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The Decline of the BT community
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  2013-10-26 5:44 AM |
 Subject: ...This user's post has been ignored. Edited by Fred D 2013-10-26 5:45 AM |
| 2013-10-26 6:17 AM in reply to: Fred D |
Champion 10154    Alabama | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Fred, put the bottle down and back away..... :-). JK I don't like mobile sites on my iPad. If I keep a BT tab open I don't have to find the full site link. You have a lot of experience and knowledge and I know you want to share and help people. So maybe you could start posting Fred's tri tip of the week. Just a thought. Some topics come and go like biking with music, peeing in the pool and using a bucket in transition. There is no such thing as a completely new topic that has never been discussed.....but there is a constant turnover of people here so topics come up over and over. |
| 2013-10-26 7:11 AM in reply to: Fred D |
 Bronze member | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. Fred, why are you making think this early in the morning I think your concerns are legit. Some of them bother me, some of them don't. I don't use a mobile device to get on the internet. I have noticed the SPAM but just ignore it. Less traffic in Tri-talk, yes I have noticed that too. In my personal experience a couple of things have lead me out of tri talk. 1. and probably the biggest factor for me being the mentor group. I post all of my questions to the group and not on the main forum anymore. I would say this is true for the entire group I am in as I rarely see any of them post in TTalk forum and we have some good discussions. Example - I bought a used road bike and need help with my fit. I am going to post to a few people I trust on the site as opposed to the main forum because I just don't want to hear it. I don't want to wade through 10 different opinions (if I even get that many replies) or however many comments telling me I should have been fit first then gone to the shop blah blah blah. Before the mentor group I posted this stuff to TriTalk. But, maybe I should just so the new members can read all about proper bike fits and I can be the example of what NOT to do 2. I'm not good at arguing my point and don't really care enough to make an effort. Example is riding with headphones. To me that is an unnecessary distraction, to someone else they love it. I don't really care since I know I'm not changing anyones mind and so I don't bother posting. After being around here for so many years you know where these discussions are going so to me - what is the point?
But I would say I have noticed low traffic in a lot of other forums too. CoJ used to be very active but seems less lively now which is I'm sure due in part to separation of the Political forum. Same with the IronMan Forum, it is very quiet in that one. I tend to think there is just an ebb and flow to these things though. If you ever check out the Welcome to the site area there are new people signing on every day. They just need to jump in and start asking questions! I actually will give you a high five for your post. It demonstrates your dedication to the BT community. I just come on here do my thing and go about my business, now I feel selfish!
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. | 2013-10-26 7:20 AM in reply to: trigal38 |
| Member 347 Scottsdale, AZ | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community #1 is 100% correct. I'm solely an iPad user at home and the mobile version of BT sucks. In fact, I don't visit the site some nights because I don't want to deal with the hassle |
| 2013-10-26 7:39 AM in reply to: 0 |
| Veteran 439 Dartmouth, Massachusetts | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community I don't use a mobile device to get on the internet. I have noticed the SPAM but just ignore it. Less traffic in Tri-talk, yes I have noticed that too. In my personal experience a couple of things have lead me out of tri talk. 1. and probably the biggest factor for me being the mentor group. I post all of my questions to the group and not on the main forum anymore. I would say this is true for the entire group I am in as I rarely see any of them post in TTalk forum and we have some good discussions. Example - I bought a used road bike and need help with my fit. I am going to post to a few people I trust on the site as opposed to the main forum because I just don't want to hear it. I don't want to wade through 10 different opinions (if I even get that many replies) or however many comments telling me I should have been fit first then gone to the shop blah blah blah. Before the mentor group I posted this stuff to TriTalk. But, maybe I should just so the new members can read all about proper bike fits and I can be the example of what NOT to do 2. I'm not good at arguing my point and don't really care enough to make an effort. Example is riding with headphones. To me that is an unnecessary distraction, to someone else they love it. I don't really care since I know I'm not changing anyones mind and so I don't bother posting. After being around here for so many years you know where these discussions are going so to me - what is the point?
But I would say I have noticed low traffic in a lot of other forums too. CoJ used to be very active but seems less lively now which is I'm sure due in part to separation of the Political forum. Same with the IronMan Forum, it is very quiet in that one. I tend to think there is just an ebb and flow to these things though. If you ever check out the Welcome to the site area there are new people signing on every day. They just need to jump in and start asking questions! I actually will give you a high five for your post. It demonstrates your dedication to the BT community. I just come on here do my thing and go about my business, now I feel selfish!
