The Campervan & Motorhome Club of Australia (CMCA)

Sarco Harris · Senior Member

The Campervan & Motorhome Club of Australia (CMCA)

bomurra · Veteran Member

Mike Harding wrote:
A most interesting, and unexpected, set of responses - thank you to
all who replied.

I see little difference between caravans and motorhomes. The people
who travel in them, seem to me, to require exactly the same
facilities and I am unsure why a difference is perceived.

I have again looked at the CMCA website and it now troubles me that
not *one* mention of "caravan" is made on the public area of the
website, this seems almost pathological.

I note the recent AGM vote which missed by 3% for admitting caravan
owners as full members - regrettable but probably reversible in
future years.

It appears the CMCA are doing a fine job in regard to dump points
and, perhaps, other camping needs - hard to tell, but I thank them
for it.

I have decided I will not apply to join the club until it welcomes
caravan owners more (at all!) warmly.

----

I caution you:

I have been involved in outdoor sports for many years and, in
general, found us to be our own worst enemies.

The fishermen fail to support the shooters.

The shooters fail to support the motorcycle riders.

The motorcycle riders fail to support the horse riders.

The list goes on....

If RV owners believe they occupy a different plane to caravan owners
then they will soon find their options being severely limited by other
groups who despise all of us.

Your choice people....

Hello Mike,

If you would like to join a club that values your input and participation, as well as lobbying hard in the interests of ALL Rvers, at all levels of Government local, state and federal, try the - Australian Caravan Club.

You may also enjoy the experience.

-- Edited by bomurra on Monday 29th of June 2020 10:36:42 PM

msg · Guru

Motorhome owners don't care about D shackles. Wheel bearings do not seem to be an issue either.

Tony Bev · Guru

iana wrote:
PM sent.

Thanks Ian

Reply sent

Mike Harding · Guru

bomurra wrote:
Hello Mike,
If you would like to join a club that values your input and participation, as well as lobbying hard in the interests of ALL Rvers, at all levels of Government local, state and federal, try the - Australian Caravan Club.

Thank you for that Bomurra, I may well do so :)

https://www.australiancaravanclub.com.au/

bgt · Guru

Lots of miss information/questions here about the CMCA.

The financials figures are available to all. They are published in The Wanderer. Income comes from more than just membership fees. Anyone picking up a copy of The Wanderer can read the figures.

There 'maybe' 70000 members but NOT 70000 'memberships'. Big difference. Most of the members are couples thus 1 membership. Then there are solos so 1 member is 1 membership. All members are entitled to the rules and a copy of the CMCA's constitution. Nothing is hidden.

Bomurra I've been 'disenfranchised' and a member for many years. I've seen the CMCA from within and from afar. Have I done anything for the CMCA? If only you knew. That's an area I'm not prepared to go into but I'm sure 100% of readers here benefit from the work I done.

Keep in mind that the CMCA was started as a club for campervans and motorhomes. Just as many caravan clubs were started for caravans. Like many/most clubs there are rules about joining. The CMCA requires that ownership of a qualifying vehicle to become a full member. ANYONE can join as an associate member. Just because there is no mention of caravans, tents, campertrailers doesn't mean they are not welcome as associate members. This I find an exercise in looking for the bug in the system.

PM me if you want more information. I simply don't want a public forum to become a place for a slanging match over what I see as a 'minor' issue.

FWIW my wife and I are full members of the CMCA. I have no involvement in the running of the CMCA. The fact is I'm not really concerned if we are or aren't members. I'm just trying to set the records straight. I appreciate others having opinions. But I don't like to see missinformation spread as though it's based on fact. No offence is taken or intended to any forum member.

Rob Driver · Guru

bomurra wrote:
Mike Harding wrote:
A most interesting, and unexpected, set of responses - thank you to
all who replied.

Hello Mike,
If you would like to join a club that values your input and participation, as well as lobbying hard in the interests of ALL Rvers, at all levels of Government local, state and federal, try the - Australian Caravan Club.
You may also enjoy the experience.

