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Community Meeting - Fall/winter 2017


Rex

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It seems that we are slowly approaching the annual airsoft slowdown due to Indiana's temperamental climate. Due to this, I would like to start the discussion on our next community meeting. I attended the meeting in January of this year and believe it is worthwhile enough to forgo an afternoon otherwise spent with family to discuss the climate of airsoft in our state. As I am not a moderator, feel free to lock this up if a moderator needs to initiate the post. 

 

In order to make this productive, we need to start by determining if we want to hold the meeting in January/February or sooner. Once we have a better idea of the time of year, we can create a poll and vote on specific dates and times as well as location. I would like to see the meeting take place sooner than January as I believe there could be added value to the remainder of this outdoor season. Truthfully, I'd like to see this meeting occur twice a year so that we can reach a larger portion of the community. 

 

Most importantly, we need to community members to show up. Last year had 20-some members show up; however, we definitely lacked field owner input

 

Proposed Topics

- Maintaining/Growing Field Diversity

- Dealing with Player Toxicity

- Growing Field Owner Collaboration

- Addressing Forum Concerns 

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Personally i would try for the 2nd week of January give everyone a chance to catch their breath from the holidays

 

I second this.

 

I also want to add that we could really use a dedicated person to transcribe the main points and counter-points brought up during the meeting so we can do an AAR on the forum.

 

As for additional topics, I think our biggest issues are finding more fields, being proactive with listing (and unlisting after) events, and including more out-of-state or nearby games (could also include a post where AI members can get together and plan trips to national ops).

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It would be nice if we could get a rep from each of the "public" fields. Like spec ops and maybe even indy paintball battleground.

 

I respectfully disagree and I will tell you why. I view the community meeting as an opportunity for members to vent their frustrations as well as develop solutions. This would be substantially harder to do if private business owners attended the meeting since some of our frustrations would be directed toward them. With that being said, I would love to dedicate a solid amount of time during the meeting to discussing ways to better utilize ALL of the fields we have at our disposals, which would include the private fields. For example, the new leadership at Paintball Battlegrounds affords our community the opportunity to grow airsoft access to that location. 

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I respectfully disagree and I will tell you why. I view the community meeting as an opportunity for members to vent their frustrations as well as develop solutions. This would be substantially harder to do if private business owners attended the meeting since some of our frustrations would be directed toward them. With that being said, I would love to dedicate a solid amount of time during the meeting to discussing ways to better utilize ALL of the fields we have at our disposals, which would include the private fields. For example, the new leadership at Paintball Battlegrounds affords our community the opportunity to grow airsoft access to that location.

I didn't think about that.

I would still like to see some more utilization of these fields like what you said. The more involved we are with the fields, the more likely that they'll become more open to airsoft events and maybe even do walkin games eventually. Operation Kickstart 4 should be an excellent chance to "integrate" another field into airsoft.

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There were many requests to hold the community meeting more southern to make it easier for our Southern Indiana members to come out. While this does pull it further away from our more dedicated players coming from the north, i feel it is justified as it will give those who do not normally come out a chance to attend and voice their thoughts & concerns. No offense Nolan :lol:

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I second broken's idea. I also second Rex's idea of not including field reps. In the past, have these meetings been held in banquet halls, rented conference centers, or where? If anyone is willing to make a drive up to Bargersville, I know of a town hall we can rent pretty cheap if everyone puts in a dollar or two for an all-day conference. I believe it's like $35 for the day. It's just south of Indy.

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One thing to consider while attempting to plan these meetings is Indiana's unpredictable weather. Part of the reason we have waited a month or so before is so we have a better idea of what the weather will potentially be. Heavy snowfall or freezing rain can quickly put a halt to this.

 

I should be there as always. As a team leader, a private field owner, a forum moderator, and one of the longest active players in the community I really enjoy these meetings and hearing everyone's thoughts.

 

~Joker

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I second broken's idea. I also second Rex's idea of not including field reps. In the past, have these meetings been held in banquet halls, rented conference centers, or where? If anyone is willing to make a drive up to Bargersville, I know of a town hall we can rent pretty cheap if everyone puts in a dollar or two for an all-day conference. I believe it's like $35 for the day. It's just south of Indy.

We've held meetings at restaurants with big rooms in the past so that folks could eat. We did Jockamos pizza on the north side before. If we wanted to do Jockamos again, but farther south, there is one in Greenwood. Personally, I'm open to just about anything. Whatever is best for the community.

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I think Restaurants are best cause you get food and also don't have to pay to rent the space (usually). I think the structure of having people show up, eat and hang out, then get to business once everyone is done has worked pretty well for the past few meetings

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It sounds like the community would still prefer to meet in the winter (January?) Now that we have a general time frame why don't we focus on location. It sounds like Indy and just south of Indy are the front runners. Although I am a bit biased, I believe staying in central Indiana is a good idea. While it does seem that a good majority of the AI player base is located south of 70, I would hate to disenfranchise players in or northern region. Thoughts?

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It sounds like the community would still prefer to meet in the winter (January?) Now that we have a general time frame why don't we focus on location. It sounds like Indy and just south of Indy are the front runners. Although I am a bit biased, I believe staying in central Indiana is a good idea. While it does seem that a good majority of the AI player base is located south of 70, I would hate to disenfranchise players in or northern region. Thoughts?

