Major problems on this site - decision making!

Donald Campbell · Post by **Donald Campbell** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 7:56 am

In case all of you didn't notice it yet:

Most of the IMPORTANT things happening on this site are discussed to death-to say so. Be it the transfer of ownership or the rookie topic.

No aggressive criticism towards jani or corky or anybody else.

but that has to change,if we really want things to happen.

i know this is a democratic forum and a multicultural one too,but...
some things have to happen now or they will never happen.

i, for myself, think that this scene needs a guiding personality,who is able to determine the contents immediately.

on the rookie subject:
a poll has to be made right now for the euro and the us rookie of the year.
each member ha a single vote.
after that the chosen rookie should be awarded a small trophy and that should be featured here,actually that should be featured pretty big.
and that should be done now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

on the transfer regarding site ownership:
600 bucks?
is that it?

i'll pay that and you all will reimburse me later on,just get that done now,or we'll end up discussing that topic next summer.
jani is the prime administrator of this site with corky and whoever wants to step in is free to do so.

all i want is that things happen now.

if this sport or this site wants to advance and to grow,decisions have to be made now.

it is good to hear all the input on different,relevant subjects,yes indeed,but on the other side i see that we are all moving around in circles.

jani, i really encourage you to do the necessary steps immediately.

if any help is needed achieving that goal,simply post it and everybody will be there to help. be it monetary or any other way.

Hans Koraeus · Post by **Hans Koraeus** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 6:05 pm

Donald, I have been feeling the same since more than a year. Unless there are more and more people starting to feel that way nothing will happen. I think we are coming closer to that point. But why it takes so long is because we want everybody to jump into the same boat. It takes time. The main actors on the current slalom scene may have different agendas and everybody is not pulling in the same direction.

So far we have nobody to take decisions. That's why we discuss things "to death" as you say. I think nobody likes that but on the other hand people are terrified to make decisions and terrified for others to make decision in their place.

Christopher Bara · Post by **Christopher Bara** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 7:43 pm

Don...no offense but i couldnt disagree with you more..This forum is a soundboard, chatroom and information source for the slalom community, it's not a governing board.
If "we" vote on a rookie of the year, it doesnt give any more exposure or credibility to the sport, it's just who a few insiders voted on.
The site administrator has many responsibilities, but much of that is delegated to whoever is in charge of watching over each forum. It's not like subject matter is going to be edited or limited at the administrators whim.
Sports are not organized or grown from websites...it's simply a place for those with like interests to post their thoughts, concerns and opinions.

There's umpteen forums on this site, there's something for everybody...to comment on or sometimes to just read.....do like i do,...if a topic goes on and on with no resolve, drop it and move on to another topic or forum....no need to dwell.

Eric Moore · Post by **Eric Moore** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 8:09 pm

Right on Chris.
It's important to have a forum where slalom skaters from around the world can communicate, but it doesn't really matter who owns it as long as it doesn't die. And I don't think we have to worry about that happening, since there seem to be plenty of people willing to get involved.

Also, rookie of the year doesn't really matter either. Recognition is nice for new skaters, but just having your name discussed on an forum such as this is a nice form of recognition. It's not like there is prize money waiting to be handed out. A discussion is all it should be.

If you feel like discussions are dragging on, just get up from your computer and go skate. Isn't that what it's really all about anyway?

alavoine jean paul · Post by **alavoine jean paul** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 9:03 pm

Eric Moore wrote: Recognition is nice for new skaters, but just having your name discussed on a forum such as this is a nice form of recognition.

I totally agree with what you wrote on that head Eric. That is, if enough skaters care to check this forum and read it, or even better post comments ...

Donald Campbell · Post by **Donald Campbell** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 9:52 pm

how would you bring a forum to the market,eric?

saying that the "rookie of the year award" doesn't matter,is the most stupid(sorry to say so) statement i have heard in a very long time.
besides that,do you really think that this forum has the importance to be a "must read" by outsiders?

i don't think so.

there's always the same bunch of guys running around on each and every forum i have visited throughout the years.

and believe me,marketing a forum,in order to gain more acceptance by the masses is so important to keep things fresh and going.

could you please explain to me,why the nba,for example,has a rookie of the year award?
because it doesn't matter so much?

if this sport,this forum,wants to gain attention and acceptance/recognition a " rookie of the year award" is one of the first things to do.

i don't want to point at all the younger skaters who would be more encouraged to participate and travel at/to different races,hunting for that trophy.

eric:imagine you enter a race,and by mysterious circumstances you place first and you'll be awarded a few warm words instead of a trophy?
would you be happy with that?

i don't think so.

i don't want to go at the other thing which is called"transfer of site-ownership".
i stated what i think and as it seems,corky thinks what i am thinking about this.

running around in circles sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Donald Campbell · Post by **Donald Campbell** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 9:54 pm

i forgot to mention that i also skate,maybe that's why i care so much.

