Nudists Seek to Attract Younger Members, Finding it a Tough Sell

[TaylorMade]

Nudists Seek to Attract Younger Members, Finding it a Tough Sell

Sunday, May 13, 2007
AP/FOX
No Author Given

EXCERPT:

WOODSTOCK, Conn. — Here's the naked truth about nude recreation: The people who practice it aren't getting any younger. To draw 20- and 30-somethings, nudist groups and camps are trying everything from deep discounts to a young ambassador program that encourages college and graduate students to talk to their peers about having fun in the buff.

"We don't want the place to turn into a gated assisted living facility," said Gordon Adams, membership director at Solair Recreation League, a nudist camp in northeast Connecticut that recently invited students from dozens of New England schools to a college day in hopes of piquing their interest.

The median age is 55 at Solair, where a yearly membership is $500 for people older than 40, $300 for people younger than 40 and $150 for college students.

The Kissimee, Fla.-based American Association for Nude Recreation, which represents about 270 clubs and resorts in North America, estimates that more than 90 percent of its 50,000 members are older than 35.

The Rest of The Story (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,271898,00.html)

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I thought this story would be of interest since we do have a large nudist contingent on the site.

Does this jibe with your observations? Are there any young nudists out there who would like to share their views?(I know the answer to this, but, hey I'm asking to be polite). . .is this a world wide phenomena or just a US situation? And. . .any idea how this could be allieved? (I'm not a nudist myself, but I am nudist friendly.)

Or is it that young nudists have formed their own circles, apart from the official ones?

*Taylor*

[skiflydive]

At all the nudist places I've been to the crowd is fairly older but I've seen some young families and hopefully their kids will stay in the lifestyle. I've rarely seen teens but have seen some very enthusiastic mid 20's and up.

[12voltman59]

It is kind of funny this story has run this weekend-I just got home from spending yesterday and last night at the nudist club that BareWithMe from here--managers here in Cincinnati.

I was in the lodge in the main room and someone had the television on to a local station with one of those "Goodmorning" kinds of shows--they were running one of those banner headline things at the bottom of the screen.

From my experience---it is definitely true that nudism/naturism is something that is more widely practiced by the old than it is by the young and of course--if your populaton is getting older no matter what the activity is--you are not growing and in fact---you are heading for eventual extinction ---

This is a smart idea but I do wonder how effective it will be--it seems that as a rule---when people are younger---you are more centered on getting your career going as well as a family--and with the attitude about things "sexual" and kids--while it was at one time at least something people would not comment on if you took your kids to a nudist camp--- today you might have some groups who would try to intervene in court to get your kids taken away from you because of your perverted interest in nudism--which must mean you are a child molester.

I know that when I first went to private nudist places back when I was in my 20s---I was the youngest person there by many years in most cases--and even though I am now nearing 50--I still tend to be one of the younger people at such places-that tends to not be conducive to attract younger people beyond maybe some day visits to nudist clubs every so often---that is not enough to sustain such clubs though--and with the aging of the nudist population---they do need to do something to attract new blood.

[TaylorMade]

They may have to do some reaching to the young lbgt population, and create some college-age-only events. It's gonna sound like age segregation, but if you want the community to have new blood, you're gonna have to spend some time cultivating it.

*Taylor*

[Azrael]

They may have to do some reaching to the young lbgt population, and create some college-age-only events. It's gonna sound like age segregation, but if you want the community to have new blood, you're gonna have to spend some time cultivating it.

*Taylor*
True that.

[TaylorMade]

You're not gonna get teen agers because they're really body concious and being naked in front of a bunch of older strangers won't appeal to them.

College kids ... I think some of us still have the idea of naked=sex. There are some in the pagan/lbgt community that go nude on their own, but they don't band together. Maybe them being naked in front of a bunch of older people (or seeing naked older people) won't bother all of them, but maybe that is part of what keeps them from coming back.

I think if the nudist community wants to survive, they are going to have to allow for 19-30 only days or nights- - have a club experience, hire a DJ, the only difference? Keep the lights on.