 

Agreed. If it's important then people will make the time/effort regardless. Ace has been to several meetings and it is 3'ish hours south for him to get to Indy. Players from the south really don't have much of an excuse.

 

If we're talking 13th of Jan. I'd be a no go but can do the weekend before or after at the moment. Food is always a good idea too.

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I respectfully disagree and I will tell you why. I view the community meeting as an opportunity for members to vent their frustrations as well as develop solutions. This would be substantially harder to do if private business owners attended the meeting since some of our frustrations would be directed toward them. With that being said, I would love to dedicate a solid amount of time during the meeting to discussing ways to better utilize ALL of the fields we have at our disposals, which would include the private fields. For example, the new leadership at Paintball Battlegrounds affords our community the opportunity to grow airsoft access to that location.

 

Seems a little Counter Productive to me not to include the heart of games in Indiana.   With very few private fields hosting left in the mix you would want to voice your idea and opinions to the people having the game. Constructive criticism is a big part of how we all end up with more places to play and better games to be had.   No including the guys who 1. supply our gear. 2.  Host are Ops. 3.  Have actually invested into the sport.   Seems a little standoffish and backward thinking.   Just my personal opinion.  If the sport is going to grow we All need to work together not just the chosen few. 

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Seems a little Counter Productive to me not to include the heart of games in Indiana.   With very few private fields hosting left in the mix you would want to voice your idea and opinions to the people having the game. Constructive criticism is a big part of how we all end up with more places to play and better games to be had.   No including the guys who 1. supply our gear. 2.  Host are Ops. 3.  Have actually invested into the sport.   Seems a little standoffish and backward thinking.   Just my personal opinion.  If the sport is going to grow we All need to work together not just the chosen few. 

 

I respectfully disagree with many points made here. 

 

1. The "heart of games" in Indiana are held at places like MCC, The Boneyard, Joker's Circus, McCordsville, etc. 

2. I strongly disagree with the notion that private business owners "supply our gear...host (our) ops... have actually invested (in) the sport." The vast majority of community members I have interacted with purchase most, if not all, of their replicas and gears online. The vast majority of "ops" have been, and continue to be, hosted at privately owned fields (e.g. MCC, The Boneyard, etc.). Anyone who has taken the time to build a field on their private land has invested in the sport. I can think of few individuals more invested than Randy at MCC. 

3. I completely agree that the community needs to work together to grow the sport; however, the only "chosen few" in this scenario would be the business owners. As there are only 2-3 in the state, it leaves the remaining 99.9% of players as just that, players, and not business owners. 

 

That being said, I think the community needs to discuss how to better utilize all fiends (including private businesses). If business owners are members of this forum and wish to attend, I cannot think of a reason why they should be shunned. However, I don't think we need to send a formal invitation to them simply bemuse they own a business. They should come as members of the community - as equals. 

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Rex while I do agree with what your thinking there are some issues.   Randy at MCC plans to focus more on playing out and hosting less.. as stated on there page awhile back.. Not to put words in his mouth as he is a good friend.  Who can blame him.  The boneyard. technically was a commercial field how now been shut down but has stated they will still host some free games. .  That leaves Impact hosting at Joker's and McCordsville mainly for next season...   For us to grow we need fields.  Commercial or otherwise.   Most players with the skill to even desire to host games play mostly out of state.    All I am saying is we need to reach out to any and everyone we can to grow the sport.  And to simply state what everyone thinks and never says.  Is this forum has ran out almost every commercial guy that has joined.   From even back to the old page.  We need to think about airsoft as a whole if we want to have games like we used to have and other states do.  More of the same gets us nowhere.  Just the humble opinion of a old guy.  

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Typically the point of having these meetings is so members of the Airsoft Indiana community can voice their opinions in person among others. All members, new and old are welcome to attend. We discuss the state of Airsoft in Indiana and any thoughts members may have to improve things. Generally we like to have a mix to get a better idea of how things are going. If a bunch of new players show up who only play in their friend's backyard and don't travel to other events they won't have a very good idea of the state as a whole. And the same can be said about more veteran players who have only played a few games a year or play out of state more often than in state. It's not a knock of those types of players, it's just that we need a mix of both. And of course everyone in between. We like for Airsoft teams to be represented. We like for players who host events to show up and give their thoughts. And we also want field owners, private or commercial. Private field owners may very well be the heart of Airsoft in Indiana but commercial fields (and owners) are the ones regularly bringing in new players to the sport/hobby. And if we don't let them voice their opinions to the community they may feel left out and in turn leave us out of future plans etc. Think about this, if these commercial fields like say BG were to put up a sign or banner at their field with our forums website on it. Think about how many more potential people would see that and consider signing up and participating in these discussions. We help them by advertising their events in our event section. And they help us by driving new members to this site. It's a win win, and an easy one at that.

 

These meetings are not about personal drama, complaints, or other bullshit. This isn't a group shit talk session or some kind of weird counseling. You don't have to like everyone in attendance or agree with everything that's being discussed. But everyone will remain civil and respectful. It's essentially and AAR of our community. And that should include everyone who wants to be a positive part of our community. And it's about making sure Airsoft in Indiana is around long after we are all long gone.

 

So now that my long winded ramblings are out of the way we can get back to discussing the when's and the where's of this meeting. I like where the last one was held. My only issue was the way seating was set up it made discussing things a little difficult/hecktick. Other than that no problems.

 

~Joker

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