Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I am so confused by this. You need to go back and read the thread. We are talking about the guy who is now the Southeast Regional Director, who happens to own a shop in Titusville, FL. The lurker is the president of the SW Florida Section. Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 10:47 PM, OK Don via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Since he sounds like he has expertise (and parts), perhaps you should try sugar instead, and get him to participate . . . On Fri, Dec 5, 2014 at 7:58 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com mailto:mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I have not been a member for probably 10 years Sent from my iPhone On Dec 5, 2014, at 7:09 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: The guy is subscribed but I can’t find any posts from him, so I would say that makes him a lurker. Better watch out - you might get banned from the MBCA! Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 8:05 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I got lurkers here? Maybe I need to start cussing worse than a sailer like on banned and run them off. -- OK Don NSA: The only branch of government that actually listens to US citizens! There are three kinds of men: The ones that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves. WILL ROGERS, *The Manly Wisdom of Will Rogers* 2013 F150, 18 mpg 2012 Passat TDI DSG, 44 mpg 1957 C182A, 12 mpg - but at 150 mph! ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I went back and re-read the thread. Now I’m not so confused. My fault. If I understood it correctly, you’re talking about trying to get the guy who is the shop owner to join and participate in OkieBenz. Sorry. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 7:12 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I am so confused by this. You need to go back and read the thread. We are talking about the guy who is now the Southeast Regional Director, who happens to own a shop in Titusville, FL. The lurker is the president of the SW Florida Section. Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 10:47 PM, OK Don via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com mailto:mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Since he sounds like he has expertise (and parts), perhaps you should try sugar instead, and get him to participate . . . ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I volunteered to take over social media for the section, which is sorely lacking. Nothing became of it. I received a reply that they were already working on my ideas. Meanwhile, the entire 2014 car season has disappeared and I don't see any changes. I have a garage full of old Mercedes I'm constantly working on and improving. I work for Mercedes Benz in research and development of new products, and have an intimate knowledge of their products for the last 60 or so years. Its safe to say these cars define much of my life professionally and personally. It would seem logical that I should find a group of people with similar interests to share this passion, which why it seems like a logical that I get involved with the club. I'd still love to do it... maybe in 2015. There is potential there. I know many people involved in these cars in this area who are not involved in the club because they'd rather goto a car show and kick tires than visit a museum and go out to eat. Jaime On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 7:40 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I went back and re-read the thread. Now I’m not so confused. My fault. If I understood it correctly, you’re talking about trying to get the guy who is the shop owner to join and participate in OkieBenz. Sorry. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 7:12 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I am so confused by this. You need to go back and read the thread. We are talking about the guy who is now the Southeast Regional Director, who happens to own a shop in Titusville, FL. The lurker is the president of the SW Florida Section. Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 10:47 PM, OK Don via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com mailto:mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Since he sounds like he has expertise (and parts), perhaps you should try sugar instead, and get him to participate . . . ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. -- Jaime Kopchinski http://www.jaimekop.com/ ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Original Message From: Jaime Kopchinski via Mercedes Sent: Saturday, December 6, 2014 I have a garage full of old Mercedes I'm constantly working on and improving. I work for Mercedes Benz in research and development of new products, and have an intimate knowledge of their products for the last 60 or so years. Its safe to say these cars define much of my life professionally and personally. It would seem logical that I should find a group of people with similar interests to share this passion, which (is) why... Which is why... you're here :) Rick Sent from my BlackBerry Z10 ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
