So don't spend the $30.00 until you've got it on the road. Join now at the $20.00 regular mail rate, save $10.00 and read up on all the tech tips, classifieds, Chapter events and the rest when you're not spinning wrenches! Waiting until you can drive it is not, and has never been, a prerequisite to join the greatest car club in the world! Now what's your excuse?

rambos_ride

In my narrow-tunnel-visioned world - I'd rather put the 20 Georges towards a 12v. wiring harness, or a battery, or tires.... and I'm cash poor right now.



My "free" time what it is - is usually spent working on the Hudson, researching new parts needed and trying to figure out how to pay for it all!



Then add on top of that - I'm a single guy who owns a house and dog that have to be maintained as well - sometimes I envy you guys that have siginificant others to help out...sometimes



And oh yeah - I am trying to start a business on top of all that! (The real reason I'm cash poor - not the Hudson, believe it or not!)

[Deleted User]

I have seen a lot of great ideas in this discussion and agree with most of them. However, most of the suggestions are about what the National club can do, and I agree they can do a lot, but ultimately it will fall upon the shoulders of the Chapters to bring in new and younger members. I see chapters having meets where only 10 out of 50 members attend and then there are only 3 cars. This is fine if you want to keep things to your self, but if you want people to notice our club and join our club, they need to see the cars and the people in the club having fun, and doing things as a group, on a chapter level. Remember the old saying "OUT OF SIGHT-OUT OF MIND" I know everyone cannot attend every meet, but we need to get our cars out of the garage and on the road to be seen. Every time I drive my stepdown, I am stopped by people that tell me stories of the cars they used to have or there parents had, and that you never see a HUDSON anymore.

As for the parts caches that can't be bought for love nor money ( and I have heard the stories ) the people with them are going to make their children and grandchildren some money one of these days. Myself, If I have something someone can use and I'm not going to use, they can have it for what I have in it. I did not join the club to make money, and in fact had only ridden in one Hudson in my life ( 53 Hornet sedan, in 1960 ) and then only one time, before I joined.

I hope this makes sense to some of you, I know it kind of rambles .

Thanks to all the volunteers, because, in my humble opinion, we have the best club I know of........

Bob Hickson

Newport TN

[Deleted User]

Rambo,



I cannot belive that anyone with enough desposable income to have a Hudson project can't scrape up a lousy $20 bucks to join the HET Club. You take advantage of the club web site, parts and tecnical information, and the wealth of knowledge in the club membership, but somehow you feel that it isn't worth $20. I would like to know the real reason you haven't joined, don't tell me it's the $20 bucks.

I hope when you get your Hudson done and you bring it to the Nationals, you are not one of the guys who refuse to register so they don't have to pay the $15 fee.

If the members on this forum will help, I think we can shame you into joining, if not, I hope Rambo bites you in the butt.