SLASH club future discussion

Ultraman

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We’ve been talking amongst ourselves about the future of SLASH and wanted to open a conversation to hear your thoughts. In general, the last 10 years with Facebook, changing social demographics, and finally Covid, we have seen a marked decline in folks wanting to hang out together. We didn’t do raffles at our swap this year because the trend has been folks come in, shop, then leave. Of course, that’s perfectly okay and it’s a blast seeing everyone. If it wasn’t for our frag swaps, we’d rarely see each other.

We are wanting to get pizza nights rolling again and a few Reefers have offered to invite us into their homes to check out their systems and hang out. There’s a small group of us that enjoy getting together every month or two to hang out, talk reefs, etc. We are hoping to continue these activities and are looking at how we want to see frag swaps in the future.

One question that’s arose is if SLASH should even continue on as a club. What is a club these days and do folks want to belong to one. What can we offer to prospective members? Is there an interest in belonging, or is the club idea antiquated these days.

Just wanting to put it out there for discussion. We turned our memberships off at the swap as we don’t want to charge folks for something if there aren’t any tangible benefits. We have a much larger group of folks here than on RC which has been pretty vacant for a few years, so it makes sense to discuss on this forum. Feel free to let us know what you’re thinking about SLASH, and where we should head.

Thanks, Dave aka Nanook on RC
 

jhuntstl

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I came back to the hobby about 7 months ago and I'll tell you what it felt lonely to be a reefer in St. Louis. It's completely understandable the inactivity since covid. It was still a major bummer though looking at Reef Central and seeing little activity. It was basically 100% dead here. Seeing the slash website with a closed forum didn't help either.

Just that one post you made "SLASH Club Activity" was enough to spur activity in an otherwise dead forum. Shortly after that @mdb_talon made the post "Coral trade/sell". Not sure how many connections were made from that, but I was one of them. Really just keep the posts and threads coming. If everyone makes an effort to be more active in the community whether they're members or not, I think a lot of the questions you have will answer themselves in time.

I wouldn't feel pressure to force meetups and be let down if not many people show. I am 100% interested in them, though. I'd even host. My main point is, just consistent posts and activity on the forums should be enough to get the ball rolling. There should be a natural progression of forum discussion, sales/trading connections made, then meetups planned, etc.

The ball just started rolling as far as I can tell. Let's see where it goes.
 

Lance A. Lot

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We just need to plan something to keep the ball rolling. We have good momentum here on R2R. I enjoy that we have a club here. I think we should keep that going. There are a lot of intangible benefits to the club. We are more than just a twice a year fragswap
 

fishguy242

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i applied long time ago,never recieved a reply...:(:)
 
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Ultraman

Ultraman

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i applied long time ago,never recieved a reply...:(:)
Did you pay a membership via PayPal? Where did you try to contact us at? I apologize for no one getting back to you. The few guys we have left that are active on the board have been burnt out and we’ve let things slide through apathy. Some new blood would be most welcome.
 

fishguy242

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i requested in our profile on here,no fees ,no response.
 

mdb_talon

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I definetely think a club is still worthwhile. I know I would be interested in getting involved and hanging out every month or two would be nice. I think the "club" is most important for those new to the hobby or those like myself while not nee dont really know many reefers in the area. If there is anything i can do to help with the club i am more than willing

As for the swap i thought it was another good one and looking forward to April. Hope there is a raffle at that one.

Also is there somewhere i can put my name in for getting a table at that one? I tried emailing for this last spring swap but did not hear back
 
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Ultraman

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William Davis with Reefing USA is organizing our Spring Show on Sunday, April 10th. He does everything and brings his awesome group of vendors and allows a few locals to join as well. In the Fall of 2022, we are going to host our own OG frag swap like the old days. It will not be the fancy show that Bill puts together, more like our grass roots where locals can sell from a cooler, or a frag tank. We will have a few local vendors as well so there’s a good selection of stuff, but it won’t be the fancy production that Bill and his crew put on. We are partnering with him because he’s been coming to Saint Louis since the beginning of our club and it’s a ton of work putting these events on with the same 4 or 5 guys and a couple loyal wives like Mrs Rams and April.

Here is Bill’s Facebook profile:

 

ramtheory

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William Davis with Reefing USA is organizing our Spring Show on Sunday, April 10th. He does everything and brings his awesome group of vendors and allows a few locals to join as well. In the Fall of 2022, we are going to host our own OG frag swap like the old days. It will not be the fancy show that Bill puts together, more like our grass roots where locals can sell from a cooler, or a frag tank. We will have a few local vendors as well so there’s a good selection of stuff, but it won’t be the fancy production that Bill and his crew put on. We are partnering with him because he’s been coming to Saint Louis since the beginning of our club and it’s a ton of work putting these events on with the same 4 or 5 guys and a couple loyal wives like Mrs Rams and April.

Here is Bill’s Facebook profile:


William Davis aka Eye Candy Bill aka ReefingUSA

I've enjoyed the last 2 Coral shows because no one had to listen to me yell raffle ticket numbers. I like the show format, its a lot less work for the club members trying to make things happen. You get to relax and enjoy the show, planning, running shows is a thankless job. An OG swap would be awesome, but expectations should not be a Coral Show. If you want to through frags in a 10 gallon and bring a blue flash light that would be cool. Swap rather than sell, but if you sell designer prices and finger nail sizes... booooo.
 

michealprater

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I am glad to see a bit more activity. My limitations have always been because of the distance I live from the Lou. I did really enjoy the swap and will definitely return in April. I think my tank is 7 now, so I’m still going. As far as IL options, they never survive, so I get it and accept it. The reason I can’t attend pizza nights is because they are weeknights and with the drive I would have to take a day off. I literally get up at 3:30 AM for work. What ever capacity they club goes with would be great. The hobby and world has changed. I would hate to see the club be a victim of that.
 

mjcoussens

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I'm finally in a place where I can prioritize the extra time to be involved with the hobby and club. The pandemic has really shown me that I need to get out and socialize more. That and wife my does not care to hear about how rock solid my alkalinity is now that I'm running an alkatronic. :rolleyes:

If there's spots to fill within the club in a volunteer capacity, I'd love to hear about them.

Cheers,

Matt
 

carmodpg

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I have never had the chance to make it to an event, but I would definitely do it when time permits. With 4 little kids, its not easy to get around much. While many of you do not know me, I have followed the club (and joined its group pages) on most forums. I love the insight people have and its nice to know there are others around that could help out if need be.
 

TriggerFinger

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Hi all! Another St. Louis person here. The November show was nice, looking forward to the April show and maybe meeting some locals! I’m upgrading a 40g to a 180g so I will have lots of empty space needing filled!
 

Lance A. Lot

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Hi all! Another St. Louis person here. The November show was nice, looking forward to the April show and maybe meeting some locals! I’m upgrading a 40g to a 180g so I will have lots of empty space needing filled!
Go to Nicks next month. He is hosting a pizza night and he has some great looking corals. I'm sure he will be willing to make some deals on coral.
 

TriggerFinger

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Go to Nicks next month. He is hosting a pizza night and he has some great looking corals. I'm sure he will be willing to make some deals on coral.
Thanks for the tip! How do I get involved in the meet ups?
 

mjcoussens

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Just tell us you're coming and then show up! Even better if you can participate and bring food, beer, or coral to share, but don't feel obligated. I think the next get together is January 13 and I'm looking into taking the slot for February.
 
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