Organized Racing is the reason you travel with your kids 2000 miles away to exotic locations (relatively speaking). Without Racing, my family would never have had any reason to go to: Upstate New York (twice), Oklahoma City , Panama City, Biloxi, Ventura CA, LHC, Big Marine Lake, Long Beach, Yankton SD and Pensacola. All this while the 2 older ones were in High School. Before we raced, we stayed on Clear Lake. zzzzzzzz.
Rick's right about the perceived bickering, it is just the organizational aspects of any group. We just do it on the net because of geography limitations.