Hey dan@ and anyone else reading who may be interested... a few negative comments that end on a positive note...
The BAR met regularly for a good couple of years - it'd have to be at least 4 years now, but a lack of new members stagnated the group so we shifted into smaller groups of friends and what not. I have personally helped at least 6 or 7 all grain brewers in the Ballarat region get up and running by having them around on brew days, sharing equipment and so forth, but only a couple of them have the time/inclination/commitment to actually join any kind of club or to offer to set up and/or host meetings. It is hard to sustain a club of up to 15 people attending when only 3 or 4 people ever offer to host regular meetings and to do the advertising and so forth (or are even able to, because not everyone has a shed/yard/family that can handle a dozen piss-heads hanging around).
The guy who set the web page up left Ballarat and the page expired...in something like 3 years we got **** all interest from anyone who had the time/inclination to be involved beyond a few random tastings. The Facebook page generates very little interest, even when pushed and shared around. Although people would say they were interested at the homebrew shop or by PM or whatever, the reality is that when a date and a time was set, no one (new) would turn up.
The other problem with the small-ish group is that we all learned what we could from one another, and not all of us have the same interest in refining/discussing technique or ingredients and so forth. To be honest, it gets boring when you hold a brewers event and some people just want to drink piss and talk shit and/or won't get involved with the brewing spirit of things (obviously there is an element of piss-drinking and shit-talking that is unavoidable haha).
As for competition entry, for me personally it became a waste of beer as I largely know what I am doing wrong when I do it, and I am generally very happy with my results and don't really care what anyone thinks in a competitive setting...especially people who might have radically different taste preferences to me. I have made some good friends through AHB and BAR and the music scene that involves a few pro-brewers and I have been helped along heaps to be able to detect most of the major/common flaws that someone with my set-up and yeast preferences tends to suffer from ...plus for every amazingly spot-on and helpful suggestion I got back from bigger comps, I would get 2 or 3 one word responses that gave me nothing to work with.
I am confident that what the BAR needs - if it is to even remain a 'club' at all – is a whole new injection of new people who are genuinely enthusiastic about brewing and learning and talking and not just big mouthing like they know everything after reading AHB for 3 months and then responding badly to critical feedback. I would PM Wakkatoo (old member) and Slcmorro and DaveHQ... these guys last two guys got on board really hard and took huge leaps and bounds with their energy and commitment to brewing.
I have made some great friends out of the club and they are all the guys that I can look in the eye and tell them that their beer is shit (and they will do the same to me), and yet then offer advice or discuss possible issues to do with technique or ingredients etc etc that comes from years of brewing and practice. It's not enough to talk brewing, you have to get your hands dirty, even if it means making shit beers.
Alternatively, if you already have an established group of brewers and want to expand and attract other brewers to the group, start a new club. Out of 8-9 regular members I either organised, helped-organise or hosted at least 4 of our 'official' meet-ups, matched only in number by Billygoat, and I now no longer have the time or inclination to do so (I won't speak on his behalf, but I suspect he would feel similar).
All it takes is a couple of like minded people to say '**** it', lets advertise a time and a place and see who shows up.
If a new group starts – and for what's worth I wouldn't care if new people wanted to use the BAR name and FB page etc – I'll certainly try my best to get there at least once to see what it's all about. Alternatively, if anyone is interested in seeing how I brew or what my basic approach is (3 vessel gravity system, 40L output) then PM me and I will let you know when I am brewing next (though I tend to brew during the week which makes it difficult for some people to see).
There's a lot of knowledge and good blokes floating about in Ballarat and if whoever is reading wants to tap into it, then make it happen. Me and Billygoat and Vic45 and Herbo and Wakkatoo and Pommie Granite and a few others who have come and gone all had a go at it and we did our best and we had a lot of fun for at least 4 years or more, but now it's someone else turn to push ahead: if you build it, they might come, but even if they don't you can still have a good time.