-----Original Message----- From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
KimFue@xxxxxxx Sent: Thursday, September 15, 2005 8:43
AM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: RE: [SPAM] Re: [RC]
[RC] [RC-Digest] Vol: 03.2994
I am trying to follow this thread on the ride
fee increase for next year. Are those that are against the fee increase
upset because of the actual $1.00 per ride increase or are they upset because
of the way they feel the board went about voting on the increase? I have
seen it requested that the proposed budget be available and I have not seen
this addressed by any board members that post. Is the budget available
for members at this point? If it is not when will it be available? It
seems there is a lot of grumbling with how the board is being run (meaning the
directors e mail list and disclosing a budget) that have nothing to do with
the actual fee increase yet this fee increase seems to be the lightning rod
that set many off. Do many discussing this on this list and the
AERC list really feel that the fee increase is not necessary? Or is this
just an accumulation of animosity with some about the manner in which the
board conducts its business?
I keep seeing references to how the board
voted. Is that public record now and if it is why hasn't that been
posted to the list? If how the board voted hasn't been made public why
is there reference to how the vote was split? Now I am really curious
with all the references made to this vote on ridecamp. I guess it would
be nice to see how all the directors voted especially since we have regional
elections coming up. For those that are strictly against a fee
hike it will be simple enough to find out how your regional directors voted
and you will be able to take that into account with the upcoming
election. With DAL elections two years away, keep track of their
voting record on issues that concern you so you can make knowledgeable
decisions on how you want to be represented.
The matter of how business is conducted by the
board is a much trickier issue but certainly does deserve discussion by
membership. I just don't think that combining the fee increase debate
and the way the board conducts itself does either issue much justice. It
seems to make each issue a little more blurry instead of bringing clarity to
the discussion. I do find it distressing when I read from a former
director that she was discouraged from sharing information with the membership
she represented. Of course, there may have been a reasonable explanation
which we haven't heard and this was with a past slate of
directors so perhaps this would not happen with the directors we have
today. But it is a topic that is worthy of discussion on an endurance
riding list and in my opinion is certainly a more welcome topic then some of
the silly threads that have taken off in the past. I must say that I do
find it a little distressing that some of the posts insinuate that there
is some big conspiracy going on
within the board. These are all basically people we see at rides every
week end as fellow riders, RMs, or ride vets that volunteer a lot of extra
time to the sport as directors. I am not a Pollyanna as I am sure a few
individuals are on the board for more than altruistic reasons BUT I
am willing to assume that the majority are working for the good of the
sport. I do believe that it would be much easier if the board were more
willing to discuss issues brought forth by members and I will say that it
seems that many on this year's board have been more open and more willing to
post and discuss on the two main endurance lists, Ridecamp and AERC list then
in the recent past. Thank you for that! But perhaps because of the
recent past when numerous posts like the "budget" thread are ignored, it
does give the impression that those on the board are not willing to publicly
discuss a particular issue or a controversial issue and hope that thread will
just die down. How hard would it be for a board member to answer John
Teeter's request on viewing the budget? It is either available or it is
not....pretty simple....
Just as I assume that the majority of board
members are working for the greater good of the sport I am also at this point
going to assume that the majority of posts criticizing the actions of the
board are being fueled by the same concern of doing what is best for the sport
of endurance and not personal vendettas and wars that are being aired in
public. I hope that some of those that are the most vocal are running
for a slot as their regional director or will consider running for a DAL
position next year. I have read some great ideas on alternatives to fee
hikes like opening up lifetime memberships,
etc.