In going through his Facebook page he appears to be heavily vested in the W124 and earlier stuff. That’s great, especially if there are enough owners out there for him to make a living doing it. As I mentioned previously, it also looks like he does a fair amount of NOS and used part buying, too. He had a couple of posts where he had purchased large numbers of parts and was selling them. Sounds like Jaime experienced a lot of what I did some years back when I got together with Scott Suits and tried to get at least an occasional car enthusiast event in the calendar with the local section. Scott was all for it, but the locals wanted nothing to do with it. All they were interested in was social events, really little to do with the cars themselves. What really sucked here, and I don’t know what Jaime’s situation is like, is that the local section really covers a large area, pretty much all of west central Florida from Sarasota up to maybe Crystal River and east to Lakeland. There are two dealers in the immediate area, Crown in Clearwater and MB of Tampa in Tampa. A dealer in Lakeland and Sarasota are on the fringes, but technically in the area, I believe. When I talked to the folks at Crown they knew about the section but had little interaction with them. For that matter, it was tough just to find someone at Crown who was even interested in talking about the club. I wasn’t that interested in Crown myself, as they are about an hour away. I went to MB of Tampa, where I do business, and quickly found the person who did their promotions and advertising. Within 10 minutes we were in his office talking with both the parts and service managers about possible tech events. They were very interested and seemed a little confused as to why they never heard anything from the local section. I spoke to the advertising person at the dealer in Lakeland over the phone, and they were interested too. I already described the response I got when I brought up the possibility of having an occasional meeting and/or tech event in Tampa. They pretty much told me that was a nice idea and moved along to something else. I knew at the point I was wasting my time. What’s really sad is that the local section (and this is historical, as I don’t know what’s going on now) seemed to be a social club for the elder and elite. All they seemed to be interested in was getting together at a restaurant, maybe after a drive, and having lunch or dinner. No shows, no tech events, no autocrosses, nada. I know that Scott was successful in getting a few things going in the past couple of years, as that was when he contacted me about rejoining. I think he got something set up at a local airport used for closed track events a while back, maybe an autocross, I don’t recall. Worse yet, there is a huge area for the section to draw from, and lots of potential members. By limiting the meetings and events to Pinellas County, where most of them live, they effectively cut off a large segment of potential members, even possible casual ones. I’ve devoted too much time to this already, but it brings up a lot of memories of trying to find some locals to get involved with over a common interest. It was pretty frustrating at the time, and still is to some extent, knowing the potential that’s out there for some fun with other MB owners. It would be nice to have a really active section like GWS or some of the sections out west. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 10:25 AM, Jaime Kopchinski jaime...@gmail.com wrote: I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I volunteered to take over social media for the section, which is sorely lacking. Nothing became of it. I received a reply that they were already working on my ideas. Meanwhile, the entire 2014 car season has disappeared and I don't see any changes. I have a garage full of old Mercedes I'm constantly working on and improving. I work for Mercedes Benz in research and development of new products, and have an intimate knowledge of their products for the last 60 or so years. Its safe to say these cars define much of my life professionally and personally. It would seem logical that I should find a group of people with similar interests to share this
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I feel like the club has been dragged along with the brand into a sphere where the cars are too complicated to understand and fix for mere mortals. It is a specialization thing. Either you believe in figuring out your own stuff, or you don't. Fundamentally a philosophical question centered in this case around manufactured objects whose increasing complexity over time has shifted the norm. On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 8:26 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: In going through his Facebook page he appears to be heavily vested in the W124 and earlier stuff. That’s great, especially if there are enough owners out there for him to make a living doing it. As I mentioned previously, it also looks like he does a fair amount of NOS and used part buying, too. He had a couple of posts where he had purchased large numbers of parts and was selling them. Sounds like Jaime experienced a lot of what I did some years back when I got together with Scott Suits and tried to get at least an occasional car enthusiast event in the calendar with the local section. Scott was all for it, but the locals wanted nothing to do with it. All they were interested in was social events, really little to do with the cars themselves. What really sucked here, and I don’t know what Jaime’s situation is like, is that the local section really covers a large area, pretty much all of west central Florida from Sarasota up to maybe Crystal River and east to Lakeland. There are two dealers in the immediate area, Crown in Clearwater and MB of Tampa in Tampa. A dealer in Lakeland and Sarasota are on the fringes, but technically in the area, I believe. When I talked to the folks at Crown they knew about the section but had little interaction with them. For that matter, it was tough just to find someone at Crown who was even interested in talking about the club. I wasn’t that interested in Crown myself, as they are about an hour away. I went to MB of Tampa, where I do business, and quickly found the person who