Not a misspelling, banquit, because if this is what we can expect for banquets in the future, I quit.
Kendall's is probbably a really cool place for a night out but not a banquet. It was not a place for this affair.
I make no apologies for saying for a lot of people that won't get on here that this was the worst CCS banquet ever. I've attended every one from 1984 to tonight and this was the worst. There is absolutely no defense for it. I was embarrassed for the guys that had to accept their awards in this crap situation.
And by the way CCS people, when there is an open bar it doesn't mean you shouldn't tip the bartenders.
Jeez guys those people worked their asses off and I for one didn't see sh-t for tips going to them. I heard comments from the bar keeps about the lousy tipping, because when I tipped them they were surprised someone was actually leaving them something.
I'm really glad I didn't fall for the "Hotel 71" deal
also. $89 p/night but they forgot to tell you it was $32 to park your freakin' car! Oh yeah, the limo was good too. How long did it take for it to get from hotel to bar and back? How many people took cabs?
Glad I drove back home instead of paying for that shat.
All in all I'm fuckin' embarrassed to admit I belong to this group right now. Go ahead and bust my ass but you better have something to back it up because tonight was bad. Wonder why this bike racing doesn't go anywhere to the general public? Hope you didn't have any new people you were introducing to it tonight. I did and it sucked!! They looked at me like .... what the hell is this?
I was really hoping tonight would not be what I thought it would but .... it was actually worse than I expected. Racers actually got their awards in boxes.
CCS satff could not even take the time to take them out of the boxes for the guys that busted their nuts all year to get these things. Never in my life in any form of racing have I seen anyone take a trophy off the podium in a freakin' box except tonight. That is sad, really sad.
So, this is my banquit, until someone assures me things will get much, much better. Sorry, but I expect more out of CCS than this joke I witnessed tonight.
For all you guys that suffered through it ... Good on ya mates! Ya worked your butts off all year for this .... and you should have had better, much, much better.
I hope ours isn't like that.
I'm sorry to hear that Gordy. :(
Give CCS a little credit for trying something different. By the sounds of it, it didn't work. It would be interesting to have others chime in and share their opinions.
There is always next year to make things right.
Dawn :)
Quote{alexa puts her soap box in place} Ahem. For what my two cents is worth, I'd like to see the Banquet held at a Hotel facility. First off, I feel that we are honoring the athletes that have participated to their fullest, mind, body and pocket book. It's kind of nice to see what we all look like cleaned up. We all can go to a sports bar anytime, and even the nice ones will not have the air of ceremony a hotel can provide.
Now for less subjective reasons:
How many people do you think are going to be enjoying some liquid libation? Should they get carried away, these same people will have to drive home or to a hotel. Let's give them the safe option of being able to stay put.
There are a few racers in the MW who are not of legal drinking age, and at least one who is a minor. Even though a sports bar would not prevent these racers from accepting an award at that facility, a hotel facility is a more appropriate place for them. (they might argue differently.)
For racers with children in tow, numerous hotels offer child care. Another valuable option.
Many hotels offer discounted rates if an event is held in one of their rooms. Discounts are good.
As far as the proposed weekend, in conjuntion with the bike show...most excellent idea. Many of us from the Wisconsin area already attend the show, so we can coordinate an entire experience. I think we might get better attendance.
My original suggestion, dated Oct 8th 2002
We weren't there. Why? We were afraid that what Gordy described would be the outcome, and a few other reasons as well. It was a very last minute decision not to attend.
Congratulations to all of our friends and especially Rhiannon on an outstanding year. You deserve the best.
Banquet 1. A sumptuous feast. 2. Aformal or ceremonial dinner, often followed by speeches. To entertain at a banquet; feast sumpuously or formally.
Sorry Dawn but I saw none of the above. I give plenty of credit for a good effort. This was not.
Everyone I talked to at the place thought the whole thing was pretty bad. I thought it was horrible.
Yes there is an opportunity to make it right next year and I certainly hope it happens. I know I'm not the only one that feels this way. Whether they will post their feelings on here, I really don't know, but that doesn't change the facts.
Hopefully they will chime in.
That is the only way CCS will know what we would prefer regarding the banquet format.
Dawn :)
Gordy,
My hat is off to you for your honesty, it seems when people offer an opinion or tell it like it is- people jump all over you on this BBS in defense of CCS's practices. "trying something new"-how hard is it to put together a dinner and hand out cheap awards.This should be a thankyou for everyones dedication,and efforts. People get divorced,go bankrupt,loose jobs and worse for there love (obsesion) for this awsome sport. I know it's a business, and not even an 800 number for it's members. Who's running the finances ?? Where is my license (last years),rule book,everything I paid for ?? either run you business like a respectable one or get out. This is just another kick in the zipper,get your act together CCS, I'm not talking about lower entries or gate fees-just show some appreciation and how about a $15 meal at the end of the year to show us how much we mean to your livleyhood. Feed just the racers and one guest, and for gods sake take the awards out of the boxes. And don't tell us they showed up late and there was no time to get things ready, Tony Stewart did't get his in a box-THANKS FOR THE SLAP IN THE FACE>>>AGAIN
Thanks for your input Gordy.
Hopefully the message will get through to CCS.
Last night I felt bad that I could not attend, but it looks like I lucked out !
Sorry to hear that you guys were unhappy with the banquet. At least I can say when I put the banquets on that I was not publicly humiliated at the job I did. I guess I must of done something right. It saddens me that you guys were not happy this year. I know you guys work hard to enjoy this sport and you guys should be able to enjoy your banquet. And to think you guys are her favorite region, I would hate to see what the other banquets will be like. At least I know the MA/SE banquet is the same as last year so the guys will be happy again.
Well... I have to argue about the cheap awards part. Those little statues of a rider on his bike are the coolest thing I've ever seen. I'll be building a shelf for mine, which may be the only home inprovement project I've contemplated since I started racing.
The $32 parking thing sucked. My wife and I went to the hotel seperately. so the price of parking 2 cars doubled our motel bill. Also, we took cabs both ways, so there went $25 more. If there actually was a limo, I never saw it.
It's true that a hotel with a banquet room would have been a more comfortable venue. We racers aren't uppity, so a nice Holiday Inn or Ramada with a convention center would have worked well. (The Clock Tower Inn in Rockford would have been outstanding.) Still, I got to pick up some really cool trophies and hang with all my racing friends. Had the banquet been held in a parking garage, I still would have had fun!
