HTC Executive Board Meeting - 14 August 2006

Board Members Present: David Purinton (President), Kathy Youngren (Treasurer), Harold Tinsley (VP-Communications), Anne Park (Secretary), Jim Oaks (Appointed Member—Cotton Row Director), Craig Armstrong (VP-Races & Equipment) Suzanne Taylor, (Appointed Member—Rocket City Marathon Director), Ashley Cain (VP-Programs), DeWayne Satterfield, (Appointed Member—Past Officer)

Also present were Beth Edwards and Ryan Decker, Huntsville Track Club Members.

The HTC Executive Board met in the conference room at Southwood Presbyterian Church, Huntsville, Alabama, and the meeting began at 7:05 p.m. Beth Edwards gave an in-depth report of her research into the possible purchase of mile markers for the marathon, which would then also be available for other HTC races. Suzanne stressed that the purpose behind providing attractive and easily readable markers for the marathon is to enhance the quality and facility of the race rather than a desire to increase the numbers. Beth and Suzanne answered many questions for board members about the types of banners available and their characteristics. We would need a total of 29 banners, and the cost of the banner most suitable for our purposes would be $164 each, with some bases also needed for setup in areas where stakes cannot be inserted. Since we have until mid-September to place an order, Beth offered to research one or two more specifics and to see whether we can have one actual banner to examine before making a purchase.

Ryan Decker then was given the floor and he gave us a description of the NASA Health & Fitness 5K which will be run at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 6, 2006, beginning at the Arsenal Gym. This race, sponsored by the MARS Running Club, will be in conjunction with their Health and Fitness Expo, and will be open to all who have access to the Arsenal. The race already has enough support people to make it a quality race, and Ryan was requesting that they be able to use some of our equipment. The Board agreed that they could use the finish line clock and other needed items at a reasonable fee. Ryan agreed to run this by Sam Ortega for approval.

Suzanne then informed us of the progress of our marathon planning, beginning with a description of the running of our marathon course by Dean Karnazes on October 12, 2006. This event is part of his attempt to run 50 marathons in 50 States in 50 days. All preparations are now in place. The North Face Group is providing aid, insurance and sag support, the city will provide three police officers, and all proceeds will go to Karnos Kids.

Suzanne then updated us on preparations for the Afghanistan Marathon which will coincide with the Rocket City Marathon on December 9, 2006. The HTC will be providing finishers medals, t-shirts, certificates, race numbers and race hats for this event in Afghanistan. The board also approved their request to increase the time limit and also include relays in their event. Craig suggested that rather than sending them last year’s shirts we should send this year’s shirts and provide quality items in appreciation for their sacrificial service to our country.

Preparations for this year’s Rocket City Marathon are well underway. Bob Schwartz will be the guest speaker at the Friday night Carbo Supper, with his delightful combination of humor and running expertise, and he will also be running the marathon. It appears that the road work on Chaney Thompson may be completed by race time, eliminating the need for a course change in that area. As of now we have a total of $25,000 in sponsor money, and all hotels are confirmed. Suzanne did suggest that for the 2007 race we consider incorporating a contribution to a charity as a feature of our race since sponsors seem to place importance on this. We discussed some possibilities and will explore this further. Craig also asked that we put together an invited runner policy for elite athletes. This would help with providing accommodations for elite runners, and the standards should be listed on the web site so there will be no confusion regarding who qualifies. Last year’s winners will automatically qualify, and we could also list ½ marathon qualifying times to accommodate those running their first marathon. The web site can then be refreshed as the marathon nears depending upon who and how many have qualify. Suzanne provided some numbers and these were modified and discussed, and she will come up with a final list that would serve this purpose.

David presented the 2007 race calendar for approval. After a brief discussion, Craig moved and Jim seconded that we accept the calendar as finalized. The motion carried.

Jim then provided a handout of the income and outgo for the 2006 Cotton Row Run, explaining this year’s numbers and also comparing them with the same expenses and income from past years. It is again Jim’s intention to donate money from the race to deserving organizations as was done last year, and he will finalize the organizations and amounts and present them to the board. Jim also requested that he would prefer to attend the RRCA Annual Meeting in Chicago in March of 2007 rather than his usual attendance at the Road Race Management Meeting, which is coming up in October 2006.

Suzanne announced that she and Dink had talked it over at length, and they would like to volunteer as Race Director for the Cotton Row Run. This resulted in much discussion, after which Craig made a motion to accept her offer to be the new director, DeWayne seconded the motion, and the motion passed unanimously.

We then discussed several minor items of business.

• Craig suggested that it would be very helpful to the club if we list the prices for the rental of our equipment on our web site.

• Jim suggested that he would like to buy three old and outdated pieces of equipment from the HTC, the old time machine ($300), clock ($100) and print timer ($100). Craig moved and Suzanne seconded that we sell this equipment to Jim. The motion passed.

• There had been a previous suggestion that we appoint a Volunteer Coordinator Director who would be the focal point for organizing volunteers for our races. Several pros and cons were discussed and this issue was tabled for future discussion because there were some problems to be addressed concerning this.

• Ashley announced that the Board and Race Director’s Meeting date will be Friday, September 15, and the Annual Awards Banquet is scheduled for the second Tuesday in November.

• Anne presented for consideration some issues concerning our Shoe Amnesty program, mainly the increasingly escalating expense involved in mailing the shoes and the difficulty of finding charities that would welcome the shoes that are still in good condition. Several suggestions were given, and this will be discussed again at a later meeting.

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:45 p.m.