did their promotions and advertising. Within 10 minutes we were in his office talking with both the parts and service managers about possible tech events. They were very interested and seemed a little confused as to why they never heard anything from the local section. I spoke to the advertising person at the dealer in Lakeland over the phone, and they were interested too. I already described the response I got when I brought up the possibility of having an occasional meeting and/or tech event in Tampa. They pretty much told me that was a nice idea and moved along to something else. I knew at the point I was wasting my time. What’s really sad is that the local section (and this is historical, as I don’t know what’s going on now) seemed to be a social club for the elder and elite. All they seemed to be interested in was getting together at a restaurant, maybe after a drive, and having lunch or dinner. No shows, no tech events, no autocrosses, nada. I know that Scott was successful in getting a few things going in the past couple of years, as that was when he contacted me about rejoining. I think he got something set up at a local airport used for closed track events a while back, maybe an autocross, I don’t recall. Worse yet, there is a huge area for the section to draw from, and lots of potential members. By limiting the meetings and events to Pinellas County, where most of them live, they effectively cut off a large segment of potential members, even possible casual ones. I’ve devoted too much time to this already, but it brings up a lot of memories of trying to find some locals to get involved with over a common interest. It was pretty frustrating at the time, and still is to some extent, knowing the potential that’s out there for some fun with other MB owners. It would be nice to have a really active section like GWS or some of the sections out west. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 10:25 AM, Jaime Kopchinski jaime...@gmail.com wrote: I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I volunteered to take over social media for the section, which is sorely lacking. Nothing became of it. I received a reply that they were already working on my ideas. Meanwhile, the
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
If they were smart they would authorize creation of a Vintage MBCA for enthusiasts who want to do their own hands on maintenance and repairs. Limit membership to owners of 1980s and older models. I would definitely qualify. No racing stories, no frou frou bullcrap, no fancy socials, no rallyes to charming overpriced country inns. Just hands on work so we can drive forever without ever having to purchase a new MB, while saving money. Tech sessions could be held at dealerships every other month to keep them happy, and at indy shops for specialized repair demos from time to time. Great promotional value to Daimler Benz so maybe they would repay us with the occasional charter flight to Stuttgart to visit the Klassic Museum. On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 12:32 PM, Karl Wittnebel via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I feel like the club has been dragged along with the brand into a sphere where the cars are too complicated to understand and fix for mere mortals. It is a specialization thing. Either you believe in figuring out your own stuff, or you don't. Fundamentally a philosophical question centered in this case around manufactured objects whose increasing complexity over time has shifted the norm. On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 8:26 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: In going through his Facebook page he appears to be heavily vested in the W124 and earlier stuff. That’s great, especially if there are enough owners out there for him to make a living doing it. As I mentioned previously, it also looks like he does a fair amount of NOS and used part buying, too. He had a couple of posts where he had purchased large numbers of parts and was selling them. Sounds like Jaime experienced a lot of what I did some years back when I got together with Scott Suits and tried to get at least an occasional car enthusiast event in the calendar with the local section. Scott was all for it, but the locals wanted nothing to do with it. All they were interested in was social events, really little to do with the cars themselves. What really sucked here, and I don’t know what Jaime’s situation is like, is that the local section really covers a large area, pretty much all of west central Florida from Sarasota up to maybe Crystal River and east to Lakeland. There are two dealers in the immediate area, Crown in Clearwater and MB of Tampa in Tampa. A dealer in Lakeland and Sarasota are on the fringes, but technically in the area, I believe. When I talked to the folks at Crown they knew about the section but had little interaction with them. For that matter, it was tough just to find someone at Crown who was even interested in talking about the club. I wasn’t that interested in Crown myself, as they are about an hour away. I went to MB of Tampa, where I do business, and quickly found the person who did their promotions and advertising. Within 10 minutes we were in his office talking with both the parts and service managers about possible tech events. They were very interested and seemed a little confused as to why they never heard anything from the local section. I spoke to the advertising person at the dealer in Lakeland over the phone, and they were interested too. I already described the response I got when I brought up the possibility of having an occasional meeting and/or tech event in Tampa. They pretty much told me that was a nice idea and moved along to something else. I knew at the