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The Mighty Black Sabbath Motorcycle Club Bylaws...
So You Want To Start A Motorcycle Club Series
Motorcycle Clubs 101 “Bylaws”
The heart of a well run motorcycle club can be found in its adherence to its bylaws. So whether you are starting an MC, taking one over or trying to make yours better your first goal should be to establish or strengthening your club’s bylaws.
What is so great About the Bylaws?
Think of the bylaws as being as important to your club as the United States constitution is to our country. The bylaws are the constitution of your motorcycle club. If you have strong bylaws that are coherent, fair and adaptable, and your MC strictly adheres to them—your MC will have discovered a recipe that will set it up to last for 50 years or more with great success! No member will stand above the bylaws and that fact serves to keep everyone honest—thereby keeping the MC eternally strong!
What Sorts of Things are Contained in the Bylaws?
The bylaws are your club’s bible. They document the history and beginnings of your club. They state the mission and the motto of the club. They specify how club members and officers will conduct themselves, chain of command, order of succession, how dues will be paid, how fines will be levied and how much fines should be, how and when elections will be carried out, how prospects (or probies) will be initiated and how punishment will be meted out. Bylaws also specify the powers and responsibilities of club officers, terms of office, financial protocols the club will follow, dates for annuals and other historical functions, as well as the qualifications for club membership and the criteria by which members may be dismissed. The bylaws are in fact the very document that give your MC the authority to exist and operate.
Should your Bylaws be set in Stone?
For the most part your bylaws should be set in stone; however, every set of rules must have the ability to adapt to changing culture, technology, people and times if they are to remain relevant. So your bylaws should be a rigid but flexible document and should be set up so that a two-thirds club majority can amend them during a normal or special vote. This is a key element to having great bylaws.
From Where Should You Obtain Your Bylaws or is it Better to Just Write Them?
When looking for a source for your bylaws you should never just sit down and write them from scratch. There is no need to reinvent the wheel in this case. Consult a motorcycle club that you hold in high esteem and ask them if you can obtain a copy of their bylaws so that you can base your club’s bylaws upon theirs. Oh, by the way, the club you should ask should be thirty years old or older. The reasons for these suggestions are:
- It would take you perhaps six months to think of and write everything from scratch, that the bylaws should contain in them.
- An older club’s bylaws have been “matured” over time and well tested. They will contain subjects in them that you may never consider because in the past 30 or more years they have seen basically everything and their bylaws will contain the answers you will need to handle the best and worst case scenarios your club is bound to experience.
- Bylaws strong enough to keep a club running for three decades will be strong enough to get any new club started.
We’ve got a Set of Bylaws, Now What?
After you obtain a set of bylaws you should sit with your prospective club members and amend those bylaws until you transform them into bylaws that work for your proposed motorcycle club. Notice that I said proposed motorcycle club. No motorcycle club should form until those bylaws have been written. This way you will have an operations guideline from day one that clearly spells out everyone’s responsibilities, positions and requirements. This will keep you from going down the wrong road before you head down that road.
One More Thing about the Bylaws!
President’s, I get so damned sick of club members coming up with suggestions or asking me things that are clearly stated in the bylaws, don’t you? New Presidents, after you get a good set of bylaws written and adopted insist that your members know them backwards and forwards if you want your jobs to be easier. The best way to do that is to have a reading of a chapter or two of your bylaws at the start of each club meeting. And always, when one of your non-reading club members asks you something silly that has been covered in the bylaws—make them LOOK IT UP instead of telling them the answer! This will make your club member stronger in their bylaws knowledge and that cannot be bad!
Good luck!
Black Dragon
National President
Mighty Black Sabbath M.C.
A Breed Apart
Since 1974 and Still Strong!
BSFFBS
Freeloaders Are Unwanted At MC Annuals!
