[Bern]

I am a member of a koi club (since 1988) and that koi club does hold a show.

I wasn't there when the club first decided to run a show so I don't know what the motive was. However, I was vice-showchair 1997-98 and I can tell you that it wasn't financial. The club made approx £1500 per show, which would have worked out at approx £1 per man hour if the guys and girls that put it on got paid. I assure you, putting on a show is a labour of love. However, that £1,500 went a long way to purchasing equipt and paying dues. So much so that the clubs subscriptions have only increased once in all the time I've been there. It's now an exhorbitant £12pa per family membership.

The show continues to this day and the main reason I endorse it at club level is that it is the great leveller and the best way to bring new comers into the club and break down the barriers. As somebody has already pointed out, clubs get cliquey. Which is quite natural, if people come from a reasonably wide area and only get to see each other once a month, they are going to make the best of that opportunity, which unfortunately means that newcomers get left out in the cold and the opportunities to integrate get less. The show is where people get more time to mix in.

I believe my particular club would disintegrate if the show was ceased. The majority of the longer standing BKKS sections are those that run shows, and several of the clubs that have folded in the more recent years are those that had shows and no longer do. There are several notable exceptions but in the main my theory holds out.

I believe that clubs can start up and find enough to keep their members interested for several years. But after that they need something for all members to focus on otherwise they run the risk of being social clubs and the cliques of original vs new members begin to divide them. A koi show is one such event.

As for the impact Koi shows have had on the hobby, JR has said it all.

rgds BERN