point I was wasting my time. What’s really sad is that the local section (and this is historical, as I don’t know what’s going on now) seemed to be a social club for the elder and elite. All they seemed to be interested in was getting together at a restaurant, maybe after a drive, and having lunch or dinner. No shows, no tech events, no autocrosses, nada. I know that Scott was successful in getting a few things going in the past couple of years, as that was when he contacted me about rejoining. I think he got something set up at a local airport used for closed track events a while back, maybe an autocross, I don’t recall. Worse yet, there is a huge area for the section to draw from, and lots of potential members. By limiting the meetings and events to Pinellas County, where most of them live, they effectively cut off a large segment of potential members, even possible casual ones. I’ve devoted too much time to this already, but it brings up a lot of memories of trying to find some locals to get involved with over a common interest. It was pretty frustrating at the time, and still is to some extent, knowing the potential that’s out there for some fun with other MB owners. It would be nice to have a really active section like GWS or some of the sections out west. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 10:25 AM, Jaime Kopchinski jaime...@gmail.com wrote: I agree about
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
On Sat, 6 Dec 2014 12:42:29 -0500 Andrew Strasfogel via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: If they were smart they would authorize creation of a Vintage MBCA for enthusiasts who want to do their own hands on maintenance and repairs. Limit membership to owners of 1980s and older models. I suggest that 1980 is too early; that eliminates many W123s. 1995, the end of W124s, is a more appropriate date. Craig ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Excellent idea, however, I would base the age on whatever they have classified as “vintage”. I believe that would go up to the W140, as I think they have classified it as “vintage”, believe it or not… Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 12:42 PM, Andrew Strasfogel via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: If they were smart they would authorize creation of a Vintage MBCA for enthusiasts who want to do their own hands on maintenance and repairs. Limit membership to owners of 1980s and older models. I would definitely qualify. No racing stories, no frou frou bullcrap, no fancy socials, no rallyes to charming overpriced country inns. Just hands on work so we can drive forever without ever having to purchase a new MB, while saving money. Tech sessions could be held at dealerships every other month to keep them happy, and at indy shops for specialized repair demos from time to time. Great promotional value to Daimler Benz so maybe they would repay us with the occasional charter flight to Stuttgart to visit the Klassic Museum. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Pierre also does Mercedes home visits all around the nation. I know some people up here in Maine that fly him up on an annual basis to their house to repair and maintain their fleet of 60's-80's Mercedes. Sent from my iPhone On Dec 6, 2014, at 11:26 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: In going through his Facebook page he appears to be heavily vested in the W124 and earlier stuff. That’s great, especially if there are enough owners out there for him to make a living doing it. As I mentioned previously, it also looks like he does a fair amount of NOS and used part buying, too. He had a couple of posts where he had purchased large numbers of parts and was selling them. Sounds like Jaime experienced a lot of what I did some years back when I got together with Scott Suits and tried to get at least an occasional car enthusiast event in the calendar with the local section. Scott was all for it, but the locals wanted nothing to do with it. All they were interested in was social events, really little to do with the cars themselves. What really sucked here, and I don’t know what Jaime’s situation is like, is that the local section really covers a large area, pretty much all of west central Florida from Sarasota up to maybe Crystal River and east to Lakeland. There are two dealers in the immediate area, Crown in Clearwater and MB of Tampa in Tampa. A dealer in Lakeland and Sarasota are on the fringes, but technically in the area, I believe. When I talked to the folks at Crown they knew about the section but had little interaction with them. For that matter, it was tough just to find someone at Crown who was even interested in talking about the club. I wasn’t that interested in Crown myself, as they are about an hour away. I went to MB of Tampa, where I do business, and quickly found the person who did their promotions and advertising. Within 10 minutes we were in his office talking with both the parts and service managers about possible tech events. They were very interested and seemed a little confused as to why they never heard anything from the local section. I spoke to the advertising person at the dealer in Lakeland over the phone, and they were interested too. I already described the response I got when I brought up the possibility of having an occasional meeting and/or tech event in Tampa. They pretty much told me that was a nice idea and moved along to something else. I knew at the point I was wasting my time. What’s really sad is that the local section (and this is historical, as I don’t know what’s going on now) seemed to be a social club for the elder and elite. All they seemed to be interested in was getting together at a restaurant, maybe after a drive, and having