GULF WINDS TRACK CLUB Minutes

Present: Judy Alexander, David Yon, Mark Priddy, Mary Jean Yon, Nancy Stedman-Laux, Jay Silvanima, Bob Keller, Lisa Unger, Seeley Gutierrez, Jerry McDaniel, Tom Perkins, Julie Clark, Terry Massa, Felton Wright, Bobby York, Jackie McDaniel, Margarete Deckert, Fred Deckert, Bill Lott, Charlie Yates, Gene Opheim, and Jim Schmid

Judy Alexander called the meeting to order at 7:31 p.m. Quorum was established. The board reviewed the January 2009 minutes. Mary Jean Yon requested a revision to the minutes. Under New Business, the January minutes refer to Mark Priddy’s appointment to the board as “co-membership director.” Mark’s appointment to the board is Membership Chair. Peg Griffin will continue to assist Mark Priddy and collect and process new memberships as well as compile grand prix statistics and race results, however she will no longer serve as membership chair. A motion was made to accept the correction, seconded and passed by unanimous vote.

New Business: Judy introduced Jim Schmid, trails manager for the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service, National Forests in Florida. Mr. Schmid advised the board that the forest service will soon begin grinding up trails in the Apalachicola National Forest in an effort to bring the forest back into a more natural state. He will be meeting with all the different user groups to inform them of the work to be done. Mr. Schmid requested GPS maps and information on favorite trails runners use and indicated that an effort would be made to preserve those trails. Mr. Schmid reminded the board of the upcoming annual Keep Tallahassee-Leon County Beautiful Forest Clean-Up Day on Saturday, February 28, 2009, from 8:30am to 12 pm. The site is the Apalachicola National Forest.

Bob Keller spoke to the board about Senior Games. There are twenty cities in Florida that host the games, however Tallahassee is not one of them. Bob inquired as to whether there was interest in holding the games in Tallahassee in the future. It is too late to commit to hosting any games for 2009. Bob will pursue more information and report back to the board.

Fred opened up discussion about the Gulf Winds Track Club 2008 Community Activities Report that was previously emailed to all board members. A motion was made to accept the report as written by Fred and that he be authorized to publish and distribute the report. The motion was seconded and passed by unanimous vote.

Gene Opheim made a motion to give $1,000 to the Central Florida Striders running club. This running club was started by Joe and Nadine Dexter after they moved to Orlando. The money will assist them with purchasing new equipment and getting the club up and running. The motion was seconded and approved by unanimous vote. Gene Opheim made a request to purchase two new computers, computer cases, and software to replace the two computers that are now used for scoring races. One of the computers was previously repaired and is once again malfunctioning. The other computer is having problems with the screen. The total cost is $2,150 or less. Peg Griffin is checking to see if she can find lower prices. A motion was made to purchase two new computers, computer cases, and software and was seconded and approved by unanimous vote.

Judy announced that Jeanne O’Kon will be the chair of the awards committee. The other members are Bill Lott, Lisa Unger, Nancy Stedman-Laux and Judy Alexander. A motion was made to approve these appointments, seconded, and approved by unanimous vote.

Terry Massa thanked the board for all the support given to the Special Olympics 5k.

Race Director Report – Jackie and Jerry McDaniel, GWTC 30k/15k: Jackie McDaniel gave a wrap up report of the GWTC 30k/15k held in January. There were a total of 183 runners with net race proceeds of approximately $1,140. Jerry McDaniel shared with the board some issues that have come up while attempting to reserve the use of the Retreat at Bradley’s Pond to stage the race in 2010. The management team responsible for scheduling events at the retreat can no longer allow the club to rent the building for half days. To continue using the building, the club must rent the building for the entire day. The last several years, the GWTC awards ceremony has been held the same day as the race. There was discussion by board members as to the possibility of scheduling the awards ceremony the same day as the race in 2010 and using the retreat for the awards ceremony as well as the race. A decision was tabled until the awards chair could be brought into the discussion at a later date. Jerry is negotiating with the management team on their fees for full day use of the facility. A motion was made to stage the GWTC 30k/15k race at the retreat in 2010 and to give Jerry approval to sign a contract for full day use at a negotiated price and to request the awards committee consider holding the awards ceremony at the retreat that evening. The motion was seconded and passed with one dissent.

