GMA CONFERENCE
CHAUTAUQUA PROMO VIDEO
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That Be in Alexandria, we submitted the idea
and, for whatever bizarre set of reasons, CMAA
said “yes” and officially sanctioned the concept.
We were hoping that a few CMAA’ers would be
amused by the opportunity to ride and would
sign up for the first---and possibly last---Bicycle
Chautauqua.
The inaugural ride began in a snowstorm outside
of San Antonio, Texas. We group of strangers
looked skeptically at each other, laughed at the
weather gods, straightened out our spandex,
adjusted our helmets, saddled up our “ponies”,
and pedaled off into the hill country. The
romance of it all---men and women doing real
Men and Women Stuff, spitting in the face of
adversity, a band of brothers, one for all and
all for one. Club Chautauqua! Riding and
Reflecting? Hmmm. The first and the last------
Wrong.
The Chautauqua survived the Hill Country, and
thrived. Word spread. Riding and Reflecting
became our motto, emblazoned on our bike
shirts. San Antonio. Miami. New Orleans. Los
Angeles. Hawaii. Los Angeles. And now Orlando.
For those of us who ride, Chautauqua is a big
part of our Conference Experience.
How so???
Chautauqua---Why???
We ride in pursuit of “the big three”---
Relationships, Exercise, and Reflection.
Relationships: We Chautauquans believe
that great clubs are about “relationships and
community”. Our challenge as club managers
is to cultivate relationships between staff and
members, between members and members
and between staff and staff. If we, as managers,
provide opportunities for shared experience, give
people “stuff” to do together, set aside time to
“yap” and reflect on the “stuff” they’ve done, we
believe that relationships will grow and morph
into community. As with clubs, so, too, with
Chautauquans.
Relationships. We Chautauquans know that a
three day ride during conference, a ride that is
physically demanding and filled with “yap time,”
builds relationships and community. We start
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continues