Hello! If one is reading this, thank you, as we recognize the community is now spread across many mediums. This forum is the single spot that is run by the community for the community, zero ads, zero algorithms, and we try to keep the spam bots at bay.
You are probably wondering- when is the next Type R Expo? Excellent question! I and other community leads are consistently asked and it genuinely reminds us as volunteers why we've kept this community going. Keep reading to learn more about the leads' ideas.
First, context. The Type R Club of America has always been a non-profit. Non-profits by definition cannot churn a profit, instead, remaining funds are invested back into the organization. Type R Expo events were planned and staffed by volunteers. Drivers who signed up for the track paid for the track deposit, upfront t-shirt printing costs, and banquet fees. Guest tickets covered the remaining costs for t-shirts and banquet. The remaining funds post event were never large amounts, but they did cover the costs to server and hosting fees for these forums and the yearly CPA fees for the club.
One individual, Jay, has maintained this club and Type R community’s financial needs out of their pocket since our last Type R Expo. First, myself and others feel it’s time to repay Jay. Second, doing so presents an opportunity for the Type R Club of America to properly host an even in 2025 for the 25th Anniversary of Type R Expo.
You might feel multiple emotions of past Expo events, excitement towards getting back on track, or merely asking, “how can I help pay back Jay?” We are launching a fundraiser to do just that, starting with an original t-shirt print for the club:
Next, we are launching a Type R community’s feedback survey towards more merchandise. We want to allow community members new and old a voice to share their asks from the community leads:
https://forms.gle/gqRTtBjH7kdPMej39
Wait, tell me more about plans for another Type R Expo? We want to pay back Jay first. After, all funds will go towards preparing the club to host another Type R Expo. Many leads have already discussed ideas towards another Type R Expo. The largest challenge today is funding. Tracks require between 50% or 100% funding to secure a date. We also recognize that times have changed for many, myself included.
This leads us to improving Type R Expo to allow the entire Type R community, fans like you and me, to participate. This could be a traditional track event, but also allow non-tracking community members to actively participate, bringing together the best community over a shared banquet as always. We also want to showcase the strong legacy that many Type R Club sponsors have driven for our community. It’s incredible how so many original DC2, FK8, and now, FL5, owners have also been giving back to the Type R community for 25yrs via sponsorships. This same statement can be said for many members in the community. Many have expanded from the club’s original focus on the heritage Integra Type R to other Type R models from Honda across US, CDM, and JDM vehicles. These include Civic Type R in EK9, FK8, or FL5, NSX Type R NA2, Accord Type R, or DC5 Integra Type R- and so have we.
This club has a strong legacy of helping contribute towards building other communities. From the early days of NSX Club of America (NSXCA)’s NSX Expo, which shares a 25th anniversary with us next year, to West Michigan Honda Meet, and GridLife. Many in our community paid to drive at these events or volunteered to instruct, both contributing towards these events’ success.. Our club has also help plan and deliver joint Type R Expo & NSXPO track events at both Road America in 2017 and Thunderhill Raceway in 2018. This legacy drives relationships that want to to work with us, which we should be proud of. Having the choice to collaborate further strengthens this club's ability to deliver more top notch Type R Expo’s, should we choose.
It starts with getting the club in financial standing to kickstart planning more top notch events, thank you.
What are next steps? Chime in here to say yes towards this design and complete the community survey. We will get pricing based off the scale of community feedback. The more who say yes, the cheaper the print, and the more we raise for the club to continue serving the community.
Share your voice in the Type R Club of America community merchandise survey here:
https://forms.gle/gqRTtBjH7kdPMej39
