Would you be interested?

[Roger Hooks Jr.]

Hello All,

Some time ago I was in discussion with the editors of Boat Modeler Magazine to focus more in competitive boat racing. In our discussion they had mentioned that the boat racing community may be to small to justify such a focus, however, they proposed another solution. I beleive one of their smaller airplane magazines is a subscription only magazine. I beleive this means that it is totally supported by subscribers to the magazine and not distribution. They asked me if there would be enough interest in such a magazine... meaning is there enough boat racers willing to pay a subscription to such a magazine to support it. At the time I had other interest and did not really pursue their inquiry, however, it had just crossed my mind again recently so I thought I would put the question out to the masses before attempting to spark up another conversation with the magazine in this regard. What do you all think?

I beleive they would handle all of the articles just as they do with Boat Modeler. And... I believe that if the magazine was totally subscriber supported it would allow for smaller r/c boat businesses to advertise with a decent size ad for less money. Of course, these are just my ideas.

So...

The questions are...

Would you subscribe to a racer only magazine and how much would you be willing to pay for a montly subscription?

 

[Kevin Sheren]

YES

 

[P THOMAS]

SURE But you probally will have plenty of readers and few writers. hard to get anyone to do a race report now in the newsletters.

good Luck though, if it can cover the popular races with good reports It may be worth a try.

 

[AFIRacing]

I was looking at a 1994 Boat Modeler,featuring the Spring Nationals,Tips Tips <Paint Tips , Mod Tips ..Get this How to build a gas outboard who'd ever known, just packed with race results, and did I mention how to articles, usefull info period!!. Lets get it set up so All the big races are covered, plus district reports and schedules as in Propwash and Roostertails. Yes and reveiws of race equipment pros and cons. When do we start

Steve H.

 

[ZIonOB75]

i think it's time to have....i just said this coz i have different magazine subscriptions from full scale to name it Hot Boat magz, powerboat magz to rc boat and car magz but after reading it i feel like empty and still looking for more to read until u post this and realizing this is the kind of magz i'm looking, RC Racing Boat Magz,,,for sure a lot of peeps out there are very interested....best wish!

 

[J Solinger]

I'm all in favor of "racing" based content, both nitro and fe. I think most any magazine off the shelf is $4-$5 bucks, so $48-$60 a year for a subscription is fair. The problem that comes to mind is that so much of the technical info that I want about rc boats is all ready available in books, software and on the net. Much of the club info such as site photos and point series info is available on their web pages. And most of the racing boat manufacturers are happy to supply build info. The net and word of mouth through sites like this has done well for advertising and opinions. I'm just not sure what one has left to put into a magazine that would realy draw the racing crowd.

 

[eagletwin90]

YES....Remember the old Flying Models magazine.

 

[Roger Hooks Jr.]

I'm all in favor of "racing" based content, both nitro and fe. I think most any magazine off the shelf is $4-$5 bucks, so $48-$60 a year for a subscription is fair. The problem that comes to mind is that so much of the technical info that I want about rc boats is all ready available in books, software and on the net. Much of the club info such as site photos and point series info is available on their web pages. And most of the racing boat manufacturers are happy to supply build info. The net and word of mouth through sites like this has done well for advertising and opinions. I'm just not sure what one has left to put into a magazine that would realy draw the racing crowd.

Unless we experience a big jump in consumers in our industry we can probably expect a much higher price than 4 to 5 dollars. I am thinking 8 to 10. And you are right.... people do have a lot information available to them with through a variety of channels but there always seems to be something special about print publishing. But... that is why I am asking... to see if there is enough interest to pursue such a thing.

 

[Glenn 787]

I'd buy it.

I'd even be interested covering a few races. Had a blast doing the 06' Gold Rush.

A few more D-9 photos

https://www.intlwaters.com/gallery/displayimage...m=567&pos=2

https://www.intlwaters.com/gallery/displayimage...m=567&pos=1

https://www.intlwaters.com/gallery/displayimage...m=567&pos=0

 

[Ronald van Essen]

Are you looking for a monthly outcome or lets say 6 editions per year?

How about overseas shipping? ( looking at the costs...) There are quite a few people around the world that are interested in this hobby, don't know about a mag.

I have a subscription with an amrican magazine, a copy evry month, with good and fair shipping cost.

Like someone stated already, there is a lot of info on the internet

But something between 5-7.50 is okay with me.

Ronald.

 

[Ron Olson]

What Kevin said!

A non-advertiser subscriber supported magazine could give unbiased reviews on boats without worrying about losing advertising revenue.

