Myers Depot Metal Detectors

Bad Clubs

DiggerDug

DiggerDug

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 3, 2011
Messages
307
Location
NW Georgia
Please if you run a club or are just a member be nice to new people. I went to a club in the area recently and one person spoke to me. Talking about not feeling welcomed. Now I know relic hunters are especially clickish but your not going to lose your favorite spot by saying hi to someone. New blood is the key to the longevity of a club. Trust me there was no new blood there not even sure if it was blood or dust in those veins. But let me say there are lot's of good clubs that are active and treat people right. We all have a responcibility to promote our hobby in a positive way. And sometimes it starts with a simple gesture.
 
Some clubs are like that, not just metal detecting clubs either. I rejoined our club in ringgold, it's a good club come on up and check them out.
 
Well I'll tell you that this is one of the best forums out thier and a alot of good people with alot of good info. I belonged to a few before , but it has been so long I can't even remember my pass words to them. Once I joined this one I have'nt looked back !
 
I had identical experience, even I was a far more experienced coinshooter than most people in the room. I just sat through the event and never went back. My social circle now resides on forums and youtube.
 
It sucks that they did that, That is why I am not sure if I want to join a club or not. seems they want money to join but they never do any club hunts. Or if they do it is 1 a year. There also does not seem to be but 1 near me and I am not sure if joining them will help me find spots. they seem to have nothing to offer but people with the same interests and I can get that here for free....
 
There are good clubs and bad. I was a member of club before I moved away, but it wasn't a great club by my thoughts. Some of my thoughts from clubs I have seen...

What I don't understand is why many clubs hold meetings in some backroom of a dingy restaurant. I want to go to a treasure hunting / metal detecting club meeting, not a supper club with wait staff walking around us the whole time. If it's going to be in a restaurant, make sure it's some place clean with good parking!!

Welcome new members to the club! Most established member are old, bordering on ancient and they seem to despise when someone "young" joins. Go up and talk to the new members! A simple "welcome our newest member XXX" from the speaker isn't enough when everyone else ignores them.

There should be more to the club than just the monthly meeting and best find contest. Club outings, club hunts, competition hunts, etc. offers a change of pace and something to actually "get out" of being a member.
 
DiggerDug said:
Please if you run a club or are just a member be nice to new people. I went to a club in the area recently and one person spoke to me. Talking about not feeling welcomed. Now I know relic hunters are especially clickish but your not going to lose your favorite spot by saying hi to someone. New blood is the key to the longevity of a club. Trust me there was no new blood there not even sure if it was blood or dust in those veins. But let me say there are lot's of good clubs that are active and treat people right. We all have a responcibility to promote our hobby in a positive way. And sometimes it starts with a simple gesture.
Click to expand...

That must've been terrible for you. You sound like the right guy to found a 'Friendly Metal Detecting Club' in your area....
 
Last year was my first in the hobby. I found a local Relic Hunters Assoc. and made it a point to attend a meeting so I could bring in some of my finds and talk to some of the members.

Wow. Now granted these guys have hunted for years but pretty cold was the reception. My few CW bullets which I was pretty stoked at finding was greeted with "those are dime a dozen, I've found hundreds." Most seemed so set in their clique with high end detectors that there just wasn't much place for a newbie there. It seemed that the last thing they would offer was a hunt together.

I've found better hunting companions with forum members and a better meeting place, here!
 
Ok, so I'll take a stab at the contrarian view on this one.

That's the nature of the beast. Any group, though it may have open membership, is really a small core bunch of folks who have been hunting together, or at the very least have been sharing finds, tips, and a beer for many years. One doesn't show up to any group and flash their new membership certificate they printed online and a 'Rosie' and immediately become 'one of the guys'. You have to persist. Keep going to the meetings. Introduce yourself. Ask for advice. Reintroduce yourself. Expect distance until you are a familiar face. Remember, these folks are used to seeing a guy show up, quietly hang out in the background, and then never come back. You are not the point of the gathering. They are. Become part of the point. They do not, unlike what you might find it convenient to think, have a responsibility to you. You have a responsibility to you. Being a member of the local MD community doesn't mean your name is on the roll of the local club, it means you are a participant in the local MD scene. Turn off Dr. Phil, and your thin skin, and get out there and participate.

/contrarianism
 
I completely agree. That's why I stay away from the local detecting club. I've met some its members and only one was friendly and open. The rest acted like I was intruding into their private hobby.

I hang out with a loose, ragtag, motley crew of disheveled malcontents and I couldn't ask for a better bunch of guys to hang out with. Not a single one of them would ever be rude to a newbie. Not on their worst day.
 