Gordy, both you and K3 got it right, that was the worst ever. I'm thinking now that it's a good thing I didn't do better this year. I feel sorry for those who had to get up and try to speak, thank their sponser's etc, no one could hear them. Too many people in too small of a place.
I agree with K3, I think Rockford would be a great place to hold the banguet. Rooms and convention centers abound, very little traffic and no parking or transportation problems. Think about it CCS!!!!
Wow really?
I have to admit it's not what I was expecting... I figured it was gonna be at a real Banquet Hall - not a bar.
But I had fun nonetheless, and will be there next year regardless of where it's held.
Gordy
You could have said it all with one word
SUCKED
I would like to be able to win this year and except a trophy at next years banquit but if this is the sign of things to come maybe not winning would be better.
Craig
I went. It was my first one. Tiff told me 200 people showed up.
It was good to see all the guys and shoot the bull with everyone. I had a good time.
YTAK
So here's my $.02...
Hotel-71:
2 Thumbs up! The family and I really enjoyed it, the hotel was very nice, trendy and the price was excellent. $32 was a bit steep, but all the other hotels in the area charge $25-30 for parking, and after one time of being towed for $145, I've never b1tched about the price of parking again.
Limo to/from:
This was completely unacceptable. To have a banquet with a few hundred people and have 1 10-12 passanger limo is ridiculous. In her defense, I was there when Tiff was CHEWING out the limo service for lack of service. However, whoever said that Kendalls was 10 minutes away was on friggin crack. In traffic, it was more like 20-30. Double that for a round trip, and you're seeing a limo once an hour. That sucked pretty bad while waiting with my wife and kids.
HUGE KUDOS goes out to a Clear Channel employee (didn't get his name) in the Chicago office who drove my wife, kids and I back to the hotel as we were all tired and freezing our butts off waiting for a limo that would never show. THANK YOU AGAIN MY FRIEND.
Kendalls:
What the hell were you thinking? Who lied and told you this place held more than 50 people?!?! My basement is bigger than Kendalls (at least by 2-3x). To add insult to injury, the lack of food sucked, and Kevin's shouting comments of "SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP" were way out of line. Well Kevin, I have no problem shutting up, but since there were only enough chairs for about a third of us, the sitting down was a little impossible. This was an absolute waste of my $25/pp.
The Awards:
The awards were pretty cool, the trophies nice. K3's 25 minute acceptance dissertation? Got old (but we still love you man. It would have been much more tollerable in an adequate facility). Here's what got me... I totally busted my @ss last year, picking up 7 2nds and 2 4ths. What do I have to show for it?!?!? A lame @ssed piece of paper. Ladies and gents, I don't know about you, but I wipe my @ss with paper. I don't hang it on the wall or set it over the mantle.
Was this the first year for this?!?!? If not, I guess that's my delusion that I thought I would be walking out with something that didn't fold and slip into my pocket. How hard would it have been to give those nice trophies to the 1st place folks, and have a single plaque for AT LEAST the 2nd & 3rd placers with ALL their accomplishments (2-5) on it?!?!?! Do we not pay you enough for this?
I've never seen a sport that offered an actual TROPHY for 1st place, and JACK SH1T for 2-5! I've seen paper for 4-5, or no award at all, but 2-3?!?!? COME ON, WTF!!!
Call me a whiner, but this totally ruined my time and season. For crying out loud, I drove home wondering what I'm racing for this next season. There's no way in hell I'll take a 1st from Tez, Weeden or Gordon, so I could possibly aim super high and shoot for a 3-5, but for what!!! "Oh gee, I can't wait to pick up my piece of paper fresh of the laserjet!" I'm a simple guy and like my wood to remenisce (sp?) on with people. The last thing I would do is flip through a scrap book showing them lame sheets of paper.
In Closing:
I'd like to congratulate EVERY RIDER, and A SPECIAL HATS OFF to those who placed 1-5. But in the end, this event sucked and I will not subject my family to crap like this again. Since I'm sure I'm not the only one, maybe you guys should go ahead and book Kendalls again, I'm sure they'd welcome the CCS staff and 3 or 4 unknowing attendees. >:( >:( >:(
Jef4y
Way to say it about the stupid pieces of paper but hey it is the way it's always been and if you look close at them like mine only one has the th on it the others just have a number they couldn't even get that right. A small hunk of wood would have been better, every other racing series gives trophies back to tenth so at least CCs could have given everybody that finished in the top five a trophy.
Craig
I guess I should have asked rather than assumed. This is something I think we need to bring up because I find it pretty insulting.
Hey Jeff, don't feel too bad. Last year I got ALL of my top 5 final standings for the region on ONE piece of paper. ...not even a separate piece of paper for each class...
And since I did not attend the Great Plains region banquet last year, I did not even get that piece of paper for this region. They were supposed to mail out the stuff for those that did not attend last year, but nobody that I know got anything. I am not going to complain too much about this because I am STILL trying to get that piece of paper and don't want to piss anybody off before I get it. I wonder what they are thinking. I know it is only a piece of paper, but I worked hard for it and spent alot of money with CCS. I guess they don't realize how much a crappy piece of paper means to a racer.
As for Kendall's, a fellow racer was familiar with Kendall's and warned me in advance. This was the only reason that I was not disappointed. I can't blame Tiff because she would not know any better since she does not live in Chicago. But, Stacy did not live in Milwaukee and she did a good job last year. I hate to complain too much in this forum. CCS makes it easy to comlain, but I would like to stay as upbeat as possible.
Still, I enjoyed seeing everybody and had a blast talking to them, even with Kevin's unprofessional 'Shut Ups'. Kevin, this does not help me think that it is your management or lack of resources that is responsible for the rough times that we go through with CCS.
Still, I am a glutton for punishment. I can't wait for next year and I look forward to seeing everybody again.
Tez, you get the award for speech of the year...
QuoteGordy, both you and K3 got it right, that was the worst ever.
Hey now! Don't misquote me. I said that I would have had fun in a parking garage. I think that the pavillion at Blackhawk is a pretty cool place for a party too. Mostly, it depends on inviting the right crowd, and we certianly had that. There were things that could have been better, but it was still a fun night.