Thank you for this post. This pretty much sums up how I feel about the site right now. I believe another factor is the Slowtwitch forums. Its been long known that BT is the more kinder/gentler tri site while Slowtwitch is much more rigid. Perhaps more people are going there for their answers because they're tired of seeing the same posts Fred referenced originally. Edited by medeiros13 2013-10-26 7:39 AM |
| 2013-10-26 7:43 AM in reply to: Fred D |
Champion 6046 New York, NY | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. you're not wrong |
| 2013-10-26 7:52 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Pro 6011 Camp Hill, Pennsylvania | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community It's funny you posted this, Fred, because I've noticed some of the same things, especially an apparent decrease in posts in general and an impression that there are fewer threads about analyzing someone's swimming technique, bike fit, training theory and methods, etc. I'm not sure what the answer is, but I'm going to continue to contribute the best I'm able. I also agree about the mobile device observations. I'm posting this from my Android phone, but I never use the mobile site. BTW, why can't I make a paragraph break from my phone and always get these run on paragraphs instead? |
| 2013-10-26 8:00 AM in reply to: 0 |
Melon Presser 52116 | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community 1. I <3 U, Fred. {MELON PRESS} 2. God bless JohnnyKay, Shane, Jason, AND DON 3. In the Northern hemisphere, race season is essentially closed. Winter there tends to make things feistier on all forums with a big base there, including BT. Meaning that things have been duller here just because folks are in the thick of training, racing, and summer holidays. It will get livelier here in the next few weeks as a matter of course. Happens every year. 4. Echo on the Mentor Groups. Some amazing stuff goes on there and a lot of people feel safer. 5. I really should be saying this to Ron--hi Ron!!!--especially because he is extremely diligent about asking the mods for opinions and feedback (the whole community, actually, I think, but mods especially). The vibrant life that went on in blogs and inspires has been greatly diminished by the still major PITA it is to use them. I can't log all my workouts/nutrition/etc. and blog at once. Similarly, it takes far more clicks, window openings, and scrollings in order to inspire folks. People are staying less in touch through them, and as a result possibly aren't connecting as much, or don't feel as much a sense of community, in the forums either. 6. Echo on the mobile site. Super yuck. 7. Mad props to Ron foremost and all the mods for making the big upgrade as smooth as it could be. I understand why it had to happen. Still, there's some fallout from it. Not a criticism--just part of what I see as an explanation. 8. The fading or disappearance of a few prolific posters can make a big difference. I know why some people have gone, this reason or that, and me, every aspect of my life has been overwhelming this year. But just think about how much lively discussion can be generated between only two posters with different or complementary or whatever viewpoints, never mind several. Much goes when they go. 9. Some effort's gone into drawing and retaining great athletes or industry people, although I think a lot more could be done and it could really benefit the site and forums. This is a totally random (irony) example--my BF (Gilligan in the profile pic, ha!) is one of the world's most successful Paralympians and has been a huge service and influence in sports for disabled persons. He's also now an outstanding open-water swimmer. He signed up for BT and bought a membership because, well, I told him to Just my observations and opinions ... Edited by TriAya 2013-10-26 8:05 AM |
and several others for indeed continuing to fight the good fight. FWIW, I still see a lot of quality answers around here even if the quantity of good questions/discussions is generally low.| 2013-10-26 8:03 AM in reply to: TriMyBest |
| Champion 10154 Alabama | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community I'm watching the History Channel about the demise of the Aztecs and the Myans. Hope the decline of the BT community does not go the way of the Myans. Carry on. I will put the iPad down and learn some Myan history..... |
| 2013-10-26 8:12 AM in reply to: medeiros13 |
| Pro 6011 Camp Hill, Pennsylvania | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by medeiros13 There's always been a difference between here and ST, but the best analogy I've heard about it is that BT is like the classroom where there are stricter rules about behavior and ST is the playground where the kids can get away with more. Historically, there's been a lot of experienced and knowledgeable people active in both places having great discussions, so I've prefered the more polite interactions here on BT, but lately I've found myself spending a little less time here and more time on ST than in the past because of the difference in discussion topics. I don't use a mobile device to get on the internet. I have noticed the SPAM but just ignore it. Less traffic in Tri-talk, yes I have noticed that too. In my personal experience a couple of things have lead me out of tri talk. Thank you for this post. This pretty much sums up how I feel about the site right now.I believe another factor is the Slowtwitch forums. Its been long known that BT is the more kinder/gentler tri site while Slowtwitch is much more rigid. Perhaps more people are going there for their answers because they're tired of seeing the same posts Fred referenced originally. 