50 EURO TO LOOK TROUGH YOUR OWN TELESCOPE
AND YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR THE FOOD THATS
THERE AS WELL YOU WOULD THINK THAT COMES
WITH THE PRICE WELL YOU TAUGHT WRONG
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST WHY DONT YOU BRING
THE KIDS SO THEY CAN KNOCK OVER A TELESCOPE
AND SMASH IT AND ANNOY YOU ALL NIGHT
THATS NOT INCLUDING 15 EURO FOR PETROL
FOR YOUR CAR TO GET OUT THERE THATS IF
YOU HAVE A CAR NO THANKS DAVE I HAVE THE
MONEY IM JUST NOT PAYING IT.

hey Gliese,
yip, this is nothing new when it comes to that event, some like it , some dont,
BTW, you dont want that skyscout so ?

There is a great thread on the astronomy forum on boards.ie about Dave Ltd....I mean AI

No disrespect to some of their members that post here. All ire is directed at el Presidente and him alone.

In fairness, I think a couple of 'inaccuracies' need correcting here. First the cost is not 50euro its 39euro. Secondly a professionally catered barbeque is included in that price. 3 talks are also included. As Dave L said, everyone to their own.

GLIESE wrote:

50 EURO TO LOOK TROUGH YOUR OWN TELESCOPE
AND YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR THE FOOD THATS
THERE AS WELL YOU WOULD THINK THAT COMES
WITH THE PRICE WELL YOU TAUGHT WRONG
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST WHY DONT YOU BRING
THE KIDS SO THEY CAN KNOCK OVER A TELESCOPE
AND SMASH IT AND ANNOY YOU ALL NIGHT
THATS NOT INCLUDING 15 EURO FOR PETROL
FOR YOUR CAR TO GET OUT THERE THATS IF
YOU HAVE A CAR NO THANKS DAVE I HAVE THE
MONEY IM JUST NOT PAYING IT.

I started to read this post and I said to myself, someone having a go here fair enough. However having completed the full text, I just hung my head in despair

What a truly miserable so 'n so you are!

Ive been to loads of these and found thm great, kids found thm great too. Kids that are supervised dont get into situations where they knock over scopes. Ive also brought my own scope n have never had to pay to look through it.

DG

Another AI rant..get over it..thats old news! Well if you bought a proper telescope it would not fall over

wish I had come up with that one.
My question goes unanswered, maybe I should start a rant

Pat_Dunne wrote:

GLIESE wrote:

50 EURO TO LOOK TROUGH YOUR OWN TELESCOPE
AND YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR THE FOOD THATS
THERE AS WELL YOU WOULD THINK THAT COMES
WITH THE PRICE WELL YOU TAUGHT WRONG
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST WHY DONT YOU BRING
THE KIDS SO THEY CAN KNOCK OVER A TELESCOPE
AND SMASH IT AND ANNOY YOU ALL NIGHT
THATS NOT INCLUDING 15 EURO FOR PETROL
FOR YOUR CAR TO GET OUT THERE THATS IF
YOU HAVE A CAR NO THANKS DAVE I HAVE THE
MONEY IM JUST NOT PAYING IT.

I started to read this post and I said to myself, someone having a go here fair enough. However having completed the full text, I just hung my head in despair

What a truly miserable so 'n so you are!

I wonder if Gliese knew what kind of Starparty this was going into it. This isn't one of those starparties like Cosmos or the Burren Starparty nor like the starparties you read about on the UK and US astroforums. This is a Income generator for Dave...cough I mean fundraising event for AI Its an outreach event where the public pay for the priviledge of looking through a scope with a burger in one hand and a plastic cup of lemonade in the other. Its not a starparty for amateur astronomers to get together and do serious observing. Its also not the same kind of outreach event where 200 people attend, listen to some speakers in the Glendalough visitor centre, then view the glorious heavens at the upper lake for a few hours and don't have to put their hands in their pockets once. Then again, their not provided with a burger and lemonade. That said, maybe the mobile vendors should be on call for the Glendalough events and the burger and coke would cost a fiver instead of 40

Or maybe Gliese knew all that and is just a bit peeved that he had to pay into the event like everyone else even though he was providing his own time and telescope for free. He's just lucky he must own an ATM scope or a Celestron or else he wouldn't even have been allowed in and would have been told to turn the car around.