Although I enjoy the boat forum sites I still like having something to read in the "Library" or at work. RCBM doesn't cover that much in the way of race coverage and was mostly covering electric boats. I've chatted with Matt a few times on AIM and he told me that electric boats are the most popular so that's why they get so much ink. From what I can tell by the amount of boat forum sites, nitro and gas seem to be more popular.

Now that RCBM is now down to only 4 issues per year, there is a big gap that needs filling by us info junkies from how-to's, reviews, race coverage, etc. that is easy to refer to.

 

[Richard Dahlheimer]

What Kevin said!A non-advertiser subscriber supported magazine could give unbiased reviews on boats without worrying about losing advertising revenue.

Although I enjoy the boat forum sites I still like having something to read in the "Library" or at work. RCBM doesn't cover that much in the way of race coverage and was mostly covering electric boats. I've chatted with Matt a few times on AIM and he told me that electric boats are the most popular so that's why they get so much ink. From what I can tell by the amount of boat forum sites, nitro and gas seem to be more popular.

Now that RCBM is now down to only 4 issues per year, there is a big gap that needs filling by us info junkies from how-to's, reviews, race coverage, etc. that is easy to refer to.

Very good idea. Hope it works out. Richard D

 

[John Finch]

I supported the RCMB magazine from it's first issue to about 4 years ago. At times, back in the late 80s and early 90s I was writting as many as three articles per issue to keep the magazine going. That is hard work. The electrics are the main interest because our segment of model boat racing is a very small part of the overall picture. People buy electric boats like they buy any toy. Just to see what it's all about. They might play with it a week and then let it sit for a year before playing with it again. The general public is enormous, but we are small in numbers. Back in the 80,s we did not have the internet like today. Today you can get up on IW and get instant answers. Back then you had to write a letter to the magazine and wait. You may or may not get an answer. Everyone would wait for the next issue to see if they could learn something new. Today...........get on IW.

Let me tell you.......after writing over 75 article for RCMB and 3 books...there is no money in the effort. Just hard work and the satisfaction that you were able to help promote the sport. The tough part would be getting authors to support such a venture. You will find many people who will say "I will do it" but after a couple of articles, reality sets in fast that it is a lot of hard work. I have seen it happen many times over the years. That's why RCMB is down to what it is. If it had writers, it would have content.

 

[Ron Olson]

John, you might not have made a killing writing the books but to me, those are the Bibles of R/C boating. If any R/C boater hasn't read at least one of John's books, they should as they are well worth the money.

I know if there is an article in RCBM that was written by you or Jerry, I know that it's going to be good info.

 

[John Finch]

Thanks for the kind words. That's what makes it worth the effort. I don't know what it will take to make the hobby grow, but some day it will. I hope to see it in my lifetime, but may not. If we could only find that catalyst that would make it take off.

 

[Brian Blazer]

www.modelgasboats.com is an online magazine with a lot of great information.

 

[Wesleys Custom Graphics]

I hope I don't step on any toes but I would pay more for IW and have John Finch type articles as well as better race results and photos. That would fill the nitch for me. We have an exelent forum here from around the world. Just pay a fiew people for more professional imput.

 

[Ron Jefferson]

Why wouldn't they just spend some time and effort on the mag they're already producing? I've subscribed to RCBM for over 15 years now and if it wern't for the fact that my father-in-law pays for it (christmas gift) it would have been gone long ago. Fewer additions, almost zero nitro content and in my opinion an expensive mag for the current size and content. Sorry, but I vote no.

Maybe we'd be better off spending our money on the IMPBA and better supporting the Roostertail. What about making the Roostertail multi functional and putting it on the shelves of hobbyshops. Newsletter for IMPBA members and info/ads for consumers. Just an idea....

Ron

 

[AFIRacing]

Just to add, if 1 out of every 2 boaters provided 1 hot tip or 1-2 pages of usefull info twice a year , that in it self would just about support a 6 month edition , with some reviews and RACING product ads,classified sections,Manufacturer-Hobby -Dealers Contact Info,Race Results and Coverages. It might not start out at 80 -100 pages but it sure could grow to that.

Steve H

 

[Richard Dahlheimer]

Just to add, if 1 out of every 2 boaters provided 1 hot tip or 1-2 pages of usefull info twice a year , that in it self would just about support a 6 month edition , with some reviews and RACING product ads,classified sections,Manufacturer-Hobby -Dealers Contact Info,Race Results and Coverages. It might not start out at 80 -100 pages but it sure could grow to that.
Steve H

I agree with Ron J about the Rooster tail. I would like it taken one step further......... Make the Rooster tail available in the magazine racks. It could be done. Sure it would cost some bucks, but in my opinion would give this hobby some much needed exposure. Richard D