First impressions are not always best when it comes to clubs. I have found that a great deal of detectorists are solitudinous like myself. They are at the club because they love the hobby but social settings may not be their expertise. Thats one of the reasons I love the hobby so much because I can put my headphones on and shut out the rest of the world. They are probably not trying to be rude and may not realize that they are. Give them some time to get to know you, attend some meetings and some group hunts and you may find out they are a lot nicer than you think..
 
DIRT DOBBER said:
Ok, so I'll take a stab at the contrarian view on this one.

That's the nature of the beast. Any group, though it may have open membership, is really a small core bunch of folks who have been hunting together, or at the very least have been sharing finds, tips, and a beer for many years. One doesn't show up to any group and flash their new membership certificate they printed online and a 'Rosie' and immediately become 'one of the guys'. You have to persist. Keep going to the meetings. Introduce yourself. Ask for advice. Reintroduce yourself. Expect distance until you are a familiar face. Remember, these folks are used to seeing a guy show up, quietly hang out in the background, and then never come back. You are not the point of the gathering. They are. Become part of the point. They do not, unlike what you might find it convenient to think, have a responsibility to you. You have a responsibility to you. Being a member of the local MD community doesn't mean your name is on the roll of the local club, it means you are a participant in the local MD scene. Turn off Dr. Phil, and your thin skin, and get out there and participate.

/contrarianism
Click to expand...


Although you are entitled to your opinion I would say you are very wrong about me. I am anything but thin skinned. Nor do I watch DR. Phil. I am not a shy person by any means. I am the person that almost always goes to the door to ask permission. I would talk to a tree if it's the only thing around. So your assumption that I just sat there is wrong. I introduced myself to several people there. But when you stick you hand out for a simple hand shake and say hi I'm " " and they just look elsewere or ignore you you tell me. I have been detecting almost 20 years and have been to other clubs that were nothing like that. I understand the "earning a place amongst the ranks". But I'm not going out of my way to impress anyone. Especially the people that are worried someone new might move faster than them. I am 43 and was probably one of the youngest members there. So yes I could go back and sit there till #### freezes over but why should I. Life is too short to put up with bs so I will find others in my area that share this hobby. I have no problem with newbs either because we were all there once and they are the future. Because I feel it is my responcibility to welcome them and help them.If you don't that's fine too. Like I said you are entitled to your opinion. HH
 
It never occurred to me that there are MD clubs for jerks. There is only one in my area, hopefully they are cool.
 
I inquired about joining a local club and was told flat out, "your not welcome". So I said a few choice words back. Lucky it was a woman, if it was a man......:mad:
 
DiggerDug said:
Although you are entitled to your opinion I would say you are very wrong about me. I am anything but thin skinned. Nor do I watch DR. Phil. I am not a shy person by any means. I am the person that almost always goes to the door to ask permission. I would talk to a tree if it's the only thing around. So your assumption that I just sat there is wrong. I introduced myself to several people there. But when you stick you hand out for a simple hand shake and say hi I'm " " and they just look elsewere or ignore you you tell me. I have been detecting almost 20 years and have been to other clubs that were nothing like that. I understand the "earning a place amongst the ranks". But I'm not going out of my way to impress anyone. Especially the people that are worried someone new might move faster than them. I am 43 and was probably one of the youngest members there. So yes I could go back and sit there till #### freezes over but why should I. Life is too short to put up with bs so I will find others in my area that share this hobby. I have no problem with newbs either because we were all there once and they are the future. Because I feel it is my responcibility to welcome them and help them.If you don't that's fine too. Like I said you are entitled to your opinion. HH
Click to expand...


Oh boy.

DD, my comments weren't directed at you personally but at the thread as a 'contrarian' POV to all the comments about folks not feeling welcomed into MD groups.

On that note, I didn't mean to imply you were thin-skinned. I can tell just by reading your post above that's faaaaar from true. :grin:

Cheers,
Bobby.
 
DiggerDug said:
. But when you stick you hand out for a simple hand shake and say hi I'm " " and they just look elsewere or ignore you HH
Click to expand...

D.D. If ya stuck your paw out and he let ya hang.That pretty much
tells ya what kind of personality he has. " warmed over turd"I would have left.
 
Shaking someones' hand is just respectful when they put their hand out. Unless the guy was physically disabled to the point of not being able to shake your hand you did the right thing. Life is too short to deal with people like that.

The unfortunate part of groups or clubs that have older membership is that they are not replaced. Maybe they don't want to be. My clubs always pushed for the kids to join so they would continue on with the groups.

I'm glad to be a part of this forum where people want to help and give advice. Also most of them on here have a great sense of humor. Plus any social issues that people would have in public are usually less noticeable on a forum.

Easier for people to talk or ask questions when there's not a group staring at you.
 
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