St Jude bidding !!!

[Pine]

Well I just can't help myself . I gotta say something .
People have listed things on the auction for the sole purpose of raising money for the St Jude kids and there families .
In the past I have seen things go for much less than they are worth and that just sickens me . They were listed to raise money not to give a person a good deal . I personally have listed an item last year that I had over $80.00 in and it went for $50.00
I felt like I would have been better off to just donate $80.00 directly to St Jude rather than giving a good deal to someone and Jt Jude only got $50.00 .
Don't mean to sound like I am complaining but I am .
Not looking to upset anyone , just hope you think about it .
God bless you all ; Graps

[breazyears]

Most people give what they can, that's what I do. I have bid on an item this year that I don't even need but hey... if the moneys going to a good cause its a win win. I wish I could afford to give more but I simply cant afford to.
 You raised $50 for an amazing cause, st judes kids didn't lose $30 because it cost you $80.
 You did a good thing.

[jt85]

Graps, I completely understand what your saying but also agree with breazyears. The person that gave $50 for your item last year may not have even had the 50 to give but found a way to make it happen. Just something to think about.

[MO Bow]

we hear ya buddy.  it's early, but i have a set of custom wood arrows up and they just hit about what it would cost me to make them.  it would be awesome to see them jump up in the next few days...

but don't forget, there's still some superfluous bidding going on.  a dozen arrows are sitting at $400 right now.

Money is tight for a lot of folks.  I have a special needs child myself.  Between travelling the eastern seaboard for his medical care, my 2 other kids and life in general, i don't think i'll be able to donate much, but i'll be able to put some quality time into a dozen arrows for someone who believes in this great cause.

when it comes to charity, don't think of it as losing money...that was $50 they didn't have before.

[Hackbow]

Graps,

I understand how you feel.  But if you look at the auction as a whole, I think you'd see that the money raised FAR exceeds the market value of the offerings.

I, among many others, have been participating since the first auction. My process is as follows: I determine a beginning budget (with my wife's input), I scout out the listings and determine which 3-5 I really want and make sure I've got the funds budgeted to win them. As the bidding progresses, I may be blown out of the water by others more motivated on that particular item and I reallocate those dollars to another one. I have also won items at lower bids that allow me to bid higher on others. I think a lot of other guys do the same. There are only a few folks with really high budgets and may God continue to bless them.

Have you noticed the number of listings for arrow shafts material this year? There are only going to be so many bids on those and those bids will be diluted. On the other hand, there is some incredible chili being offered that has some great bids already.      

I've also had listings go below their value and some that have gone for MANY times their value. Stick around for awhile and enjoy the fun and generosity as well as the opportunity to help sick kids in the process.

[Alexander Traditional]

I know what you mean. I  donated a bow last year,that I paid close to $300 for. $75 was the highest bid. I choose to give a $100 for it,and keep the bow and save the trouble of shipping it.

That's why I didn't put anything in this year,but I am going to bid high on a few things that people have put on here this year.

[Pine]

I do have to admit , I remember a custom knife here last year that was worth about $300 that went for $1200 .
That's cool .

[J. Holden]

Well, you got me.  I didn't donate this year, I have a piss poor excuse if you want to hear it.  Didn't think so.

I just bid on a few items.  Thanks for the kick in the pants Graps!

-Jeremy  

I would much rather look at this from breazyears perspective than yours, Graps!

Bisch

[Izzy]

An option is to bid on your own item if not happy with the going price. This is a win all around, you keep whatever you have put up for auction and donate cash to the greatest cause.    

[The Whittler]

People give what they can not what someone says they should. Graps, that is just not right, you don't belittle people on how/howmuch they should spend.

[nineworlds9]

I guess part of me kinda gets what graps is saying, but at the same time one of the huge attractions of the auction is good deals, lets not be naïve here...YES, people want to help the kids, but the brilliance behind this auction is that it is a circle:  it wouldn't be possible to raise..what are we approaching almost a million $ at some point not far off??...all the funds for the kids without generous item donors and generous bidders...and yes I say generous even in spite of some of the low bids sometimes, because any fool knows how much money we crazy tradbowhunters spend on gear all the rest of the year, and then even more FOR THE KIDS I'm betting when a lot of us don't even need more stuff LOL.

[Scott E]

Have more faith in your fellow man. We all give what we can.

Mark 12:44 "They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."

[Bud B.]

It's also possible that some may be just bidding to prompt the previous bidder into another higher bid. My biggest concern is the items that go with no bids at all. If we listed our items with a minimum opening bid, many would never get a bid at all. And finally, if you do look at the overall gain, it more than balances out to the positive for the children of St. Jude.

I remember some cake that went for an outrageous amount a few years back. Cookies are great bid items as well. All my combined bids already exceed my budget, but that's OK. It should make you squeeze the wallet some anyway. If I get outbid on some things, I'll look to boost something else that might be lower than what I think it's worth. It's all worth more than it goes for in the end when you think of he kids.

[Jon Stewart]

If you get a dollar that is a dollar more than you had when we started.

Remember that you donate from your heart not your wallet.

[Eric Krewson]

I listed stuff that I no longer use, one item cost me a fortune back in the day but is of no use to me now. I would rather have it raise $10 for the kids (the current bid) than sit on my book shelf and gather dust for another 30 years.

I certainly don't mind people bargain hunting, I would do it myself. I was watching that beautiful Damascus hawk closely but it got out of the "bargain" range pretty quickly.

My donated stuff raised over $600 last year, if I find a bargain and jump on it I won't feel guilty.

[huntnmuleys]

looks to me like its gonna be a crazy year on the st. jude!  some things aren't getting many or any bids, some are already through the roof!

[FerretWYO]

I would not worry about what people bid. Sometimes you do get a good deal other times you pay 1200 for 12 cookies its all good either way.

[stabow]

I tend to bid higher on custom made stuff that you can't buy in a store. I look forward to this auction each year it's a lot of fun and for a good cause.

[Whip]

I agree with those that day not to worry about it. I am one that tends to bid on items I don't need or want just to try to get the bid up.  Sometimes it works and someone will outbid me. Other times I end up with something I don't need.  And if I end up with a bargain on something I usually make up for it when I send my payment at the end of the auction.  I always "round up" my bids at the end of the auction and I know tend pay a lot more than the actual value of things I have bought.
In the end, is all good!