Letter From SoCal Board of Directors -VCA Affiliation and Membership Status

[Speedtactics]

To:   All Members
   Viper Club of Southern California
From:   Board of Directors
CC:   SoCal Officers
Subject:   VCA Affiliation and Membership Status

In September, Lance Kouchi, President of VCA Southern California sent out an email to our members advising of political and financial issues involving the Viper Club of America. Several emails and web postings have also been made by officers and former offers of VCA in which they advise of issues between club officials and SRT and Chrysler Corporation. Unfortunately very few specifics have been made available making this a very confusing situation for SoCal club officers and directors to assess.
It is becoming clear that soon a decision must be made by the Viper Club of Southern California and our individual members about how to navigate these political issues and how to move ahead.
The main decision that must be made relates to a new organization being formed by a number of former VCA Officers and whether the SoCal club should remain affiliated with VCA or associate with this new club; the Viper Owners Association.
We think a little historical background might be helpful to put this situation into perspective for some of our newer members. We started the Viper Club of Southern California with a small group of owners back in 1994 as an independent car club. As we grew and other clubs developed across the country, the Viper Club of America was started to coordinate the local clubs and focus the relationship we had with Chrysler and Dodge. This gave the club an advantage of having a larger voice and gave the Corporation the opportunity to work with one organization for two-way communication. The owners have benefited tremendously over the years by virtue of this relationship and so has the company. Dodge/Chrysler/SRT has had access to real world owner experience that has been channeled directly into future Viper development and they have also had an amazing marketing group at the grassroots level praising the virtues of the Viper. Viper Owners have had input into the development of the Viper and have had exposure to the executives and facilities of Dodge and enjoyed events and activities never before sponsored by any other auto manufacturer.
Over the years we went from working with marketing executives to having a direct working relationship with Senior Corporate executives like Bob Lutz, Tom Sidlik, Dieter Zetsche, Wolfgang Bernard and most recently Ralph Gilles. These personal relationships were the direct basis for the Viper Club of America having a truly unique standing amongst car clubs in the WORLD. No other club benefitted from the direct relationship we enjoyed with our manufacturer.
Unfortunately, and for reasons that are not particularly necessary to discuss, the goodwill that the VCA has built over the last 20 years has eroded to the point that certain corporate executives will no longer work with the VCA and the club has been relegated to working with Chrysler and SRT on a "business to business" basis. This will not allow the VCA to continue to function in the same way that we have enjoyed during the past 20 years.
As a direct result, many former VCA officials determined that the relationship with Chrysler, SRT and the executives is irreparable and that a new club must be started to maximize the Viper owner experience. This will require the development of an entirely new infrastructure to duplicate what was built over 20 years by members of the VCA.
Up to this point the SoCal club has tried to remain neutral but as the time for membership renewal rapidly approaches we must determine how to move forward. There are advantages and disadvantages of affiliating with each organization and there remain many unknowns that will not be determined except with the passage of time. Nevertheless we must make some decisions for the club and we need feedback from you, the membership, so we can make informed decisions.
Maintaining the Viper Club of Southern California Intact
First and most important, we want to remain true to the premise upon which SoCal was founded; we wish to remain united as a Southern California Viper Owners Club no matter what. This allows us to continue to participate in local events and remain together as a group. We are currently one of the largest chapters of VCA and, as such, we have a pretty loud voice. We hope that our members remain loyal to SoCal and that we can decide, as a club, which group we will affiliate with.
Issues and Questions
If we decide to remain with the VCA, there is no guarantee that enough local chapters will remain with them for the national club to remain financially viable. There are already issues with VCA that have caused delays with the Viper Magazine and raised questions about the administrative fees paid to operate the club. Further there are concerns about Viper Parts of America which remain unanswered. Finally, it may not be possible for the VCA to repair the relationship with SRT and Chrysler so going forward we may not enjoy the same benefits we have had in the past.
Joining with the Viper Owners Association also poses concerns. Will we get a magazine? Will there be the insurance coverage we have for our events as with VCA? Will they be able to establish relationships with SRT/Chrysler or has that permanently changed regardless of which club serves as the national representative? There are many others like websites etc. that will only be answered with time.
Membership Renewal
Soon, the VCA as well as the new VOA, will be sending out requests for membership renewal.  We are suggesting that you do not automatically renew with either national club until we can conduct additional due diligence and seek member input in order to properly decide which national organization we will support.  We ask you to continue your support for the Viper Club of Southern California and join with us to work as one united club for So Cal.  We are currently developing a process that will allow you to renew directly with the Viper Club of Southern California.  When this process is complete we will notify our members and ask for renewals and payment. At that time we will collect the full dues and will place the fees due to the national club in a separate escrow account.  Once a decision has been made as to which national club we will support, we will forward those funds to that organization and we will join as a group. 

We are interested in your feedback. The Board of Directors has designated Andy Weiss as the contact person regarding any questions or concerns regarding this specific matter. Please send your thoughts to Andy Weiss  ( [email protected] ) not later than November 30, 2013, we will incorporate your comments into the decision we will make about affiliation for 2014. We know this is complicated but if you have questions please let us know so we can clarify the process.
Sincerely,
So Cal Viper Club   -  Board of Directors
Bruce Conklin, Eddie Reinsma, Mike Buckingham, Mike Bell, Andy Weiss, Ron Burke

[Speedtactics]

Hello So Cal members,

We all received an email this week from the VCA regarding membership renewal for 2014.  Simply put, no matter what angle you view it from, it does not paint a very good picture or posture....period.

You all should have received an email from the So Cal Board of Directors (BoD) at the end of October with a letter attached. (For your convenience I have attached another copy to this email)
Please take a moment to read it as it will help explain some of the issues that are occurring at the national level and our plans at the regional level.

One of the biggest issues that we face is the possible division of our membership; at the national level and in Southern California. The So Cal officers and the BoD have been preparing for this and have developed a plan that will ensure that no member is left belonging to a club that has no representation in the So Cal region.

In accordance with our club bylaws, we have set forth a definitive plan to collect the membership dues DIRECTLY at the local level.  By doing so, we will be in a position to ensure that our region remains unified as the Southern California Viper Club.  Once we have done the proper due diligence and have determined which national club serves the best interests of our members, we will move to affiliate with that national club as a united group. At that point the SoCal Club would forward the amount of the national dues we previously collected on behalf of each member directly to the national club with which we have chosen to affiliate.

We encourage you to renew your So Cal Viper Club membership for 2014 by using the following link:
http://socalviper.com/events/2014membership-renewal/

We are over 200 members strong and will continue to operate our region at a level of excellence that our members have grown accustomed to.  As mentioned previously, your suggestions and opinions are important for the Officers and Directors to hear in order to make the best decision about national affiliation. Please send your ideas and position to Andy Weiss, Director at [email protected]


Thank you for your continued support and participation.

[AlbertFattal]

Thank you for the post Scott. Please let me know if the club would find this news published in our website's news archive section in addition to this forum post.