CONTEST FREE GIVEAWAY!!!!

[Earl]

Congratulations to Jeffery S !!!
Thanks to the companies and people that made the contest possible !!!

[Hoosier Daddy]

Congrats Jeffery!

[oldpro]

 Congratulations Buddy!!!! Nothing like free stuff to put a smile on your face.

[Rat Sniper (AKA: PaulT58)]

Everyone is on her congratulating Jeffery, do we know if he's even a member?  I hope so, because it sure would be nice to hear from him and share in his excitement!

[fsa46]

A "Thank You" from Jeffery might be in order also.

[avator]

I have a strong feeling Jeffery is not a GTA member.

[Rat Sniper (AKA: PaulT58)]

I have a strong feeling Jeffery is not a GTA member.

My point exactly...

[Back_Roads]

 IMO GTA is reaching out , he may not be a direct GTA member, but he's is in the vortex of things to come
 What they say Always remember the Rabbit Hole, or was that the Alamo 

[7624452]

"The vortex of things to come".  Is that similar to the "Ides of March"  ??   

[avator]

Any word on how 'Jeffrey' is enjoying his new airgun package? One would think that the sponsors, as well as our GTA members, would be interested in some follow up.

[Rat Sniper (AKA: PaulT58)]

I really doubt 'jeffrey' is a member, nor will 'jeffrey' become a member.  'jeffrey probably sold his prize and spent the money on something else.  I really miss the drawings we used to have that were for 'members only'!  I never won one, but at least I got to read about their joy and excitement of winning and was able to hear about what they thought about what they won.  It's as if this 'contest' never happened...

[avator]

We have 20510 members... if only half would pay a buck a month ($12 a year) that would be 10 grand a month. A random generator could pick a number once a month for a nice prize. Ya reckon this forum could run on $8 to $9 grand a month?
I get it... the donations maybe didn't work so good... but this is a $12 fee a year to become a member of the greatest airgun forum on the planet.
PLEASE, TAKE MY MONEY !!!

[GTA-Airgunner]

Avator,

First of all, please forgive me as I'm going to respond to your comment as well as the bulk of comments I've seen recently not only here but in the beginning surrounding the contest as a whole.  Please do not take any personal offense.  I'm not going to go back and forth ad nauseam and create a flame thread trying to convince folks to see things from a perspective they have no desire to see.

The concept of going to a "member-supported" system is something that makes a lot of sense to me personally. (if you are so inclined, take a look at www.airgunarmy.com which is another site I manage and is designed to be ad-free and member supported.  It's free now, but may one day move to a membership fee if there's merit.) But with 20K+ "members" only a fraction of that % actually comment and participate.  I do wonder how many would be like you and willing to pay a little per year to be part of the GTA at that level.  The GTA has undergone some shifts over the past few years.  I hope that folks will take a breath, realize that not all change is bad and that sometimes a change can bring about something positive.  Change is going to be different (by default), but I ask folks to be willing to give things a chance and see how things play out over the next few months. 

Now about many of the other comments I've seen:

I found this very interesting.  The contest was for a free giveaway of a gun, scope, compressor, etc., worth well over $1000. It was open to everyone, GTA members and non-members alike.  Rather than "cool let's enter and see if I can win" I saw a lot of negativity and assumption of ill intent imputed to the GTA administration, from GTA members not entering because they didn't like the process, assumed it was just a way to "game" them and steal their identity.  Frankly, that's a load of total BS.  Well, what can I say?   If you don't enter, you can't win.  You're guaranteed to not make every shot you never take.   Out of the 20K+ members on the GTA, we had 245 contestants total.  Really.. 245?  out of a 20K membership role?  That's pretty sad.

I really hope Jeffery likes his airgun package and I look forward to hearing from him once he's had some trigger time with it.  (yes I'm in communications with him regarding the contest)

On the next contest, and this is not necessarily directed to you Avator but the whole GTA membership, how about entering?  Who has a better chance to win? Someone from the 20K+ membership or a few from outside that enter?? I realize that it's far easier to tear down than build up, but  I hope that the GTA membership will put aside the negative assumptions and support the very GTA they claim to Love. (Again, not directed specifically at you Avator, but to all of us that are members of the GTA, myself included.)

Anyway, rather than creating a negative thread running things down, I hope folks will hold the doors open for Jeffery as a potentially new and valued member of the GTA should he choose to join.  I'm not sure if he has or not yet.  He expressed to me that he was going to after our conversations, but if I were him and had seen this thread and how some folks were commenting, it would make me think twice.  I hope in the end that's not the case.