Some of the older people in the community might object but. . .when you were in college, did YOU want to see your grandma's bridge club naked(not just the hot 60 year old, either)?

*Taylor*

[12voltman59]

I don't know the answer to attracting younger people to nudist camps and such since they do want people who have money to spend on not only memberships, but to maybe rent or buy a cabin, RV or whatever and the lot that such things sit on and while with some college aged kids or people just out of college getting their careers going---they often don't have an abundance of "discretionary income"--and if they do make enough money that they can afford such things--they work for companies like in high tech that basically want you to live at the office anyway---

So--there are all sorts of challenges to attracting younger people and keeping them--the AANR is trying to promote recruitment of younger people to nudism/naturalism---it can be done--it is just going to take some creative efforts on the part of that organization and the clubs themselves.

[pasco_lol_cpl]

Speaking from the self proclaimed Nudist Capitol of North America, we see all ages at the many and varied resorts and housing developments in our area.

[mindfinding]

Ok, here is all of the answers they would need from a marketing stand point.

Median age:
50's

Problem:
No youth coming into the clubs.

What common factor is missing between the two age groups?:
The hippy movement.

How could this problem be solved:
Simply start another generational movement that involves LSD, naked 20 something adults and a mankind changing rock n roll revolution.

Possible new client turn offs:
Old naked people.

Yep, won't happen. And if history really repeats itself, yall have around 300-500 years to wait.

Good by nude 60's thing. May I never see slappy old nuts shotting lawn bowling on a Saturday.

Cheers

[Solomon]

truthfully i think the nudist resorts an all should continue to cater to the 50's median....... seeing as how that is the largest portion of the population anyways lol

the kids'll do what the parents did anyways.... so i really don't even see the point in trying to cater to the younger crowds

[jedinudist]

It's true - but for a reason.

They have priced themselves out of the reach of younger nudists. Many of the resorts and clubs I have gone to are full of older people who have much more discretionary funds to spend than the average younger person. The resorts and clubs have set their prices so high, that only these older people can comfortably afford to attend.

And, many of them discriminate against single men, people of any orientation other than hetero, etc. They see single men as predators (when in fact neither my wife nor I have ever been "approached" by a single man. It has ALWAYS been a married man or a married woman!)

The nudist movement is still (barely) alive and well with the younger generation, they just can't afford the resorts with the ridiculous fees, and don't have much in common with the folks who do nothing but sit on their bums all day wearing their high $ watches and shades, sneering down their nose at anyone who isn't just like them. The younger people (and the young at heart) like to use the pool, like to hike the trails, play volleyball, basketball, etc. I have actually seen a resort manager berate a group of teens and twenty-somethings for playing (what I thought) was a pretty quiet game of volleyball because one of the rich RV driving pigs felt "disturbed" by all that noise. This was in the middle of the day, and the pig was laying at the pool about 50 yards from the volleyball court.

Several places I have been to actually don't have anything for younger people and children to do. Why would I pay $ to go somewhere to be bored? No volleyball, basketball, fishing, playground, etc.

Until some of the nudist organizations and resorts stop acting like an old folks home, they will attract only people who want to be in the old folks home atmosphere. And they need to do a little more about the ridiculous amount of $ they charge.

When we open our resort, we plan on some really simple and small fee structures, and our designs center around the younger and more active people. People with children and not allot of $ to spend.

[TaylorMade]

Speaking from the self proclaimed Nudist Capitol of North America, we see all ages at the many and varied resorts and housing developments in our area.

But you're in an area that gets ALOT of sun, has a brisk tourist trade and is growing like heck. Not every club is lucky enough to be located in C. Fla.

*Taylor*

[12voltman59]

I'll come to your place jedi!!!

