GULF WINDS TRACK CLUB Minutes

for December 8, 2021, Hosted by Robert and Kory Skrob

I. Meeting Attendance and Opening
Voting Members: Mark Priddy, Heather Vickers, Jerry McDaniel, Peg Griffin, Judy Alexander, Tina Bahmer, Herb Wills, David & Mary Jean Yon, and Robert & Kory Skrob

Non-Voting Members: Bill Lott, Mark Tombrink, Jeanne O’Kon, Philip Sura, Lisa Unger, Jo Lena Bryan, and Tarik Noriega

The meeting was called to order by Mark Priddy at 7:02 p.m. A quorum was established. The
December meeting agenda was approved without objection.

A motion to approve the November minutes was made, seconded, and passed.

Mark welcomed the following new board members to the meeting and to the board: Jeanne O’Kon, Philip Sura and Lisa Unger. Stephanie Liles-Weyant and Kendrah Richards will also be joining the board in 2022. Mark also thanked outgoing members, Jerry McDaniel, Charlie Johnson, and Gary Johnston, for their service on the board over the past year.

II. Old Business
Palace Saloon 5K Closeout- Mark Priddy
Mark reported on the closeout for the Palace Saloon 5K which was approved by the board. He later updated that report, via email, to reflect total revenue of $10,236.42 with expenditures totaling $14,098.58 resulting in a loss of $3,862.16. Direct donations from race participants were made to the Parkinson’s Foundation ($412.50) and Javacya Arts ($103.20.) A motion to approve the amended report, via email, was made, seconded, and passed. Mark added that he will present the 2022 Palace Saloon 5K budget at the next meeting with targeted expense reductions in various categories. NOTE: A refund from Howdy’s Toilets was later received for $585 bringing the final figure for the Palace to a loss of $3,277.16.

Pine Run Closeout – Carter & Jennifer Hay
Carter & Jennifer reported total revenue of $3,175.72 with expenditures totaling $3,334.01 resulting in a loss of $158.29. Direct donations from race participants, totaling $613 were made to Tall Timbers. A motion to approve the closeout was made, seconded, and passed. The Hays reported they are looking at changes to next year’s fee structure to deter losses. This year’s race had 130 registrants and 114 finishers.

Turkey Trot Recap – David & Mary Jean Yon
This year’s Turkey Trot had 4,343 registrants and 3,769 finishers from all races combined. This level of participation was nice to see given all the uncertainties in these COVID times. The final closeout will be presented at the next meeting, but David did request permission to share the Turkey Trot Hero revenues, which are direct donations from race participants, with the following three charities: The Refuge House, The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend, and the Kearney Center. A motion to approve this action was made, seconded, and passed.

III. New Business
LED Monitors at Apalachee Regional Park (ARP)
Bill Lott, on behalf of Coach Bob Braman at Florida State University, briefed the group on the many improvements that have been made at the ARP as many high-profile cross-country events have taken place there over the years. The latest round of improvements includes a new stage, and the club has been asked to pay for a total of eight LED monitors which will be used to display results and other messages as needed. The cost for the monitors totals $24,469.46 which includes the monitors, installation and a one-year service agreement. The money would be donated to Leon County and would continue the legacy of GWTC, FSU and Leon County in the development and success of this venue. Leon County would assume all responsibility and maintenance costs from this point on. A motion to move forward with donating $24,469.46 to Leon County to purchase the monitors was made, seconded, and passed. It was also recommended that the County be asked to use the message boards to promote upcoming GWTC races. Bill also noted that two commemorative plaques would be posted acknowledging GWTC’s donation.
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Email Management System – Mark Priddy & Robert Skrob
The club has been searching for a replacement for the Gwind Listserv which will enable members to post questions, share information, etc. Robert mentioned that the Tri-Club uses Google Groups to send out information to its members and he believes this would work for GWTC members as well. Much of this information is available already through the Fleet Foot mailing list and could be expanded to dues paying club members. The group agreed to move forward with this approach.

Membership Director Update – Mark Priddy
Mark announced that he would like to appoint Jo Lena Bryan as the new Membership Chair to fill the vacancy created when Tristan LaNasa moved to Walton County. A motion to approve this appointment was made, seconded, and passed.

Meeting Hosts for 2022 – Mark Priddy
Mark circulated a sign-up sheet for board members to host a monthly board meeting in 2022. Once it is complete, the list will be posted on the GWTC website.

GWTC Cross-Country Team Reimbursement – Mark Priddy
Mark shared that the club has a Women’s Masters team signed up for the USATF National Club Cross-Country Championships which will take place on December 11, 2021, at the ARP. The cost for participating in this event is $40 per runner in addition to a USATF membership fee of $40 per runner. Team members consist of: Katie Sherron, Amy Hines, Laura Reina and Michelle Allen. A motion that the team be fully reimbursed for their entry and USATF membership costs was made, seconded, and passed.

