Mid State of Ohio Kart Club
Board of Directors Meeting
February 16, 2006
Plank’s – Grove City, Ohio
Call to Order – Paul Lyda called the meeting to order at 7:10 PM. He indicated that Mike Unger had expressed doubt about his ability to attend the meeting.
Attendance – In attendance were:
Kevin Brown – Member
Bill Bruce – Member (Secretary)
Dana Conlin – Member
Mike Dillon – Member (Treasurer)
Erin Dillon – Visitor (Membership Chair)
Greyson Eves – Visitor
Andrew Gallo – Visitor
Mitch Gallo – Visitor
Rick Gallo – Visitor
Mike Long – Alternate
Paul Lyda – Member (Vice-President)
Jack Reall – Visitor
Elton Sargent – Visitor
Steve Sharp – Alternate
Bo Strawser – Visitor
Bob Strawser – Member
Heath Tatman – Member
Steve Tatman – Member
Scott Thompson – Visitor
Mike Unger – Member (President) – arrived at 7:45 PM
Mike Yoerger – Member
All 10 regular board members, in addition to two alternates, were present.
Apologies for Absence – Those who had indicated that they were unable to attend the meeting were:
Mike Unger – Member (President) – expressed doubt but arrived late
Approval of Minutes – The minutes of the January 19, 2006, meeting were approved as written. Motion – Dana Conlin, Second – Paul Lyda, Vote – Unanimously approved.
2006 Race Schedule – The first item of business was revision of the 2006 race schedule to resolve the conflict that had arisen with the Commercial Point Grand Prix (CPGP) street race. Heath Tatman reported that the dates for the CPGP are August 5-6, 2006. Several possible revisions were discussed. Steve Tatman provided dates that the track was available. Following this discussion, a decision was made to eliminate the August 6 race date to resolve the conflict with the CPGP, make the October 8 rain date a race date, and to add a rain date on October 22. Motion – Bill Bruce, Second – Dana Conlin, Vote – Unanimously approved. The revised official 2006 race schedule is as follows:
Race 1 April 9th Sunday
Race 2 April 23rd Sunday
Race 3 May 6th Saturday (night race)
Race 4 May 21st Sunday
Race 5 June 10th Saturday (night race)
Race 6 June 25th Sunday
Race 7 July 15th Saturday (night race)
Race 8 July 23rd Sunday
Race 9 Aug 19th Saturday (night race)
Race 10 Sept 10th Sunday
Race 11 Sept 24th Sunday
Rain date 1 Oct 1st Sunday
Race 12 Oct 8th Sunday
Rain date 2 October 22nd Sunday
Club Sponsorship – Paul Lyda indicated that he had posted a message on the Karting Forum on ohiomotorcycle.com pertaining to sponsorship ideas for the club. He provided details of his proposal at the meeting and asked if the dollar amounts and other details were appropriate. Steve Tatman indicated that none of the proposed ideas were objectionable from the track’s point of view (signage, naming of the corners, etc.). Bo Strawser indicated that none of the signs should obscure the view of the corners. Greyson Eves suggested that the sponsorship packages could include a link on the MSOKC website. Bill Bruce suggested that ideal sponsorship candidates are the various karting suppliers (American Power Sports, Comet Kart Sales, Russell Karting Specialties, etc.). It was suggested that Bob McConnell should contact these and other kart suppliers. Bill Bruce asked where the revenue from sponsorships would go. Erin Dillon indicated that this had been applied to the general funds of the club in the past. Following some additional discussion, the proposal from Paul Lyda was accepted. Motion – Kevin Brown, Second – Mike Dillon, Vote – Unanimously approved. ACTION – Bob McConnell to contact karting suppliers and other potential sponsors.
Additional Non-Board-Member Positions – Several non-board-member positions were filled at the January 19, 2006, meeting. Appointments to several additional positions were discussed next. Erin Dillon reported that, in addition to the traditional paid race-day positions ($50 per race day), funds had been appointed for two additional positions in 2006; grid person and scale-house person. Following some discussion, the following nominations were made:
Head Flagman – Ryan Strawser
Race Director – Bo Strawser
Technical Inspector – Bob Strawser (Mike Dillon backup)
Score Keeper – Erin Dillon (Sara Long backup)
Registration – Erin Dillon
Points Keeper – Beth Hopkins (Jack Reall backup)
Emergency Medical Technician – Heath Tatman
Scale-House Person – to be determined
Grid Person – to be determined
The appointments to these positions were all approved as nominated. Motion – Kevin Brown, Second – Bob Strawser, Vote – Unanimously approved. It was suggested that it would be beneficial to identify a backup person for as many positions as possible. Dana Conlin indicated that she and other members of the Conlin SpeedSports team may be able to fill in for some of these positions, as needed. Bill Bruce indicated that he would draft a help-wanted ad to post on the MSOKC website for the unfilled positions. Rick Gallo indicated that Leslie Gallo may be interested in the Scale-House Person position. ACTION – Bill Bruce to draft a help-wanted ad.