Race Director Report – Jay Silvanima and Nancy Stedman-Laux, Marathon and Half Marathon: Jay Silvanima and Nancy Stedman-Laux gave a final report on the marathon and half-marathon held February 1. A total of 619 runners ran which was the largest number in the history of the race. All bills have not been paid and receipts collected; however it is estimated the race will net approximately $10,000. A final report will be made later. A Leon High School runner placed fourth in the marathon, but can’t accept the award money. A check will be presented to the Leon High School cross country boosters on his behalf.

Race Director Report – Judy Alexander, Springtime 10k/5k/1mile: Judy presented a budget to the board. She would like to give 25% of the proceeds to Treats for Teens, a program that raises money to offer support, positive reinforcement, and recognition to disadvantaged teens in the form of gift cards to local retail stores. A motion was made to approve the budget. The motion was seconded and passed with one dissent.

Treasurer’s Report: The club has $88,601, which is an increase of $2,519. The Chenoweth Fund has $15,726, which is an increase of $540. The tri club has $454.08. Race Coordinator Report – Charlie Yates Established races are on the calendar and are in good order. Charlie is working with directors of new races to schedule their races on available weekends to avoid conflicts.

Lecture Series Report – Nancy Stedman-Laux: Nancy announced that a night at the movies featuring “Run for Your Life, the Fred Lebow Story” will be presented at 6:30 p.m. on February 20 at Thomasville Road Baptist Church. The movie was originally scheduled to be shown at Premier Fitness Center but was moved due to a scheduling conflict.

Clothing Report – Margarete Deckert: Margarete brought a “I Run this Town” tee shirt to show the board. She has sold $165 in merchandise this month, and a total of $228 for January and February.

Social Coordinator Report – Julie Clark for Kathy Lindsay: Julie and Kathy are planning a member appreciation party for mid-July. The Piney Z club house is a possible venue.

Training Report – Julie Clark: The Springtime training group had 65 runners sign up, and more runners show up each week. Training is going well.

Awards Committee Report – Lisa Unger: The committee was under budget this year. Lisa requested that trees be purchased with the remaining funds and planted in memory of Jere Moore and Mike Schneider in a local park. She will follow up with additional information.

Equipment Report – Kevin French: No report.

Chenoweth Report – David Yon: Bill McGuire Jr’s family donated $1,000 to the Chenoweth fund as part of his legacy. The Chenoweth committee voted to approve a $1,000 donation requested by the Special Olympics. A motion was made to approve this donation, seconded, and approved by unanimous vote. Alison Egan, representing the Leon High School track and field program, requested $1,000 to purchase track team uniforms. The Chenoweth committee approved $500 and will match up to $250 in additional donations for any amount up to $250 the track team raises. A motion was made to approve this request. The motion was seconded and approved by unanimous vote.

Membership Report – Mark Priddy: The club has 904 members in 501 households, including 182 new members this month. Last year at this time, there were 801 members in 442 households.

Triathlete Report – Bobby York: The triathlete club has 90 members. The club meets every third Monday of each month at MoMo’s Pizza. At the January meeting, the club gave out awards which are in addition to those given out by the GWTC at their annual awards ceremony. Bob McDonald was the recipient of the 2008 Service Award, Tamora Thompson received the 2008 Masters Award, Lisa Cox received the Rookie of the Year Award, and Colin Abbey was the recipient of the 2008 Youth Award. The group plans to continue these awards every year. The tri club also plans to develop their own grand prix or point series. Since there are so few triathlons in the area, they will reach out to other triathlon clubs and areas and pursue discounts on races. The tri club would like for the GWTC awards committee to present male and female tri awards at the annual awards ceremony. They would also like to be involved in the selection process. Judy will pass this information along to Jeanne O’Kon, the GWTC awards chair. There was a discussion as to whether or not the tri club should open their own checking account; Gene assured Bobby that he could easily continue to handle their account. There is concern that the tri club’s insurance is costing them almost as much as their membership fee per athlete, and they would like to explore alternatives to their current insurance policy. Discussion ensued as to whether or not the tri club could be covered under the same policy as the track club. More information will be gathered before any changes are considered.

Racing Report – Lisa Unger for Tim Unger: Tim and Lisa had reported previously that the Gate River Run would not have team competition this year. However, it now appears from advertising on the Gate River Run website that there will be team competition. Lisa announced that the registered teams are made up of elite athletes so Tim is not going to form a GWTC team this year. There will be a social after the race as there has been in previous years. All GWTC runners are welcome. There being no further business to discuss, a motion to adjourn was made, seconded and passed unanimously at 9:07 p.m.