Roadtrip next year

>Has anyone even said that there would a be a roadtrip next
>year?

Yes, it's on the blog.

I don't know what's fair, other than letting people who haven't gone get the chance first.

2 roadtrips would be great, but then I wonder how difficult it would be for Cathe and crew to schedule their lives around the Roadtrips, especially since (I believe) they work.

Namita
 
I have dial up internet and I got in last year. I think first come first serve in the best way to do things. I realize that because of my class/work schedule I may be shooting myself in the foot by saying that but that is just the way life works.
 
>Has anyone even said that there would a be a roadtrip next
>year?

Yes, they mentioned it several times and one of the coordinators said they are tentatively planning on it.
 
I know there have been several issues and ideas.

1. Perhaps opening it up to like 300 people and holding it in a place like the Atlantic City Convention Center. This is a great idea, but I think it would take away from the intimacy that is so pervasive - not only between Cathe, crew, and RTers, but also amongst all of the attendees.

2. Having two RTs in one year. That's hard. What a great idea, but then I know Cathe looks at when the population at her gym is lower (like sumer vacations) so that we don't inconvenience a large number of folks. Perhaps a spring (do many members go on spring break vacations?) and a late summer trip? The only thing then is that we are asking Cathe to forego spring break time with her own family, which hardly seems considerate.

3. If Cathe is kind (and brave) enough to host a RT every year, maybe limiting people to every other year and then on a first come first served basis? That kind of opens it up a bit more. I guess they would have to look at the total number of attendees and wait listers from this year to see is something like this would accomodate all who wish to attend (that of course presupposes that no NEW people will discover Cathe and want to attend)

Just some thoughts, but all I know for a fact is that the experience (to me) cannot be fully described. The sentiment, emotion and excitement is beyond the comprehension of most anyone who doesn't have that passion and commitment to Cathe that most of us do.


Lorrie

www.picturetrail.com/lsass

3 days, 60 miles, 1 cure. Check out my webpage:
http://www.the3day.org/cleveland07/lorriesassbenza808
 
Here's my 2 cents.

I'm one of those "new" people who have found Cathe but not in time to go on the road trip. I would love, love, love, etc.... to go!
I know if I had a chance and was notified ahead of time I would definitely find a way to be at the computer. Call in sick, find someone to sign for me, whatever it took. So I'm not really into a lottery, let's face it I know my luck is terrible. But anyway, it would be nice if she had time for 2 in a year.


(Maybe that was a nickels worth?)

colleen1:)
 
I went to the roadtrip this year and it was AWESOME! I want to go again sometime in the future! While I was there, I heard some of the other roadtrippers say that they had heard (this is only hearsay -- not for sure!) that Cathe was going to do two roadtrips next year instead of one. Like I said, this didn't come from Cathe or anyone from SNM, so I'm not sure if this is true. I'm sure, however, that Cathe will try and do something like this if she can (depending on her schedule). She is a person that wants to try and accommodate everyone and will do so if it is humanly possibly. Hopefully she will be able to do this.

My personal opinion is that she stay at her facility and not go to a bigger one -- the atmosphere at her club is so wonderful. I'm afraid if you go to a larger facility and bring more people in, it will be too big and will not be very personable. The amount of people was "just right" -- not too many. Cathe was able to touch base with everyone and make everyone feel like they were important. If it was twice the size, she wouldn't be able to do that.

This is my opinion -- I think she will try and do something like that in the future (two roadtrips). I know she has our best interests at heart!

Julie
 
Julie,

I agree with you. The number of people was good, I would not encourage them to go bigger. In fact, I wish there had been small group breakout sessions where you got more time with Cathe to discuss working out. She was very available for pictures and signing, but there really wasn't time to ask her specific questions about working out and stuff.

Lauren
 
> If not weekend, then maybe in the
>evening (though again probably hard with different time zones
>to please everyone).

I agree, if the registration doesn't open on a weekend, an evening might be a better choice for most working people.
 
My 2 cents is that first come first served is the best way to go. If you want to go you will arrange your schedule to be at the place you need to be to sign up. They should definitely announce it before so people have the opportunity to prepare and arrange their schedule. I do like the idea that people who didn't get a chance to go before do get first dibs. However, on the RT when this was mentioned a couple of people suggested that people would just sign up under different names which I guess could happen but in my opinion would be really sad.

Cathe has a business to run and while I loved the RT, I can see that it might be a huge pain for the staff to do it more than one a year (or every other year). I did the math on the thing in my head and I can't imagine she makes a dime on having the things. Also the fewer you have the more special they are for Cathe and her staff and the more likely you are to have personal interaction.