So You Want To Start A Motorcycle Club Series
Motorcycle Club Etiquette 101 “Freeloading at MC Annuals”
It happens all too often among MC’s and flies against all MC etiquette. I call it the “Annual Freeloader Syndrome” and I call upon club presidents to stem this rising tide as you see it happening among your members…
Some Simple Background Info:
In the old days when clubs practiced discipline (not like now-a-days) there was a simple protocol that MCs followed. “You attend our annual celebration and support our club and we will attend yours and support your club!” Can’t get any simpler than that right? And all kinds of traditions were developed to encourage this participation, such as trophy counts, for instance—where the hosting club would give away trophies to participating clubs for things like: most members attended, longest distance rider, longest distance club, most attended female club, most attended social clubs, etc.—you understand where I am going here. The intent was to attract as many MCs as possible so that a club could make money and the trophies were symbols of honor that clubs could use to show that they supported other MCs by winning these trophies.
Because an annual is one of a MCs biggest booster events it is vitally important that the annual is a success. An annual is held once per year (usually on the anniversary of a club’s founding) to help make money for the MC so it can continue to run for that year and most MCs invest heavily in their annuals. They cater food, hire DJs, rent party halls, rent out space at larger MCs, some bring in entertainment, offer camping facilities and the list goes on and on.
Enter the Annual Freeloader:
So it really sucks when the annual “freeloader” shows up and commits the ultimate sin. The annual freeloader usually pulls their bike up somewhere in front of the event or near the event and just sits outside on their bike and does not buy a ticket! Boooooo! And you see these freeloaders all of the time sitting out in front of the party chopping it up with everyone, slapping folks on the back, embracing and hugging all the “fam” they know… hell, they even become the life of the outside party—only thing is THEY NEVER MAKE IT INSIDE OF THE PARTY and purchase a TICKET!!!!! Unfortunately you typically see these freeloading idiots by the dozens, camped out in front of MC Annuals hamming it up with all who pass by. After they have had their fun and partied with everyone they know on the set, they gather up a pack of individuals who were spending money at the annual event and whisk them off to another MC or biker bar to buy drinks there for the rest of the night!
You can hear the freeloaders say, “Hey, this party is boring, let us all ride over to XXXX place and party with them. You know they are doing something tonight as well!” And off they ride with folks who were buying and patronizing the hosting club’s annual.
I get angry when I see these freeloaders sitting in front of the annual event without any wristbands. I always ask them, “Why the hell would you show your a** up to someone’s annual and park it on your bike without going in to purchase a wristband and support your fellow club?” And MC Presidents you should ask this very question when you see your club members violating MC etiquette.
How to Fix this Troubling Trend:
Presidents! Do not allow your members to freeload at MC annuals. The annual is important to the life blood of an MC. It is the oldest tradition among MCs and if you are starting or running an MC you should respect the traditions and norms that have made MCs successful throughout time.
You should:
- Inform your members of the importance of supporting fellow MCs
- Tell your members if they are broke and cannot afford the price of admission do not go to the annual! The annual was designed to make the hosting club money, not to provide a personal parade for your club member who wants to freeload at the scene and say hello to everyone.
- Ensure that all of your members purchase a ticket and get a wrist band once they get to the event. Some clubs just take up all of the money from their members and present the funds to the president when they get there. That is the cool way to do it with the most impact.
- Instruct your members to tell their freeloading friends from other clubs and independent riders they know to purchase a ticket if they see them loitering outside without a wristband.
If you are the hosting club:
You should:
- Consider holding your event inside of a fenced area and charge folks to enter the fenced area so that even if they loiter outside the event they have still paid to be there.
- Consider monitoring the parking lots and instructing loitering freeloaders to go purchase a ticket or leave your event.
- Consider having your DJs make announcements during your event to tell presidents not to allow their members to loiter outside without paying.
Remember folks, love and respect each other and try to do the right things. Freeloading on other MCs parties is totally unsat and flies against all MC etiquette.
That is my take.
Black Dragon
National President
Black Sabbath M.C.
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You can model for Black Sabbath Motorcycle Magazine! Call the Black Dragon at 678.357.4029 or send your full body swimsuit pictures to blackdragon@blacksabbathmc.com
Black Sabbath Motorcycle Magazine is looking for models! Send your photos to blackdragon@blacksabbathmc.com
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La La's first motorcycle shoot!
La La is very sexy!
Sommer
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