I mentioned the Clock Tower Inn in Rockford. It's right off the highway, about 15 minutes out of Blackhawk. Has anyone else ever been there? It's been a few years for me, but in the day the place had a nice pool, whirlpool, sauna, video arcade complex, raquetball courts, a fancy resturant and a casual resturant, at least one bar, a dinner theater, a clock museum, and several nice banquet halls. It's so nice that you wouldn't mind staying there Friday night and Saturady night, just to make it a mini vacation. Everyone could do whatever they wanted there, even if they brought the kids. Something to think about for next year?
Sorry about the length of my speech. I had a well-written and concise speech on paper, and had timed it at 6 minutes. When I got up front, I couldn't read it because there was no light. I had to adlib, and I guess I didn't do as well as I had hoped to. Hey, I'm a writer, not an off-the-cuff public speaker. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
As a top-10 amateur in 3 regions, I would have loved a yellow version of the big white plates that the experts got. In the much faster and more expensive world of the expert class, I doubt that I will ever have a season as successful as 2002 was for me as an amateur. If I had recieved yellow plates with my top-10 finishes listed on them, I would have hung them on the wall and admired them for life. Something else to think about for next year?
Still, those regional champ trophies are just too cool!
Um, yeah.
I don't think is what anyone was expecting.
I like going during the Chicago MC show. That was cool. I like linking it all together. Get to see people at the show, see 'em at the banquet.
I feel bad for the CCS staff for being in this situation. I doubt they enjoyed it either.
I had "fun", but it wasn't the honoring of riders that I like to see.
And $25? Wow!
It is hard when you don't live in an area that you have to plan an event in. So what I did last year was planned a trip to Milwaukee to see some of my raicng friends and made an effort to look at the facility that the banquet was planned at. It was just a shame that I never got to enjoy the banquet last year. As a matter of fact, it was sad that I had to pay for for my trip to the MA banquet to see my friends honored when I planned the whole thing. I can say now that I don't miss the affiliation with CCS anymore. I would be embarrassed to be considered "one of them" now. But maybe i'll see some of you guys at a WERA NAtional this year.
I don't buy the line about hard to organize in a place you don't live. Another reason you don't plan a banquet in a sports bar. Holiday Inns and others are nationwide and you can see exactly what you get on line. You send someone that does live in that city to check it out. Excuse me but isn't Clear Channels headquarters in Chicago?
How about a place out near the airport. Parking, a short trip to the cycle show, easy to find, and nobody has to travel after the banquet unless they want to.
I realize racers can get together and have fun most anywhere but there was no excuse for this. We as customers and supporters of CCS deserve better than this and I hope more of you will let them know it.
And how can you chew out a limo driver for poor service when CCS is the one that ordered only one limo and there ain't sh*t you can do about Chicago traffic when you plan an event downtown on a Saturday night. Clueless is all I can say, absolutely clueless. ???
Hey Onweiler, never said the awards were cheap, just the presentation. :P
I'm going to check out WERA's program this year with Jesse Janisch so I may not be around for a lot of the CCS stuff this season. I'll make what I can with the Wegman trailer and new shirts etc. and the auction is on for August at BHF. Good luck to all of you. ;D ;D
It wasn't what I would have expected an "awards banquet" to be... but we did have a wonderful time spending the evening with people we've quickly grown very fond of.
John and I both thought those trophies were INCREDIBLY cool.
My suggestion to CCS would be to investigate booking next year's banquet NOW... if they want to have in Chicago, they could book it at one of the hotels near O'Hare Airport (close to the motorcycle show). Saturday nights can book up close to a year in advance.
Way too many people in a way too small a place and parking was just about impossible to find but I still had alot of fun. It was cool to meet some of the people I only knew from this board. I hope next year will be a bit more formal and a bit more organized. :)
And where the hell was Ike? I was looking forward to chillin with him but he no show like a mofo.
Edgar! now that you're married.... you still going to race 15 races a weekend? Wifey going to let you do that?
Thanks Bill for thinking I did a good job last year. I have an event planning background from working at the University of Virginia's Alumni Association. And I have been around you racers for about 7 years......... :P Long enough to know you guys too well. Hopefully they will hear that you guys will dissatisfied with the banquet and get it right next year. How you guys have a safe and fun year.
QuoteGordy,
My hat is off to you for your honesty, it seems when people offer an opinion or tell it like it is- people jump all over you on this BBS in defense of CCS's practices. "trying something new"-how hard is it to put together a dinner and hand out cheap awards.
This is where I got the part about cheap awards, Gordy. I'm not saying you don't have every right to feel the way you do. Read my other posts, and it will be clear that I was less than 100% satisfied myself. I talked my wife into going, and it turned out to be so loud and uncomfortable that she never met anyone or made any friends. It was my plan to get her more interested in coming to the track with me, but I fear that it backfired.
You couldn't have taken the trophies out of the boxes. There wasn't any room. Without the boxes, no one would have gotten their awards home in one piece. My guess is that the people from Kendals misrepresented their facilities, and somebody lied about the length of the ride from the hotel to the bar. No one would have been stupid enough to book this stuff otherwise. I've been in that situation before. Operate from a base of misinformation, then take the grief when it all goes wrong.
Yes, Kevin was a bit harsh, but at this point he was obviously the captian of the sinking ship. Hey! I was mad for about the first ten minutes. After that, too many hugs, handshakes, backslaps, and beers had come my way for me to stay angry. A family reunion is a family reunion, no matter where it's held. I'm over it.
Hey K3, I really liked your speech. ;D ;D
I agree with the thought that next time it should be held at a more "proper" location. For the first ten minutes I kept on waiting for the moment were they were going to open some back door to a banquet room where we would go to receive our awards. Unfortunately it never happened.
I agree with K3 regarding the good time. It was great to hang out with friends and get to see everyone all cleaned up. Casper, thanks for finally letting the little ghost go in his quest for going faster. ;D
Brian, I have been with the wifey for over 9 years now and she is the one who encourages me to go racing. I had to eventually get married, so she figured that it was about time. I did give it a good fight... ;D I am still not sure why she wants me out of the house so much!
To be honest, this was the first time she came to a banquet for motorcycle racing with me and she was not all that thrilled since we didn't get ther till 7:45 so we had to stand up all night long and hold our coats in our hands as well as struggle to walk around or to hear the presentation speeches, much less get to talk and meet my friends that I have insulted in front of her so many times.
