Forum Changes

_But the idea of the $15 a year Forum membership is that that money is then donated back to the NSMBA for Trail Passes… and the NSMBA and NSMB revitalize the concept that the Trail Pass is a part of an interactive positive communicating community with accountability.

_

As a party who has had to endure more than my fair share of…

Scrooge McDuck

Look man, you've set the tone for your treatment here. I'm mostly a lurker here but I don't think that you're a respected member of this online community. I'm not going to suggest that I speak for those that are, but your opinion about how to run these forums is likely of very little value to anyone that matters.

As a new member of this community I suggest that you lie low, get a read of how folks here interact with each other on serious issues, and come back when you're ready to address what you claim to be serious problems with some maturity and competence. Until then, if the financial mismanagement of the North Shore is as serious an issue as you make it out to be you should have no problem finding a more effective venue to address it than a mountain bike discussion forum.

Admins/concerned forumites:

As far as how to improve the forum I think it's up to each of us to ignore and report the bs, not get drawn in (hard sometimes I know, it's fun coming up with snappy retorts and difficult to let public slights slide) and bring something interesting to the table. Although I personally use a real name as my handle I choose one that I don't go by in day to day life so as to grant me some anonymity and therefore protection from the nutjobs that eventually surface on the relatively unrestricted areas of the internet. Those that know me in real life can figure out who I am, those that don't probably can't without some hacking, and I like it that way. I wouldn't register or post if any old asshole could easily cause trouble for me offline. I mostly lurk in most forums I visit out of lack of effort, but also to avoid the pettiness that seems inherent in public, unaccountable discussions.

I wouldn't register or post if any old asshole could easily cause trouble for me offline. I mostly lurk in most forums I visit out of lack of effort, but also to avoid the pettiness that seems inherent in public, unaccountable discussions.

I think that just about sums it all up.

Great idea. As you can tell, I'm all for real names. My use of the forums is way down due to the negativity.

Go for it. The forums couldn't get any worse.

Or don't use Facebook, but that's a whole other topic!

It ain't going away and there is some sugar on there.

Using your real name in a capacity where it is easily recorded comes at a high cost.

What has been requested will work AND be "safe" only if non-anonymous accounts can access the content.

Sock puppet accounts only seem to have traction in The Shore.

This board is like a coffee shop where every conversation is recorded and available to anyone with an internet connection. In this coffee shop, some people wear masks and some don't. As long as the mask-wearers wear the same mask every time they come in, a sense of community can develop and some of the conversations Gord would like to see can happen.

As long as the patrons and the owner react swiftly and consistently to other patrons that come in and display bad behaviour, most of the masked and unmasked patrons will stick around. If the goal is to keep the patrons coming back to the shop, people that shout, call others names or come into the shop and put up false, misleading or vitriolic posters about other patrons would politely be shown the door and not allowed back in.

If there isn't a sense of mutual respect and reciprocity, or the unmasked patrons think those that have been shown the door will be waiting outside to follow them home, then the conversations Gord and others want to have won't happen in this coffee shop.

I'm not sure how this could be implemented online, but the Chatham House rule is useful for people interested in promoting openness and sharing of information in meetings or discussions.

all that needs to happen is poor behaviour is given short shrift by the moderators. step out of line more than once and you get shown the door. right now there is pretty much zero accountability so people feel free to act however they please.

It ain't going away and there is some sugar on there.

True it ain't going away but I'm sure it will evolve in some way. You would think that it would fade away like other sites that came before but the thinking is that its too big to fail, like the banks :D

I rarely visit the boards these days, the negativity and fear-mongering and the like being a few of the reasons.

Even though I live in Germany I used to log in more or less daily, but have somehow lost the motivation to do so. I still like the idea of the forum and I can remember a time when it was shut down in 2001 or 2002, I think.

If I remember correctly it was for similar reasons as nowadays.

I think moderators stepping up their game would be great, the forum is still a great resource and place for exchanging ideas, gettibg feedback and help, not to forget staying in touch.

I agree to what most of you say, in the end it is not only the missing moderators but the reasonable users who can make a turn-around.

Given the history of it all, I think a shut down or even a fee would be counterproductive.

Something needs to change or everyone is just going to stop coming on here all together. Everyone I know has pretty much stop using the forums because of all the negativity. I feel like these forums have always been so informative,entertaining and engaging. It would be such a shame if one lame duck brings down the whole thing. I don't think paying would work, but linking your profile to your Facebook account would. Secondly, this isn't a democracy, it's a business and if I owned this website I would ban a couple users for sure. Eventually this guy is going to start effecting your pocketbook and why would you want that? I say trim the fat.

This 1000%

Like others, I don't come here much anymore. The content isn't as fresh or as good as other mtb sites, IMO. The forums are stale and, as others have stated, the BS posts are annoying. And I agree that this place is a business .. if Cam and crew don't care about this place (and it seems it's no longer a priority), then it will eventually die, and that might be fine with them. Milk the cash cow as long as you can without putting in the effort … good for you, it was a good run.

As for paying, not me … it's not worth it for what it has become and what it offers.