2002
Annual Board Meeting
January 12 & 13, 2002
Las Vegas, NV.
USRA Members….
I just got back from our annual Board of Directors meeting, and wanted to
give everyone a brief report of what took place.
The meeting began at 9:00 am on Saturday with all Board Members present and approximately 10 general members attending. After the Board introduced themselves, the members who wanted to address the Board had their chance. Topics of discussion included the structure of the Board of Directors, the costs of racing and ways to reduce them, expected conduct of members, and the points system for the series championships. We also got an update on the preparations for this year’s race in Texas from Rick Grim. The Board members often gave their opinions on some of these subjects and asked questions of the members as well. It was a very informative session and both the members and the Board enjoyed sharing their views and ideas. Roger Smith from RC Excellence then spoke and gave us an update on our relationship with the magazine, and offered some words of encouragement and advice.
With the general membership still present, we moved on to the first agenda item on Incorporation of the USRA. As most of you know, it has been assumed that the USRA was incorporated back in 1994 when it was so stated in the original Constitution and Bylaws. Recent research has revealed no record of such, so I assigned Archie Snyder to look into how to get this done. Archie gave us a good report on why we should do it, and the costs that would be involved. Loren Tregellas the promoter of the Kansas race has had a lot of experience in incorporation as well, and agreed with much of what was presented. The Board approved the motion to incorporate, and assigned Loren and Archie to team up and put together the paperwork so we could proceed. This incorporation will give the entire USRA an extra layer of protection against liability.
Our next open meeting agenda item was the availability of engines for our 4.6 ci classes. Fred French presented his findings on the performance difference between a Zenoah 445 and the new Zenoah GT-80. With identical modifications there was an approximate difference of 250 rpms. With only a few engines available for our current engine displacement limit, discussion centered around how and when to increase the displacement because it was obvious that an increase was necessary to provide a new racer with an engine. One option was to allow the larger engines in 2003, but with a weight penalty on the aircraft running them. Fred French informed us that he was working on a source for parts to upgrade the current 445 into a GT-80 for a modest fee. (approximately $180.00) I have also been in contact with a source for these parts, and felt reasonably sure I could come close to this price as well. With that in mind, the Board decided to increase the displacement limit to 81cc with no weight penalty EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2003. That’s next year folks, not this year. This increase will dramatically increase the number of engines available for use by our racers. Manufacturers for engines that will be legal next year include Zenoah, BME, ZDZ, and Fox. All of these are light twin-cylinder engines that are production based, widely available, and relatively affordable. Racers in these classes will have approximately 15 months to either upgrade their current Zenoah 445 to a GT-80, or acquire one of the new motors. With the modest power increase, they also have the option of continuing with their current engine. I feel this decision was a very proactive and forward-looking one, and will prove to be essential for the growth and continuation of our sport.
We then adjourned for a lunch break and when we reconvened in closed session we began work on the next agenda item, my proposal for amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws. The proposal was extensively discussed and the change of structure for the Board was the main topic of discussion. The options for restructuring the Board that we discussed included; eliminating promoters from the Board. Classifying Board agenda items as promoter items, membership items, or both. And selecting one promoter per region for the Board based on seniority. To change this structure, the Constitution of the USRA would need to be amended and that would require a three-fourths majority vote. After over an hour of discussion it became obvious that none of these options were that heavily favored and we decided to temporarily set aside this issue and proceed with the rest of the agenda.
We then set out approving some of the other amendments in my proposal, most of them having to do with the way the Board conducts business. Since our Board typically meets face-to-face only once a year, it is necessary to conduct business through regular postal mail and e-mail. These amendments established some procedures and guidelines for doing this. We also added some words to better clarify that the USRA is a rules and sanctioning body. These amendments all passed unanimously.
The Board then began examining proposals to make some minor changes to the Specifications and Racing Procedures. On the specifications side, the language regarding legal width of wheel pants for Formula One was clarified. We also better clarified the language relating to single cylinder engine mounting for that class. The list of eligible Biplanes was removed from our Specs, and replaced with wording that allows for any Biplane that raced at Reno. ( FYI…All Biplanes currently racing are covered under that statement) In the Unlimited Class, we removed the minimum wheel diameter from the NA-50 as this was the only Unlimited with that kind of requirement. The Board approved a new Formula One kit that needed a rules interpretation, and standardized the AT-6 specs so that all race events will use the same fuel blend and prop. Under Racing Procedures, changes were made to provide stopwatch backups to the electronic timing systems. Other changes to the Racing Procedures were also made, mainly to clarify our existing practices and eliminate gray areas that could lead to misinterpretation of the procedures.
