On 11/4 The first session of Karaoke was started on Flywheeler Park Grounds.
It was initiated by Jim Busse, Rick and Donia King, and Lewis and Constance Johnson. Jim Busse had brought down his Karaoke computer and some speakers from his home just in case the opportunity came up to have some fun singing.  We set up in Campground #1 behind our campers lots 40 and 41, and ran from 8PM to 10PM.

Our first night drew about 10 people and was fun. The next night we added more lights and drew about 30 people. We saw that this was a great potential for entertainment and decided that we would run a test period through the November 11-14th show before making any further plans for a better location or improvements. We were very much taken by suprise with the results.

11/5 Started first session 10 people
11/6 30 people
11/7 - 8 No sessions
11/9 Tue. 8 - 10 PM 50 + people.

With the show getting ready to start we got several complaints. One direct from our own campground, and feedback that there were several in campground #2. However, we got over 100 positive comments from others.

11/10-11 The board (for the most part) spoke very positively about the program and we all acknowledged that some changes would need to be made to keep complaints to a minimum and improve safety. There were more complaints and more adjustments were made to aim speakers, etc. to make every effort to respect campers. Our thoughts were as follows.

1) Early birds go to bed approx. 9 PM. We start 8 PM to 10 PM. They lose 1 hr. sleep MAX. Those same people are up before 7 AM running tractors, etc. we lose AT LEAST 1 hr. sleep before 8 AM. Seemed like a fair trade since "quiet time" was 11 PM till 7 AM in the bylaws.

11/12 Fri. Over 200 people came. The Pres announced at 9:30 PM with several statements:

1) He and (he felt) the board was greatly in favor of this program as it served the club guests very well and was apparently attractive to the younger crowd more so than other programs offered.
2) There was strong concern about our location due to noise and safety but we could continue throughout this show but must have a better location for the Jan. 2005 show.

11/13 Sat. We were asked to move to a new location at 9:00 AM. We liked the new spot and agreed to make an effort to move before the evening show was to start.

Before we could hope to do anything in the new location there was MUCH to be done. The needs were as follows:

1) Area had firewood trailers and cords of wood and debris piled in our favored spot.
2) The grass had not been mowed to a level where we thought it safe for people to walk.
3) The trees had to be trimmed of the storm damaged limbs due to the last three hurricanes. Hangers were numerous, but only a few had to go before tonight.
4) There was no water or electricity within several hundred feet of our location.
5) There were no lights along the long roadway back to this section of the park.
6) Fire ant beds were numerous and needed to be treated.
7) We needed a fire ring for our fire and clearance from our club Safety Person to have one
8) A system layout was needed to control traffic throughout the area.
9) We needed signs to point people to the new location. ESPECIALLY since all were told we would not have to move until the Jan. Show.
10) We needed the announcer to tell our new location.

By 10:00 AM the group started work. While much of the work was done by the original group it is important to note that we could not have done so much in such a short time without the wonderful assistance from others.

1) Jim Busse who brought the computer, Karaoke program, and speakers.
2) Randy Brown who did SO MUCH it is hard to keep track.
3) Ron Gauss who cut the fire ring and helped get the bush hog mowing done.
4) .... and his wife who personally used the lawn mower to fine trim the grass and even hand raked all the cut grass into a large pile.
5) Dick Edwards who helped obtain the material for our fire ring.
6) Randy then got ...... to cut the ring to shape for our first night.
7) John Davis who announced the new location multiple times throughout the day.
8) Gene Harkins who donated the original wire lighted angel which we hung overhead.
9) The Kings for their Christmas lights which light the way along the road and along the area we used, AND the long extension cords and wiring needed for power.
10) The Johnsons who created all the signs and painted them pointing the way to the new site.
11) Doug Brown who operated the front-end loader to clear debris from the site and also operated the "Pettibone" to hang lights and clear hanging limbs from the trees.
12) Harry Swank, Dick Ambler, Doug Brown, all from our Board who acted swiftly to get approval for our first night at the new site.
13) Jim Briggs Safety Person who immediately inspected and approved the area for our fire ring.

By 6:00 PM everything was ready for us to set up. Our new hours were extended and were from 7 PM till 11 PM.

What a night! At one count we had over 87 golf carts and 150 people. It was just not possible to keep track of numbers as they kept rolling in.

Many rode, but a lot of people walked the long road over 1/2 mile back to the new site. It is estimated over 300 people attended during the night. Over 20 different singers of all ages stepped up to the mikes and many sang along in their golf carts. Ray Hanna even made a grand entrance on his huge John Deere 400. By 10:30 we were all tired and decided to switch to music only as our many guests went their separate ways back to their campers.

We have many plans for the future, but they all depend on keeping this very rustic and family-oriented. We would love it if you would join us at our next show or as a volunteer!

Wanna see the pictures? Then, click here!