Cheers
Rick

[avator]

Rick.... thank you for responding.
First of all... I'm not in the least offended by your reply.
But there is something that I'm not sure you quite understand...
We have been told over the years that this is OUR forum... it belongs to the members. That right there lent itself to our pride and love for the forum. And frankly, that's what it was meant to be when Bob and Gene built it.
To be quite honest... I have a hard time feeling that way anymore... and I will go as far to assume many others who have been around here feel the same.
Ok so, y'all bought the forum and it's yours to do with as you please but, I assure you sir, my membership is not for sale.... and that's kinda what it feels like.

[Rat Sniper (AKA: PaulT58)]

Well, I did enter the contest, but obviously didn't win.  I am surprised to learn there were only 245 entries!  It would be interesting to know the percentage of those entries that were by GTA members/non-members...

I like Bill's idea of a pay to play forum.  But then, I would expect that vendors would pay the same and be treated the same as regular members, no special privileges.  I would also expect that any contests would be for Members only, and done in such a way that all members could participate equally, i.e. no need for any social media or gathering of personal information, other than what is currently required to become a member. 

This might help shed some of the dead weight (those who join and then never return) and encourage others to participate more (since they are paying for that privilege).  Just my thoughts on the matter...

[avator]

For the record, I entered as well. I've had the pleasure of winning a GTA contest before.. I know that feeling... matter of fact, I won a couple.
I truly congratulate Jeffery S. I hope he enjoys that package as much as anyone of us would have. It was an awesome Give A Way.... kudos to you guys for putting it together.
I don't do social media.. and I really had to take a good hard look at it before I entered. I get plenty of junk mail as it is.   

[JuryRigger]

A thought on the pay-for-membership idea...
On another forum that I'm on (Bushcraft USA)-they have forum memberships set up both free; and paying.
Supporting members gain the ability to post items in the for-sale areas; and use the off-topic forum; non-supporters can post anywhere else in the site; but can only buy from the trade area; and cannot even see the off-topic area... There was  also two grades of vendors, the hobbyists who had to pay a bit extra for the privelidge  to post in the hobbyist classifieds; and the bigger vendor area where they purchased their own subforum...
I found it an interesting concept, just thought I'd share it;
Jesse

[GTA-Airgunner]

Hey there Avator and I'm very glad you brough this up.

I was thinking about this the other day because I want the forum to thrive and grow.  Not just for the core that's been around for the last 20 years, but also for the next generation of airgunners that will follow.  Without new members with the same passion as ours, there's a limited shelf life for the GTA.  Bob and Dave build something great.  I want to see it stable for the long term, not for just a select few, but for every current and future member.  I came onboard in 2021 at Travis' request to help with some technical and other issues and as a way to bring some infrastructure support for Airgun Expo and what I hope to be some really awesome GTA fun shoots.  I'm taking a larger role going forward and I'm frankly feeling my way around the ship here.  I'm going to make mistakes, but my only intent ever is the benefit and health of the GTA long term. 

Specifically to your comment I may be an owner of the GTA, but the forum "belongs" to the members, and that's all 20K+ members not just a handful.  I may be charged with it's oversight and care right now from a business perspective, but without the membership there is no forum.  I completely get that is the case.  My hope is to work with everyone; members, admins, moderators, advertisers, manufacturers, etc., to get the "big" picture and look to steer the ship in the most positive direction for all involved.

My door is open.. You all have my ear.  I want to hear from you all, but I also hope that you all will hear from me as I have info from many sources that may help create a more clear path going forward.  This needs to be a two way street.  I don't want to change the core of the GTA.  I do think there are a few things that we can do better, specifically from a "new user experience" perspective, but the GTA works right now.  I think we can make it work better.   

Anyway.. please feel free to reach out to me personally (that goes to anyone).  I'm not a hard guy to reach.

Cheers and thank you for you honesty. 
Rick

[GTA-Airgunner]

Jesse -

One of the concerns that's been on my plate since I popped the hood on the GTA back at the end of 2020 is the fact that the SMF software that it runs on is very old, and not very well supported.   I like the idea of a "basic" and "premium" level of the forum.  It would require a major shift to another platform.  I'm interested in the idea and think it has merit.  I may spool up something (later this year) that can run alongside the current GTA so that people can try it and see if they like it.  The "free" section may have ads, but the "paid" section could be ad-free and have "more" in the way of content and features that members could make use of.

Anyway, it's these types of ideas that I'm looking to investigate.  I do NOT want to convert the current GTA into something different.  You run the risk of losing everything.  But, having something that could grow up along side it may be an interesting idea at some point. 

I encourage you all to try www.airgunarmy.com when you can.  It's a cool system that's super easy to use and that is laid out to work as you are describing. 

Cheers
Rick

[avator]

Rick, I appreciate your candidness. If the forum still belongs to the members I have a special request...
Can we PLEASE get rid of that trash collecting Back Room gate?   just sayin.. LOL