8 January 2017

USA Board Meeting Agenda – January 8, 2017

A. Call Meeting to Order: 12:14pm EST

a. Present: Kenny Cason, Mark Atkinson, Jill Cohan, Danielle Millett, Mike Schatz, David Panofsky, Wendy Grzych, Aaron Kinsella-Johnson

B.      Old Business

  1. NAUCC 2017
    1. Status report and discussion. Any help needed?
      1. Kickoff meeting today 5pm PST
      2. Reservations for gym done
      3. Locations in mind for all events
      4. Web site is currently being set up with Robin Dunlop
      5. SVUC as a club is highly involved
      6. Events run July 16th-23rd, the 15th is for travel
      7. Hospitality/Lodging TBD, Issaquah & Snoqualmie Pass are options. A new hotel being built in North Bend, may be ready in time.
      8. Marathon: pushing for using the Iron Horse Trail, Boston marathon qualifying trail. Alternative suggestions welcome.
      9. Need historic costs to set registration pricing. Typical top costs are medals and venues. Past budget are available
    2. USA equipment inventory and location tracker
        1. Track starter poles, extension cords, signage, canopies are already in Washington.
        2. Need printer, clipboards, hand timing watches
        3. RTUC and TCUC have watches, but need to be reminded to bring them
        4. Each event Point Of Contact will know what is required
        5. Flagging & barriers for cyclo-cross needed. Typically borrowed from a local organization.USA equipment inventory and location tracker
  2. USA Programs
    1. Coaching Program. Feedback on interest from both coaches and clubs?
      1. Rapid City, SD this weekend
      2. Timber Lake, SD on the 20th
      3. Budget is available for more coaching opportunities if requested
    2. STEP (Start-up Equipment Program). Need new committee head to lead this initiative.
      1. Still looking for nominations.
      2. Focused on brand new clubs
      3. Could be expanded to different disciplines
      4. Mike may be interested in heading
  3. Membership Initiative
    1. Progress on non USA club outreach
      1. Two new clubs are in process
      2. “How to start a club” – posted to web site by Wendy
      3. Wendy fields 5-6 new club related questions each year
      4. Mike is interested in working with Wendy to find/contact more new clubs
      5. A group in Alberta, Canada inquired. Wendy pointed them to a good contact. Not much we can do since USA insurance does not cover them.
      6. Danielle will contact a bike shop 50 minutes from her location who is interested (Thick Bikes?). They are a UDC dealer.
    2. Flyer for UDC shipments – status and feedback?
      1. Sent flyers to Amy at UDC. Need to confirm.
      2. Jill will follow up with Amy
  4. OOW/Facebook
    1. As we enter riding season need regular, relevant posts – all/any welcome!
      1. Please post any news or events as you become aware.
      2. OOW still without a chairperson. Any nominations?
      3. Our charter says we need to publish OOW. But is it no longer relevant in the current world of social media?
      4. Perhaps we can publish online (Facebook, etc) and satisfy our charter. Jill will ask Amy about getting a link or two on UDC’s web site, both USA and NAUCC.
      5. An email periodically from the USA president sounds like a great idea!
  5. IUF Rulebook Committees
    1. Have all invitations for participation have been sent out? Are all committees up and running?
    2. Up and running, very busy with discussions
    3. Last vote for proposals is mid January
    4. “Age Group” committee is a little awkwardly organized, not sure what is happening there
    5. If the new IUF rulebook is ready four months before NAUCC then USA will adopt it for this year. This is not a proposal, but just a reminder.
    6. Scott Wilton says a draft of the new IUF rulebook should be ready by February 1st.
    7. Scott volunteered to be the USA rulebook chairman.

C. New Business and 90-day look ahead (USA annual calendar of events)

  1. NAUCC 2018
    1. Wendy proposes RTUC (near Livonia), seconded by Mark
      1. Voting: universal approval
      2. Wendy will create a document to formalize the proposal
  2. Skype Level Tester meeting – February?
      1. Haven’t heard anything. Mark will check with Patricia
  3. Scholarship Committee – kickoff in March
      1. Amanda couldn’t make it
      2. Wants to do some outreach to get people on board
      3. Deadline is 90 days prior to NAUCC
  4. National Unicycle Week
    1. Encourage people to unicycle
    2. Retail/Publicity opportunity to pivot on
    3. Fourth week in May?
    4. Chase’s Calendar of Events: TBD
    5. National Day Calendar: application is in
    6. Perhaps pick a week and publish, seek forgiveness later if there is a conflict. Need a framework and send out a press release to retailers, manufacturers, press
    7. Will put a web page together.
    8. Jill will talk with Amy at UDC
  5. Advertising USA and NAUCC on UDC web site?
    1. Why not! Jill will talk with Amy.

D. Current Board Members’ and Chairpersons’ Reports

  1. Mark Atkinson, President
  2. Danielle Millett, Vice President
    1. Not getting vice president emails. Will check.
  3. Kenny Cason, Secretary
  4. Mike Schatz, Treasurer
    1. 769 members, pretty typical, healthy
    2. Financials look normal. New item for Coaching Program.
    3. Some clubs have requested individual members NOT renew on their own. They are currently set up this way. Causes confusion in some cases where someone joins USA then joins a club. Your mileage may vary.
    4. Reminder: once a member joins USA and is a member of a club they are covered by insurance, regardless about how they paid USA.
    5. Google Grants for Non-Profits: Gilby says they will give advertising grants based on certain criteria. Will look into it, add to New Business.
  5.  Jill Cohan, Director
      1. Amanda Breum Laursen  is coming to Madison for four months and helping with freestyle, etc
      2. Could Amanda be a USA Certified Coach even though she is a foreign rider?
      3. UNICON 19 in South Korea: should USA hire a translator?
        1. Will smart phone translators be sufficient?
        2. Cultural liaison may be required as well?
        3. Perhaps the UNICON organization committee has a recommendation
        4. Jill will talk with Patricia, our IUF liaison
        5. Mark will look into adding something about how to fly with unicycles to the USA web site. David will help do research.
  6. Wendy Grzych, Director
  7. David Panofsky, Director
  8. Patricia Wilton, Director & USA Level Tester
  9. ???, OOW
  10. Mark Atkinson & Mike Schatz, Webmasters
  11. Wendy Grzych, Affiliate Club & Insurance Coordinator
  12. Amanda Grzych, Scholarship Committee Chair

E. Announcements

  1. Upcoming Events
    1. MONDO XXVIII – February 10-12, St. Paul, Minnesota
    2. LAUCC (Latin American Unicycle Convention and Championship) –July 16-23, Mexico City
    3. Madison Muni Weekend in early April
    4. Southwest Muni Weekend in March, Moab?
  2. Anything else?

F. Meeting Adjourned: 1:56 EST