Race Entry Fees – Paul Lyda indicated that the issue of increasing race entry fees needed to be discussed. Erin Dillon reported that if entry fees were not increased, there was a danger that the club’s funds could become depleted. The wisdom of this, in light of the additional $5 per race day that would be required for those who choose to rent a transponder, was discussed. The possibility of increased pit pass prices was also mentioned. Steve Tatman indicated that, since it was likely that entry fees would need to be increased, the price of a pit pass would not increase. Dana Conlin indicated that, in all the tracks she had visited, none had entry fees as low as $25. Following some additional discussion, race entry fees for all classes except for the Kid Kart class (which will remain $10) were raised from $25 to $30. Motion – Kevin Brown, Second – Dana Conlin, Vote – Unanimously approved.
Revisions to General Competition Rules – Following Mike Unger’s arrival, revisions to the General Competition Rules (GCRs) were discussed. He indicated that he developed a working draft of the GCRs with the necessary revisions and had sent it to the board members for review. Each of the proposed revisions that generated discussion are shown below:
Classes – Elimination of the Briggs Stock Medium class, addition of Sportsman Yamaha class, addition of Yamaha Junior class, and addition of Novice SuperCan class. Bill Bruce indicated that the list of classes in the GCRs and on the MSOKC website should be listed as an ‘anticipated list of classes’ since the club has always attempted to accommodate any class for which there are a sufficient number of participants and eliminate classes for which there are consistently an insufficient number of participants. It was agreed that this would be appropriate. Several age group and class weight corrections were discussed. Discussion pertaining to the eligibility requirements for the Novice SuperCan class was deferred to later in the agenda.
Tire Rule – Changed spec tire rule for 125cc Shifter class from Vega ‘White’ to ‘Open’. Mike Unger’s original proposal was to make this a Vega ‘Nordam’ class. The benefit of making this an ‘Open’ tire class was discussed. Mike Unger indicated that one of the benefits of the Vega ‘Nordam’ proposal includes additional tire sales revenue for the club. However, it was decided that an ‘Open’ tire rule may draw more entrants for the club.
Post-meeting note: Mike Unger has indicated that, in retrospect, the decision to go to an ‘Open’ tire rule for this class may have been bad from the point of view of our tire contract with Grand Prix Distributing (e.g., the potential loss of year-end benefits for this class). Had this point been brought up at the meeting, it may have had some impact on the decision. This does not change the decision that was made at the meeting, but following discussions with Grand Prix Distributing, this issue may be re-balloted by email.
Entries – Added requirement for transponders on all karts except those in the Kid Kart class. Eldon Sargent indicated that he may be able to make arrangements for discounted purchases of AMB TranX 160 transponders. ACTION – Eldon Sargent to post information pertaining to discounted purchases of AMB transponders on the Karting Forum.
Nose Cones/Body Work – The need for a double nerfbar on karts with older ‘breadbox’ style sidepods was discussed. Mike Long reminded Mike Unger that this had been discussed during revision of the GCRs for 2005. After some additional discussion, it was agreed that no revision for 2006 was required.
Chest Protectors – Added requirement for all drivers in the 5-7 age group and the 8-12 age group to wear a SFI certified chest protector. It was noted that parents of junior drivers should be reminded of this prior to the beginning of the season. ACTION – Bill Bruce to post reminder on the MSOKC website and the Karting Forum.
Rookie Box – Addition of sealed Briggs Intek in addition to sealed Briggs Raptor. Bill Bruce indicated that he had been unable to contact Butch McCall just prior to the meeting but was aware that the plans for purchasing, modifying (removing the governor), sealing, and distributing Briggs Intek engines for the Rookie Box class was proceeding. He also indicated that Butch McCall would like to develop an Intek class with a bigger restrictor plate for the older/heavier kids (Intek Sportsman class). ACTION – Bill Bruce contact Butch McCall and post update on the Karting Forum.
Protest Submissions – Elimination of verbal protests. The time interval within which written protests should be accepted was discussed. A 30 minute interval from the time of the alleged infraction was agreed upon. Erin Dillon indicated that she would draft a Protest Submission form that would be available in the scoring tower.