lunch or dinner. No shows, no tech events, no autocrosses, nada. I know that Scott was successful in getting a few things going in the past couple of years, as that was when he contacted me about rejoining. I think he got something set up at a local airport used for closed track events a while back, maybe an autocross, I don’t recall. Worse yet, there is a huge area for the section to draw from, and lots of potential members. By limiting the meetings and events to Pinellas County, where most of them live, they effectively cut off a large segment of potential members, even possible casual ones. I’ve devoted too much time to this already, but it brings up a lot of memories of trying to find some locals to get involved with over a common interest. It was pretty frustrating at the time, and still is to some extent, knowing the potential that’s out there for some fun with other MB owners. It would be nice to have a really active section like GWS or some of the sections out west. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 10:25 AM, Jaime Kopchinski jaime...@gmail.com wrote: I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I volunteered to take over social media for the section, which is sorely lacking. Nothing became of it. I received a reply that they were already working on my ideas. Meanwhile, the entire 2014 car season has disappeared and I don't see any changes. I have a garage full of old
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
A French pal and I have our own personal tech and body repair guy who does the same, except he drives down instead of flying and works for free. I don't want to give away his identity; let's just call him by the code name Dimitri. On Sat, Dec 6, 2014 at 1:12 PM, dseretakis--- via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Pierre also does Mercedes home visits all around the nation. I know some people up here in Maine that fly him up on an annual basis to their house to repair and maintain their fleet of 60's-80's Mercedes. Sent from my iPhone On Dec 6, 2014, at 11:26 AM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: In going through his Facebook page he appears to be heavily vested in the W124 and earlier stuff. That’s great, especially if there are enough owners out there for him to make a living doing it. As I mentioned previously, it also looks like he does a fair amount of NOS and used part buying, too. He had a couple of posts where he had purchased large numbers of parts and was selling them. Sounds like Jaime experienced a lot of what I did some years back when I got together with Scott Suits and tried to get at least an occasional car enthusiast event in the calendar with the local section. Scott was all for it, but the locals wanted nothing to do with it. All they were interested in was social events, really little to do with the cars themselves. What really sucked here, and I don’t know what Jaime’s situation is like, is that the local section really covers a large area, pretty much all of west central Florida from Sarasota up to maybe Crystal River and east to Lakeland. There are two dealers in the immediate area, Crown in Clearwater and MB of Tampa in Tampa. A dealer in Lakeland and Sarasota are on the fringes, but technically in the area, I believe. When I talked to the folks at Crown they knew about the section but had little interaction with them. For that matter, it was tough just to find someone at Crown who was even interested in talking about the club. I wasn’t that interested in Crown myself, as they are about an hour away. I went to MB of Tampa, where I do business, and quickly found the person who did their promotions and advertising. Within 10 minutes we were in his office talking with both the parts and service managers about possible tech events. They were very interested and seemed a little confused as to why they never heard anything from the local section. I spoke to the advertising person at the dealer in Lakeland over the phone, and they were interested too. I already described the response I got when I brought up the possibility of having an occasional meeting and/or tech event in Tampa. They pretty much told me that was a nice idea and moved along to something else. I knew at the point I was wasting my time. What’s really sad is that the local section (and this is historical, as I don’t know what’s going on now) seemed to be a social club for the elder and elite. All they seemed to be interested in was getting together at a restaurant, maybe after a drive, and having lunch or dinner. No shows, no tech events, no autocrosses, nada. I know that Scott was successful in getting a few things going in the past couple of years, as that was when he contacted me about rejoining. I think he got something set up at a local airport used for closed track events a while back, maybe an autocross, I don’t recall. Worse yet, there is a huge area for the section to draw from, and lots of potential members. By limiting the meetings and events to Pinellas County, where most of them live, they effectively cut off a large segment of potential members, even possible casual ones. I’ve devoted too much time to this already, but it brings up a lot of memories of trying to find some locals to get involved with over a common interest. It was pretty frustrating at the time, and still is to some extent, knowing the potential that’s out there for some fun with other MB owners. It would be nice to have a really active section like GWS or some of the sections out west. Dan On Dec 6, 2014, at 10:25 AM, Jaime Kopchinski jaime...