Old Salty Members?

[waynesworld]

I seem to have such a short memory of all the old people that were here when I started. So why not have this thread for you guys to chime in on how long you have been associated with this club not necessary paid members but coming to meetings and watching the board. Also if you want to chime in on how you see things that have changed for the good or bad? Even our wayward photographer can chime on this one as I know he was here then?

Also if you had any of the positions include that so maybe if the new people have questions they can ask you questions. One thing I have learned it is easier to learn from others then to always try to make the wheel.

This is a chain letter so if you read it and don't post you will sleep with the fishes

[rcmike]

Well, I have been here from the start when a few people from Middle TN were thinking about forming a club. I would have to say I was starting to get burnt out about the time the club got going well. I probably would have quit if it wasn't for the club. We sort of got off to a rocky start due to some dissagreements on how the club should be run. It seems like it is much more stable now than at the beginning. I really like the meetings at members homes so you can see first hand how different systems are set up.

[fishdoc11]

From the start until we moved to Knoxvegas for the Vet School adventure this past summer

I think the club has really grown a lot and taken off in ways I didn't think it would. I really enjoyed my time in MTRC and will join again if and when we ever move back that way. IMO there is a really good core group of members that made the club what it is and it seems some newer blood is stepping in to bring things along.

Chris

[c_stowers]

I went to my first meeting during the late summer/early fall of 2004. At that point, it seemed like there were only about 20 members and most meetings were 10-15 people. Those 20 members really helped me through the learning curb of the hobby. I am confident in saying that I wouldn't be near as far along in the hobby if it weren't for the club.

[rcmike]

Yeah, at first there were several members but probably 7 or 8 that were at almost every meeting.

[danieljames]

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=156828

[Countzer0]

Mimi's brownies... cheese dip at Daltons.... superglue and Elkhorn...

Ahh the good ol' days ...

[gflat65]

Any Mimi's Rum Cake... Not exactly a legal drive home that night. Fishdoc did the first fragging demonstration that night, didn't he? Ahhh nostalgia...

Been there since the second meeting (starting at Dalton's and headed to EBay). Sean told me about a club that was forming online and meeting locally. I was bored with the tank at the time (not sure I'd have gotten rid of it, but wasn't spending much time with it). The club turned that all around. Having people to buy and trade frags allowed me to build what I had quickly, which furthered my interest.

As far as BOD members, I think I can fill all of those in.

Pres-Always been coralreefing
Vice Pres-Was JoeWall (you might know him as Sir Knight, now), then was reewik
Treasurer-Always been me
Secretary-there was wooglin and Mimi
Webmaster-Countzer0, then TNsledge, then coral_reefer_25 (don't think I left anyone out there).

[pitbullpooch]

Ive been here from the start. the funny thing is I found this board by accident. the same month this board started i did a search for nashville when i was bored one nite just to see what searches come up and thats how i noticed they even had reef club forums. it helped out alot since most of the time i had to order all of my corals online back then. It was nice to actually get them locally from other hobbiest and just to talk to others that were local. does anyone know the date when mtrc officially started?

[DMBillies]

I'm not an old member (joined up shortly after last years swap) but I know I've learned way more from club members than I ever would have wandering about on my own. In fact, I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning that the club helped me turn around quickly.

I have no doubt I would have failed very miserably and wouldn't have stuck with the hobby without the help I've gotten from everyone... so thanks to the "ole salties" that got this ride started.

[aquaman67]

I started at the second meeting (I think) at wooglin's house. I tried to make as many meetings as I could, usually 5 or 6 a year. I'll start back up again when I get back to that side of the planet....

[Angela Short]

I joined in January at the first ever frag swap in chatty in January 05. I met Wayne there and sold him some starter things that he probably cursed me for after we knew better . I know I still hate my brown button polyps I can't seem to ever totally erradicate! Wayne was one of my first reefing buddies and I still like to see him on here involved in the club and helping everyone out.
I started blindley in '04 with just help from the LFS. Don't get me wrong, I love we have so many awsome ones but you just are another customer to them and the help offered is only surface help in most cases. I was so discuoraged with my 80 I took it down to a 10 and only kept it because the buy back on the fish I hadn't killed was so cheap I just kept them and a CC star in my girls room. Then met the club and started really growing as a reefer who truley understood the hobby and how to be succesful. I know I drove Fishdoc11 crazy with so many long PM's picking his brain and asking his opinion! The members have been a invaluable resource for me and I am thankful we have such a great group of people so willing to help a newbi.
I get very aggravated at one LFS that informed me that the "club" hurt buisness and they don't know why AC offers the discount. This fishstore was the one which would have let me just go under like I almost did and then they wouldn't have had a coustomer for the past 3 years. I am not a big spender but do drop a few hundred dollars a year at the local LFS's. The stores just don't have time to offer indepth explanations of the ins and outs of the hobby like the club can offer.

For your looking pleasure a little picture show of where I came from with the help of the club..... (don't lauph at the early days ).....

This is when I had moved into a 20 tall. Notic the fake coral, FW plants and VERY bleached anemonie...


My kitty ( RIP ) looking at my 29 first reel mini reef. Love my big in tank skimmer?


When I first moved into the 80 again...