KIM
 
I like the lottery idea. Since I can be scheduled days, nights & weekends (& there is a staff shortage), I can't depend on arranging my schedule around a pre-announcement. It is not as easy for some people to sit in front of a computor and wait to sign up. I do understand that the most popular & profitable decision has to be made and I won't be upset with whatever is decided.

I think the number of slots sounds about right and don't think it should be increased. I also agree that the location should stay the same. Two road trips sounds like a lot of work. Eventually, the demand may slow down as more people have the opportunity to attend.

Both of the past trips sounded wonderful. I hope to meet some Catheites one day :) .

jordan
 
I like the idea of those who tried to sign up this year, being given first dibs next year. Spread it around a little!

Has anyone ever tried to gather a group through the week and go on their own? I visited Tracie Long's gym with some friends but it was not one of her "trips". We still got to interact quite a bit and had a great time. Perhaps it was different since Tracie's gym is smaller, but I would think if someone emailed Cathe and said a group of 8-10 were coming and what is her schedule, she may take some time for lunch or something like that. Tracie treated us very well, but we didn't spend every minute with her. Many of us had scheduled personal training sessions ahead of time, but they were not free. My group was a group I met through the message boards and we had not all met in person. We had a great time!

I also have visited the Firm three times and none of those were FirmBelievers trips. We had a wonderful time with our small group.

"Just a suggestion"
 
This is an excellent idea. I went on the roadtrip and enjoyed it, but I think I would enjoy this even more. Although Cathe was very approachable and available during the roadtrip, there were many people trying to spend time with her and I felt uncomfortable asserting myself in there. Also, with 100 people in the room during the workout, it was hard to see her. A smaller class (like her normal class size) might be better . . .even if I only got to do 1 class with her instead of 4.
 
Lauren I'm with you! I, too, wish there would have been a small group session with Cathe. It would have been fun to sit down with her in a small group and be able to ask her questions about working out, etc. -- I know had a lot of questions I could have asked! When I did get to speak with her, it was very short because there were so many other people who wanted to speak with her as well. Maybe that's something they may do in the future! :)
 
I think first come first serve is best. I dont like the lottery idea because I have the worst luck, I also think people who attended this year should be excluded from next years so that this will assure people who never went get to go. One idea is to exclude their emails from the announcement and not post it on the forum until after registration is closed. So that way they cant sign up as somebody alse. Little harsh perhaps???
 
There will always be pluses and minuses no matter what method is picked. As for not posting the announcement on the forums, that would leave out those Cathe fans that don't have their emails registered with SNM or have changed it since the last time they ordered something and those that just lurk on the boards and are not registered. Maybe having the regiatration start at midnight instead of noon might work, but then those that work night shifts or are in other parts of the world could be left out. Plus who wants to stay up til midnight (although a lot of people do it see new movies (StarWars etc). I think that there will never be a way to satisfy everyone. The first come first served seemed to have worked this year, allowing most of the roadtrippers to be first timers. There were less than 20 returnees included the 3 coordinators for the 2007 RT. Some one mentioned concerts are first come first service which is true most of the time, but I remember a Garth Brooks concert where we had to wait in line to possilby get a lottery ticket to be able to buy the concert ticket. Glad I wasn't a big Garth fan when our section of the line didn't get in the lottery. Someone also mentioned how people will find a way to get in line like by camping out for a concert. Sounds like a good idea. We could all converge with sleeping bags and make 2 visits to the gym, 1 to buy the ticket and 1 to attend. (Cathe, just kidding. You don't need a parking lot full of us trying to buy a spot). What ever is decided, I will accept it and if I'm able to attend another one, great, if not, I hope those that make it that year have as much fun as I did and report back their stories and share their pictures.

Jean
 
Road Trip Registration

There were only a handful of Road Trippers who were attending for the second time. With only a small number of people who have attended in 2005 and 2007 and thousands who have never attended, the odds ensure that the majority will always be first timers. I cannot afford to attend every year, but I am hoping and praying that God will bless me with an opportunity to attend one more time next year. It is my dream to return after getting in shape when I have enough energy to really enjoy the experience without the burden of all these excess pounds. I also care about Cathe and want this experience to be a blessing for her and not a source of stress, and I want others who have never been to have an opportunity to go. I would also love to meet people like Shelley, Kathryn, and Michele who did not get in this year.

