Somebody has our back...

[mgbf4u]

Re: Somebody has our back...

And the Reno air races being totally different than the Red Bull races who perform internationally. Reno to me definitely has an Air Show. I come for the vintage aircraft. Racing or not. I have ridden in the oldest flyable DC3, Flagship Detroit which went into service 1937. I wouldn't hesitate to go again when it comes back to DFW and I have enough money.

[RBriscoe]

Re: Somebody has our back...

I'll let you handle the form letter.

It is usually better to avoid form letters because they are quickly recognized as such and discounted because of it. At most, I would suggest a couple of points to be included, but in the individual's own words.

It used to be that hand written letters got more attention than typed ones, but I doubt that is the case any more...especially if the handwriting is as poor as mine.

If you are going to start a letter writing campaign, you might as well send one to your own representative because, as a constituent, your letter will be more important to him/her.

If you see a particularly bad 'letter to the editor' in your local newspaper a well reasoned response might be in order, but I have to wonder about the impact of letters to the editor when one considers how few people read daily papers any more.

The real area of concern will be the regulatory agencies.

This is not to say that changes are needed, but everyone will need to examine the results of the NTSB investigation and their own inquiries to see if there are better practices which can be utilized.

[Fawkes]

Re: Somebody has our back...

RBrisco,

With you on the quality, individual communications piece. An intelligently written piece from one person to another is easily the most effective type of letter and I encourage everyone who can to do so when appropriate. My reason for suggesting a form letter for folks is to enable those who otherwise would not send something to do so easily. Whether it is a time issue some other barrier, some folks will not be in a position to send something without most of the leg work done.

Effective communications have both parts....quality and quantity. The old adage "tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them, tell them what you told them" is great but it also needs the content to be quality and to be fully effective, in multiple people's own voice. I hope we can encourage both here.

Love all your thoughts on hitting our own members of Congress and our own media....even those of us not close to or in Reno. We come from all over every year....all over needs to know who we are and how we feel.

Best,

James

[sandramore]

Re: Somebody has our back...

Thanks, guys. I second what James said.

I agree, handwritten used to be better. Now sending/faxing a typed letter gets more attention than email. I also agree, we need to write and call our own representatives. The next best thing is to focus on Congress's aviation subcommittee members, of which Sam Graves is one. I'll round up contact info for those folks in case anyone wants it.

[Fawkes]

Re: Somebody has our back...

Ok....so here is a first attempt at a template to use when "talking" to a political person who has shared his or her support in some public way. Recognizing how political folks work, it is somewhat heavy on the ego stroking but you have to know your audience! By the way, for any elected official reading this, that is intended solely as a compliment!

Feel free to suggest changes or edits or feel free to take the core and change for yourself and call it your own. My only objective is to help...no ownership concerns. If there is a positive response and I get some feedback on style, I'll be happy to write others for different situations (unhelpful pol, neutral pol, media of the same three types, etc.)

Best,

James

================================================== ==========================

<Insert Recipient Here>

I want to thank you for your support of the National Championship Air Races (NCAR) during this difficult time. As you can imagine, I, along with my fellow races fans are grieving the loss of friends and family. We are also concerned that knee-jerk hysteria could endanger the event which is literally one of a kind. Your words have helped educate and calm a general public which largely has limited to no knowledge of what the NCAR is really like.

As time passes and we transition away from a place of looking back at the lives of loved ones that have been lost to one of looking forward to celebrating aviation and our extended family of flyers once again, I hope we can not only count of your continued support but your continued vocal support. No group of people are more dedicated to making the Reno Air Races successful than our own community. We will pursue the most exciting and safe event possible. We will continue to pursue excellence in all that we do. And we will need help.

Thank you again for your support. It is my sincere hope that we can continue to rely on you and your influence to complement our efforts to continue the NCAR. If by chance you have never attended, I encourage you to do so in the future. It is truly something to behold. And I promise you, with the support you have shown, you will be surrounded by several hundred thousand of your closest friends.

Best,

<Your Name Here>