In a word...yes. One of the very few disadvantages of this great and considerate community is that when something goes from being strong and vibrant to turning turtle, nobody wants to point out the elephant in the room that caused the problem for fear of offending someone. In this case there are several elephants, all of whom have good reason for their decisions, actions or inactions that have led to this apathy that is killing the BOM. I am not in a position that I can volunteer to help, so I am reluctant to start pointing out problems for that reason as well as not wanting to step on toes. However, if we are to save a vital and uniquely PA feature that is not found anywhere else, somebody has to start the conversation. Apathy always starts at the top and trickles down in one way or another. Here are just a few elephants that I see.
1. The decision to go subscription only to enter the BOM. I know...I know, this has been discussed over and over. I recognize a business's right to make such decisions and support that right. However, now that a considerable amount of time has passed since that rules inception I would ask that PA take a look at the net effect of that decision and try to determine if the outcome of that decision was positive or negative. Considering the low number of entries in the BOM contest, I can't see how the rule could have had a positive effect on subscription numbers in the long run. It may even be having some negative effects as interest in the BOM contest wanes, maybe readership is suffering a similar demise. I know it has with me. I don't rush out to buy the newest copy off the rack anymore and my e-mag subscription wasn't renewed even though I paid for it. So I didn't renew that this year. Apathy
2. A side effect of problem one. With the lower number of participants, the same few bowyers win the hat every contest. This has led to folks believing that they don't have a chance, so why enter. I'm not saying that the winning bowyers are not deserving of the honors, but every month I see dozens of bows that would give them a run for their money that aren't entered. More apathy.
3. This is the tough one that I really don't want to point out. Even though I consider the man that has had the reins for BOM for a long time a close personal friend despite never having met him in person, another problem that I see is the seemingly random manner in which the BOM is put up to vote on. By that I mean the timing. It used to be BOM was up for a vote within 2 or 3 days of the first of each month. Now, it might be the middle of the month, the end of the month or skip a month altogether. I realize that the skip a month/combination of months is usually due to lack of entries. I also realize that the randomness is due to our amigo having a life outside PA. I think everyone realizes that fact and understands. I don't want to seem overly critical of a man that has put in a tremendous amount of effort into this contest and especially in to the excellent write ups for the winners. Those write ups are something that I have really appreciated in the last few years. For me, the lack of predictable timing has produced some apathy about voting. Perhaps I am the only one that is effected by that. I don't want to sound ungrateful for the effort or cause any hard feelings or regret, but it might be too much for one guy to handle alone. It might just be a case of burn out. In which case that would be entirely understandable. Whatever the case, some help or relief of the burden altogether might be needed. Again I'm not in a position where I can help and that is regrettable.
These are just a few things that I see contributing to the demise of the BOM. I'm sure others have their own reasons or suspicions as to the cause, but these are what I see. I really don't want to be the complainer/finger pointer that has no way of becoming part of the solution. I'm just not wired that way. At the risk of deeply offending someone that has dedicated much more than any of us can possibly imagine, I'm throwing this out there to get the conversation started. If we don't identify the root cause(s) of the problem, there's simply no way to address them and save something vital and profound. Josh