Someone who won't tolerate the presence of kids full stop is a miserable so and so alright but I don't think someone is a miserable git just because he was upset by out of control unruely kids knocking over his expensive equipment.

Calibos wrote:

Pat_Dunne wrote:

GLIESE wrote:

50 EURO TO LOOK TROUGH YOUR OWN TELESCOPE
AND YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR THE FOOD THATS
THERE AS WELL YOU WOULD THINK THAT COMES
WITH THE PRICE WELL YOU TAUGHT WRONG
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST WHY DONT YOU BRING
THE KIDS SO THEY CAN KNOCK OVER A TELESCOPE
AND SMASH IT AND ANNOY YOU ALL NIGHT
THATS NOT INCLUDING 15 EURO FOR PETROL
FOR YOUR CAR TO GET OUT THERE THATS IF
YOU HAVE A CAR NO THANKS DAVE I HAVE THE
MONEY IM JUST NOT PAYING IT.

I started to read this post and I said to myself, someone having a go here fair enough. However having completed the full text, I just hung my head in despair

What a truly miserable so 'n so you are!

I wonder if Gliese knew what kind of Starparty this was going into it. This isn't one of those starparties like Cosmos or the Burren Starparty nor like the starparties you read about on the UK and US astroforums. This is a Income generator for Dave...cough I mean fundraising event for AI Its an outreach event where the public pay for the priviledge of looking through a scope with a burger in one hand and a plastic cup of lemonade in the other. Its not a starparty for amateur astronomers to get together and do serious observing. Its also not the same kind of outreach event where 200 people attend, listen to some speakers in the Glendalough visitor centre, then view the glorious heavens at the upper lake for a few hours and don't have to put their hands in their pockets once. Then again, their not provided with a burger and lemonade. That said, maybe the mobile vendors should be on call for the Glendalough events and the burger and coke would cost a fiver instead of 40

Or maybe Gliese knew all that and is just a bit peeved that he had to pay into the event like everyone else even though he was providing his own time and telescope for free. He's just lucky he must own an ATM scope or a Celestron or else he wouldn't even have been allowed in and would have been told to turn the car around.

You know what I have never read such a complete pile of BULLSXXT in my life. Why don't you keep that sort crap on boards.ie because no one wants to here it.

This will be my final post on this topic, as there is an obvious in house political undercurrent to some of the posts here.

I went along to the event in Roundwood on Saturday night and thoroughly enjoyed it. What made the night for me was the reaction of the kids looking through the scopes, they were all well behaved and each and everyone of them thanked the telescope owners. I personally didn't see one child misbehave or make a nusisnce of themselves on the night.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention that the spit roast pork was the biz, as were the very interesting talks given by Dave Grennan (sorry we all ran out to see the ISS) and Paul Abel.

When is the event in Glendlough taking place, would love to go along.

Carl is clearly upset by your post Keith and I must admit I am too. Like many people, I have issues with AI but having been there last night (unlike you) I an quite annoyed by your ill informed and unwarranted post.

Let me tell you what you might have seen if you had have been there.

You would have seen that people who payed their 39euro (and those who booked before July 31st) and only paid 29euro, were well fed with not just burgers, but with a magnificent hogroast, chicken fillets, hotdogs and so much more I can't even remember it all.
You would have seen a Sky at Night presenter wow the attendees with a wonderful talk.
You would have seen the special area set aside for kids, with facepainting and special talks just aimed at the youger set.
Later you would have seen lots of telescopes not just celestron. I saw at least on LX200 and a couple of skywatcher scopes.
There was lots more happening too but then you didn't see any of that because you wern't there.