I am sure that everyone involved tried to do what they thought was best and it did not work as well as planned. Hopefully this is just a learning experience. I also agreee with Jef4y that 2nd and 3rd place (at least) should also receive some form of trophy or plaque. CRA gives them out to 3rd place and it feels good to get something a lot more substantial. Chris, the top 9 number plate idea is also something that CRA does and I am sure it would not be too expensive to do. It adds recognition to a hard year and a strong effort. I don't see why the novices should not be recognized as much as the experts. After all, it seems like there are 3 times more novices.
One thing I can say though is that I'll probably be at next years banquet...I hope to see all of you there.
Though I did not attend this years banquet, I see that it was apparently less then acceptable.
I have lived in Rockford Illinois all my life and know it quite well, including the Clock Tower Inn Resort. This hotel and numerous others are located at the State Street exit off I-90 and are incredibly easy to access. Heading west on State St. from the I-90 exit will uncover a large number of hotels right by the Interstate and something like 50+ different restraunts over the next 5 miles or so (State St. is Rockfords main drag). Rockford is one of the top in the nation in the number of golf courses available to the public, has numerous sports facilities which draw huge numbers of people for soccer and softball tournaments every year, and is located about 45 minutes or so from the facility that holds the motorcycle show in Chicago. Because of the sports events held here, there is an abundance of middle priced hotels, many of which have conference facilities. A few of those hotels also have restraunts with banquet facilities.
If Rockford was a suitable location for the banquet in the future, I would have no problem doing the leg work and find an adequate facility to host future award banquets for CCS. Rockford is close enough to Chicago to make it convenient to still attend the M/C show, and you don't have to deal with the traffic headaches of being in Chi-town and trying to get in and out of downtown.
QuoteBrian, I have been with the wifey for over 9 years now and she is the one who encourages me to go racing. I had to eventually get married, so she figured that it was about time.
His visa ran out. Needed a green card... Hey Edgar, that girl is cute! Why did she settle for you?
Quote My guess is that the people from Kendals misrepresented their facilities, and somebody lied about the length of the ride from the hotel to the bar. No one would have been stupid enough to book this stuff otherwise.
Chris, I know you're trying to be positive, but it took me less than 30 seconds after the banquet info was posted (and this was how many months ago?) to find numerous Kendall's links on the web. It took me almost half that time to realise that it wasn't sufficiant or appropriate for the usual number of attendees.
Friday evening, Roger wanted to see the what the place looked like and how to get there. I showed him one of the links that contained a map. He looked it over and looked at me and said we're not going, we we're wasting our money and our time. He could see from the photos that the place was too small for large groups.
I believe we had around 250 people the previous year. When you are planning an event, you base totals off of previous years. You ask what the capacity is of a new venue. If it's true that Tiffany thought there would only be 50 attendees, then she did not know what was the norm for this region. It was her job to ask and it was her job to know. Add to that that all 3 regions from this geographical area were combined, you might assume the attendance would be slightly higher.
Chris, I believe you and all of the other racers work very hard. You deserve the best. Anyone can attempt to put a good face on it, and good for you if you can. Optimism and being positive is always better than negative. Bottom line for CCS and Clearchannel: this is the face of their
corporate image. Anyone who makes excuses for CCS and Clearchannel, well, that is like saying that it's ok for a multi-million dollar conglomerate to show disrespect to us. They have the resources, they should have had a protocol for Tiffany to follow.
Don't blame Kendall's directly, no small business wants bad press or unhappy customers. A corporation can survive this though. Will CCS formally appologize? Who knows. Roger has yet to get his "piece of paper" from 2000, My e-mails and corospondance over the years has yet to be answered, and Rhiannon has yet to receive her corrected certificate from the MW last year, or her other 2001 certificates due her from other regions.
What is the answer? I don't know. Those who've let CCS know how they feel are starting to think that they are just complainers. I've always tried to offer positive solutions when I write to them or post on this forum. I have no solution for the current situation. I'm not sure what the problem might be or where the root of it lies.
I do know one thing for sure though, every racer who participates in this sport does it mind, body and soul, and for that they ought to be honored when they acheive high goals. Again, to everyone who received an award this year and even those of you who did not...great kudos to you.
QuoteHis visa ran out. Needed a green card... Hey Edgar, that girl is cute! Why did she settle for you?
Chris,
I was thinking the same thing. ??? She must've done something real bad in her previous life to be stuck with Edgar. ;D
Quote.
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What is the answer? I don't know. Those who've let CCS know how they feel are starting to think that they are just complainers. I've always tried to offer positive solutions when I write to them or post on this forum. I have no solution for the current situation. I'm not sure what the problem might be or where the root of it lies.
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For the few years I've dealt with CCS, from Chicago to Fort Worth, I've found the same lack of response and communication. I no long care what the reason is, but I'd like to find a solution.
What if we were to form a group that helped solve racer issues. A small group of people that wanted to voluteer their time to make things better. Perhaps this group could help respond to racer issues, help get things done, and form a better line of communications between the racers and CCS.
You know Jack, you're not the first person to think of that idea, just the only one to make it known. Do you think that CCS would respond to such a group? If so, that could be a very positive thing. Thee are a myriad of issues to consider to even starting such a thing, but it would be worth exploring.
QuoteYou know Jack, you're not the first person to think of that idea, just the only one to make it known. Do you think that CCS would respond to such a group? If so, that could be a very positive thing. Thee are a myriad of issues to consider to even starting such a thing, but it would be worth exploring.
There's really no telling how CCS would respond, or if they would. ;D But I think with a little perserverance and if the group worked in a positive way, it would be in their benefit.
The group could help racers understand the issues, and take some of the work load off of CCS.
I think with the backing of racers and a positive effort it could help some problems, identify issues and keep them active until they're solved. A union, council, advocate group, lobby, I don't know what it would be or what to call it, but I'm not even a racer and I'm tired of the status quo.
Here's the thing. Everybody's got a boss. You keep climbing and eventually you get to one man (or woman).
Taking issues to Kevin does not yeild results (most often), so we need to keep climbing.
Somewhere in CCE, there is a VP or CEO in charge of CCS. This is the person we need to find and address. If this fails, there's always the board of directors.
Sure, we could simply be told to "sit-down and shut-up", but when CUSTOMERS talk, a business needs to listen. If they don't, they will fail to be a business for too long...