-- Edited by bomurra on Monday 29th of June 2020 10:36:42 PM

This is a great suggestion.

The very name of the other club suggests exclusiveness and our enquires revealed, at least to us, a very self opinionated view when it came to caravans. I think the old school attitude was quite evident when we did our research.

The Australian Caravan Club is a friendly and welcoming organisation.

Regards

Angie

Bill B · Guru

The Australian Caravan Club accepts caravans and motorhomes as full members, so no second class members.

Jaahn · Guru

bgt wrote:
Lots of miss information/questions here about the CMCA.

The financials figures are available to all. They are published in The Wanderer. Income comes from more than just membership fees. Anyone picking up a copy of The Wanderer can read the figures.

There 'maybe' 70000 members but NOT 70000 'memberships'. Big difference. Most of the members are couples thus 1 membership. Then there are solos so 1 member is 1 membership. All members are entitled to the rules and a copy of the CMCA's constitution. Nothing is hidden.

Bomurra I've been 'disenfranchised' and a member for many years. I've seen the CMCA from within and from afar. Have I done anything for the CMCA? If only you knew. That's an area I'm not prepared to go into but I'm sure 100% of readers here benefit from the work I done.

Keep in mind that the CMCA was started as a club for campervans and motorhomes. Just as many caravan clubs were started for caravans. Like many/most clubs there are rules about joining. The CMCA requires that ownership of a qualifying vehicle to become a full member. ANYONE can join as an associate member. Just because there is no mention of caravans, tents, campertrailers doesn't mean they are not welcome as associate members. This I find an exercise in looking for the bug in the system.

PM me if you want more information. I simply don't want a public forum to become a place for a slanging match over what I see as a 'minor' issue.

FWIW my wife and I are full members of the CMCA. I have no involvement in the running of the CMCA. The fact is I'm not really concerned if we are or aren't members. I'm just trying to set the records straight. I appreciate others having opinions. But I don't like to see missinformation spread as though it's based on fact. No offence is taken or intended to any forum member.
____________________________________________________________
Hi
I certainly agree with bgt on these points. While as a member I have only casually looked at the information, meeting agendas, voting information, financial statements etc etc made available to me, they are certainly out there for members to see and would be made available for prospective members too. They are published in both written and electronic form as asked for.
But when I have joined any club/organisation in the past, the place i started from was not looking over the books or the rules, but looking at the people who i knew were in the organisation and how their activities aligned with mine. I would suggest anyone here also takes that approach with joining any club to see if it is worth them joining it.
Jaahn

DMaxer · Guru

I guess the true test as to whether the CMCA is all inclusive and welcomes everybody will be answered when someone raises the merits of a weight distribution hitch during happy hour.

Phillipn · Guru

I know it would never happen, why don`t the CMCA and the ACC join forces and have a united lobby group.

United you stand.

Dived you fall.

I believe 5th wheelers [half caravan and half motor home] are accepted in the CMCA. That is an each way bet, Where is the dividing line?

bgt · Guru

The CMCA has long lobbied in cooportation with other RV organizations. In fact the CMCA has financed joint lobbying. As for 5th wheels. That's an anomaly from way back that has caused many a debate!!!

Rob Driver · Guru

Phillipn wrote:
I know it would never happen, why don`t the CMCA and the ACC join forces and have a united lobby group.
United you stand.
Dived you fall.
I believe 5th wheelers [half caravan and half motor home] are accepted in the CMCA. That is an each way bet, Where is the dividing line?

The very reason the Australian Caravan Club came to being was because of the attitude of the CMCA toward all but the Motor Home convoy.

5th Wheel units are still RVs, I can not see why there needs to be any discrimination to any participating group.

The CMCA appears to place one group above another and that is why ACC enjoys the success it deserves.

Even if we owned a motor home we would not be members of the CMCA.

Regards

Angie

bgt · Guru

bentaxlebabe you are talking about something without knowing the facts. I'll repeat it just one more time. The CMCA has worked closely with various other clubs to put up a united voice when lobbying. Again I'll repeat that the CMCA even financed a joint group. Meetings were held at the CMCA's headquarters in Newcastle.

