Summary
An area organiser for the Lotus Drivers Club is a focal point for members in the locality or those passing through the locality. The amount of time required by the role can be as little as an hour a week. If you wish to do more then as much time as you can spare. What you need to get out of the role is ‘fun’. You are the person who has agreed to be the focal point in the area. At the very least you should be doing the things you want to do when you want to do them.
Area Meeting
In a well-populated area, with a number of members, an area meeting, say once a month, can work really well. Meetings can be in the evening of a weekday, or at the weekend, say a breakfast meeting. As the area organiser it is up to you to choose if you want to take this route and if so at what location. Normally this entails talking to the venue owners to see if they are willing to host you and potentially a large group.
In addition to a chat at the meetings, many AOs will organise a drive-out. If there is a willing volunteer in the group maybe you can delegate the run organisation to one of them. This could be to a local beauty spot, another area meeting or something going on organised by someone else. Driving in a convoy of Lotus is a very special thing if you have never done it. These runs can be regular features, particularly during the summer months.
Please note, if you plan a driving route or activity, it is highly recommended that a set of clear route instructions is provided for each attendee, that each attendee preferably has a navigator with them, or include an online route file.
Attendance at some of the Club’s national events is always a good day out. First gain interest within your group and you have a ready-made run and day out almost organised for you! In less well-populated areas a more innovative approach may be required. We have a few area organisers who have this problem and would be willing to share their ideas. Please contact the committee for more information.
Are you on your own?
Quite simply put, no. You have all of the Club committee to support and help you. Other area organisers can chip in, and suggest runs they are doing - you may wish to tag along.
How can the Club committee help? The committee can support you with ideas, contacts, communication and importantly the promotion of what it is you want to do. You will be supported with sharing activities through the Club’s popular social media channels along with support and guidance if you wish to run a social media account for your particular area, such as a Facebook Page.
Alongside this, you will have access to email members in your immediate area who have requested to be contacted by area organisers, along with a WhatsApp Group, if requested. You will also have the opportunity to share regular updates in the Club’s members’ magazine, Chicane, which is published four times a year. This could range from a few paragraphs in each issue or a whole page, or two.
As an area organiser, you become an officer of the Lotus Drivers Club and as such we ask you to uphold an exemplary code of conduct.
How to get started
This normally starts with a discussion between yourself and one/two committee members. The purpose of the informal chat is to make sure you are comfortable taking on the role. We will go through some of the rules about organising events and some limitations put on us by the road traffic laws and the need for liability insurance. All simple but you just need to be aware.
In return, the committee want to make sure what you want to do fits the ethos of the Club. Assuming all is well we will ask you to sign a couple of forms, primarily around data protection and code of conduct and then you are away!
If you would like to discuss becoming an area organiser with the Lotus Drivers Club, please email volunteer@lotusdriversclub.org.uk, we’d love to hear from you!