Proposed 2022 Grand Prix Schedule – Mark Tombrink
Mark presented the proposed list of races for the 2022 Grand Prix schedule. Discussion ensued regarding the number of races and the various distances involved. A motion to accept the Grand Prix Committee’s list of races was made, seconded, and passed. The full list of races can be found on the GWTC website at:
https://www.gulfwinds.org/grand-prix-2022/

GWTC Legacy Remembrance Options – Lisa Unger
Lisa reviewed the various memorials that have been erected for valued members of GWTC that have passed away. Examples include a bench at the head of the Phipps property, Jere Moore’s tree in Myers Park, Mike Boll’s picnic table at the Greenway and more. Lisa is interested in spearheading a similar effort to continue to memorialize lost GWTC members. The board encouraged her to look into this and bring back some suggestions. Mark Tombrink added that the Grand Prix Committee is planning to add a tribute to deceased members of the club as part of the Annual Awards Ceremony.

IV. Reports

Treasurer – Peg Griffin
Peg reported the treasury report as of November 30, 2021. Assets were reported at $253,791.40 and net revenue was $257.08.

Triathlete Club – Tina Bahmer
Tina shared that she has enjoyed her tenure as President of the Tri-Club and welcomed Kory Skrob as the incoming president. Tina will assume the duties of Tri-Club Past-President as well as the Social Coordinator for GWTC. Other Tri-Club board members for 2022 include: Vice-President: Eric Trombley, Treasurer: David Strange, Secretary: Annie Bowman, and Directors-at-Large: Darien Angelier, Donica Williams, Lura Diestelhorst, Beverly Harrell, and Rob McNeely. Many tri-club memberships will be expiring at the end of the month so there is a focus on promoting the importance of membership renewal.

Race Director Coordinator – Mary Jean Yon
Mary Jean reported that the Springtime Committee will meet on December 19 to kick off the planning process for the 2022 race. Committee members consist of Rachel Scharlepp, Tom Perkins, Heather Vickers, Vicky Verano, Jerry McDaniel, Lisa Unger, Peg Griffin, Mark Priddy, David Yon, and Mary Jean Yon.

Unfortunately, this year’s Tannenbaum’s race has been canceled.

Mary Jean also reported that Allen Blay has stepped forward to be the new race director for the Steve Prefontaine Forest Run 5K and hopes to restore having more youth runners involved.

Newsletter – Robert and Kory Skrob
Robert reported that the next deadline for content in the January Fleet Foot is December 17. Robert and Kory are looking for suggestions for people to feature in the Volunteer Spotlight and Featured Feet columns.

Membership – Mark Priddy
Mark reported that there are 1,234 members this year vs 1,225 last year, as well as 657 households vs 649 at this same time last year. Mark also reported that Tristan LaNasa had established contact with the local Lulu Lemon representative who, in turn, donated $200 to fund 10 individual adult memberships to the Club.

Diversity – Chris Turner
No report.

Education and Lecture – Judy Alexander
Nothing new to report.

Website – David Yon & Peg Griffin
Nothing new to report.

Chenoweth Fund – David Yon
David reported that the Lincoln High School track coach requested $1,000 to help grow the Jimmy Everett Track Meet. A motion to approve this request was made, seconded, and passed.

Merchandise – Laura McDermott and Sherri Wise
No Report

Equipment –Bill Lott for Vicky Droze
Bill reported that one of the race clocks is not working properly and it is believed that the batteries need to be replaced. He plans to order and replace the batteries in the near future. The batteries in another race clock reported in the past as also not working properly have been replaced; however, the clock will still not work properly, and the problem may be in the circuit boards. This clock will likely have to be shipped to the manufacturer in California for repair.

ChipTiming – Bill Lott
During November, only two Club races, the Rex Cleveland Magic! Mile and the Tallahassee Turkey Trot 15K/10K/5K/1 Mile were chip timed. For December, only two races are scheduled to be chip timed and both of those are Club races – the GWTC 10/5 Mile Challenge and the Tallahassee Ultra-Distance Classic 50 Mile/50K/Marathon. In January 2022, one non-Club and three Club races are scheduled for chip timing. The non-Club race is The Trent 10K/5K/1 Mile at the end of the month. The three Club races are the Swamp Forest Trail Half Marathon/Quarter Marathon/20.5 Mile Challenge, the Bowlegs 5K Run for Scholarship, and GWTC 30K/15K.

At last month’s meeting, the Board was updated on the three timing mats that are not working and the current unavailability of getting replacement mats and antennas in the United States. Alternate solutions and sources have been found and are still being studied. Bill Hillison believes he may be able to repair two of the mats’ antennas and attempts to repair those two antennas will be made.

Grand Prix – Mark Tombrink
The committee met prior to the board meeting to discuss the nominations received for the annual awards and hopes to finalize everything soon.

Training Groups
No report.

Social
The Annual Holiday Party will take place December 18 at Shiloh Farms starting at 7:00 p.m.

Meeting was adjourned at 8:44 p.m.
Mary Jean Yon

 

Contact us for information about GWTC or additions to the website.
Submit race results (preferably in Excel) here.
Gulf Winds Track Club, P.O. Box 3447, Tallahassee, FL 32315