Refining the points system was the next agenda item, and after much discussion the Board decided to make the following modifications to the point system. This year, a racer will be allowed to select his best three out of four events to count towards the championship. This still gives an advantage to those racers who can make all four events, but does not put a racer who can only attend three events at a serious disadvantage. To encourage participation in our smaller classes, we also modified the points payout for heat races when there are less than five entries. When a class only has four entries at an event, the points awarded will look like this; 1st place = 15 points, 2nd place = 11 points, 3rd place = 8 points, 4th place = 6 points. When a class only has three entries, the points award schedule looks like this; 1st place = 11 points, 2nd place = 8 points, and 3rd place = 6 points. In the past, classes that had less than five entries received no points for that event, so hopefully this change will bring some racers out in our smaller classes. The Board also voted to remove the five points awarded for a DNF or did not finish result. Lastly, it was decided that a class must have enough entries to score points at two of the four events in order to be eligible for USRA World Championship status.
The other side of the Championship series is funding for the awards. The board has decided to place an additional $10 sanction per entry towards an award fund for the USRA World Championship series. This will at least guarantee the purchase of a nice trophy for each of our champions. It will also proportion the award with the number of entries that we receive throughout the year, and this year is looking like it will be a very well attended one. Additional sponsorship can then be acquired throughout the year to sweeten the pot.
The next item we discussed is an issue that we hope we do not have to deal with, code of conduct. There are currently requirements in our Constitution and Bylaws, as well as our Racing Procedures that clearly state what the expected conduct of our members should be. This code will be strictly enforced by the Board and the event promoters.
The last item on the agenda was a discussion on the sanction of a future Reedley event. Most of us know that the promoters who held events at Madera have moved their races to the town of Reedley. They have also changed the date of their race to the spring. The board decided to consider sanctioning their event in the future. I hope to discuss the use of our Rules and Specs and our Racing Procedures with the Reedley promoters. Assuming that they would want to be part of our series, and that they would use USRA Rules, Specs, and Racing procedures, we just may have an additional event next year. I hope to go to this year’s event at Reedley to see their operations first-hand, and offer help in adopting our guidelines if they want to join us in the future.
With the rest of our agenda completed, we revisited the Board structure issue that we discussed earlier. Another long discussion yielded another option that we debated on, and later decided to sleep on until Sunday morning. We reconvened on Sunday at 8:30 and tied up a few loose ends regarding how we would conduct Board business via e-mail. We also agreed to move the anniversary date of our two-year rules package so that it alternates with the year that elections are held. Currently our rules are up for review at the same time that new officers are elected. Alternating these events will significantly ease the work load on the Board and produce a better product, so next year’s rules package will be good for the 2003-2004 seasons.
Getting back to the structure issue, we suddenly found a consensus building for our new option, and with a small amount of work were able to unanimously pass the basis for amendment. Here are the basics of the new structure. Beginning now, the Board will consist of the President, the Vice President, the three District Reps, and one Promoter from each region based on seniority. Other Promoters will remain on the Board as non-voting advisors, and will be fully updated on Board business. Beginning with the next election, the Board will consist of the President, the three District Representatives, and one Promoter from each region. The difference being that the promoter from each region will be elected by the membership in that region. Other Promoters would still be non-voting advisors. The vote of the Vice President would be up for consideration at that point as well. This new structure would empower the membership by asking them to elect every person on the Board of the USRA. It would also place a limit on the size of the Board to make conducting business practical when we can’t meet face-to-face. I am now rewriting this proposal into the Constitution and Bylaws for final approval by the Board. Once this is complete and approved, I will make a copy of these documents, as well as our updated Rules, Specs and Procedures, available to anyone who wants them. This updated version of the Constitution and Bylaws will also be included in our incorporation package.
In closing, I want to thank all of the
Board members for their hard work on these items, and for their great attitude
towards their jobs. The members who were present at the beginning of the meeting
can attest to the fact that the Board truly does work together on deciding
issues that affect our future. Prior to the meeting I was very concerned that
issues that have slowed our progress in the past, would resurface and impede our
decisions and possibly end the USRA. I
was very impressed that the Board looked back only to learn lessons from past
mistakes. I was also proud to see
the District Representatives looking out for their members and giving voice to
their requests and desires, just like they are supposed to. I saw no rift between “the Promoters” and “the
Members” that some of us like to believe exist.
In fact, I saw Promoters voting against what would have been in their
best interest, and voting for what would best benefit the USRA. One Promoter
even voted himself out of a vote for the good of the Association!
New Board members interfaced well with the veterans, and brought a fresh
perspective, and the “old guys” gave us the wisdom of their past experiences
and kept us on track. At the end of the meeting, Board members who argued
passionately against one another were laughing and back-slapping one another as
they said their goodbyes. As a USRA
member, I was very happy to see this new Board come together and work towards
the improvement and growth of our sport, and I wanted you all to know that your
racing series is in very good hands. If
you get the chance, give them all a quick note or phone call and thank them for
their hard work. They are all very
deserving of the appreciation of the membership.
KennyMac