I’ve recently been asked a number of questions relative to the “three-month” waiting period for prospective members. The by-laws, under criteria for membership, state: “Three month trail period under the sponsorship and guidance of a member in which a prospective member attends runs, meetings and breakfasts. The prospective member must attend six runs.”

This section provides quite a bit of latitude for chapters to institute some of their own nuances, while retaining the intent of the by-law, which provides for a period in which we, the members, get acquainted with the person interested in joining our club, and conversely, that person, through observation, can make an informed decision as to whether or not our organization is what he or she is looking for in a motorcycle club.

The spirit, if you will, of the by-law, though not precisely spelled out, was to have a prospective member state his intention to become a member, and starting from that date, a three-month trial period would begin. It was implied that the member would come up for a vote only after completing the three month trail period and six runs, which is to say that the prospect would attend as many of our club functions in order to meet as many of our club members as possible, to put forth a positive image and demonstrate a strong desire to become a member, to display riding prowess and a willingness to ride safely within our rules, and to impress enough current members to obtain their “yea” votes, there by earning membership. It is the sponsor’s responsibility to stress to the prospect that he (the prospect) must convince the members of our club of his viability, and to maintain a dialog, informing the prospect of our rules and what is expected of him during his trail period. Also, we seem to have lost sight of the intent of the by-law, which we understood to mean that the prospect would attend and sit through three complete meetings, and only after successfully completing all of the criteria, would he come up for a vote of membership at the beginning of his FOURTH meeting.

It is imperative that each chapter institute guidelines relative to first time riders. A first time rider, that is, someone who is interested in riding with us, but has not stated their desire to become a member, and therefore does not have a sponsor, should be brought to the chapter vice-president, or in his absence, the Sgt-at-Arms, where the first time rider will be told where to ride in the group, and what is expected of him during the ride. That first time rider should be told that he has no more then three months to decide whether or not he wants to become a prospective member.

In the past, prospective members have come along that everyone agreed early on in their trail period that they would make excellent members. They fulfilled the criteria for membership, had a strong recommendation from their sponsor and a motion for a vote for their membership was brought to the floor at the beginning of their third meeting. The spirit of the by law was satisfied in these cases because the membership had a sufficient amount of time to decide that the prospect would be a “good fit” in our club and they indeed were voted into the club.

Each chapter should heed the intent and spirit of the three month trail period; it is for the members to decide, through a dialog with a prospect and his or her sponsor, and fellow members, if the prospect’s personality, current or potential riding skills, attitude, and desire, would be suitable to our organization.

Tom Perretta, 1 February 2004