[welickit]

That article has been in the news for two or three days and it caused us to wonder where they got their figures from. Certainly AANR contributed but we found the over all report to be a bit under reported. They should have given the figures on membership for different parts of the country, North v, South (climate issue), Bible Belt v. More open areas of the country. We only frequent a half a dozen nudist resorts but based on our experience the report is inaccurate. :2cents: They held their welcome day or what ever they called it during a season when it was cold and raw. They admitted most of those who attended bundled up in sweaters. Poor planning on someones part. In New England they need to have it in July or August if they expect people to attend and get naked. At least the wood stove will be out and nobody will get scorched buns. :2cents:

[pasco_lol_cpl]

But you're in an area that gets ALOT of sun, has a brisk tourist trade and is growing like heck. Not every club is lucky enough to be located in C. Fla.

*Taylor*
Oh sure, go right ahead and mess my post up with facts. Whats next? Telling folks that the sky is blue? :tongue:

[Solomon]

and don't have much in common with the folks who do nothing but sit on their bums all day wearing their high $ watches and shades, sneering down their nose at anyone who isn't just like them.

just a minor note.... i have yet to run into truly wealthy people that are like that..... although from what i understand their kids quite often are, and people that are really infected with status like high priced doctors, lawyers, and CEO's, but they aren't wealthy.... just broke at a higher lifestyle usually

[TaylorMade]

Oh sure, go right ahead and mess my post up with facts. Whats next? Telling folks that the sky is blue? :tongue:


Yeah, I'm a total unforgiving bastage like that. :tongue:

*Taylor*

[12voltman59]

I used to visit a nudist club located in one of "The Palm Beaches" --Royal Palm Beach--it was interesting that the town had that name for even though it was in Palm Beach County Florida--this "Palm Beach" had no beaches--but I guess it did have plenty of Royal Palms though---

Being where it was--there were a lot of high end folks--but even though I was but a lowly non-commissioned petty officer in the service---I was treated fine--I sat and chatted with folks who were CEOs, airline pilots, entreprenuers and trust fund babies---and there were some other working stiffs like me who had occupations like teachers, security guards, janitors and such---

everyone got along just fine and I did not feel that my value was any less because I drove up in my VW Rabbit and the person sitting next to me drove up in a Mercedes---he might have had on a really expensive Rolex--I had a Rolex on too--mine only cost a few hundred dollars and his might have been a few thousand---but it did not seem to matter much---everybody was on equal footing at that nudist camp so I have not had the experience that Jedi talked about---I guess it can get that way at some places--just like with most things--its depends on the individual--there are rich assholes and there are poor ones just the same----I don't have time for either of them!!!

[temp3303]

as a 39 y.o. visitor to solair, i can say that they ARE trying
to encourage younger (-40) members with reduced rates which
is very handy, especially for those of us of modest means.

but how to bridge the age gap and appeal to a wider audience?
that's a tough one, especially in uptight ct.

for the record: it's a great place to visit with a very
laid back atmosphere. try it, you just might like it.

*disclaimer: i have no affiliation with solair other than being a guest

[diamond_tether]

Nudist resorts are trying to get younger crowds, but the things they do don't appeal to the younger crowds. Despite being big proponents of clothing always being optional there's very little about proper resorts that attract us. For some, they're shallow and don't want to see old folks naked. For most of us, it's legitimate concern and it's got nothing to do with the fact that most everyone we'd meet would be twice our age or more. The male half of the couple had a friend who used to run one of these places and thanks to his honesty and our interactions with him, we've pretty much sworn off going to one for a good, long while.

It seems like the nudist community is real big on putting up the front that sex and nudity are separate. Most of the younger generation doesn't see the need to actively separate them. We know they're separate. So actively doing it only makes it seem like people are trying too hard. Trying to preserve that ideology by negatively spinning sex (ie - in regard to boys getting hardons) only continues to demonize the act. Which doesn't make sense when you're standing around a bunch of naked people. It doesn't mean sex is all you talk about or is everything you're thinking about - it isn't by a long shot, but by cutting it away - they're making a bigger deal out of it than it needs to be. That turns the younger generations off. We got enough 'sex is bad' from our parents. Being told that by parental aged people who are full on naked is just ridiculous to us.

