Topic: New Ideas for Bike of the Month

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Over the past year plus, there's been waning participation in Bike of the Month.  Vote count appears to be down overall and, for some months (this one included), it is sometimes a struggle to get nominees. 

With the goal of trying to increase interest and participation -- both with nominations and voting members -- I encourage you to post suggestions in this thread.  Sam and I will review the suggestions and if we determine them to be beneficial, reasonable and feasible, we will either make amendments or create a poll to amend existing rules.  So, with that in mind, please feel free to post your suggestions. 

Some suggestions may include:
- Increasing the nomination time period (but this will decrease the voting time period)
- Selecting classes for voting by size (750, middleweight 650-550-500 and 350) classes
- Including bikes built by members for owners other than themselves (professional class)
- Selecting classes by type of build: survivor, restoration, restomod, modified (such as cafe, scrambler, tracker)

Please post your suggestions and/or your interest in others' suggestions for changes.

[Gurp]

Maybe including a best second mention and a most interesting current project nomination.
Not to mention possibly some advertising through the Forum about it it seems that participation in the Forum as a whole is down but we can definitely do things to change that.

[AwesomeCB]

If there is little or waning interest, why make an effort to keep it going? I don't participate because I see nice bikes online all the time and sometimes it seems like everyone is a winner, including my own. I also have the impression -- could be mistaken -- the people who nominate and select the BOTM all seem to know each in an old-boys-club kind of way.

[simon#42]

i am not sure having more classes is a good idea it will just mean everybody will win something .
the best bike should be the best bike regardless of what type it is . i do think bike of the month should continue though , i have seen some great
bikes there over the years and would have missed them without it .

[seanbarney41]

It seems like forum participation is down everywhere...everyone just wants to do Facebook and/or instagram

[seanbarney41]

+1 on the good old boys club impression also...although it seems inevitable when many of us have been active on this forum for many years.

How about in order to accept a nomination you have to make one.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

+1 on the good old boys club impression also...although it seems inevitable when many of us have been active on this forum for many years.

How about in order to accept a nomination you have to make one.

I also have the impression -- could be mistaken -- the people who nominate and select the BOTM all seem to know each in an old-boys-club kind of way.

No offense, guys, but it's up to members like YOU to nominate bikes you like.  The problem is that so few of us get off our butts to nominate bikes.  I encourage all members to nominate bikes of their liking so long as they conform to the BOTM rules!

[seanbarney41]

Another possibility...nominations are NOT made because someone DID get off their butt, turned off the computer, and went for a ride instead...

[seanbarney41]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

[scottly]

Why have more classes when it's hard to get a single nomination with a one-size-fits-all class?
It seems to me the trend for the last couple of years has been mostly bikes from the projects board, the two notable exceptions being Mooshie's and Ofreen's bikes, with no build threads.
Another thing is that since the winners gallery hasn't been updated for years, it's a pain in the ass to drill down through all the picture heavy BOTM threads to see if a bike has won before.     

[Gurp]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

+1

[Scott S]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

+1

 Might be on to something here.
 Accept nominations at any time and have a "bank" of bikes to choose from. List, say, a minimum of two, maximum of four? Three might be better, just to keep the votes from getting too diluted.
 And you could choose from the nomination bucket and make it interesting.  350 and 400's one month when you have enough. 750's another month. Cafe racers another month. Etc, etc.

 Might even be able to have enough in the bucket to make up for slow nomination months.

[Stev-o]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

+1

+1...same here...

[Tintop]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

+1

+2  One thing that would help re the Project thread bikes is when they are finished, the word "Finished' is added to the subject line.

+1...same here...

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I got an idea...have the nomination thread open at all times, and just use nominations made after the deadline for the next month.  I can't count the number of times I stumbled upon a bike that I wanted to nominate, but it was not the correct time of the month and by the time it was, I had forgotten about it.

+1

 Might be on to something here.
 Accept nominations at any time and have a "bank" of bikes to choose from. List, say, a minimum of two, maximum of four? Three might be better, just to keep the votes from getting too diluted.
 And you could choose from the nomination bucket and make it interesting.  350 and 400's one month when you have enough. 750's another month. Cafe racers another month. Etc, etc.

 Might even be able to have enough in the bucket to make up for slow nomination months.

I'm liking this particular version of the "ongoing" nomination thread. 

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I have incorporated the Scott S Amendment into the BOTM rules.  http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,8929.msg82658.html#msg82658

Let's give this a try and see how it works in practice.

[Scott S]

I have incorporated the Scott S Amendment into the BOTM rules.  http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,8929.msg82658.html#msg82658

Let's give this a try and see how it works in practice.

 I can't take credit for that. That was Seanbarney's idea.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I have incorporated the Scott S Amendment into the BOTM rules.  http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php/topic,8929.msg82658.html#msg82658

Let's give this a try and see how it works in practice.

 I can't take credit for that. That was Seanbarney's idea.

I'll call it the Sean-Scott Amendment then. I liked your particular version of it.  It allows category voting if nomination numbers are there.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

+1 on the good old boys club impression also...although it seems inevitable when many of us have been active on this forum for many years.

How about in order to accept a nomination you have to make one.

Sean thanks for your suggestion on the ongoing nominations.  As for the "old boys club," it really comes down to who gets off their hands to nominate bikes.  I'd love for more members to nominate bikes.  It brings more diverse tastes.  Each month I am practically begging for people to nominate bikes (posting on the Project board to encourage nominations). 

[seanbarney41]

+1 on the good old boys club impression also...although it seems inevitable when many of us have been active on this forum for many years.

How about in order to accept a nomination you have to make one.

Sean thanks for your suggestion on the ongoing nominations.  As for the "old boys club," it really comes down to who gets off their hands to nominate bikes.  I'd love for more members to nominate bikes.  It brings more diverse tastes.  Each month I am practically begging for people to nominate bikes (posting on the Project board to encourage nominations).

Thank you for putting in the effort to moderate all this.  I really think all this is just a result of less forum useage overall.  We are just gonna have to deal with it, unless folks become less enchanted by facebook and instagram.

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

I really think all this is just a result of less forum useage overall.  We are just gonna have to deal with it, unless folks become less enchanted by facebook and instagram.

I tend to agree.  I think there are still a good core group of members here.  I am always thankful for those who have saved me from my mistakes.

[Stev-o]

I really think all this is just a result of less forum useage overall.  We are just gonna have to deal with it, unless folks become less enchanted by facebook and instagram.

I tend to agree.  I think there are still a good core group of members here.  I am always thankful for those who have saved me from my mistakes.

Not sure if this forum's postings are down overall, but it is still much more active than most of the other car and bike forums I visit.   

I am on fakebook, rarely post there, the technical information that is there is a joke.  I see guys post questions that if it were a SOHC, a quick search here would easily give him the info needed to solve the issue (yes, the search feature works now!)

BOTM partipitation may be down, I'm guilty, but this forum is still strong.   

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

At Stev-o's suggestion, I moved the OPEN NOMINATIONS thread to a sticky, so it remains up top and (hopefully) easy to find.

[Mooshie]

Love the idea of ongoing nominations and in select categories.  Can we add a dirty traveler category? 

[SOHC4 Cafe Racer Fan]

Love the idea of ongoing nominations and in select categories.  Can we add a dirty traveler category? 

Dirty traveler = Ironbutt = Mile Eater