Do you think for one minute that all of the above can be provided as a free event?

Most importantly, you didn't see the couple of dozen people (both AI staff and volunteers) who worked their back sides off to make it happen. You didn't see the people who did bring their own telescope and wern't asked to pay a penny to be there.

Here's a quote from an e-mail I received this morning from a gentleman who was there;

"My son ***** (age 14) and I were at the Star BQ last night and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The talks were good fun and very informative. The stands interesting (my young fella kept the Rocketry guys busy for about half an hour) and the telescope work afterwards was amazing. Great evening and well worth the money."

You mention some of the other great events like Cosmos and Burren. These indeed are wonderful events. But every one of these events have overhead costs and as such need to have an attendance cost too. All of these events charge a fee around the same cost as Star B-Q. They are absolutely right to, these things cost money to run. I know that the Burren event this year is a bit different due to the lack of funding.

I summary Keith, you are entitled to your opinion. I am also entitled to point out that I find your post downright offensive, innaccurate and wholly ill-considered.

Dave.

Does he know how much it costs to run one of these Starparties/Star BBQ, about €3000+, so if he is charging 39 quid its not bad, we charged €30 in Galway last year, these events dont run themselves, your hoping to claw back some money and maybe just maybe make a profit.

R Newman
Galway Astronomy Club

Well things have obviously very much changed for the better (outside the great guest speakers and volunteers which were always there from what I hear) because some of the stories I read on that thread on boards disgusted me. A few years ago, I myself was told not to bring my Orion Dob as I wouldn't be allowed set it up. The way Gliese was talking I assumed nothing had changed. The question is, would it have changed without the bad press and yourself and Carls sterling efforts and powers of persuasion with the Commander in Chief? Is it not true that the Shops pricing only got more realistic and less, dare I say Rip off when Carl was in charge.

The price of admission certainly sounds like good value going on the description of the latest event but surely one must admit is was not always thus. The Vegatarian option used to be the burger bun and lettuce without the burger!! You guys are to be commended for sticking with the organisation and helping to change it from within.

Pat_Dunne wrote:

This will be my final post on this topic, as there is an obvious in house political undercurrent to some of the posts here.

There is no 'In-house' anything Pat. I am not a member of a society. I have observed with the lads from SDAS but any opinion or information I have on the subject is my own. The subject of AI has never come up while I was observing or helping out with outreach to my recollection.

I've never been to the Roundwood StarBQ because the first time I decided to go I was quietly told not to bring my scope unless it was a Celestron. First and last time I considered going. Any information I had about poor value in the past or the internal power structure in the club came from disgruntled StarBQ visitors or ex AI members/volunteers/staff who posted on the infamous thread. Had they all got an axe to grind? I don't know.

Maybe my description was illinformed bulls**t present and future tense but was it bulls**t past tense?
I just wish Dave or Carl had more influence on the Chairman sooner. Looks like things are very much looking up now though.

ha ha ha i taught i was the only one my god
just go over to boards.ie their is not a
singel person who has a good word to say
about A.I. remember the largest
telescope store in europe.

MY GOD IF THIS IS TRUE YOU HAVE BROKEN THE LAW

Big D I went to an event organised by Ai in the phoenix park,They charged a euro for a 30 second look through their telescope x 2,as there was two planets highly visable

I wonder how clubs in general are doing over there with the economy in tatters? Must be tough to get new paying members.

I am still listed as a moderator but am rarely on this site.

However, I think this thread has gone far enough because people are starting to use foul language (using "***" doesn't make a difference.) Remember, there are kids possibly reading the IFAS forum. As a consequence, I am locking the thread before it gets out of hand. If another moderator wants to re-open it that's fine but I would ask anyone posting to not use foul language or make personal accusations or attacks on anyone's integrity.

kind regards,

john

John Flannery,
SDAS.