Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Fwd: Day Member Fee

In a message dated 10/3/02 10:17:20 PM Pacific Daylight Time, jlong@xxxxxxxx writes:


> All entrants in an event are bound by the rules of that event,
> including the rules imposed by any sanctioning bodies, regardless of
> whether the person is a member of the sanctioning body or not.
And by what means would the AERC have to take any punitive action against a non-member? How would the AERC take any santions against them, take away thier non existant points?

FTM, a "day membership" for legal or insurance purposes needs a fee of
no more than one dollar to be effective.  The non-member fee was
originally less than ten dollars, and was raised.  No matter what
anyone claims, the ten dollars is there to raise money for the AERC so
that dues can be lower (making non-members pay for members' benefits).

I seem to remember a few years back when the financial well being of the AERC was in question and we were discussing raising dues, our members were not happy about the amount it was going to be raised. And if I remember correctly the non-member dues were raised also to partially offset raising our dues. It seems only fair if the paying members fees were raised, that we would raise the amount non-members were paying also. The AERC is a buisness and has to maintain a budget and increase cash flow in order to grow and to be able to supply us with the services we require and want. And I see absolutely nothing morally wrong with non-members helping us hold down the cost of our dues. $10.00 in todays economy is not much for most to pay to enjoy our sport. I realize that maybe it is for some people, but what really is the percentage of people that resent paying this fee? I think it is probably pretty small in the scope of things. It would be interesting to know just how many people this affects a year. 
Ken Cook, AERC WEST