1. and probably the biggest factor for me being the mentor group. I post all of my questions to the group and not on the main forum anymore. I would say this is true for the entire group I am in as I rarely see any of them post in TTalk forum and we have some good discussions. Example - I bought a used road bike and need help with my fit. I am going to post to a few people I trust on the site as opposed to the main forum because I just don't want to hear it. I don't want to wade through 10 different opinions (if I even get that many replies) or however many comments telling me I should have been fit first then gone to the shop blah blah blah. Before the mentor group I posted this stuff to TriTalk. But, maybe I should just so the new members can read all about proper bike fits and I can be the example of what NOT to do 2. I'm not good at arguing my point and don't really care enough to make an effort. Example is riding with headphones. To me that is an unnecessary distraction, to someone else they love it. I don't really care since I know I'm not changing anyones mind and so I don't bother posting. After being around here for so many years you know where these discussions are going so to me - what is the point?
But I would say I have noticed low traffic in a lot of other forums too. CoJ used to be very active but seems less lively now which is I'm sure due in part to separation of the Political forum. Same with the IronMan Forum, it is very quiet in that one. I tend to think there is just an ebb and flow to these things though. If you ever check out the Welcome to the site area there are new people signing on every day. They just need to jump in and start asking questions! I actually will give you a high five for your post. It demonstrates your dedication to the BT community. I just come on here do my thing and go about my business, now I feel selfish!
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| 2013-10-26 8:14 AM in reply to: 0 |
| Expert 1187 Ontario | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. I agree with you about the mobile site and the forums, it sucks especially having to scroll to the bottom of a thread page to see how many pages there are, if you are following a multipage thread and want to check the newest posts you have to do this to move to the last page. HOWEVER I love the mobile site to log workouts (this is through my browser, not the BT app which I don't like). The SPAM I just ignore. Not much they can do about that. I don't want to have to go through additional security steps to post a message so I'd rather put up with a bit of spam on the site. I've never been much of a poster as far as answering questions as I don't consider myself much of an expert, and would just be repeating what someone has already said most times. I do read most threads. I totally agree with trigal that the best information on BT is now in the mentor threads, which has had a negative effect on the quality of discussions found in the tri talk forums. I've been a member since 2006 and besides you, Shane and JohnnyKay I don't see many of the posters from my first couple years on BT anymore, at least not outside of the mentor threads. What about Facebook and other social sites, and everyone having a smartphone and texting? Have people moved away from BT to using FB to keep in touch with others they have met here? Do we just text/FB instead of using BT inspires? I don't know if any of this is the case. Aside from shutting down the mentor program, forcing discussion back onto the main forums, I'm not sure what can be done.
Edited by cathyd 2013-10-26 8:21 AM |
| 2013-10-26 8:20 AM in reply to: 0 |
| Master 2301 Rogersville, Alabama | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by cathyd Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. I agree with you about the mobile site and the forums, it sucks especially having to scroll to the bottom of a thread page to see how many pages there are, if you are following a multipage thread and want to check the newest posts you have to do this to move to the last page. HOWEVER I love the mobile site to log workouts (this is through my browser, not the BT app which I don't like). The SPAM I just ignore. Not much they can do about that. I don't want to have to go through additional security steps to post a message so I'd rather put up with a bit of spam on the site. I've never been much of a poster as far as answering questions as I don't consider myself much of an expert, and would just be repeating what someone has already said most times. I do read most threads. I totally agree with trigal that the best information on BT is now in the mentor threads, which has had a negative effect on the quality of discussions found in the tri talk forums. I've been a member since 2006 and besides you and Shane don't see many of the posters from my first couple years on BT anymore, at least not outside of the mentor threads. Aside from shutting down the mentor program, forcing discussion back onto the main forums, I'm not sure what can be done.
