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SUNSHINE STATE BMX ASSOCIATION, INC. ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION November 11, 2006 Sarasota, FL. Meeting Minutes I. Call to order President, John Pingol called to order the meeting of the Sunshine State BMX Association at 8:20 p.m. on November 11, 2006 at The Sarasota Cay Club in Sarasota, FL. II. Roll call Secretary, Tammi Geary conducted a roll call. The following board members were present: John Pingol, President, Alice Bixler, State Race Commissioner, Steve Doan, Vice President, Tammi Geary, Secretary, and Kathy Bostrom, State Points Keeper. Members at Large present were: Kelly Doan, Brian Fell, Bill Magmer and Lloyd McDonald. Bill Magmer voted as track delegate. Board members not present: Becky Szasz, Treasurer, Charles McGuire, Jim Szasz and Shag Shaughnessy. Track members present or represented: Cape Coral – Chuck Carroll, Track Director and Trish Riddel, Vice President Coral Springs – Ian Chin Loy, Track Director and Rich Montalvo, Member at Large and Richard Dey signed in for a vote. Highlands/Avon Park – Mark Jones, Track Director and Bob Alexander, Asst. Track Director High Springs – Rick Richards, Track President and Linda Schladant, Clerk of Course and Secretary Jacksonville – Vic Lewis, Member at Large Miami South – Jose Garcia, Track Director and Ramon Bristol, Clerk of Course Naples –Ray Coriano, Track Director and Ramon Bristol, Clerk of Course Okeeheelee – Mark Harrell, Track Director, Ira Soletzky, Head Official and Laura Soletzky, Okeeheelee P/R. Orlando – John Payne, Track Director and Ronald Vega, Rider Representative Sarasota – Patrick Brinker, Head Official and John Carmichael, Member at Large St. Cloud – Bill Magmer, Vice President and Sandy Magmer, Clerk of Course St. Petersburg – Tim Mays, Track Director/District Commissioner and Maureen Parker, Treasurer Tampa – Justin Travis, Track Director and Julie Berger, Clerk of Course Tracks not present at meeting: Charlotte, Daytona, Fort Walton Beach, Palm Bay, St. Augustine, Tallahassee and Wallwood. Track votes were increased by 1 to confirm that a quorum was met. III. Approval of minutes from last meeting Secretary, Tammi Geary had copies of Miami meeting minutes (2-25-06) available. Bill Magmer motioned that minutes be accepted. Patrick Brinker seconded. Hand vote taken. Motion passed with acclamation. IV. Medical Staff- John introduced Maurice Brazil. He is a commander for Homeland Security, ERS (Emergency Response System). He became involved in the BMX sport when his son was a rider at St. Petersburg. Maurice wanted to explain who they are and give everyone an idea of what his team does. He commands about 200 doctors and nurses who work basically in clinical settings. Maurice explained that he requires his team to have field experience and working the BMX qualifiers gives them training experience. He is offering medical support to all tracks having State or National Qualifiers/Events by offering the ERS services. He requested a month notice so he can schedule his people. They do accept donations and would greatly appreciate hotel room expenses to be covered to help offset their expenses; however their main purpose is to offer training for his team. Maurice thanked everyone for the way he and his staff have been treated. Maurice introduced Teri Wayman as his right hand person and will be the contact person for Maurice and his staff. Maurice has his own practice; so requests that if anyone is interested in having him and his staff present at their qualifier, to contact Teri and she will forward messages and contact him with dates of events. Teri’s email was given out as, T083069@msn.com. They are training under a non profit organization named WCF (West Central Florida Disaster Services, Inc.). Maurice clarified that they are not working under FEMA; however they do work for the Federal Government. Maurice stated that they have to watch out for safety and liability issues and if he sees someone in that situation he will treat the situation very aggrestively. They have seen a lot of neck fractures, spleen injuries and serious injuries that need to be treated aggressively. IV. Report of Committees a) Ohio Project/2006 Presidents Cup – Alice Bixler – Alice stated that we currently have $23,490.64 in the Ohio fund. Alice stated that we have 230 riders that have indicated they are going to the President’s Cup. She ordered 220 Jersey’s, so we are short on them. She is going to increase the sweatshirt order to compensate the shortage of jerseys. She has received more registrations this weekend, even though it is passed the deadline. Alice informed association that riders that signed up late may not receive a jersey; they may end up with a sweatshirt. Our rider count has increased- this time last year we had 551 riders. Today there were 700 riders present and Sunday with the “Turkey Open” we have close to 730 riders registered. Alice stated that she is concerned about bring the “Cup” back this year due to the class changes with the elite men and the women’s classes’. b) Trophy Team Report – Dave Otterbein introduced Becky Vandergaag as the new trophy team chair person elected today. Becky