Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Steph,

I am a bit perplexed at this also. For the past while we had been told 
no decisions had been made on fee increases, then today the Email hits 
that tells us there has been one. My question is which way is it - has 
there or has there not been a fee increase?

Truman

Steph Teeter wrote:

>  
> *Subject:* RE: [RC] Attention all ride managers- fee hike
>
> *When was this decision made? And why was there no discussion with the 
> membership prior to the decision?* I don't recall seeing any notice in 
> the EN that the BoD was considering raising AERC's rider fees. Which 
> directors voted for this, and why? I hope this was a roll call vote, 
> as I truly want to know. AERC does not exist without rides, without 
> ride managers. I can think of many better places to raise the extra 
> funds that are apparently needed to keep the organization afloat, once 
> again. Just a few years ago AERC was rolling in extra funds, and half 
> the Board was proposing new ways to spend all this extra money. What 
> happened? The rides, the riders, the ride managers are the heart of 
> this sport. I would much rather see less money spent on the zillions 
> of awards given out at year's end, or the thousands spent on research 
> and trails grants, than ask more money from the people that define the 
> sport - the riders and ride managers. This is foolish.
>  
> I have recommended in the past, and recommend again that the Board 
> consider a professional to assist in the area of spending and 
> budgeting. The AERC is a corporation with a sizeable yearly budget, 
> and to place the responsibility for managing the financial affairs of 
> the corporation in the hands of a non-professional elected volunteer 
> (treasurer) and expect  a large Board comprised of volunteers to 
> understand the nuances of corporate finances well enough to make sound 
> decisions regarding the spending and budgeting of these funds is 
> ridiculous.
>  
> Plus I once again ask this Board to stop conducting your business in a 
> vacuum. 90% of BoD discussion of important issues occurs on the 
> private BoD email list. During my time as a director I watched this 
> list (which seemed like a good idea when the 'net was new and 
> exciting) evolve into a powerful persuasive tool for some individuals, 
> and on several occasions was personally harrassed for trying to keep 
> the membership informed of some of the issues that were being 
> discussed and settled on this list. I have often questioned the ethics 
> and legalities of the BoD list, where even though votes are not cast, 
> many decisions are made. The general membership has no idea what it's 
> elected corporate directors are discussing on a daily basis! This is 
> OUR organization, you guys are supposed to be managing it responsibly, 
> and for the sake of the entire organization (including the rest of us 
> - the 5000+ people that support and fund the organization). Also the 
> monthly private telephone conference calls are marginally acceptable, 
> where discussions are made and votes are cast in private.
>  
> Steph (mad)
>  

--

"The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. The opposite 
of a profound truth may well be another profound truth."    Niels Bohr 
-- Nobel Laureate, Physics




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