I am planning to make every effort to return next year if Cathe invites us to attend again. I am, however, offended by the suggestion that those of us who attended this year are so deceptive that we would resort to lying, cheating, or registering under a false identity to get in. I love and respect Cathe. If she personally tells me that she does not want me there again for whatever reason, I will honor her decision. I will be sad, but I will not get on these forums and write mean-spirited posts. And I certainly will not resort to underhanded tactics like those suggested in this thread. In all due respect, you are being paranoid. Cathe knows us. She studied the Who’s Who book and pictures and recognized me before the Road Trip started when I was not even wearing a name tag. It is not as if any of us could really sneak in undetected. Registration requires a real name, address, and credit card number. The women I spent this weekend with are women of honor and integrity. I cannot think of one person who would consider doing what we are being accused of in this thread.

I did a search, and the 2005 Road Trip was announced ahead of time. Cathe posted an announcement on Friday that registration would begin on Monday or Tuesday. Chris posted a second announcement on Saturday that Monday at 9:00 a.m. would be the official start time. It did not sell out the first day because not many people really knew what it would be like. Here are a few links:

http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=2&topic_id=50123&mesg_id=50123
http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=2&topic_id=50199&mesg_id=50199

The 2005 Road Trip sold out a little over 2 weeks after registration opened:

http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=2&topic_id=50752&mesg_id=50752

I like the way registration was handled this year (but a weekend or evening start time would be nice). I am not a gambler and do not care for a lottery. I have always felt that people who are willing to do whatever it takes (like camp out for concert tickets) should go. Many people had a friend or someone else sign up for them this year because they could not get online during the day. Most of the people who did not make it this year were not online when registration opened. Everyone will know better next year, which will level the playing field. In my opinion, having more than one Road Trip is the best solution if it is not too much work for Cathe and if it will not interfere with her family vacation time. I cannot imagine doing her classes in a convention center on a hard concrete floor. I would also be willing to split the classes in half like we did for the sculpting class this year so more people can attend. I would be perfectly content doing fewer classes over the course of the weekend and having more social time while others are enjoying Cathe’s classes. When they originally announced the 2005 Road Trip, they were hoping to register 150 people. This option might allow a few more people to attend.

In my opinion, the people who deserve a chance to register first are those who registered and paid for this year’s Road Trip and missed most of it due to flight cancellations and travel delays. I am sad for them.

I personally would hate to see Cathe exclude people who have attended before. I was blessed to meet Jean, Gayle, Pennie, Lorrie, Kathy G., Tammy, Emily, and others who attended in 2005. Part of the fun for me was meeting forum members I love. If they decide to go that route, I am hoping that the 2007 Road Trippers can have a GTG somewhere. I love these women and would be honored to spend another weekend with them.

I hope everyone is blessed with the opportunity to meet Cathe and enjoy a Road Trip or at least one of her live classes someday. Say what you will about me and my desire to return again, but please do not attack my character by implying that I will use a false identity to get in if Cathe decides that we cannot attend again.

Blessings,
Heather B.

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).
 
RE: Road Trip Registration

I just missed the cutoff point this year, and I imagine that whether the policy remains first-come, first-serve or it moves to a lottery, my chances of getting in next year would probably be about the same. I'd love to be there, but I'm not going to take off work to try to get in (nor would I do so for an iPod, concert tickets, or whatever else). If I don't make it, so be it.

I'd rather not exclude previous RTers from the next one b/c that would mean half the folks I talk to the most would not be there. And I agree that keeping the number of participants relatively low allows more intimacy in the group.

That being said, perhaps there is a way to include a few more people in the trip if attendees participate in only two of four classes. Registrants could rank their class preferences in the order of their interest with no guarantee that you would get the class (or classes) of your choice. When you're not participating in the two classes you've signed up for, you have more downtime for social opportunities, as Heather mentioned. (BTW, I live locally, and regardless of whether or not I make it in, I would be happy to volunteer my time to help out with the schedule. I know it would create a bit more work to organize the classes this way.)

Alternately, if people seem to prefer four workouts during the RT weekend, perhaps Cedie or Lorraine or Jai could teach class in another room. If space is an issue, perhaps one of the classes could be an outdoor bootcamp.

One other thing I would ask SNM to consider would be to only allow 1 registration per person.

~Cathy http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/mesg/emoticons7/4.gif

"Out on the roads there is fitness and self-discovery and the persons we were destined to be." -George Sheehan
 
RE: Road Trip Registration

I apologize for my posting I certainly didnt mean to upset anyone sometimes when we get desparate we write things without thinking. you seem like a really sweet soul and I didnt mean to offend you or anyone on this for Forum if I did I sincerely apologize.
 
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