A letter from Telstar

I received this comment from Grayson, of Telstar. It tells his side, although not as accurately as it should have been told. In instances where he is embellishing, I am placing an [Ed.] comment. While Grayson sounds like he is interested in making corrections for some of the many poor aspects of the Telstar show, that is not the story he was telling us at the show. I reiterate, when asked point blank if he was going to do anything about the cheating, his exact words were, "Not really. We just don't care about that."

If he now cares, as he says, then I suspect his sudden change comes from all the negative feedback I am sure he received from all those who felt cheated. Note, too, that he still has not acknowledged many of the problems - sponsors in the class they sponsor (and winning), and alumni held up as "special", and the simple fact that organizers simply should not be registered at all, unless in a separate class.

His comment:

"Hi Guys,

"I apologize for the length of this response, but I also feel it is necessary; I was working at the gate for Telstar's car show. Our volunteer crew has a lot to learn about the show's organization - in particular, the assignment of Import, Sports Compact and Special Interest classes. Over the next 11 months, I will become an expert on the topic, with help from this site.

"Bill & Bob both approached me at the show with the class assignment complaints. I told Bill that I was a volunteer who loves cars. He told me to "Go love cars somewhere else". That really takes the wind out of a person's sails. [Ed. That is not what was said. After telling me he did not care about vehicles in the wrong class, and that he had no intention of doing anything about it, he did say "I just love cars", to which I responded, "if you do not fix what is wrong with this show, you can go love cars somewhere else next year." The point being, folks would not return if they knew the show was rigged.]

"I thought the assignment of classes was fairly staightforward. As I worked the gate, I handed each driver an index card that assigned their class, and instructed them to present it at the registration tent. I also told each driver where their class was located on the appropriate field. No one was told to pick their own class, and every driver left the gate with an assigned card. [Ed. When we arrived, Grayson asked which class we wanted to be in. We asked what he had. He said we might want 1990-Present, or Special Interest. We could choose. So, no, classes were not simply assigned, and yes, some people, at least, were able to choose. So his statement is incorrect.] The incorrect class assignment was my fault.

"In regards to the organizer's taking trophies from others, our main volunteer and her husband won a trophy in the Firebird class, and I won the Mustang class with my '70 Mach 1. I can't speak for them, but I've been restoring my car since high school, picking a few projects each year, with a tight budget. Many of our locals that visited Telstar's show know my car's story. I've earned that trophy, and a few from other shows. [Ed. None of that matters - it is a conflict of interest, and organizers and sponsors should not be permitted to compete against others, period. And there was also a sponsor that took a trophy in the class he sponsored - also a conflict of interest. That should never be permitted.]

"Although it's clear that we have a lot to learn, I do hope the show can grow and we will learn from the experience. I hope that my two daughters will be able to help with the show when they are old enough."Our follow-up meeting is this week, in which we will address the issues that arose, most of which could not be corrected after the show began - such as the Port-a-Potty locations and food shortage. Both can and will be easily corrected for next year. [Ed. the IMPORTANT issues could have, and should have been addressed on the spot - issues of unfair competition and blatant cheating. Organizers were made aware of them very early in the morning.]

"Thanks to everyone that came to Telstar's show. I spent most of the day on the lower field by the gate, and heard a bunch of good car stories from the Street Rod and muscle car guys. I'm sorry we have lost Bill & Bob's support, but I appreciate the chance and will look forward to next year's show."

[Ed. They did not "lose" my support - they threw it away on their own. I gave them three opportunities to at least attempt to address the issues, to no avail. And when Grayson said, "I just don't care", then it was no longer my choice whether or not I would support him and his show. It was his choice, and he made it.

In the unlikely event that Telstar gets some GOOD and PROPER organization next year, and they address the important issues raised, and deal with them effectively, then HotKarz is more than willing to promote their show, as we promoted Sanford and Belgrade this year, in spite of their failings last year. Frankly, anyone who tells me that they do not see cheating as a serious issue has, indeed, lost my support, and I find it unlikely they will ever take cheating seriously.

But I guess anything is possible - if Grayson received enough complaints to worry him about the future of his show, then maybe he will address these things, if only out of a sense of survival. But his unwillingness to even acknowledge the more serious issues in this comment tells me he may be trying to dodge them. We'll have to wait and see.]

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