Keeping Your Local Mag Alive

1. T-Shirts. Produce sponsored T-shirts on the excellent Northern Ireland MAG model. If sufficient sponsorship is obtained then the T-shirts can be free (or very cheap) to members and can be sold to others. NB. The design must be attractive, legally and morally acceptable…

2. Media. Establish contacts with local press, TV and radio reporters. Make sure that you send them a constant stream of properly produced press releases on MAG activities.

3. StreetBiker (formerly MAGNEWS). Make sure all your local bike shops carry a few copies in the pocket of your MAGINFORM notice board. (See below.)

4. Discount Deals. Negotiate MAG members discount deals with your local bike shops and make sure they all display 'MAG Discount Given Here' stickers prominently. Try fast food outlets such as McDonalds, BK, and KFC for group discount vouchers also.

5. MAGINFORM. Establish MAG notice boards in your local group area. Having established notice boards, keep them up to date. Out of date rally notices should never be left in place. Seeing an advert still up for a rally which happened six months ago gives the impression that whoever is responsible for keeping the notice board up to date has lost interest. Always make sure the notice board carries a notice saying 'Next MAG meeting on (date) at (time) at (venue). Always make sure that the notice board carries national, regional and local contact numbers, addresses and email addresses.

6. Socialising. Organise group trips to Go Kart tracks (great fun!) mini bike racing, the cinema, ice-skating and any other place likely to be fun. You can usually get a discount for a large enough group.

7. Your Party. Run a rally and earn money which your local group needs and which MAG Central funds need in order for MAG to continue to exist.

8. Other MAG Parties. Organise mass local group runs to MAG events. It makes more sense to support MAG events and get your member discounts than it does to patronise commercial events which take money out of biking.

9. Incentives. Give an annual trophy to the member(s) who

   a) Consistently attends the most local group meetings (keep an attendance record)
   b) Attends the most MAG parties/events
   c) Clocks the highest mileage attending MAG/ 'MAG events
   d) Is most politically active

10. Speakers. Invite guest speakers to your local group meetings. Policemen, MPs, PPCs, Local Councillors, Highways Department people, local Road Safety group people, MAG National Officers - basically anyone who can give an interesting talk and intelligent answers to members' questions.

11. AGC. Attend the MAG AGC en masse, participate in MAG's democratic process and get blasted at the brilliant party which follows!