Hotel 71-
Very nice, and a steal at $79 + $32 = $111 for a renovated, modern, downtown Chicago Hotel with a view. NO room for complaints there, in fact kudos are in order.
Kendall's/Banquet-
Cab ride was $12 for 3, each way. Limo service was poor. I didn't know what to expect at the place, and told my date (CYA) that club level racing is not glamorous at all. Well guess what, it wasn't! But, we made lemonade out of lemons and had a blast anyway. I tipped $1 for every drink, hopefully that's enough ::) $25/PP entry was too high.
Getting awards in boxes was kind of cheesy (but easier to carry once you left the banquet), but the trophies themselves were nice. I'm not a big awards guy but would like to have one of those :) I did place 3rd in a couple of classes (and 6th and 9th Overall points) so its not like I'm a guy without a "vested interest".
Ended up at La Passage thanks to Tez and gang (see other post by OmniGLH), had a blast.
Maybe I just don't have as high of expectations as some others do???
Maybe I think that CLUB level racing is exactly that, if you want to go Pro maybe this isn't the right primary org for you. But, if you are in the MW be prepared to double or more your traveling mileage and time.
Maybe I think that we have to work together to improve things. Ask not what CCS can do for you....
All I know is get me on the grid with my friends and friends-to-be and the rest of this seems pretty trivial :)
S-diver, You made some excellent points. To me $111 for downtown is Cheap and the parking etc.. no big deal. As far as the size of the room ?? could have been better. What warms my temper is the "Sit down and shut up!!" The awards in the boxes (granted for transport it was good) Oh well.. CCS has been around long enough to know the difference between Cheesy and nice.Bottom line, "give us your money" and if you don't like it go elsewhere.I'm sure Mr suave "shut up" will say some thing like "we just won't do this anymore" and that my friends will be what shows us how much we mean to there business.Give us what we pay for- try going to Sears, Pay for the new lawn mower and have the clerk tell you " we are really busy now, we will TRY to get the mower to you soon... No one would stand for paying for something at a retail store and not getting the service, Would You ?? The guy who suggested Rockford is on the money location wise. Now someone buy my "R-6 race package" so I can not have a heart attack B-4 my 34th B-day
QuoteNot a misspelling, banquit, because if this is what we can expect for banquets in the future, I quit.
I hope you voiced you concerns with Kevin and Tiffeny at the banquet before you came on this forum and bashed them. Remember, mean people suck!
Quote:)
And where the hell was Ike? I was looking forward to chillin with him but he no show like a mofo.
im sure i missed everyone more than i was missed :)
and by the sound of it, my frugal thoughts were on point. 25 bucks didnt sound bad, but i was certain that the expense was sure to grow, and yada yada yada....(i was working on sponsorship)
sounds like i wouldve been one to enjoy being amoung my peers more than the sittuation, but
i am also one who would be for the improvement of the gathering.
Super_Duck Dude,
i owizzle yizzle wizzle my brizzle, yet agizzle.....
(i owe you one, yet again)
First, the Bartenders and Waitresses were tipped $630, included in the $25.00. Any thing extra was nice but not necessary. (I would like to make $30 - $50 an hour, wouldn't you?)
The distance from the hotel to Kendall's was 3.8 miles, 9 minutes in normal traffic for a normal car. The limo company stated they could not use that route, the car couldn't negotiate two of the turns. We had to trust them on what route they could take, because it wasn't revealed to us until the first party had been taken over to Kendall's, too late to change arrangements. There was no charge to the attendee's of Saturday night for the limo, (The food, drinks and tip were exactly $25 per person, ask Kendall's they will tell you.), it was added as a courtesy and all we get is grief because it wasn't what some expected.
Parking at the hotel was $11.00 for the weekend at the self-park just fifteen feet to the left of where the Valet parking for $32.00 was.
Normal rate of $169 per night rooms for $79 per night was pretty good considering the Days Inn and Comfort Inn wouldn't budge from their $129 per night. (And you still would have had to pay $10 per day for parking.)
Kendall's was inspected by people we trusted before the Awards Ceremony was scheduled there. They told us it would be great, we believed them, and by the time we saw it for ourselves it was too late to change. Seating capacity of Kendall's was listed as 300, we had 200 in attendance, of which only 108 pre-registered.
Kendall's continued to bring out food up front until the line disappeared, and then they moved the food to the back of the room, which was announced several times. They served until well after 9:00pm.
I apologize to those whom I offended when I told everyone to sit down and shut up. As rude as that was, it was even ruder to have people continue to talk and laugh amongst themselves when a Champion was giving his or her speech. I felt that we were there to honor the racers who had given the effort and it angered me that there were people in that room who did not feel the same way. (And some of those even have the gall to complain in this thread!) I lost my patience, as Chris put it, while trying to save the sinking ship. I guess I was mistaken when I thought that everyone would show each other the respect, courtesy and honor they deserved.
After years of complaints about the poor food and the high cost we get at these hotel banquets, we tried something different. (I had more than 50 complaints last year about the Mid-West banquet food and the price.) At least we listened and tried something different, obviously what made some people happy made others mad and some people are just unhappy no matter what you do.
For 19 seasons, CCS has only awarded the Regional Champions Trophies or plaques, certificates for 2nd through 5th. This has not changed. Stacey Clark and Nancy Adams were in charge of previous years certificates, if you did not receive them, please contact me.
Thanks to those who had the respect to address their comments to me personally before coming on here. I appreciate that. Ed Key's simple e-mail to us was more powerfull than Gordy's diatribe that started this.
Good Day.
In the spirit of Jack and Alexia's comments, CCS will gladly turn over to the racers the planning of the 2003 Awards Ceremony. For those who are interested, the parameters are:
1. Pick a date that everyone can make, stay off traditional dates such as the Super Bowl or the Daytona 500. (You want no excuses for riders to not attend your shindig.)
2. Make the location convenient to ALL racers in the region(s). Racers who competed regularly in the Mid-west, Great Plains and Great Lakes regions came from Minnesota, Iowa ,Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
3. The hotel/restaurant has to be flexible, crowd will be from 50 to 300 people, we won't know until the night of the dinner. (We had 108 pre-enter, 92 show up "unannounced" this year, 120 pre enter and 60 show up "unannounced" in 2002 and 150 pre-enter with 35 or so "unannounced" in 2001.)
