DSC Membership ? POLL
 

So theres alot of different opinion on here currently re membership

I'm thinking of joining up

but .............

after reading both sides, what are the main reasons to join or gripes not to join ??

I CAN'T DENY IT'S A BL**DY GOOD FORUM !!!

hope this helps other undecided to make a descision

PLEASE ONLY POST YOUR POLL IF YOU ARE WILLING TO BACK IT UP WITH A + OR - COMMENT !

Mods, if you don't like it then you can remove it, but I think its a good marketing/feedback exercise ?

ffs it's only 20 quid or whatever, get yer money out ya cheapskates!

If you hadnt of come on this site, how much bling would you of missed out on?
How much tech knowledge etc............

trouble is people still get this without being a member!

On the mini2 site, you have restrictions. In order to post a for sale, or on a thread selling something, you have to be a paid up member!

no problem at all with the £20 mate, just need to know what peoples beef is first

I pay the membership but: Don't have a Ducati, don't do rideouts or trackdays, have had no discounts. So why join?

Well over the last few years I have met with members from the site who have become good friends regardless of the bike I ride, have been to Italy to the factory and museum (again meetings some great members from here) and as has been said it is only £20. If you have or are considering buying a Ducati then you can certainly afford £20.....

Join it, Sharpy. You provide good input here on the Board and as a member, you can help steer the club in the direction you want it to go. The Club can only change and improve if there are members willing to do their bit towards that goal. The Message Board wouldn't exist but for the paying members who join/re-join each year. There's discounts to be had as a member.

Plus, the Roundel gives you magical powers ...

I may be exaggerating a little with that last point.

Why not pay £20....

Without the club, what would happen to the web site and the forum.

this is what I'm after !!!!

Now do they do it in carbon? :lol:

Do it - joining the DSC is the best motorcycling decision I've ever made. I've met loads of great people, had loads of helpful advice - it's the members that make the club - and all for £20.... Bargain!

this coming from the man with a carbon PC111 bracket of course

if I pay up can I get a carbon roundall ? LOL


there are 3328 registered members on this board , anyone know what the full membership numbers sre ? just outta interest

I chose join...probablydoes what you want it to and without new peolpe there is a risk the club will diminish and the forum be affected

2 NEGATIVE VOTES WITH NO COMMENTS ?

hhhmmmmmmmmmm

Different view. I say don't join although I was a member for 4 years. I feel that the club thing is now out of date and that more regional messageboards are the way forward - a very good example is Ducati Up North. DuN isn't a club, it affiliates with all things Ducati so there's no animosity to other Ducati clubs/boards, they get advertising sponsorship to pay for the site and they organise some amazing events.

My problem with clubs is that they breed a certain type of mindset which is a little feudal to be honest, plus it can put some 'interesting' characters in charge of some hefty sums of money, allows them to enjoy patronage from Ducati and other organisations and in my opinion, generates a 'them and us' environment which Sharpy may have picked up hense the poll.

This messageboard is great but it doesn't need subscriptions to fund it - it could very easily be self funding through advertising and sponsorship without giving up any independence - again look at DuN if you want to see it in action. Most Ducati dealers and suppliers are happy to offer you a discount if asked for nicely - I have no problem getting one. You then ask the question what does my £20 buy? Well a very healthy bank balance in the hands of 3 or 4 people to do with it as they wish including last year spending over £1700 on stickers and God knows how much on a very poor magazine.

I love this club and everyone I have met in it who have become real friends and I hope have enjoyed my friendship in return. However, I have deep reservations about any type of club and the authoritarian culture they tend to generate.

Paying £20 to join doesn't give you the right to challenge the status quo, far from it :(

Sad to say - I haven't joined because I have an aversion to being a paid-up member of any bike club. My reasons for this are well-known and have been mentioned here before. Basically, by not being a paid-up member I am above the political nonsense that goes on (and there's been a lot of it here lately), I don't have an axe to grind and I don't have a right to express an opinion re. certain issues.

That suits me very well. I get on with the business of having fun with bikes instead. :)

Some people might think this is being unduly tight but, I believe I'm a net contributor as I do my best to help out with technical stuff, knowledge I have found re. my racing 800ss experience etc.

Best web site I have found
 

:mad: Well worth £20 and more for the advice alone, must save a fortune.
Unfortunately due to financial constraints I will not be Joining yet but as soon as things pick up I defenately will. Have to leve Bike off the road when MOT runs out on Saturday and will not be renewing tax or insurance.
Brian.

Only 20 quid. I'm sure you could use the DSC discount to get more bling.
Plus you get access to the members only area!!!

join.
its a top club.
I don't care what happens with my money. its only 20 bucks.
as long as the web is up then that's all I need.
it gives me so much useful info.
helped me strip my bike down to the chassis so I could paint it.
helped me put a new engine in when I wanted more cubes. and so on.
the money I must of saved by picking peoples brains who had been there and done that must be mega.
the parts I have come across to upgrade my bike from other members.
and so on.
just join.
other clubs are a bit like wearing a fake Rolex watch.