You beat me to it. The mentor groups are part of the decline in the tri-talk forum. You develop a sense of comfort with the small groups and tend to ask more off the wall controversial topics. I've been a member since 05. Used this account since 06. Took two years off, 2011 till early this year. Honestly I see a lot more familiar users than I expected. Edited by MyThreeSons 2013-10-26 8:21 AM |
| 2013-10-26 8:23 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Regular 5477 LHOTP | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Hey Fred, super cool post. So as one of the "not-so-long-in-the-tooth" people here, I would say that I have noticed similar things, even in my short tenure. When I first started posting here, I was shocked at how much the the traffic dropped off at night and on the weekends. My first exposure to tri forums was ST, and it just seemed that the volume here was waaaaaaaaaaay down by comparison. I ended up chalking that up as a good thing and equating it to people on this site spending more time with families and doing other stuff than posting :) The last few tri or SBR specific threads I've started in the tri forum have fallen kind of flat. There are people on here I think who could answer those questions, but maybe they didn't see them, or maybe they didn't want to field them. By contrast, when I start "fun" threads in the tri forum, those tend to have quite a bit of traffic. I take that into account now when posting. I think, too, that sometimes the strong personalities--of which I am one--might be a bit intimidating to some new posters. I try to be sensitive to that and be someone who balances out, or at least will call people out, when they're being too elitist or pedantic because I think it can send the wrong message and, as the name states, this is a site for BEGINNER triathletes. Perhaps, as Trigal38 suggested, a lot of people are going to mentoring groups with their specific questions. I guess what I worry about is that new people to this site don't totally get how it works; there are lots of nooks and crannies. It makes this site a little less straight forward at first, but in the long run, much more helpful--especially to a newbie--than ST. I have found the Challenges to be a great way to get to know people and, for example, in our book club challenges, to learn a lot about SBR. So, at least for me, my lack (or decreased) participation in the tri forum is due to a combination of having the challenge groups and mentoring groups and lack of good response to questions in the tri forum. I also don't feel I have enough experience to field lots of tri related questions, so I can't always contribute from that end either. For the most part, people are very positive and supportive of each other and I think that is the main thing BT has going for it.I am very grateful to people like you, a lot of the SBR Utopia gang, and other seasoned triathletes who stay on this board and contribute. You all are invaluable and the kind, polite, patient response to questions you all have been asked dozens (hundreds??) of times is much appreciated. I have learned a ton by having access to this site and to all of you. Thanks :)
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| 2013-10-26 8:30 AM in reply to: Fred D |
Master 2563 University Park, MD | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Thanks, Fred. I don't think you're wrong about the concerns. I haven't noticed the spam as a major problem. It happens, but it's easy to ignore. But I have noticed some decline in the range and depth of topics that have been covered, and that has made me less eager to check in regularly. I agree with the concerns about the mobile site - I get lots of blank pages on my phone, especially in the race reports section. More basic than that, is seems that the new site fits fewer threads on a screen, and so that makes it harder to overview the active threads, and more importantly it can lead to threads fading faster because they fall so quickly from the first page. I'm not close to Fred or Yanti's league in terms of posting, but BT has been important to me for the past few years, and I've got a great deal from this community. I've been checking in less frequently lately, in part because of other commitments that are irrelevant to this thread, but also I've been less motivated to check in, because I've felt that I'm missing out on less. I have not noticed any change in the very positive vibe of BT. It's as welcoming as ever. |
| 2013-10-26 9:09 AM in reply to: 0 |
| Extreme Veteran 635 Ajo | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community I'm relatively new to triathlon, but I've noticed similar things. I can't comment on mobile since I use my desktop primarily. I too have seen experienced users banned and it shouldn't get to that. BT has been a valuable source in my learning and development, as well as the other sites. I can certainly understand your concern. I miss that some of the long time experienced folks no longer contribute or put up RR reports. It's selfishness since I'd like to pick up tidbits about racing successfully. I think the plans and logs and further services by D3 are awesome. The new change was cumbersome and is still cumbersome to the previous look, but I hope things will be improved from constructive criticism... I don't like how it takes like 4 clicks to look at some "friends" training logs. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of technical talk over here, and sometimes the tech gets drowned out. Edited by tomspharmacy 2013-10-26 9:11 AM |