4. Obtain a total price, including taxes, tips, set-up fees, room charge, bartenders, cash bar, public address system and any clean-up fees there may be. If it is a sit-down dinner or dinner buffet, you need to satisfy those who eat only meat and potatoes, vegetarians, and those who only eat "healthy" like chicken or fish. Must be under $35 per person total and include non-alcoholic beverages.
For an appetizer / finger food buffet, you must come up with a small variety of foods that will be acceptable to a very wide variety of people fro vegetarians to the meat lovers. Cost must be $15 or less and include non-alcoholic beverages
5. Negotiate a good room deal. No complimentary rooms for every 10-20, you want to get the discount spread over every room so it benefits everyone, not just a few.
6. Find an Emcee that won't offend the attendees. Pay scale is free dinner, must have prior experience and be acceptable to both CCS and racers.
Please e-mail me at kevinelliott@clearchannel.com with your intention to arrange next years Awards Ceremony, and I will choose a representative in each region to plan the 2004 event.
Kevin,
I am interested and volunteer to handle the banquet. My wife is THE wedding planner and has reviewed your criteria. We understand the difficulties. If an advocacy group is formed I will let them handle it, but regardless I'll volunteer and accept the responsibility.
In addition, I'd like to discuss the budget for certificates, trophies, and other awards.
I'll e-mail you.
Wow. That was pretty strong. Anyone planning on jumping at this opportunity? I helped my wife plan our wedding, and threw a few biker parties back in the day. Gosh, was that fun. NOT!!! Now I just say "Here is where I'll be. I'll see ya or I won't."
Lex, you know I luv ya. You did an incredible job of not offending me as you disagreed. Seriously though. I invented, got approved for, and ran a motorcycle parade in my town for four straight years. This parade happened the weekend after Chicago Toys for Tots, and was essentially the same idea. My run always ended in a bar, and had the food/drink/entertainment/space/emcee issues that Kevin brings up. After four years of devoting 3 months of my spare time each year to the project, I decided to step down. There was such a rush of people clamoring to take my place that the run never happened again. For God's sake, I had an entire notebook full of contacts, form letters and documents that I had created, and a long list of people and buisnesses who would help the cause. There was no longer any research required. All someone had to do was take the ball and run with it. No takers.
Organizing this kind of thing sucks. I truly doubt that Tiffany, Kevin, or anyone else from CCS decided to cook up a really bad awards banquet in order to piss off the racers. Sometimes we prepare hard for a race, but then we crash or blow up, and the result is not what we expected. I have been quite vocal about lost pre-entries, lack of practice, track days run during our practice, and a number of other gripes, so you know that I have no problem criticizing CCS when I feel they've done something wrong. Honestly, I don't feel that the banquet debacle was in any way the result of meanness or a lack of effort. Kevin is right on target. Anyone who thiinks they want to take responsability for next year should jump right up and be counted!
Jack, you're a brave man, a glutton for punishment, a fool, and a hero. Call me if you need someone to cover your back...
K3
I was at the bike show and knew of Kendells. I made other plans. (I was'nt getting any awards anyway) Sorry, If I was'nt already planning to go to a larger dive I would have stood out side with a Clown and handed out ballons to you all. I saw this comming awhile back. I was even tempted to change my mind and go later, when I found out a friend was going to be there. I'm not impressed with the new pace managment team, and I think they know It. I used to think it truly was about the piggy-bank, but after hearing that about a open bar. I think I would take it a judgemental,anal-retentiveness, and to speak futher would not be P.C.
Jack and Alexa, there is a group that is a go between from racer to CCS. They are the regional race director and staff. They should be getting information, complaints or compliments to CCS and solving your problems during the year. Nobody should have to go beyond them to get things handled. I doubt seriously that CCS would recognize an outside group of racers.
KC 124, no, I got on here and blasted away before I sent anything to Kevin. Notice the time on my post, 3:09 a.m., I sent it after I drove home from the banquet. Then I sent a message to Kevin and we are playing email tag right now.I did not send anything seperately to Tiffanny because I'm quite sure Kevin will share.
Why am I so disappointed with the banquet some of you may ask. Because I think the racers, workers staff and everyone else involved with this sport deserves a better effort than what was presented. And think of this. Clear Channel prides itself in being one of, if not the largest entertainment promoter in the world and we have to put up with stuff like Saturday night. Let me ask you, WHY?
CCS probably has the smallest budget of any of their organizations, why? Because we don't make enough money for them? No, we don't pack the stands with thousands of people like the monster trucks, supercross or concerts they promote, does that mean we should not get a decent banquet to honor the guys that spend their hard earned money to race with CCS?
Yeah, we can have a good time getting together anywhere. Does that mean we have to settle for less from CCS? If you guys don't demand better you won't get better. Why are some of you willing to accept mediocrity? This is your organization. It is made up of members that pay an annual membership fee (your license) as well as pay dearly all year long for the privilege (?) of racing with CCS.
If you guys are willing to accept what they are giving you then go ahead. I will sit back and remain silent. It's your organization, do with it what you will. ;D
Gordy, I really can understand where you are coming from. Yes, the banquet was disappointing compared to previous years, and yes, that upset me. I'm just not willing to burn anyone at the stake for it. Having been in the position of "organizer" myself, I can easily imagine the screwups that led to the situation we all faced. Trying to set up a party 1000+ miles from where you live is a daunting task. I'm sure that we can all armchair quarterback this thing to death and figure out EXACTLY how it should have been handled. My boss is fantastic at that.
I guess I'll reiterate what I said before. I don't think that the snafu that was our banquet was anything other than the result of people trying to do the job right, but coming up short. I may have earned a stack of awards this year, but I spent 2 seasons and thousands of dollars doing it wrong before I finally found the formula for success at an amateur level. White plates for 2003 mean that I must start the process all over again.
Did Tiffany plan the banquet? She's 22 years old, man! How many times do you think she's planned something like this before? Do you think she's embarrased by the way things went? I consider Tiffany to be my friend, but she wouldn't even smile at me that night. She was definitly NOT basking in the sweet glow of success at that point. Do you think she'll be much more experienced and wary if she's given the same task next year? Honestly, I felt sorry for her that night.