Females get a bit of a boon in that when they're aroused, not necessarily everyone knows. That's fine, that's what the towels are for. However, when a guy gets an erection - he's expected to make it go away very, very fast. If he doesn't - then he's getting looks, comments and can possibly be asked to leave until he 'calms down'. Too many issues with it and he'll be asked to leave the resort for good. That's beyond not fair. It's a natural function and if it were just so easy as tossing a towel on it or laying on one's stomach that's fine - but from what we've been told, it can be very thin line to walk at times for guys and I don't see the need to add that kind of stress to my life. A dick getting hard isn't a bad thing and guys don't want to be around people who are going to tell them it is.

Our biggest concern is being naked around other people's kids. We're just not okay with that. For a multitude of reasons - most of the people in our age group feel the same way. It's not even a sexual concern thing. We just have no desire to see other people's children running around in the buff. Seriously, it kinda freaks us out. We were told nudity is bad when we were young, so it's incredibly disconcerting to see parents the same age as our own not saying that to their children and encouraging them otherwise.

Many of their practices just don't fit with the current needs/ideologies of our age group. Being nude's still a big deal - but with most people in our generation, it's not nearly what it used to be. Now it's common to hear about everyone in a room of our age group sleeping nude, being around the house nude, engaging in various types of clandestine (and not so clandestine) public sex - we don't see a specific need to go find a place to be nude.

Piercings and Body Art. A lot of nudist resorts we've come across do not allow piercings below the face to remain in during one's time at the resort. Nobody I know is taking out their body mods just for the sake of pleasing the mentality of the resort. For us, they're art and enhance our bodies. One would think that people into the Human Body itself wouldn't be worried about the extensive, suggestive or extremely ornate decorations that some people in our generation get - but they are. It's a generational thing. And, while it may be fun to freak out the muggles at times, we're not actually in it to rock the boat to the tune of scaring some old lady into hiding her grandchild from the guy with the full back and arm sleeve tattoos and a Zero gauge Prince Albert ring hanging from the tip of his prick. We wouldn't want to do that because we don't want the art on our bodies being used to promote a bad image of body mods as a whole in the minds of grandparents, parents or especially, kids.

You have to pay to be nude. Why on earth would we (as we take our first baby steps on the road to financial stability) pay a hunk of money to go be nude somewhere around people we don't know and come from a totally different generation/mindset from ourselves? We can go camping in a state park with our friends and in the middle of the night (or when we think nobody's looking) strip down to skinny dip for a whole lot less (if it costs anything at all). The sun is free and it's shining down on your house..so, tanning nude and tolpess in back decks and roofs is common with us, too.

If we're going to be nude somewhere specific, we're doing it at events like Burning Man and other 'hippy fests' that are clothing optional. There, we're around people who talk about anything (from sex and open relationships to astro physics) without any hangups or concerns in any direction. If we see families, we're less concerned because the parents brought their kids there already aware of the fact that the kid is possibly/probably going to be exposed to sex in some form or another - and they're ready to explain/guide the child through the questions they do or will have in the future. We can also compliment someone on their private parts and get a heartfelt 'Thank you!' and if a guy's got a boner - people are probably chasing him around trying to paint it green. The enviornment is a lot more laid back and comfortable to our peer set.

It's a matter of mentality, really. If Nudism becomes extinct, it will only do so until our generation makes it a fad, begins attending the resorts in large numbers and conforms the mentality of Nudism as a whole to something we're more comfortable/familiar with and/or prefer.

[TaylorMade]

D_T.

Wow. That was VERY in-depth and really gave me alot to think about and go :eek: over.

Ban on piercing? Frowning on Hardons? Geez, If I wanted a 1950's mentality, I'd have more fun just going swing dancing.

No wonder younger people who want to be naked do it privately!