| 2013-10-26 9:15 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Champion 6046 New York, NY | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community I think a few things have contributed. Never was a huge fan of the mobile site to begin with so don't use it much. I don't think the new design helped - certainly MUCH harder to inspire people. And then both here and ST there is the moderation issue. THe tolerance for different things has waxed and waned on both sites and for me I have fatigued of some of what I perceive as very uneven handling of situations. It is not worth it to get my opinion in there sometimes. This is my hobby - I don't want hassles. Compared to when I started here there is more hassle. |
| 2013-10-26 9:24 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Alpharetta, Georgia Bronze member | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community My opinion, as a member since 2006. A few "bad apples" can ruin everything. Attacks, belittling, negativity and downright nastiness from a handful of folks are a true deterrent. Honestly I'm not sure why the mods allow it.Threads that start off as innocent questions or jokes are blown up into something completely unrecognizable, with veiled (or not so veiled) insults thrown at users on a regular basis. I like the variety of opinions on this site, but disagreements become way too personal way too often. It just isn't worth it most days, anymore, to jump in the shark tank. |
| 2013-10-26 9:29 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Master 3205 ann arbor, michigan | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. I couldn't agree more with your comments. 1. The mobile upgrade prevents me from using the site. I try to keep it open to "view full site" but for some reason when I reload it, it always goes to the mobile version which about a third of the time I just close and move on instead of persisting. It really is driving me to use the site less. 2. Spam. Like others I mostly ignore it but more is there than used to be. 3. I agree on the far less triathlon training specific threads in tri talk forum. Maybe it is because of the mentor groups. I am going to admit that since the upgrade I have spent far more time on that "other site" than I used to. Maybe more time than I spend here. That never used to be the case; 90% of my triathlon web use was here and maybe 10% "there". The numbers haven't completely reversed but I would guess that more than 50% of my time is spent on the "other" site, even if I rarely post there. Yanti's post about the community feel being different since the upgrade is spot on. I just don't feel as invested in the new BT. Not sure why that is but it is true. (not a criticism, just a comment......) 4. I am by no means an expert but I try to respond appropriately to good triathlon related questions. I don't have a whole lot to add to the social questions on most days..... You are right, it seems like some of the real experts that used to pop in here a lot are long gone. Thank you so much to the real experts who have stuck around and continue to educate us all about triathlon training. (great to see "The Bear" posting again) To answer you questions: 1. You are not wrong. It looks like most agree with you on some level. 2. Concerns as above. It would be nice, as Yanti suggested, to encourage by whatever means some expert contributions in tri talk. ST already gets this from some really experienced folks. BT still gets some but not like it used to. How do we get Thomas Gerlach and BryanCD (can of worms) and some others to post on BT again so we can all benefit from their wealth of knowledge? 3. Not sure but hope we can. |
| 2013-10-26 9:41 AM in reply to: lisac957 |
| Regular 5477 LHOTP | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community You mean the kind of language and behavior in threads like TAN? |
| 2013-10-26 9:51 AM in reply to: lisac957 |
| Expert 852 Evergreen, Colorado Bronze member | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by lisac957 My opinion, as a member since 2006. A few "bad apples" can ruin everything. Attacks, belittling, negativity and downright nastiness from a handful of folks are a true deterrent. Honestly I'm not sure why the mods allow it.Threads that start off as innocent questions or jokes are blown up into something completely unrecognizable, with veiled (or not so veiled) insults thrown at users on a regular basis. I like the variety of opinions on this site, but disagreements become way too personal way too often. It just isn't worth it most days, anymore, to jump in the shark tank. ^THIS with the bad apples. I've been here since 2004, so a while, and I've seen a pretty big decline in the attitude of the forums in the past year. There is a lot of negativity, as Lisa allude to, but also a weird dynamic where a small handful of people are the ones posting on most all of the threads. It seems to me (especially in COJ) that while threads start out okay, they eventually devolve into the same 3-4 people making smartass comments and making inside jokes amongst themselves. While I'm all for joking around, I've just gotten to the point where I don't care to type out actual responses considering the threads always unravel at some point. Things seem less encouraging, and more "clique-y" than they used to be - it's just not my thing. So, I still log here because I've logged all of my workouts here for 10 years (and honestly, I haven't found another site that lets me track ALL of my workouts in a similar way - thanks Ron!). And I still keep up with the people I want to keep up with, via inspires or Facebook. But I'm kind of done with the forums. I think a lot of people who have been around a while feel the same. |