And a bad pic of the 270 I have "matured" into With the help of all you great MTRCers advice and well...a ton of cash.... Honestly 99% of everything from sand, rocks, fish and coral came from the forums at a fraction of retail over the years. I know people joke I am a hog on sale items but I have been upgrading since I started the reef with a 10 gallon 3 years ago. I am just glad I can't upgrade anymore! My work is done....Whew, what a ride!


I also am glad new people are always willing to step up and take office and keep the club top notch! BTW I have always been long winded!!

[pitbullpooch]

Originally posted by Angela Short
My work is done

thats what they all say lol

[waynesworld]

I do remember that frag swap Angela that is when I joined the club. That was a late night of putting things in my tank after the trip.

[turboex901]

well i wont say im an old salt by any means but ive got about 3 years under my belt. ill make a little tank monologue so everyone can laugh at me. it all started when me and lauren got our first apartment together. while walking through wal mart we thought the 10 gallon "ready to run" setup would be a fun piece of furniture for us. well 77 dollars later and thinking that was A TON of money for a fishtank we carried it home. the next day returning to wal mart upon the employees guidance we purchased one black goldfish and 5 KOI to go in the 10 gallon. a week later everything was dead and we werent too pleased. we then found a little petstore around the corner that explained a few things to us and promptly sold us a 55 gallon to house a few more koi (why would they tell us that????) we thought this 55 gallon was something only the "well off" had in their homes.....it was a monster well to make the story short, the koi died in there too. while lauren wasnt too pleased with our new hobby i told her we should do salt. she thought i was crazy. after some convincing and about 100 dollars later at petco (our new source of info) we had crushed coral, salt, and one SWEET protein skimmer. a berlin airdriven in tank unit about the size of a coke can. we were assured it would handle whatever we threw at it. we threw 2 puffers and a damsel at it! the wild thing is these guys didnt die.....finally success!!!!!!!

after that endeavor i found reefcentral as well as kermits reef in memphis. i was hooked needless to say. i realized all the wrong info i had recieved and finally found a LFS i could trust. i immediatly began going everyday for info although still frequenting the other stores. once again at another lfs (not kermits) i was shown a skimmer that would blow anything else on the market away. it cost 175 bucks.......for a seaclone 100. live rock? with prices like that ill do without, so in comes 120 lbs. of limestone base rock. also i went "all out" and purchased not one, but two, aquatraders/jebo quad 96w pc strips. par ratings on bulbs? whats that? all i know is i had 8 watts to the gallon and was ready to rock we also threw down 400 bucks for a hang on overflow and a tiny sump with bioballs. heres the awesome look of that tank!

continued...........

[turboex901]

well after being fed up with just a bland environment i enlisted the help of dave and co. at kermits. i picked up 2x250 elec. ballasts, xm 20k's, 120 lbs of marshall premium, a real substrate, and practically was livng in his store. he graciously provided me with a 75 gallon eurobraced and predrilled. a club member in wtmrac made me a 30 gallon sump/refugium. this setup i was finally proud of. it housed a few sps that flourished and a mated pair of spotted mandarins (evilmel is there new parents) heres the pics



now here in nashville i had a 125 that never really got off the ground as far as a full blown reef. it was sold and now i have this new 75. i took my time and bought what i think is world class equipment, ryan built a serious stand and canopy that i cant stop drooling over, and everything is going great. for the past 6 months ive been doing my best to accomidate rarer wrasses only into the setup. the rest of the reef has switched focus fromm full sps to full zoa and rics for ease of care. im beggining to focus on fish more than corals but dont want a full fowlr tank. ill post pics of this tank when sherlock the mysteri wrasse arrives tommorow and anyways thats my history with salt!!!! <~~~steve

[kevlouie]

Reckon I've been around for a while...

I'm building a house, and going to do an in wall 135. GOing to get it from glasscages. My 120 is in pretty bad shape. But the new setup should be pretty sweet. Will keep yall posted.

[foggy54]

My first meeting was at Dalton's Bar and Grill, anyone know which meeting that was. 1,2, or 3 ?

I think I Should have been voted member with most club spirt as I don't think I missed any meetings until the NTRC club was formed Driving from Clarksville to all those meetings.

Bringing home frags to acclimate before hitting the sack.

[cee]

Not in your club, but been involved in this hobby since about 1982. Started in high school, you do the math.

Dave

[gflat65]

Originally posted by foggy54
I think I Should have been voted member with most club spirt

Hmmmmm

I've been reefing since 96 (bored college days)...

[gflat65]

BTW, John, I know the second meeting started at Dalton's, but not sure about the first. I talked to coralreefing and reewik all night, I think (they had pics).

[fishdoc11]

Best I can remember:

First meeting was at Cancuns
Second was at Daltons
Third was at that taco place across the street. We had to eat outside and it cold as heck

Chris

[gflat65]

It was really cold... The 'tarps' didn't do much for blocking the wind either...

[fishdoc11]

Originally posted by gflat65
It was really cold... The 'tarps' didn't do much for blocking the wind either...

Of course that was back in the days when we had to walk 3 miles in the snow uphill both ways to get to meetings and we had to get topup water from the creek.....or the Critter. You whippersnappers don't know how good you have it with home RO/DI units

[gflat65]

Twice a week trips to Wet Pets. Had to walk on my hands through glass shards, then wade through piles of salt. The burning stops after a few minutes, but the pain lasts forever.