Novice SuperCan – The eligibility requirements for the Novice SuperCan class were discussed. Mike Unger suggested that a driver must not have finished more than 10 complete karting events in his or her lifetime to be eligible for championship points, although exceptions to this should be granted on a case-by-case basis. Other proposals were discussed, some of which were very specific (e.g., maximum of 10 lifetime events, driver not allowed to compete in any other classes, top three finishers in championship points have to move up to regular SuperCan class the following year, etc.) and others were less restrictive. After much discussion, it was agreed that whatever requirements were imposed, there would be a significant number of exceptions. In the end, it was agreed that eligibility for the Novice SuperCan class should be in the form of ‘guidelines’ as opposed to ‘requirements’. Furthermore, if it becomes apparent that a driver who chooses to compete in the Novice SuperCan class should be in the regular SuperCan class, then the board should intervene. Mike Unger indicated that he would draft guidelines to help drivers determine if the Novice SuperCan class is appropriate for them. ACTION – Mike Unger to draft guidelines.
Following this, the revisions to the GCRs for 2006 were approved. Motion – Bob Strawser, Second – Mike Dillon, Vote – Unanimously approved.
Race Format – The race format for the 2006 season was discussed. Mike Unger suggested that possible alternatives include running the track in the opposite direction and using the ‘short’ track (i.e., using the cut-off between Turn 3 and Turn 7). Steve Tatman outlined the track changes necessary to ensure safety while running the track in the opposite direction. Following this, it was agreed that the May 21 race would be run in the opposite direction and the August 19 race (Saturday night race) would be run using the ‘short’ track. Motion – Paul Lyda, Second – Dana Conlin, Vote – Unanimously approved. Mike Unger then raised the idea of running an extend number of laps. After some discussion, it was agreed that heat races would remain six laps, but feature races should be extended to 10 laps. Kid Kart races would remain unchanged (4-4-6). Motion – Mike Unger, Second – Kevin Brown, Vote – Unanimously approved. It was noted that the number of laps for the August 19 race using the ‘short’ track would have to be increased significantly. Kevin Brown suggested that, with transponders being required, it would be a good idea to reconsider a race format for later in the season in which timed qualifying would be used to set the order for the feature race (as opposed to heat races). It was agreed that this should be considered later in the season.
Bonus Points – The next item of discussion was the issue of bonus points for the last three regularly-scheduled races of the season. Mike Unger indicated that this had improved participation at the end of the 2005 season. The format for bonus points was discussed, after which it was agreed that the 10-10-20 bonus point format from 2005 for the last three regularly-scheduled races should be used again in 2006. Motion – Mike Dillon, Second – Kevin Brown, Vote – Approved (two dissenting votes – Paul Lyda, Bill Bruce).
Availability of Club-Spec Tires – Mike Unger indicated that nearly all of the tires required to fulfill the needs from the banquet certificates were on hand at the track. Steve Tatman indicated that anyone wanting to exchange their certificates for tires should contact him to make the necessary arrangements. Bob Strawser indicated that anyone wanting to place an order to purchase tires should contact him. He indicated that email (srkp94@yahoo.com) or cell phone (740-412-6862) were the best way to contact him. It was noted that, for anyone needing tires sooner than they would be available through Bob Strawser, Vega Nordam tires are now available from several karting suppliers, although the price is higher.
Track Clean-Up Day – Mike Unger indicated that Saturday, April 8, 2006, would be designated as a track clean-up day. He indicated that anyone who participates would get to practice for free that day. The clean-up will be from 9:00 AM until Noon with practice thereafter. The track will be made available exclusively for those who participate in the clean-up until 2:00 PM, after which the track will be open for open practice. Arrival prior to 10:00 AM is required for free practice.
Treasurers/Membership Report – Mike Dillon indicated that, following the Chassis Set-Up Seminar, 41 members had joined the club. Of those, 20 were master members and 21 were associate members. Of the 20 master members, 17 were new to the club.
Disposition of Alternate Board Members – The circumstances by which alternate board members become regular board members (e.g., by missing too many meetings, etc.) were discussed. It was agreed that the criteria for this should be three consecutive unexcused board meeting absences.
Next Meeting – The need for a quieter meeting venue was discussed. Bill Bruce indicated that Grove City Public Library, which is located close to Plank’s, has a meeting room that is available for a small fee. Erin Dillon agreed to contact the library to make the reservation. Provided that this room is available, the next meeting will be Thursday, March 16, 2006, at Grove City Public Library (3359 Park St., Grove City, OH 43123 – 614-875-6716). ACTION – Erin Dillon to make reservation.
Actions – The following is a list of action items from the meeting:
1. Bob McConnell to contact karting suppliers and other potential sponsors
2. Bill Bruce to draft a help-wanted ad for unfilled positions
3. Eldon Sargent to post information pertaining to discounted purchases of AMB transponders on the Karting Forum
4. Bill Bruce to post reminder about SFI certified chest protector on the MSOKC website and the Karting Forum
5. Bill Bruce contact Butch McCall and post Briggs Intek engine update on the Karting Forum
6. Mike Unger to draft eligibility guidelines for Novice SuperCan class
7. Erin Dillon to make reservation at Grove City Public Library for next meeting
Adjournment – The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:10 PM.
Bill Bruce
Secretary
MSOKC Board of Directors