Simple thing is that if you don't want to join an organization don't join. But before you make a statement be sure of your facts.

Rob Driver · Guru

bgt wrote:
bentaxlebabe you are talking about something without knowing the facts. I'll repeat it just one more time. The CMCA has worked closely with various other clubs to put up a united voice when lobbying. Again I'll repeat that the CMCA even financed a joint group. Meetings were held at the CMCA's headquarters in Newcastle.

Simple thing is that if you don't want to join an organization don't join. But before you make a statement be sure of your facts.

Maybe I do not know every intricate detail about the CMCA, but because the OP actually asked I felt that I was permitted to state my view. This is only my view as is what you have said, yours.

To the OP.

Mike, a quick google of opinions on other Aus caravan forums will give you very similar comments to what is on here.

The motor home people generally support the closed boys club attitude and many caravanners opt for the friendly social atmosphere of the other one.

Regards

Angie

bgt · Guru

bentaxlebabe again you are making a comment that has no factual basis. Just opinion. "The motor home people generally support the closed boys club attitude and many caravanners opt for the friendly social atmosphere of the other one.". If you had written 'that in my opinion' then it's your opinion. That's ok. We can have an opinion. But I disagree and suggest that anyone with a campfire and cold beer is welcome regardless of what they tour in.

It is wrong of anyone to take a small minority and suggest that they represent the majority.

Rob Driver · Guru

bgt wrote:
bentaxlebabe again you are making a comment that has no factual basis. Just opinion. "The motor home people generally support the closed boys club attitude and many caravanners opt for the friendly social atmosphere of the other one.". If you had written 'that in my opinion' then it's your opinion. That's ok. We can have an opinion. But I disagree and suggest that anyone with a campfire and cold beer is welcome regardless of what they tour in.

It is wrong of anyone to take a small minority and suggest that they represent the majority.

Actually I did write that this was my view......and I will quote.

Maybe I do not know every intricate detail about the CMCA, but because the OP actually asked I felt that I was permitted to state MY View. THIS IS ONLY MY VIEW AS IS WHAT YOU HAVE SAID, YOURS.

Apology for the capitals but this forum is not friendly when using an old iPad.

bgt

So in summary it appears that my observation of the closed boys club attitude just may exist as indicated by you not discounting the above statement, and secondly, that we both did have a view or an opinion, it was just that my view or opinion didnt quite fit your story but this was in your opinion.

I think most will get my drift or at the least, my opinion.

Regards

Angie

-- Edited by bentaxlebabe on Wednesday 1st of July 2020 12:05:05 PM

Mike Harding · Guru

bgt wrote:
If you had written 'that in my opinion' then it's your opinion.

Hi bgt

To be fair I think we can take it as read that anything said on internet forums which does not site a source is an opinion.

This has been a constructive thread and in that light and perhaps to help the CMCA understand how they are perceived (rightly or wrongly) I will repeat that the noticeable lack of even the *word* "caravan" on their website is not helpful and is certainly not indicative of a welcoming approach to us caravanners.

CMCA states 70000 members (I read your caution) and I am most interested in how many are full (motorhome) members and how many are associate (caravan) members. Are these figures published as they are, clearly, known by CMCA and it would be interesting to understand the diversity?

msg · Guru

Could I ask why caravaners feel so strongly about joining a Motorhome club?

Radar · Guru

Mike Harding wrote:
bgt wrote:
If you had written 'that in my opinion' then it's your opinion.
Hi bgt
To be fair I think we can take it as read that anything said on internet forums which does not site a source is an opinion.
This has been a constructive thread and in that light and perhaps to help the CMCA understand how they are perceived (rightly or wrongly) I will repeat that the noticeable lack of even the *word* "caravan" on their website is not helpful and is certainly not indicative of a welcoming approach to us caravanners.
CMCA states 70000 members (I read your caution) and I am most interested in how many are full (motorhome) members and how many are associate (caravan) members. Are these figures published as they are, clearly, known by CMCA and it would be interesting to understand the diversity?