| 2013-10-26 10:08 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Expert 2355 Madison, Wisconsin | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by Fred D Background: I've been a member on BT since August 2007. Raced 20+ times and been an active participant in the forums. Have run a number of mentor groups and been actively involved in race day meet ups, especially at HIM/IM races of BTers. This is not to say I'm 'special', but rather that I have a STAKE in the community here. I have noticed some concerns with the site/community in the last 6 months. Now, these are observations and clearly not FACT, but they are my Observations:
*I* presume the majority (if there are any) comments to my OP here will be negative toward me.... Mainly because I am questioning not only the BT site, but myself and ALL of you out there as well. Doing this doesn't usually result in favorable 'high fives' lol. Those that know me here, understand that I care a lot about this community and this site. I wouldn't post my concerns here if I didn't. I'm wondering THREE THINGS:
Hoping for contribution from those long and not-so-long in the tooth here. Thank you for listening. Well said Fred, here is my take: 1. Cant say much about the mobile site, but when this site was overhauled I left for awhile and moved my training logs to a personal style. 2. No comment on SPAM 3. Traffic: I remember when BryanCD was banned and I thought "Uh oh" that was a big mistake for BT and since then the site IMO has not been the same. Now I am friends with Bryan on Facebook and come across him regularly on ST. I think the loss of some great posters adds to it. Also I have noticed a lot more discussions on FB in Ironman race specific events. IM Chattanooga has a Facebook page that has probably 25-50 posts a day, here not really that much. Add into in that local triathlon communities are growing and people now cling to those then online forums. 4. The experience is diminishing but its alive and well on ST, another reason I think more are jumping to ST. ST has a bit more "attitude" but if you can handle it the content IMO is heavier and better. That all said I think you have made some great observations an unfortunately I feel that BT is in a slow gradual decline. Funny thing is the I am on this site and posting more then I ever have since i started. |
| 2013-10-26 10:21 AM in reply to: #4884905 |
| Member 169 | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Ah the Internet. This is a natural part of the life cycle of message boards. Every few years an old timer posts about how things have changed for the worse since "the old days" three or four years ago. |
| 2013-10-26 10:21 AM in reply to: trigal38 |
| Master 3205 ann arbor, michigan | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by trigal38 COJ used to be one of my favorite places to pop in for a few minutes of fun and entertainment. While I still swing by to see if there is anything interesting it is not nearly as "fun" as it used to be. I think that separating out the political forum has really hurt COJ. Maybe it is kinder and gentler now but it is also a lot less interesting. I appreciate that some folks got a little 'enthusiastic' in some of the politically related threads but that is what made it so 'interesting.' I would love to see these two forums rewed. The divorce of COJ from Political has been messy and largely unsuccessful (IMO). |
| 2013-10-26 10:35 AM in reply to: Fred D |
| Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community I don't remember how long I've been here, probably since 2008 or so. Used to be someone would ask a question and people would tell their experience and/or give links to give the person enough information to make up their own mind. Loved that. It's become people stating their own experience, way of doing it, and shouting down any other way or type or piece of equipment. I read ST to read about the in the weeds details and painful data points and I can ignore the personality conflicts because of the raw data. Here, I used to post about my journey and what has worked for me as one of many. Now people rip anything apart that doesn't reinforce the way they believe is the only way it can be done so I quit posting most times. It would be nice if the people who need to rip everything else down would go on to ST and leave this place as everyone can pile on and the newbies can figure out what works for them without the dog fights. |
| 2013-10-26 10:44 AM in reply to: lisac957 |
| Expert 1183 Fort Wayne, IN | Subject: RE: The Decline of the BT community Originally posted by lisac957 My opinion, as a member since 2006. A few "bad apples" can ruin everything. Attacks, belittling, negativity and downright nastiness from a handful of folks are a true deterrent. Honestly I'm not sure why the mods allow it.Threads that start off as innocent questions or jokes are blown up into something completely unrecognizable, with veiled (or not so veiled) insults thrown at users on a regular basis. I like the variety of opinions on this site, but disagreements become way too personal way too often. It just isn't worth it most days, anymore, to jump in the shark tank. I agree with this 100%. I've seen many posts with legitimate questions and numerous smarmy replies. |
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