Gulf Winds Track Club Minutes

Present:  Felton Wright, Bill Hillison, Tom Perkins, Mark Priddy, Nancy Stedman, Mike Burns, Rob McNeely, Herb Wills, Mary Jean Yon, David Yon, Gary Griffin, Tony Guillen, Lisa Unger, Jackie McDaniel, Abe Middleton, Jeanne O’Kon, and Bobby York

Felton Wright called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.  Quorum was established.

The Board reviewed the August minutes. A motion was made, seconded, and passed to accept the minutes as presented.

New Business

Gary Griffin – Gary presented the proposed budget for the 2013 Ultra 50M/50k.  A motion was made to accept the budget as presented, seconded, and approved.

Bobby York – Bobby gave a wrap up report on the trail series races held during the summer.  Trail and Ski and Salomon will continue to be sponsors next year.  Bobby plans to stage four trail races next summer.  Bobby announced the upcoming trail marathon and half marathon that will take place on January 4, 2014.  The Board approved support of these events in order to go forward with opening registration.  Bobby discussed the budget for the eventa however he didn’t have a written budget to present.  He will bring a written budget for these events to next month’s board meeting. 

Mary Jean Yon – Mary Jean provided the Board with a preliminary slate of nominees for the upcoming Club elections.  At the present time, there are 19 people running for Board positions.  The closing date for nominations is September 30, 2013.

Tom Perkins – Tom presented a budget and wrap up of the Miller Landing 8k/5k/1 mile races.  1,800 lbs. of canned food was donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank.

Jeanne O’Kon – Jeanne presented the proposed Grand Prix Schedule for 2014.  There was one change made to the kids’ races.  A motion was made to approve the schedule with the change, seconded, and approved.

Mike Burns – Mike presented a proposed budget for the 2014 Palace Saloon 5k.  A motion was made to approve the budget as presented, seconded, and approved.

Bill Hillison – Bill provided a slideshow to the Board on the status of the Club’s chip timing and options for the future.  Chip timing has been used by the Club for 18 months and has proven to be an asset for the races that have used it.  The initial investment was $29,500 and after 18 months, the Club has recouped some of the investment by leasing the equipment to non- Club races.  A Club volunteer operates the equipment when it is leased to non-Club races.  A motion was made to allow the Chip Timing Committee to go forth and buy one additional 8-port system if the Committee chooses to.  This will provide additional equipment to enable larger and/or more complicated race courses to be timed by the chip method.

Felton Wright – Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation were presented to the Board for approval.  Notice of the vote on these articles was given at the August board meeting. The Amended and Restated Articles were substantially similar to the articles presented at the August meeting.  A summary of the document was presented. A motion was made and seconded to approve the Amended and Restated Articles and to authorize their filing with the Department of State.

In addition, a revised document which combined the provisions of the existing Constitution and Bylaws into one document entitled Bylaws was presented to the board for consideration.  Amendments to the Constitution and the Bylaws require the vote of a majority of members present at the annual meeting.  The Bylaws require at least 20 members to be present and the Constitution requires at least 15. Amendments may be initiated by a majority vote of the board.  A notice or posting of any amendment to the Constitution must be announced 60 days prior to the membership meeting. An annual meeting is scheduled to be held mid-November, 2013, to discuss amendments approved by the Board for presentation at the annual meeting.  Amendments suggested include, among other things, combining the By-Laws and the Constitution into one document; changing quorum requirements, increasing the number of at large directors from 5 to 7; designating the social coordinator a voting member of the Board; eliminating the past-past president as a member of the board, and revising the requirements for approving amendments.  The meeting date will be posted on the Club’s webpage.  A motion was made to submit amendments made and discussed by the Board to the membership.  The motion was seconded and approved.

Felton Wright – Felton informed the Board that race insurance coverage for Grand Prix events that are held at a school does not cover the PTO.

Treasurer’s Report – Jerry Chesnutt via email
There is $82,091.67 in the Club’s operating account that includes $5,768.10 in the Event 1 Account, and $5,000 in the Event 2 account.  There is $50,531 in the Investment account, and $13,534.18 in the Chenoweth account.

Membership Report – Mark Priddy 
Currently, there are 1,948 members in 1,053 households. This is an increase of 24 members over last month, and 13 more households. 

Race Director Coordinator Report – Charlie Yates 
Nothing new to report.

Newsletter Report –Jackie McDaniel for Fred Deckert
Nothing new to report.

Clothing Coordinator Report –Abe Middleton
Abe and his wife, Sara Hart, are the new clothing coordinators.  Abe asked for direction on the amount of money to spend on purchasing clothing, license plates, tags, etc.  Abe will touch base with the club treasurer and determine what is remaining in the clothing budget and replenish supplies. 

Equipment Report – Vicky Verano via email
Eight new megaphones were purchased to accommodate the large number of races using them.

Website Report – David Yon
Nothing new to report.

Chenoweth Fund Report – David Yon
The cross-country coach at Nims Middle School requested $1,000 for running shoes for the cross-country participants.  The Chenoweth Committee approved the request for $1,000.  A motion was made to approve this request, seconded, and approved.

Bill McGuire requested $500 for t-shirts for the Gretchen Everhart Owl Run.  The Chenoweth Committee approved the request.  After discussion among board members, a motion was made to approve the availability of up to an additional $500 if the Chenoweth Committee approves.

Triathlon Report – Rob McNeely 
The Tri Club plans to fund several races this year.  Approximately 250 kids participated in the last Kids tri.  Rob asked Mary Jean Yon if the Tri Club election ballots could be included with the Club’s ballots.   The Elections Committee is working towards electronic voting this year and Mary Jean was not sure if combining the ballots would work.  She will check on it and get back to Rob.

Lecture Series – Paul Guyas
Nothing new to report.

Training Report – Chika Okoro
Felton said the beginning running group would start next Wednesday.

Social Report – Robin Elyse Bennett
Nothing new to report.

There being no further business to discuss; a motion to adjourn was made, seconded, and passed at 9:19 p.m.

Jackie McDaniel, Secretary