[Paddlewise] Keeping kayak club members in touch.

I'm looking into ways of keeping folks in our kayak club in touch 
with what's going on.  

For quite a while, our club's had a quarterly newsletter, but 
increasing the frequency is out of the question.  Since most of our 
membership have computers, we are exploring getting some kind of 
email based system.  We'd like to get breaking information to the 
members quickly.  For example, if a trip comes together but needs 
another member by the following weekend, waiting for the next 
newsletter is out of the question.

Right now, we have a web-based BBS, but it is little used and not 
very good (I'm the moderator and _I_ rarely go there!).  It was 
supplied by a commercial interest and I'd rather drop it.

I like the idea of a mailing list (a la Paddlewise), but don't know 
how to set one up and have been told there's a payment issue with 
majordomo etc. (is this true? - who pays for Paddlewise?)

Our club's web site is on a commercial site with advertising 
(Geocities), but it can't support anything but read-only web site 
stuff - no BBS or other things.  We'd have to go to a $$ service to 
do that.  We have a budget but would like to keep costs down.

Phone networks exist, but they are, and are perceived to be, 
cliquish.  New members tend to be left out, since no one knows them.

How do folks in your clubs keep in touch?

Mike
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