Hi Mike, those figures were reported last year about June/July 2019 but I am having trouble researching the story.

September 2019 pages 17/18 had some interesting words on the statics of the CMCA.

It also interesting I find that people refer to the club in general as a motorhome club, not the campervan club.

Mike Harding · Guru

msg wrote:
Could I ask why caravaners feel so strongly about joining a Motorhome club?

Indeed you may :)

As you may note from a previous response; I don't feel strongly about joining CMCA to the extent I have decided not to join it.

Now, I'm simply curious about the club, that's OK isn't it?

Edit: typo

-- Edited by Mike Harding on Thursday 2nd of July 2020 06:55:32 AM

bgt · Guru

Folks it's only a club. (Well not technically). Joining is a personal choice. My only issue is with folks who make broad statements that have no real foundation in facts. Two folks around campfires exchanging opinions is not a sound foundation for making real judgments!

The numbers are all there for everyone to read. My understanding is that this years figures have been 'delayed' due to a change in the reporting period. I forget the argument put up to justify the change. The AGM date may also be affected by the current virus situation. I get The Wanderer but skip the 'boring' stuff'

My apologies for excluding campervans. It's just lazy typing. Just for the record we now have a campervan so I'm not discriminating.

bentaxlebabe yes I did say it's all just our own opinion. We all need to keep that in mind.

I still can't understand the feeling of 'discrimination' against caravans. IMHO a caravan owner isn't a second class member. They have all the benefits without the responsibility of having the option to vote.

I have attended many chapter events where a number of caravan owners were quite happy to sit around the campfire and share the BS and beers. And yes I know that some chapters are less friendly to caravan owners. That is just typical of society in general. There will always be folks who discriminate. You don't want to be with them anyway.

FWIW I was heavily involved in the CMCA in the early 2000's. I know how the CMCA worked then. I left when I felt the direction of the club was changing. I know now that I disagree with the CMCAs current direction and policies. But I will defend the club against misinformation and rumours.

Rob Driver · Guru

Mike Harding wrote:
Possum3 has often mentioned the CMCA in positive terms and given I've frequently seen their logo on dump points to which they have contributed I thought I'd take a look at their website with a view to joining ($44 per year + $16.50 joining fee).
https://www.cmca.net.au/
One thing which concerned me a little was I could find no mention of caravans on the public area of the website; now this may be of little consequence but I am left wondering if caravan owners are not really sought as members?
As I know next to nothing about the club I'm hoping others can comment on this and other aspects.
Edit: changed URL to correct one.

-- Edited by Mike Harding on Wednesday 24th of June 2020 07:30:12 PM

Hi Mike,

I am surprised that no one has jumped in to indicate that our valued member Possum3 mentions, and recommends contacting a different body to the CMCA with regard to RV information.

I think you may have the two confused as the body that Possum3 suggests is the

https://www.caravancouncil.com.au/

and not the CMCA.

The Caravan Council is quite a valuable resource and many would not want it confused with the other crowd.

Probably an easy mistake as they sound similar.

Regards

Angie

iana · Guru

This thread has run its course, its only slightly more exciting than reading bus number plates, but not as exciting as watching paint dry.

Rob Driver · Guru

I thought it easy to just scroll on by on topics that arent of interest.

Regards

Angie

blissonwheels · Senior Member

Gooday,

I confess we belong to CMCA, joined mainly for Ken Tame Insurance several years ago, before it became a part of Allianz instead of it being a Broker. Their premiums sure were more competitive then, but in recent years sure have caught up.

The thing with Both the Aust Caravan Club and the CMCA, their Membership figures are somewhat Fudged to my way of thinking as they consider both My Wife and Myself as Members when we pay one only Membership fee.

I was a very early member of the ACC who as already quoted, was setup because CMCA would not accept Caravans as a Full Member, only an Associate.

At about the third annual gathering of the ACC the there was a delegation from the CMCA there and it was proposed that the ACC adopt the same guidelines CMCA ,Leave No Trace' scheme but the executive of the ACC decided to not accept that system and go it alone, Pity. Unable to recall their scheme but it was almost the same.