In my opinion, it's right to be disappointed, but wrong to be angry. I had built that banquet up in my mind to be the best night of my life, and in spite of the problems, I was not disappointed. As Lex and Rhiannon are so fond of saying, "PMA!!! Positive Mental Attitude!"
In the last few weeks, I've said the same thing on several threads. CCS is a corporate entity. Kevin, Tifanny, and the rest are employees of that company. They must deal with the repurcussions of what corporate decides, pass the word on to us, and deal with our anger. Tough job! These people could be working elswhere, but they chose CCS because they love motorcycle racing. Perhaps it is time for us as a group to find out how to go over their heads. CCS has a hiring freeze on right now, so Kevin, Tiffany, and co-workers will continue to be overworked. Is the situation likely to get better? I doubt it.
Recently, I did a job exactly the way my foreman told me to. I knew that it was a bad, even dangerous idea, but I had no choice except to do what I had been told. The end result was a major snafu, resulting in a fair amount of property damage. Needless to say, the foreman lied his @$$ off at the inquery, and now I'm facing a suspension. Perhaps this is why I can feel some empathy for the CCS brass. Kevin doesn't own CCS, after all. He's an employee with a boss. I'll bet he has a comittee of bosses, and they probably don't listen to much that he has to say. Would you want his job? There are many thing wrong with the way our club is being run, but I suspect that we may be blaming the wrong people.
OK, I'm done with this thread. Sorry Gordy. You have always had, and will continue to have my highest respect. I hope you won't take it personally that I've disagreed with you on a few points here.
QuoteIn the spirit of Jack and Alexia's comments, CCS will gladly turn over to the racers the planning of the 2003 Awards Ceremony. For those who are interested, the parameters are:
1. Pick a date that everyone can make, stay off traditional dates such as the Super Bowl or the Daytona 500. (You want no excuses for riders to not attend your shindig.)
2. Make the location convenient to ALL racers in the region(s). Racers who competed regularly in the Mid-west, Great Plains and Great Lakes regions came from Minnesota, Iowa ,Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
3. The hotel/restaurant has to be flexible, crowd will be from 50 to 300 people, we won't know until the night of the dinner. (We had 108 pre-enter, 92 show up "unannounced" this year, 120 pre enter and 60 show up "unannounced" in 2002 and 150 pre-enter with 35 or so "unannounced" in 2001.)
4. Obtain a total price, including taxes, tips, set-up fees, room charge, bartenders, cash bar, public address system and any clean-up fees there may be. If it is a sit-down dinner or dinner buffet, you need to satisfy those who eat only meat and potatoes, vegetarians, and those who only eat "healthy" like chicken or fish. Must be under $35 per person total and include non-alcoholic beverages.
For an appetizer / finger food buffet, you must come up with a small variety of foods that will be acceptable to a very wide variety of people fro vegetarians to the meat lovers. Cost must be $15 or less and include non-alcoholic beverages
5. Negotiate a good room deal. No complimentary rooms for every 10-20, you want to get the discount spread over every room so it benefits everyone, not just a few.
6. Find an Emcee that won't offend the attendees. Pay scale is free dinner, must have prior experience and be acceptable to both CCS and racers.
Please e-mail me at kevinelliott@clearchannel.com with your intention to arrange next years Awards Ceremony, and I will choose a representative in each region to plan the 2004 event.
Are you serious? One thing that I have learned in business is to take responsibility for what your position is. Regardless of who made what decision, who looked at the facilities prior to the event, etc. The ultimate responsibility in all of this lies ultimately with one person. Taking the attitude of " If you think you can do it any better, you do it" is unacceptable. In my opinion this only illustrates and encapsulates a continued lack of management skill that is required to effectively and efficiently run this area of CCS. It all starts at the top. Part of being in this position is stepping up and taking responsibility regardless of what transpires. Simple attention to detail goes along way. I have several other specific and personal examples that I could share.
Chris, I'm not trying to burn anyone at the stake. I spoke my mind on the subject and people are free to agree or disagree. It makes the world go 'round. ;D
I was embarrassed in front of people I brought into this organization and that p*ssed me off. So those are personal feelings that get a person a bit more fired up than your average race organization screw up. I'm so very glad I wasn't a racer that brought a sponsor.
I probably agree we are not directing our disappointment to the proper people. CCE doesn't give CCS the proper staff to do the job. They obviously don't understand the requirements, but is it our job to convince them of that?
The only way they would understand that is through their bank account. You know as well as I do that is not going to happen because the average racer will just go racing.
Yeah, I can understand how Tiffiney may have felt Saturday night. Another point, why is CCE letting someone with little to no experience do these things? It certainly isn't to improve their image. They have people in the company that do this stuff as a profession, every day, but they won't let CCS use those resources. Why?
I won't even comment on the offer to turn over the banquet to someone else. ::)
Previously there were suggestions of using Rockford Il. as a location for the MW / GL / GP regions banquet due to it's location and convience. As I mentioned before, I live in Rockford and would be willing to help find an appropriate location here if this is where the racers would like to have it. I personally don't have any past experience with this type of thing (and can only imagine all that is involved with planning such a banquet), but I could help in finding locations suitable and give that information to an event planner who could work their magic with negotiating prices and scheduling. I do agree that the M/C show weekend is a good choice of a date for obvious reasons (and the show is located only 45 minutes or so from Rockford).
I hope I'm able to tack on one little thing on here...
I think the important thing that I do always look forward to is seeing everyone. I did get that a bit, and I can' complain. I even had the opportunity to talk with the man, Kevin Elliott, even though it was only for a few moments.
I'm sure that EVERYONE is unhappy with it all. Kevin and Tiffany included. And like he said, there does come that point when there is nothing one can do. You've got to make the best of it regardless... Kind of like racing at Blackhawk when it snows...
Anyway, yes, if we can plan the gig for the end of 2003 and make it better. It will definitely take some pressure off Kevin and Tiffany. Agreed?