Jani Soderhall · Post by **Jani Soderhall** » Wed Nov 10, 2004 10:49 pm

Donald,

Eric meant no harm. I totally agreed with his post. After all this is just a place we discuss things. We don't always have to come to a conclusion. In some subjects there is no conclusion. Ok, we can vote for a rookie of the year and elect one, but its probably more important to mention 10 than celebrate one.

If you want to start a poll, just do so. I think anybody can start one in a thread, all members get one vote. But then, who dares to make the "complete list" of all those who deserves a mention?

On the other hand I completely agree with you that we need to move forward. If we just keep talking and nobody acts we won't really move forward. The site handling topic is one of those. I was tempted to just make a move, but I felt we should give people a chance to read and consider. I'm not that anxious to be the site coordinator (any more), so if there will be strong voices against my involvement I'd happily move on to other tasks. Another reason to wait at least a week or two was: Let people voice their opinions. When you venture into new territory its good to have many different opinions. Then you're better equipped to make the right decisions.

You are also right that this site needs a little bit steering. Sure anybody should be able to discuss anything, but sometimes a little structuring makes the topics easier to find and follow. That's one of the tasks that is easily shared among members.

If may be that we need to, or should, move soon. Nobody has voiced concerns against the current direction. And the best ideas may only come once things have started moving again.

Shall we? (I have counted you among the intial "investors" ready to put up $100 to get it going!)

/Jani

Dan Mitchell · Post by **Dan Mitchell** » Thu Nov 11, 2004 1:53 am

Donald,
The reason the "Rookie of the Year" award doesn't have much meaning
is because we don't yet have a governing body for the sport of slalom skateboarding. Until that happens, we're just a bunch of skaters voicing our opinions. Not that that's a bad thing, but we just don't have "Official"
stats to go by....Yet.
It will come if we keep growing, but at this point we're so small, we're off the radar.
And if we stay off the radar, I will still be happy that I got to race slalom
for the first time since 1979, even in small grassroots races

Dan

Donald Campbell · Post by **Donald Campbell** » Thu Nov 11, 2004 6:07 am

hey guys
sorry if my post sounded harsh-i didn't want that.
i am very emotional and i am also new to the sport after a 25 years absence from it.
i understand that we all want only the best.

accept my apologies,please

let's answer jani's last question please

my answer is "yes"

Christopher Bara · Post by **Christopher Bara** » Thu Nov 11, 2004 2:45 pm

Hey Jani...your "off the radar" comment is interesting....We've talked about that around here too....
Funny thing is, if the sport does begin to show allot of growth, those of us who remember it as a small, personal group, will probably miss what we've got ...I can hear it now..."Everybody's doing slalom now and it sucks, it doesnt have as much character that it used to have, boy, the good old days were really great, aye?"
And as crazy as it sounds, it may be true....i just got into this last fall....i see allot of names on line but this past summer i've just started meeting them.....you just dont get that in other types of skating....and when (if) the sport grows quickly, we'll lose it

Eric Moore · Post by **Eric Moore** » Thu Nov 11, 2004 10:40 pm

Donald,
I don't think I would ever try to bring a forum to market. There seems to be a tendency to equate this site with the sport of slalom skateboarding as a whole, and there simply is not a one-to-one correspondence there.

The way to bring a sport to market is through print and television, and by holding contests around the world so that the sport is apparent to the general public. But you can't force it...the world will either pick up on us or not.

An internet forum will always be occupied by only the most hardcore/involved/obsessed subset of the participants involved in a given activity. It will never be a mass media outlet. But that is the way it should be, so those who are most intimately involved can discuss topics and make decisions. Anyone who wants to can join the decision making process, but lots of participants just want to get out and skate, and could care less about rule specifics, governing bodies, etc.

The reason I said the rookie of the year award doesn't matter is exactly what Dan said. Without a governing body awarding some physical prize, it doesn't mean much. The NBA is a league, it gives an award for the best rookie in that league, not for all of basketball all over the world. That just wouldn't make sense.

I've entered lots of races since 2001. I haven't won any, but the reason I try to improve my skating is not so that I can win a trophy one day. If I win a race I will be completely stoked, prize or no prize.

Wesley Tucker · Post by **Wesley Tucker** » Thu Nov 11, 2004 11:21 pm

Not to get too far off topic, but I'm hoping Eric will check this out later this evening:

BOULDER? What happened to Blacksburg? Have you hooked up yet with COSS? Dude, what's up with the relocation?

Eric Moore · Post by **Eric Moore** » Fri Nov 12, 2004 3:25 am

Wes,
Boulder for Bigger Hills!

Actually, I decided to go back to school for a Ph.D at CU. Yes, I have hooked up with the COSS guys, awesome group to skate with. I miss riding with the DC crew, but DC was 4 hours for me from Blacksburg. Now I'm smack dab in the middle of COSS country. It rocks!

Join the ISSA 25 cone series. One cyber race every second month!

Regular sessions allow newbies to join our community and discover slalom racing.

Major problems on this site - decision making!

Major problems on this site - decision making!

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