When the ACC was formed it would not accept Motor Homes, no spite there.

I campaigned heavily to change that policy to accept all forms of Mobile Camping even to the Bloke on a Bicycle who carried a tent and call it, Mobile Accommodation Club of Australia, an easy acronym, which is so common today, "MACA". This suggestion got absolutely no support by the then Executive.

Just before we decided not to renew our membership it was decided to accept Motor Homes etc as full members after one of the foundation members changed from a caravan to a Motor Home.

The ACC also count Wives or Partners as members, thus giving in my opinion a fudged statistic of Total Membership?.

Mike Harding · Guru

Thanks for that blissonwheels.

I had a sense that what you described was the prevailing attitude - all I can say to the clubs is "You silly buggers!"

The only thing such childishness will do is to allow those who wish to lock up forests and force all camping into "government approved campsites" to gain more traction. My preferred option is to amalgamate both clubs and make them open to anyone who wishes to join - with *all* members having *exactly* the same rights.

bentaxlebabe:

Shhhhhuuuusssshhh... I think I got away with it :)

Gundog · Guru

blissonwheels wrote:
At about the third annual gathering of the ACC the there was a delegation from the CMCA there and it was proposed that the ACC adopt the same guidelines CMCA ,Leave No Trace' scheme but the executive of the ACC decided to not accept that system and go it alone.

There in lies the problem the CMCA lobbies governments etc suggesting they represent the greater RV comunnity where in reality dont they look down their noses at caravaner.
Both the CMCA and ACC true membership numbers would be in the minority, I'd hazard a guess it would be less than 20% of the RV owners nationally.
I dont see any attraction, in joining either of the clubs, nor the various caravan park associations, just to get a few dollars discount, we prefer not to stay at Big 4's and the like prefering stay at a independantly or community owned facilities. And I dont need a camp kitchen our caravan has what we need.

bgt · Guru

The 'fudged' figures are simply there to make the clubs feel bigger. But they do have one important advantage. When negotiating with the various authorities a large figure always gets their attention. One of, not the only reason, that the CMCA included all rv's in their negotiations was that 700000 rvs sounds way better than 30000 motorhomes. And it worked. Who could ignore the dollar signs in the 700000 figure? Honest? No idea but it worked. That 700000 figure opened up a lot of options to camp for everyone. The end result was that no camper was herded into limited caravan parks. Re the LNT. the CMCA registered the LNT very early on. That limited any other organization from starting up a similar scheme. And like the 'fudged' figures it greatly helped the opening up of camping options.

Chris61 · Senior Member

Hi all, I have been a member of the CMCA for about 9 years, originally just to support the RV industry and to be a little informed. We visited a Chapter meeting in Queensland one year and they encouraged us to start our own chapter in Tasmania. Best thing we ever did. We have a meeting approxevery 3 weeks throughout the warmer months. It encourages you to use your rig, not leaving it parked in the driveway and only using it a couple of times a year.

You get out of it, what you put into it, we don't use Ken Tame Insurance (too expensive now), we use the CMCA RV parks, which at $3 per person per night are great value and most are in popular sort after areas.

You think caravans get treated as 2nd class citizens, tell those that think they are better than us that you own a 5th wheeler, it goes to a whole new level. 99% of members are fantastic though, I just tell the elite that the reason that they own a motorhome is that they can't reverse a caravan.

If you own any sort of RV and don't utilise it enough, find a chapter meeting near you and go along and check it out, you don't even have to be a member for a one off meet, if you don't like one chapter, try another. Just don't go and then sit in your van, get out and mingle, join in an activity.

We stay at the Bundaberg RV stopover for anywhere from 3-5 days when we head to Qld each year, almost offsets the cost of membership, sadly staying home this year thanks to Covid 19.

We often search out a chapter meeting while travelling on the mainland, just to meet people and have a leisurely weekend, just doing something different. Over time you meet people who offer a place to stay, visit or even travel with. Try it you might like it