The Thrill of the Hunt

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Ah! . . . Remember it well!!!

It was what brought a lot of us together, united us against the Evil One, and led to our comparison of times and techniques.

It was a daily ritual.

It was a labor of love.

It was as important as the actual vacations it led to, a daily snippet of the brief time we would be spending in our special place.

It was the only way to learn what we really had.

It was the essence of Sightings and Ex Ops, withheld from the unannointed and unqualified.

What can it possibly be now (?) . . . when you know beforehand that if you see anything, it will be Lehigh or Marco Resort and Club, and never anything else.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

I think the "thrill of the hunt" has been replaced with us mere mortals counting how many days it has been since a post comes in from JLB complaining about RCI and trying to re-live the "good ol' days".

Count reset to zero.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

The truth shall set you free.

Just curious, what was the counter up to?

No need to explain myself, except for maybe the new folks, but the way these timeshare (or any) forums tend to work is that the truth of a matter is based on the preponderance of posts, ie, if enough OLCC owners berate everyone else about negative comments pertaining to OLCC, then OLCC is a good place. True and false are not relevant.

I post about the other side of timesharing after posting about the other other side for a long, long time, so that one, or a few, are presenting the subject with the objectivity of having lived both sides.

What I am now posting about will happen to all owners some day . . . unless changes are forced to be made.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

Just curious, what was the counter up to?

I doubt it has ever gotten to double digits.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Has this forum, which was established to counter tactics employed on another forum, become like it, where the best that some can offer when someone ciriticizes a system is to criticize the criticizer?

Sad.

Well, sad that history means so little to some.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...ail&FORM=VIRE3

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I post about the other side of timesharing after posting about the other other side for a long, long time, so that one, or a few, are presenting the subject with the objectivity of having lived both sides.

It occurs to me that that is quite rare. Typically, people are either in favor of, or opposed to, timesharing from the git-go.

How many have been both strong advocates and strong opponents?

[philsfan Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close philsfan]

I was a strong advocate. Now I am not an opponent but for sure not an advocate. There are limited situations where owning a timeshare for trading makes sense. Much more limited than in the past in my opinion.

The costs have risen to the point where it is at least equal value to rent, many times it is better and you don't have to play the exchange lottery and hope you find what you want. It is either there or it is rented already and gone forever. I wanted to stay on Maui recently. I got on VRBO and found many choices for where I wanted to stay at the same price as trading a timeshare when you add maintenance fees, rci membership fees, exchange fees and many times, resort fees.

So now I own 1 timeshare. I use it every year. I get access to rentals in areas I want to travel through that ownership at the same rate as maintenance fees or less. I have 10K RCI points left and 14 tpus. My membership expires in September 2014 so whether I use them or not, I won't be an RCI member after that date. I was a member of II for a couple of years. I didn't have a great II trader so I had an iffy experience there (1 good trade, 1 not good, took what I could get trade).

If the economy turns around and timeshares become cheaper than the rentals I can find, I will jump back in. My crystal ball says that's not happening.

So now if someone asks me about timeshares I give them a list of the rental sites I use.

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

The Thrill of the Hunt



The idea that once something has been achieved or captured, one loses interest in it. Chasing after it was more satisfying than actually having it.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

Has this forum, which was established to counter tactics employed on another forum, become like it, where the best that some can offer when someone ciriticizes a system is to criticize the criticizer?

No, I think most people have realized that change happens, and it is best to look forward and optimize in the current environment vs. constantly lamenting about how things used to be. I don't see how posting hundreds (if not thousands) of posts on how a system used to be better (by their own estimation) is really helpful. I would much rather focus on posts that help people in their current situation. Telling someone that "back 20 years ago, you could have exchanged into XYZ resort" doesn't do much for them today.

Sad.

Well, sad that history means so little to some.