Whilst Henry puts some good points together, some of them bear challenging.

The magazine, Pronto, is only as good as the material that Club members provide for it. I'm sometimes in two minds about its overall value to the Club, but my feeling is that if I want to see more/better articles in it, I'd better get my finger out and write some. And maybe I will ...

Henry's re-hashing of the Club finances issue is not helpful here - I seem to recall that the Club accounts are published and whenever questions have been raised about what gets spent, the questions get answered, either sooner or later. Not to Henry's satisfaction, perhaps, but they are to mine.

The reference to the "feudal" nature of the Club management is a little mis-leading. It is possible to challenge decisions and the structure of the Management Team ... as you yourself know, Henry, after all you did it. I'm not going to say that the management of this Club is perfect, but it is good enough for me to have confidence in the MT, when you bear in mind that the alternative is for me to put myself forward for a MT position - something I do not have the time or energy for (even assuming I could get the membership's support!).

Perhaps everything that DSC provides in its current form could be provided via a different set-up, in the way that Ducati Up-North currently does. That remains to be seen and in the meantime, I support the Club.

Henry, I know that you have had a torrid time of it as membership secretary, and after you stepped down from it. I won't tell you that you're wrong to feel negative towards Clubs in general, and the DSC in particular, you feel what you feel based upon your experience. My own thoughts and feelings are based upon my experience with the Club, and it's been a lot more positive for me.

i vote for Loz....all those in agreement......

Andy, why you hate me so? ;)

now you know thats not true.............:rolleyes: ;)

I've had 5 Ducati's in all, but don't have a bike at the moment. I'm still a member. Why? Because I've met some great people and had some fantastic experiences. The complainers? Its the same handful of names over and over. They just like complaining. Ignore 'em.
Join up. Let's play!

after the **** I've had this morning I wouldnt join now and wont be recomending!! So take one off the count and add to dont join!!

One thing I wont miss is the unwelcoming clique that exists in this club

Ive been a paid up member of the DSC for 5 years now, the reason I joined in the first place has not changed . I wanted to be associated with people that had a common interest. I was a little "twitchy" at first when I went out on my first meet and since that one day not only have I seen the club grow and expand as it has, but the most important thing Ive meet and made some good buddies whom I have total respect for on and of the road. I doubt very seriously had I not joined I would have missed out on some of the best times I could possible have had with "people that have a commom interest" The £20 fee is just a little "commitment" that I feel one must show to be a true member of the DSC. As a member I then feel I can pass comments and make a contribution to the welfare of this club. 4D

Loz ...
 

.. I have no negative feelings towards the DSC, just certain members of the MT. I still post here, I still go on ride-outs, I still support club events when I can, I will help anyone who asks for it. The question Sharpy asked was should he join the club or not. I expressed my views on clubs in general and issues that I know exist with this one.

Henry

Thanks for clarifying, Henry. You had originally indicated that you have a problem with clubs in general, and defined your reservations. You're as entitled to post your reservations here as I am to post my support for joining the Club.

I do hope I haven't ******ed-up your invitation to visit your stately home in Spain one day. I may get around to it eventually! :)

No good trying to be nice now ..... :lol:

I wouldn't know where to start, anyway! :lol:

Who's the one sitting on the fence then ? LOL

JOIN. Since joining I have recouped my membership fee many times over. Plus, I see it as supporting this very forum.

tempting.........

anyone know if you can do paypal or electronic payment or are we still talking good 'ol cheques and stamps here ?

Cheques and stamps - works for me!

Sharpy! Are you tempted yet???

still cojetat........congetat......conjutatin........... ...

..........thinking about all the arguements !

Surly you should make your own mind up ? After all its your 20 quid, you have been around long enough to form your own opinion, hell if I had to go round polling people on should I do this or should I do that I would never get anywhere.

While I opted for joining in your poll, it was my choice to join, I have my own reasons, and I am old enough to make my own mind up.

Pay your 20 Quid or don't, its down to you, all this topic will achieve is another platform for sprouting off and flaming. After all if you see a bit of bling for your bike and you like it you buy it, thats your choice. so use your own judjement.

Here is what you get for your 20 quid.

http://www.ducatisportingclub.com/index.php?page=JoinUs

Bionicle, thank you ! all input greatly appreciated

however, it is still quite undeniably interesting to gain other peoples take on the whole thing, don't you agree ?

there are review sites for everything else on the good 'ol tinterweb

Have no doubt, I will be making MY own mind up (if I hadn't already)

but there are obviously issues here that need some addressing

Plus you get a nice little card to put in your wallet .

look nice next to my gold Crossbow Calendar feature bike card !
brag brag

What about some pics of the Crossbow party then???