stated that the trophy teams had 16 teams that competed today and 3 new teams starting. There were a couple of issues with commitment forms, otherwise everything went well. c) Money Team Report – Brian Fell stated that we had 8 money teams compete today. MCS is not participating, due to some other issues. Normal day and everything is going good. J & R won today. V. Report of Officers a) State Race Commissioner – Alice Bixler – stated that we started our New State Season last week and she has received phone calls and emails about the new points program. Most are complaining, however, some are stating they like what we are doing. Alice stated that the silent vote of people spoke for itself today when we had more riders today then we had last year. She feels people are looking for change and this is a good change. We do have a couple of glitches in the program that were discussed in a board meeting we had last night and Kathy will discuss the technical part of it later, and when she does we believe everyone will be happy with the changes that were made. Today was a little hectic in the trailer because although we are using a program that does work with the system, there are a few glitches with it as well and that is why we had several reposts today. Alice stated that the error was her fault, due to her forgetting that in semi’s a rider is dropped and she had to go back and add that rider back in to each motto. Alice thanked Erma and Dave Miller for their support this weekend. Alice stated that what many people do not know is that Friday night when we realized there was a problem with the girls’ class; Erma went home and stayed up half the night to fix the program so it would work this weekend and this morning when we did the girls mottos, they were done right. Alice stated that the program she is using is different then what everyone has because of Erma, so even though Erma is an NBL employee, a national bigwig and an international bigwig, she still knows where her roots are and to please take a moment to thank her for helping us out. 1. Alice explained that what the state has done is use the exact class structure that NBL has approved for their National program. Basically, what we are trying to do is to make it so our system is the same; so that when a rider races state, local, nation or international everything will be the same for that rider; points, combining and same kind of classes. 2. Alice informed association in attendance that Middleburg informed her last night that they are not going to be able to host the February Qualifier. The qualifier should have gone to Daytona, but due to the Daytona 500; we could not put it there. We talked to Coral Springs and although they wanted it, they need the qualifier moved to March. We considered the National schedule and there really isn’t any other weekend that the qualifier could be moved to; so we have moved the February Qualifier to High Springs. 3. Cape Coral Qualifier scheduled April 27th, 28th & 29th had to be changed. The NBL/UCI event at Woodbridge is also scheduled for that weekend. The qualifier will stay in Cape Coral, but is moved to April 20th, 21st & 22nd, provided that Cape Coral will accept date change. 4. Alice stated that she received notice from St. Augustine that they are having an open house next weekend. Their track is finally opening and they are having an all day practice for $2.00 or $5.00. Alice stated that there are flyers and we will find out price amount and have announced tomorrow. Floor opened for questions- Ian Chin Loy/Track Director Coral Springs- Ian told the Board members that he has a problem with how they are doing things. Questioned why some tracks are receiving 2 qualifiers in a 12 month period. Alice explained that if he was referring to the 2 Nationals scheduled, they were decided after our qualifiers were already set and the SSA board does not pick where the NBL schedules their National events. Ian questioned that if the board knew Middleburg was not going to be able to hold the qualifier, why didn’t they change the site or date sooner? Alice and John explained that Bob Hines told us things were going great and we did not know until he informed us on November 10th that Middleburg was not going to be able to hold the qualifier. Lengthy Discussion followed. b) President – John Pingol – Wanted to take a moment to say thank you to board members and volunteers for all their hard work and pitching in to help pull an event together. He stated that whether we volunteer on a national level, local level or state level –Thank you. John also took a moment to personally thank Steve for pitching in and helping referee today since Darol Carr and Jim Szasz could not attend this weekend. c) Vice President – Steve Doan – Stated no report just wanted to make a comment that it was nice to see rider count up and to see a track do something like the “Turkey Open” scheduled for Sunday. d) Secretary – Tammi Geary – Asked permission to discard 2006 ballots. No objections. e) Treasurer – Alice Bixler gave report on behalf of Becky Szasz, who could not be present. Bank statement came in Friday. Current account balance is $46, 663.36; however we still have to pay for 700 