What's really sad is how some people seem jump to conclusions that couldn't be further from the truth.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...ail&FORM=VIRE3
(video of Forrest Gump saying "And that's all I have to say about that.")

One can only hope...

[Dori Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dori]

I am sorely missing those old days when the hunt was so much a part of the fun. Now that we have bought our place down south, I don't need to be on the prowl for 6 to 7 winter weeks in Florida. The 2 weeks we owned at our beloved Harbour Inn, in Ontario, are gone since the resort was sold. I won't be paying MF's at Lowveld Lodge (thanks to Mr. Bullfrog's nefarious shennanigans), so that leaves us with nothing. I have about 150 TPU's to use up, and then it will be EV's and Last Calls for us.

[Marti Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Marti]

Greed & high TPUs make it harder to obtain!



I love the thrill of the hunt and the adrenaline rush that comes with finding that perfect timeshare vacation. The ones that will make memories for years to come.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I would much rather focus on posts that help people in their current situation.

So you focus on mine!

An admission, I guess, that an experienced viewpoint opposed to timesharing helps people "in their current situation." If "current situation" means trying to decide whether to buy a timeshare, you have hit the nail square on the head.

I tried to help people as a proponent and I'm trying to help people as an opponent.

I appreciate your agreement with my effort, be it trifling when compared with the efforts of those marketing timeshares.

[susieq Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close susieq]

I love the thrill of the hunt and the adrenaline rush that comes with finding that perfect timeshare vacation. The ones that will make memories for years to come.

I love it too ~ unfortunately it's getting harder & harder to find something. Almost like making it to the next level ~ ahh... but it feels so great when you do finally find something great.

[PigsDad Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close PigsDad]

An admission, I guess, that an experienced viewpoint opposed to timesharing helps people "in their current situation." If "current situation" means trying to decide whether to buy a timeshare, you have hit the nail square on the head.

I tried to help people as a proponent and I'm trying to help people as an opponent.

I have no issue with posts from "opponents" that give valid reasons against ownership. Heck, I have pointed out several negatives myself when replying to the "should I buy" type of post. But the reasons / help I give is based on today's timesharing situation, not on what timesharing used to be like 20 years ago for certain owners.

What is the point of countless posts exclaiming "I used to be able to trade into that resort"? Just like anything, timeshare systems change over time; some for the better, some for the worse. I know people who like RCI better now than ever -- with TPUs, they can combine deposits and get into places they would have never been able to before with their weak traders. In the HGVC system (which I own), the number of resorts available and the trade availability has improved in the years since I first joined. I simply don't agree with your mantra of:

JLB: "What I am now posting about will happen to all owners some day"

You are welcome to your opinion, but I'm sorry, I just don't buy it. It may be true for some TS owners, but for all owners? Please. You may think I am "focusing" on your posts (wow, what an ego!); I am simply providing an opposing view to what I think is very misleading information from a "His Royal Heinous-10,000+ post club" member. In fact, most of my posts on the open forums here on this site are regarding the HGVC system, because that is the system I am most versed on and can provide accurate information for people with questions. I try to post useful information based on the current situation of the system. I certainly don't try to take my HGVC experiences and try to apply them with a broad stroke across "all owners" of timeshares. I guess that is the core of where you and I differ.

[SallyHoover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close SallyHoover]

I love the thrill of the hunt and the adrenaline rush that comes with finding that perfect timeshare vacation. The ones that will make memories for years to come.

Somehow I have to get over the thrill of finding the great units on ebay and other sites. Even though I gave away or sold 4 annuals and 1 EOY and had 2 bought back by the resorts for more than I bought for in the last 12 months, I seem to have picked up 4 more annuals and 2 EOY's this year so I guess I am slightly ahead but not really. The notary at the bank sees me coming and asks where the TS is this time. I have 2 more that I really dislike and wish I never bought including my first one and one more that I shouldn't have bought because it will be more trouble than it is worth to give away. The other 6, I really like except for when it is time to pay the MF's.