*Taylor*

[jedinudist]

just a minor note.... i have yet to run into truly wealthy people that are like that..... although from what i understand their kids quite often are, and people that are really infected with status like high priced doctors, lawyers, and CEO's, but they aren't wealthy.... just broke at a higher lifestyle usually


I, and several of my nudist friends have encountered quite a few of them.

[jedinudist]

I'll come to your place jedi!!!
LOL - When we get ready, I'll definitely announce it on here! Because the OTHER major reason we aren't going to affiliate with aanr, is their "unspoken" stance on orientations that aren't hetero.

I had one of aanr's favorites tell me that when we bring other "orientations" into it, it isn't nudism anymore.

To hell with the bigots.

whoops! better get off my soapbox - lol

[Solomon]

I, and several of my nudist friends have encountered quite a few of them.

on second thought... you're probably right, they are a bit snobbish....

[12voltman59]

LOL - When we get ready, I'll definitely announce it on here! Because the OTHER major reason we aren't going to affiliate with aanr, is their "unspoken" stance on orientations that aren't hetero.

I had one of aanr's favorites tell me that when we bring other "orientations" into it, it isn't nudism anymore.

To hell with the bigots.

whoops! better get off my soapbox - lol


Jedi-it does seem to be the case with AANR---they hold pretty steadfast to their view of seperating nudism from anything remotely sexual--I guess you do have to think of the times that organization got started--like 1937 or something---

While there had to be some "marketing" aspect to that stance---I would bet the founding members of the group really did believe it or want to believe it-they certainly had to "sell" that idea I am sure when someone bought a parcel of land and announced they were opening a nudist camp there---they had to be squeaky clean and wholesome or nudism would never have flown in this very uptight, and puritanical country.

We need to form a nudist organization that freely recognizes that humans have sex---of all varities and it's acceptable for members of this organization's affiliated clubs to not have to hide the fact they have sex.

But then again--let's face it---in terms of accepting many things---we are not much different today from folks back in '37. You'd still get static from neighbors of a place that pretty much is freewheeling in regards to sex.

They would in all probability---get in league with local law enforcement including the county sheriff and prosecutor's office to hassle such a place on criminal grounds and nit pick you to death with civil stuff and also using things like zoning laws and such to be a pest--if even if they could not outrighly shut you down--they would try to bankrupt a owner of such a club by always taking him to court on one damn thing or another.

One final point--I wonder if you can legally call "nudism" nudism?? They might own the copyright on that term--or on the other related ones as well like "clothing optional!"

[the sacred night]

I think it's that younger people tend to be more body conscious. It takes experience in life to develop confidence in oneself and be sure of oneself, and to be willing to be in a vulnerable state like nudity around people you don't know. Many college students flash when drunk, but if they have to get drunk to do it, that just proves my point. It takes a certain amount of age and wisdom to be able to see that it's not the end of the world if somebody doesn't find you attractive, especially when the media is so constantly pressuring us to look certain ways.

[Rocsteady]

I'm not sure what constitutes young any more. I'm 37 and I love to go nude (I'm not the greatest but not the worst either). If the group gets together let me know and count me in. Thanks.

[TrimBeardHairyBod]

I see I'm the first British member to post on this thread. In the late 80s / early 90s, I belonged to the London Gay Naturists. My experience was the same as the North American one, namely finding relatively few young members. In our group, I cannot recall anyone under about 35 or 40. I used to put this down to the fact that the young were less secure in themselves and were reluctant to display their imperfections - real or imaginary - to all and sundry.

[DiamondDog]

People in their late teens/early-mid 20s don't want to see old/older people naked, or sometimes even associate socially with them, even in settings that don't involve any nudity at all. :2cents:

[Sarasvati]

As a kid I happened to stumble upon a nudist camp in the middle of a dense wood. I was absolutely fascinated and hid out of sight.

There was just a couple there at the time, rather old and not particularly appealing to my eye. A branch snapped and I was spotted.

I legged it as the man chased after me. But he caught me....I gave him a whack and managed to make my escape.

My voyeuristic tendencies began early and were not put off by this occasion.