plaques that we handed out today. John stated that anyone that wished to receive a treasurer’s printout contact Becky Szasz. f) Promotions – Brian Fell – Brian stated that last year we had about 8 affiliated sponsors and this year we already have 17 affiliated sponsors. Brian introduced Rich Montalvo (BMXvideo.net), stating that many of us may have noticed them filming today. They are trying to put together a TV show. They already have some interest and are working on marketing BMX. They have spoken with the networks and they want a test TV show for Sarasota’s Qualifier and the Orlando Qualifier. The network is excited about BMX and they want it. The network doesn’t have BMX and they want it. The network is Planet X and they can get it to other networks through Direct TV, Dish Network and Bright House to name a few. g) State Points Keeper – Kathy Bostrom – Wanted to explain the changes that have been made with the new points system regarding the point’s structure & class structures. 1. Local Level Only- Mains will be pointed as rider finishes per their class. 2. Elite Women- The women’s class has been divided into 2 classes. 17 & over Girls Amateur class (plate series) and Elite Women’s Series (money and plate). When a rider turns 17 they will need to decide if they are going to ride the amateur series or the Elite Women’s open money and plate series. The Elite Women’s Series participants will not be able to race local races. They will need to obtain their points in the Elite women open class at the Qualifiers. The 16 & over amateur girls can race for the “money of the day” at Qualifiers, but will not be eligible for the Elite Women’s plate series. 3. Junior & Elite Women Cruisers’- There is no class on the local level for Junior or Elite women Cruisers. The change implemented will allow Elite Cruiser women to be able to ride on a local level. 4. Program Problems- Kathy stated that if any clerks are having problems with their program to call or email her. Alice also stated they could call her. 5. Pilot Program- Alice stated that the NBL is hoping other states will adopt the New Points Program. Florida is the pioneer and is actually being used as a pilot program to find glitches and to see what works and what doesn’t. We will be able to tell them where they need to make changes in the program at the NBL Competition Congress. Alice encouraged everyone to have a positive attitude. VI. New Business- a) 2007 SSA Elections- John explained that people picked as tellers are not running for offices. Tellers picked were Nancy Smith (Head Teller), Karen Parrish and Linda McClough. John asked if anyone had any objections. There were none. John introduced current Board Members. John explained that the Treasurer, State Points Keeper and SSA Clerk of Course positions are appointed by the newly elected board members. 1. State Race Commissioner- Collette Morin nominated Alice Bixler. Alice Bixler accepted nomination. No other nominations. Alice will remain State Race Commissioner. 2. President- Kathy Bostrom nominated John Pingol. John Pingol accepted nomination. No other nominations. John Pingol will remain President. John thanked association for the support and stated that he enjoyed doing his position very much. 3. Vice President- Ron Howeth nominated Steve Doan. Steve Doan accepted nomination. No other nominations. Steve Doan will remain Vice President. 4. Secretary- Sandy Magmer nominated Tammi Geary. Tammi Geary accepted nomination. No other nominations. Tammi Geary will remain Secretary. 5. Members at Large- John requested that one of the tellers write the names down on the Dry Erase board as candidates are nominated. Nominations can be made by anyone and 7 members will be voted into office for a period of 1 year. John Carmichael nominated Lloyd McDonald. Lloyd McDonald accepted. . Mark Jones nominated Bob Alexander. Bob Alexander accepted. Dave “Smitty” Smith nominated Bob Fain. Bob Fain accepted. Tim Mays nominated Kelly Doan. Kelly accepted, but stated that with her medical condition and the start of chemo she may not be able to attend all Qualifiers and if she feels it is too much for her; she will resign if elected. Kathy Bostrom nominated Bill Magmer. Bill Magmer accepted. Steve Doan nominated Ron Howeth. Ron Howeth accepted. Maureen Parker nominated Tim Mays. Tim Mays accepted. Ray Coriano nominated Chuck Carroll. Chuck Carroll accepted. Danny Morin nominated Laura Pingol. Laura thanked everyone for the nomination, but declined. Bill Magmer nominated Brian Fell. Brian Fell accepted. Ian Chin Loy nominated Rich Montalvo. Rich Montalvo accepted. Jose Garcia nominated Larry Farson. Larry Farson accepted. Bob Alexander nominated Justin Travis. Justin Travis declined. Linda Schladant nominated John Pringle. John Pringle accepted. Ian Chin Loy motioned to close nominations. Ron Howeth seconded. John Pingol closed nominations. Ballots were handed out by the tellers. John explained that for each delegate’s card the member is holding they would receive that many voting ballots. John stated that we were having a simple majority vote; so the 7 highest votes would be elected. John had each candidate introduce their self to the association. John