Posted by Matthew Welcher PWA [172.68.58.104] on Tuesday, January 23, 2018 at 11:33:21 :
In Reply to: Powerwagon Advertizer posted by Keith in Washington [162.158.255.145] on Tuesday, January 23, 2018 at 11:25:44 :
Sadly to say we are no longer printing the PWA magazine all available content is now online at www.powerwagonadvertiser.com. I can send you back issues, a service manual, anything to make this easier for you subscribers.
If you want I can also make sure you are set up online to view the newest content.
I will attach a letter explaining why, please email or call me [email protected]
Phone number 641 919 0663
We will no longer be publishing the magazine monthly and will be going to all online via www.powerwagonadvertiser.com. I can credit you back and you can purchase a 1 year premium forum membership online or I can use the 49.75 as 3 years worth of premium forum membership for you. I will attach an e mail explaining it. Thank you and I am sorry Matthew
I am sending this message to my Power Wagon friends and family.
Because of all of you, I have done what I didn't think I would ever do in my life: write for all to read. I have made more friends than I can count, I have learned more than I could ever imagine.
Right now I need your thoughts, your input, your time. Just for a bit to think about a few things. For a few years now I have been wearing many hats, trading one for another, sometimes many times each day, trying to figure out who and how to be the person under the right hat at the given time.
It has been hard, incredibly difficult at times. Gordon and I spoke a lot of what it would be like for me to be a full time Power Wagon guy at VPW, and also publishing the Power Wagon Advertiser magazine. He knew it would be harder than I thought. Separating the two has been nearly impossible. Some have understood, some never gave me a chance.
The legacy of the Power Wagon Advertiser will continue. I will be posting online through the Advertiser forum. It is easier, faster and takes a lot less money. I do not want to do away with the magazine, but without articles and content coming in to me I cannot create the publication. Nothing coming in equals nothing going out. People have mentioned quarterly magazines, which is all and good, but to be fair a quarterly magazine should be much longer. And I still don’t get articles to publish.
I cannot tell you the sleepless nights I have had over the last several months trying to figure out what to do. Kicking myself for being a failure, letting so many down by not having the magazine show up in their mail boxes.
I don't have the time for a family, a farm, the time spent every day helping people with their trucks, the time spent talking to them about how to fix their trucks, the time spent thinking about how to make the next years’ Rally a successful event. I don’t know how to split my time and prioritize among it all. I have become stressed and grumpy, and to be honest there are days I really don't want to talk about trucks.
I have depended on my wife and Carol to assist me in making the magazine happen; I am computer stupid. If it wasn't for Will doing all the behind the scenes computer work I would have completely failed long ago.
I don't want to lean on people and have to depend on them. I want to be the guy that goes to work, takes care of trucks, and talks to you on the phone about how to fix your truck. Show up at my house, I will fix your truck. I will cook you food and welcome you, I will keep making the yearly Rally an amazing event. I will take care of my family and my farm, you are all welcome to visit for you are also my family.
I promised to do what I could to keep the magazine alive. Now the magazine will have to morph into the forum. The Power Wagon Advertiser Forum will have to be the focal point of all things Power Wagon for me.
The cost of keeping the Forum open is still over a thousand dollars a year. In my mind I am thinking there can be a premium forum fee to help support it, for those that want to see all the advertisements and read the Sitting on the Tailgate editorials. I will still take stories from people if they will send them in and I will post them on the forum for all to see.
Another thought I have had is to keep selling back issues and Service Manuals on the forum, and have a minimal fee to let truck businesses advertise on the forum. If I can make enough money with those things I could keep the forum alive. Fantastic, I didn't for a moment undertake this adventure for money. It was due to the love of an amazing man whom I looked up to, cared for and wanted so badly to be able to fill his shoes.
Am I disappointed in me, absolutely. Did I let many of you down in ways, yes. Please think about these things. I need to take care of me and mine. For many years I have, and still do, put everyone else first. It has taken a stressful toll on me, in more ways than one.
I need input here. I need your ideas, your support, your thoughts. Call me, email me, drive to my house so we can visit. Most of all, just know that I did try.
I will continue to find ways of carrying on. But for now, I need to have just one hat, be one person. I can do a lot under that hat but not everything that I want to, and I have to admit to myself that is OK.
ED
The magazine is going to be switching over to an online format through, www.powerwagonadvertiser.com.
I will and am doing this for several reasons one is lack of content for the magazine. There is also a letter posted on the forum explaining the situation.
Have you logged onto to the forum? Everything that was available in the magazine will be online, adds, articles tailgate stories, pictures. I am going to open it up to vendors also to post there Power Wagon appropriate wares.
And what i am doing is giving 3 years forum usage for anyone who is subscribed. The forum is 19 dollars per year.
I will still have back issues, service manuals and such available, i will always be here to help out and lend advice. The time and money it takes to put the magazine out with the lack of content has made it impossible to keep up.
In the changing world we are in this is the best way I could think of doing it.
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact me. And I hope you understand.
Matthew
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