@gmail.com wrote: I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I agree about Pierre, I've met him several times and was impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm for old cars. I think he actually tracked me down the first time we met, knowing I was the guy with that 240D website so many years ago. The MBCA needs more guys like him. I made a strong effort this spring to get involved with the local MBCA section, specifically during the June Jamboree. I spoke to the section president and national president, and former national president about ideas to get more younger people in the club and bring the car back into the picture. Some were very enthusiastic about the ideas... I was asked to join the local section as a board member. I followed up with an email with several ideas, and I volunteered to take over social media for the section, which is sorely lacking. Nothing became of it. I received a reply that they were already working on my ideas. Meanwhile, the entire 2014 car season has disappeared and I don't see any changes. I have a garage full of old Mercedes I'm constantly working on and improving. I work for Mercedes Benz in research and development of new products, and have an intimate knowledge of their products for the last 60 or so years. Its safe to say these cars define much of my life professionally and personally. It would seem logical that I should find a group of people with similar interests to share this passion, which why it seems like a logical that I get involved with the club. I'd still love to do it... maybe in 2015. There is potential there. I know many people involved in these cars in this area who are not involved in the club because they'd rather goto a car show and kick tires than visit a museum and go out to eat. Jaime That is great to know about pierre. Jaime, I wish you were local to our section in place of stuck in NJ. We'd love to have you. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Decent guy. He and I were co-admin on MBCA 114/115 forums when it was still a good place to frequent. He knows his stuff, had trouble with spelling, but never was a dick to anybody over the years I worked with him. HE now has a program to fly out to your place and do work on your project car to get it back on the road. Might not be low cost, but would work for the guy who does not swing a wrench but has a stack of cash. About what the new MBCA group is On Dec 5, 2014, at 2:57 PM, Curly McLain via Mercedes wrote: Just thought I would mention that I got an email from Tom Harruff, President and Publisher of the SWFL Section, informing me that Scott Suits was not re-elected RD this year and Pierre Hedary took his place. Funny, as I don't recall ever mentioning Scott in the discussion about the local section recently. And why would I care? And who the heck is Pierre Hedary, like I would know this person, or it would matter to me? Dan ___ http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Just thought I would mention that I got an email from Tom Harruff, President and Publisher of the SWFL Section, informing me that Scott Suits was not re-elected RD this year and Pierre Hedary took his place. Funny, as I don't recall ever mentioning Scott in the discussion about the local section recently. And why would I care? And who the heck is Pierre Hedary, like I would know this person, or it would matter to me? Dan ___ http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
None of this matters to me, but thanks for posting it. I have no interest in re-joining, nor do I ever intend to. That’s why I got a kick out of this idiot sending me a message to inform me of Scott’s demise. Like I care? Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 5:57 PM, Curly McLain via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
You care enough to comment on it. --R (just pointing that out!) On 12/5/14 6:05 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes wrote: None of this matters to me, but thanks for posting it. I have no interest in re-joining, nor do I ever intend to. That’s why I got a kick out of this idiot sending me a message to inform me of Scott’s demise. Like I care? Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 5:57 PM, Curly McLain via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
True. I felt it was relevant since this was part of a recent thread, that’s all. This Pierre guy looks pretty good - lots of old stuff around his shop. That can’t be anything but good for the sections, since he’ll be more in tune with the older cars and come at things from a different point of reference as a mechanic. I do not wish any ill will towards the MBCA - I have no interest in being a member at this point, anyways - after all, they banned me years ago, so why would they care what I think? That’s sort of why I thought this message from out of the blue, with nothing more than a terse sentence about Scott’s successor, was really weird (and intrusive.) Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 6:10 PM, Rich Thomas via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: You care enough to comment on it. --R (just pointing that out!) On 12/5/14 6:05 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes wrote: None of this matters to me, but thanks for posting it. I have no interest in re-joining, nor do I ever intend to. That’s why I got a kick out of this idiot sending me a message to inform me of Scott’s demise. Like I care? Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 5:57 PM, Curly McLain via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Pierre is a decent guy. He is very enthusiastic and knowledgeable and generous with technical advice. Give him a call and you will see! A friend and I met up with him when we went to Amelia Island last Match. We had a nice dinner. Sent from my iPhone On Dec 5, 2014, at 5:57 PM, Curly McLain via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Just thought I would mention that I got an email from Tom Harruff, President and Publisher of the SWFL Section, informing me that Scott Suits was not re-elected RD this year and Pierre Hedary took his place. Funny, as I don't recall ever mentioning Scott in the discussion about the local section recently. And why would I care? And who the heck is Pierre Hedary, like I would know this person, or it would matter to me? Dan ___ http://pierrehedary.com/ Sez they work on pre 1993 MBs. Can't fault em for that. I was under the impression that he had an attitude, but I may be wrong about that. Never met they guy. http://www.benzshops.com/florida/pierre-hedarys Just copied some verbage from the above. https://www.facebook.com/pierrehedarys Well, the shop does not look too fru-fru. May be a decent guy. or not I dunno. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I am not questioning anything about Pierre - I don’t want to give the impression I’m saying or suggesting anything negative about him just because he’s the new regional director. Doesn’t matter to me, as I’m not in the MBCA. I don’t know the guy from Adam. His shop looks nice and he appears to favor older cars, so that’s a real plus. That makes him good in my eyes no matter what. I don’t go over to that part of the state very often, but if I do I’ll look him up to check out his shop. I did notice that he appears to buy up old inventories and sells some parts, too. Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 7:43 PM, dseretakis--- via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Pierre is a decent guy. He is very enthusiastic and knowledgeable and generous with technical advice. Give him a call and you will see! A friend and I met up with him when we went to Amelia Island last Match. We had a nice dinner. Sent from my iPhone ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I got lurkers here? Maybe I need to start cussing worse than a sailer like on banned and run them off. Sent from my iPhone On Dec 5, 2014, at 4:43 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: Just thought I would mention that I got an email from Tom Harruff, President and Publisher of the SWFL Section, informing me that Scott Suits was not re-elected RD this year and Pierre Hedary took his place.” Funny, as I don’t recall ever mentioning Scott in the discussion about the local section recently. And why would I care? And who the heck is Pierre Hedary, like I would know this person, or it would matter to me? And yes, Tom, I know you’re subscribed here under a different email address. Thanks for lurking. I found it both amusing and saddening that their mindset is still the same - if anyone says anything derogatory, they have to insert themselves into the discussion and get defensive, rather than take constructive criticism and consider the views of others who might be potential members. That’s probably why Scott is out - he was a fringe Kathy Kennel person, but he was afraid to speak out for fear of retribution. Just for doing this I have now identified this guy as a jerk. Oh - I also told him (in a diplomatic manner) to leave me alone. I didn’t solicit his input, nor do I want it. Have a great weekend, everyone. And that goes for you MBCA members who have sections that are actually involved with the cars, too. You’re lucky. Dan ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
The guy is subscribed but I can’t find any posts from him, so I would say that makes him a lurker. Better watch out - you might get banned from the MBCA! Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 8:05 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I got lurkers here? Maybe I need to start cussing worse than a sailer like on banned and run them off. Sent from my iPhone ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
I have not been a member for probably 10 years Sent from my iPhone On Dec 5, 2014, at 7:09 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: The guy is subscribed but I can’t find any posts from him, so I would say that makes him a lurker. Better watch out - you might get banned from the MBCA! Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 8:05 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I got lurkers here? Maybe I need to start cussing worse than a sailer like on banned and run them off. Sent from my iPhone ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor. ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
Re: [MBZ] Typical MBCA Behavior
Since he sounds like he has expertise (and parts), perhaps you should try sugar instead, and get him to participate . . . On Fri, Dec 5, 2014 at 7:58 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I have not been a member for probably 10 years Sent from my iPhone On Dec 5, 2014, at 7:09 PM, Dan Penoff via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: The guy is subscribed but I can’t find any posts from him, so I would say that makes him a lurker. Better watch out - you might get banned from the MBCA! Dan On Dec 5, 2014, at 8:05 PM, Kaleb C. Striplin via Mercedes mercedes@okiebenz.com wrote: I got lurkers here? Maybe I need to start cussing worse than a sailer like on banned and run them off. -- OK Don NSA: The only branch of government that actually listens to US citizens! There are three kinds of men: The ones that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves. WILL ROGERS, *The Manly Wisdom of Will Rogers* 2013 F150, 18 mpg 2012 Passat TDI DSG, 44 mpg 1957 C182A, 12 mpg - but at 150 mph! ___ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com All posts are the result of individual contributors and as such, those individuals are responsible for the content of the post. The list owner has no control over the content of the messages of each contributor.