The problem here is not CCS it is CCE. The large corp CCE is just milking CCS for all it is worth. CCS makes money that is why they combined events with FUSA as FUSA made no money. CCE brags how they are the #1 provider of concerts and events but spends no money promoting FUSA races. It is obvious why FUSA fell apart. The problem with the banquet is just another example of their incompetence. The CCE office is local , i am sure the have had corporate events at hotels and facilities throughout this area over the years so they know what facilities are available.You are the customers of CCS if you keep making excuses for them please don't complain when they dump on you over and over. There are other choices out there for your money spend it where you get a return. Gordy has been around a long time also he was there for the good and bad days of CCS, he has done a great deal for the sport and i have to agree with a lot of what he said. Gman was also correct , if you want to be in charge of something be accountable and take your lumps. is it ok to screw up and then tell people to sit down and shut up when it's your fault i think not. K3 it's a shame you looked forward to a exciting night and it wasn't what you expected , you still had fun because you made the best of it , good for you! Someone should start a campaign to tell CCS and CCE how you would like to be treated as customers.
QuoteJack and Alexa, there is a group that is a go between from racer to CCS. They are the regional race director and staff. They should be getting information, complaints or compliments to CCS and solving your problems during the year. Nobody should have to go beyond them to get things handled. I doubt seriously that CCS would recognize an outside group of racers.
KC 124, no, I got on here and blasted away before I sent anything to Kevin. Notice the time on my post, 3:09 a.m., I sent it after I drove home from the banquet. Then I sent a message to Kevin and we are playing email tag right now.I did not send anything seperately to Tiffanny because I'm quite sure Kevin will share.
Why am I so disappointed with the banquet some of you may ask. Because I think the racers, workers staff and everyone else involved with this sport deserves a better effort than what was presented. And think of this. Clear Channel prides itself in being one of, if not the largest entertainment promoter in the world and we have to put up with stuff like Saturday night. Let me ask you, WHY?
CCS probably has the smallest budget of any of their organizations, why? Because we don't make enough money for them? No, we don't pack the stands with thousands of people like the monster trucks, supercross or concerts they promote, does that mean we should not get a decent banquet to honor the guys that spend their hard earned money to race with CCS?
Yeah, we can have a good time getting together anywhere. Does that mean we have to settle for less from CCS? If you guys don't demand better you won't get better. Why are some of you willing to accept mediocrity? This is your organization. It is made up of members that pay an annual membership fee (your license) as well as pay dearly all year long for the privilege (?) of racing with CCS.
If you guys are willing to accept what they are giving you then go ahead. I will sit back and remain silent. It's your organization, do with it what you will. ;D
GORDY FOR PRESIDENT !!!!
Ike
QuoteThe problem here is not CCS it is CCE. The large corp CCE is just milking CCS for all it is worth. CCS makes money that is why they combined events with FUSA as FUSA made no money. CCE brags how they are the #1 provider of concerts and events but spends no money promoting FUSA races. It is obvious why FUSA fell apart. The problem with the banquet is just another example of their incompetence. The CCE office is local , i am sure the have had corporate events at hotels and facilities throughout this area over the years so they know what facilities are available.You are the customers of CCS if you keep making excuses for them please don't complain when they dump on you over and over. There are other choices out there for your money spend it where you get a return. Gordy has been around a long time also he was there for the good and bad days of CCS, he has done a great deal for the sport and i have to agree with a lot of what he said. Gman was also correct , if you want to be in charge of something be accountable and take your lumps. is it ok to screw up and then tell people to sit down and shut up when it's your fault i think not. K3 it's a shame you looked forward to a exciting night and it wasn't what you expected , you still had fun because you made the best of it , good for you! Someone should start a campaign to tell CCS and CCE how you would like to be treated as customers.
Did'nt someone speak of feeding the pig earlier? As far as making money, at this rate, That won't last for long.
As for seeing the gang, well why not just have them at a booth at the bike show handing out trophies when you show your race ID. Would that be personal enough for them? It would be less expensive for us. plus you can leave the show with the felling that it was'nt a total waist of time.
QuoteIn the spirit of Jack and Alexia's comments, CCS will gladly turn over to the racers the planning of the 2003 Awards Ceremony. For those who are interested, the parameters are:
1. Pick a date that everyone can make, stay off traditional dates such as the Super Bowl or the Daytona 500. (You want no excuses for riders to not attend your shindig.)
2. Make the location convenient to ALL racers in the region(s). Racers who competed regularly in the Mid-west, Great Plains and Great Lakes regions came from Minnesota, Iowa ,Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
3. The hotel/restaurant has to be flexible, crowd will be from 50 to 300 people, we won't know until the night of the dinner. (We had 108 pre-enter, 92 show up "unannounced" this year, 120 pre enter and 60 show up "unannounced" in 2002 and 150 pre-enter with 35 or so "unannounced" in 2001.)
4. Obtain a total price, including taxes, tips, set-up fees, room charge, bartenders, cash bar, public address system and any clean-up fees there may be. If it is a sit-down dinner or dinner buffet, you need to satisfy those who eat only meat and potatoes, vegetarians, and those who only eat "healthy" like chicken or fish. Must be under $35 per person total and include non-alcoholic beverages.
For an appetizer / finger food buffet, you must come up with a small variety of foods that will be acceptable to a very wide variety of people fro vegetarians to the meat lovers. Cost must be $15 or less and include non-alcoholic beverages
5. Negotiate a good room deal. No complimentary rooms for every 10-20, you want to get the discount spread over every room so it benefits everyone, not just a few.
6. Find an Emcee that won't offend the attendees. Pay scale is free dinner, must have prior experience and be acceptable to both CCS and racers.
Please e-mail me at kevinelliott@clearchannel.com with your intention to arrange next years Awards Ceremony, and I will choose a representative in each region to plan the 2004 event.
Would we be so lucky as to be actively involved in our safety issues as well?
Matt
QuoteWould we be so lucky as to be actively involved in our safety issues as well?
Matt
Start a new topic on safety.
Man, I''ve been following this thread all week now. Sounds like it was a cluster f*&k. I am looking forward to the banquet here in the Southeast and MidAtlantic. Ours will be held at beautiful VIR. (the same place as last year). I remember a while back when Tiffany was asking for everyone's suggestions for a banquet. She got a lot of ideas from all of you. I thought having the banquet at VIR was a great idea because it is the same as a combined event weekend (SE and MA). Most of us racers will be there racing anyway, so why not go to the banquet as well :) Don't any of the tracks in the MW or GL regions have facilities to accomodate a banquet? I guess the tracks up there are closed this time of year because of the cold weather huh? My .02
QuoteI guess the tracks up there are closed this time of year because of the cold weather huh? My .02
I was happy when I went out to start my truck this morning. It was 3 degrees. ::)
Dawn :)