explained that each delegate should write 7 candidate names for each voting ballot. New Members at Large elected for 2007 are: Kelly Doan, Larry Farson, Brian Fell, Ron Howeth, Bill Magmer, Lloyd McDonald and John Pringle. John stated that the new board members will have a meeting directly after the SSA meeting. b) 2007 State Season- Chuck Carroll asked why State Season is starting so early? Alice explained that one of the reasons was because we moved the State Championship race up a week and another reason was because riders were complaining that they didn’t have enough time to get all their local races in because there are so many other races that happen between January to May. The board felt that if we moved the start of the season up, then it might give a boost to our state season and to help increase the rider count; since it usually increases during state season. John explained that we will still be counting the best 3 qualifiers as we have in the past. c) State Championship- Okeeheelee is scheduled to host the Championship Qualifier; however it is scheduled on the same weekend as Mother’s Day. Bob Fain suggested that we give all mothers in attendance a pink Carnation. John stated that we have something planned. John also stated that we are considering starting the ceremony early to expedite things so Mothers can get home and enjoy the rest of their day. d) On-Line Registration- Issue was brought up. Alice stated that Rich Montalvo is willing to look into for us, but until we can figure out our Visa machine we have held off with adding any additional electronic gadgets. Rich stated that he is working with J&R right now setting up some programs for them and when he is done, he is offering his assistance to us. Alice stated that the other concern is money. Our rider count decreased last year and we had to reduce entry fees, because the parents were complaining. Alice stated that hopefully with the new system we are implementing our rider count will increase again. e) 2007 National Competition Congress- John stated that the NBL Competition Congress is going to be held at Columbus/Dublin, Ohio on February 9th, 10th, & 11th, 2007. Alice reminded all tracks that the SSA pays for 1 plane ticket for 1 person to go from each track. The track is responsible for the motel (appx. $100 a night) and registration fees. Alice advised everyone that each track should send their clerks of course. Alice repeated several times that it would be a mistake for a track not to send the Clerk. This year the NBL will have a computer program and they are only going to allow the clerks to go to the clerking training; so the tracks that don’t send their clerks will not know how to run the program. The NBL is supposed to send a letter on December 5th or 10th to everyone that has a license now. The letter is going to state when the clerking classes are being held (there are supposed to be 2 being offered) and what kind of computer you will need. Alice stated that she knows one of the classes is on Friday morning and that the class size is going to be limited for each class. The NBL will not tolerate talking and playing around and they will oust people and not allow them to attend the next class; so those that are going are going are encouraged to come with a serious attitude. f) Sunday Morning Practice- John stated that Sunday morning practice is basically a pro warm up and Brian has asked the board to allow the 16 & over open riders to participate in that warm up also. John explained that the motion was defeated due to no second on the motion. John wanted to ask the association how they felt about a warm up on Sunday for every rider and to get some feedback to see what they want. The practice would have to be early, due to the SSA meeting held Sunday morning; however we would consider moving to a later time or even Saturday night to accommodate everyone if we could come to a compromise. Discussion followed. Issue put on table for future reference. g) 50/50 Donations- Laura Soletsky asked that 25% of 1 days percentage collected from 50/50 be donated to the Brain Tumor Foundation. Laura is requesting that each track that is having a Qualifier consider donating just 25% of one days collected amount of 50/50 to the foundation. Laura also stated that she has a parent that works for a company that will match our donated amount by 3 times up to $5,000.00. VII. Good and Welfare- a) Volunteer of the Year- Alice announced that the volunteers of the year are Jim and Becky Szasz. Alice stated that they will be attending January’s qualifier; so if we see them to thank them for all their hard work. b) Volunteer Awards- Alice thanked everyone for their time, commitment and hard work this year. Volunteer bags were given out to all those in attendance. c) Kelly T-shirt- Awarded Kelly with one of the pink T-shirt’s donated by TB Trophies for today’s volunteers. T-shirt was signed by volunteers and riders. VIII. Adjournment Bill Magmer motioned to adjourn meeting. Lloyd McDonald seconded. John Pingol adjourned the meeting at 11:00 p.m. Minutes respectfully submitted by: Tammi Geary/ SSA Secretary Minutes approved by: Alice Bixler/ State Race Commissioner Tammi Geary/SSA Secretary |