LFLB Running Club Board Meeting Minutes

Saturday, May 21, 2005

The LFLB Running Club board met after the run on May 21 at the Lake Forest Bank. President Larry Smith called the meeting to order at 9:45 am. Minutes were recorded by Joan Elliott. Chuck Gudbrandsen announced that he would have poppies at the station the following Saturday and encouraged members to purchase them to honor and help out our war veterans.

Reports were heard from each chairperson:

Membership: Bill Bracken

Our current membership count is 245, including members who have been carried forward from the previous year but have not yet paid dues for this year. About 60% of the membership are current on their dues. We have 13 new members so far this year. The 2005 directory is completed and Bill has been distributing it at the train station after the run. Bill thanked Keith Stewart, previous membership chairman, for all his help and guidance with the directory.

Webmaster: Ken Wasetis / Miki Tosic

Ken has been working on creating a new and improved web site from a different vendor. It will allow board members to add and update information about their areas themselves, rather than Ken having to do all the updates. Also, members would be able to log in and update their own demographic information, using their own personal password. Julian Gordon, club photographer, also mentioned that he would like to be able to put pictures on the site himself.

There was quite a bit of discussion about security matters, and how passwords would be handled. Cam Meyer had concerns about having the directory available on the site. Ken pointed out that the directory information would be available only to members with passwords, not to others who visit our web site.

Merchandise: Steve Weinstock

There was quite a bit of discussion about the fashion show, which was held at Mickey Finn’s in Libertyville this year. The consensus was that the location was not an improvement over our previous site, the Silo in Lake Bluff, as both locations are noisy and dimly lit. Attendance was down from past years, and the question was raised whether we should eliminate the fashion show completely, or just have a pizza party. However, many members of the board felt that it should not be eliminated, and that we just need a better location. Also, there was some confusion about the date because the show is usually held on a Tuesday evening and this year it was changed to Wednesday shortly before the day of the event. Steve is going to look at the possibility of holding it at Harrison House next year, although it may be too expensive.

One of his goals was to eliminate some of our current stock of club merchandise, and Steve reported that some merchandise was sold at the fashion show. Also, Kiddles had apparel from several vendors on display and that seemed to be a hit with the members. Steve plans to have merchandise available at the breakfast Meet ‘n Greet in mid-June.

There is also a possibility of having club merchandise for sale at Kiddles, which would serve as advertising for the club, and would also eliminate the need for storing so much in someone’s basement. Perhaps we could even have club membership applications at the store as well.

Social: Melissa Nides / Tara Geers

Our social chairman, Tony Vukovics, was not able to be at the meeting and has asked for help with social events for the remainder of the year due to time constraints. Melissa Nides and Tara Geers have stepped in to help. The next breakfast Meet ‘n Greet is scheduled for June 18 after the run, and members will be asked to contribute baked goods. All are encouraged to bring friends.

A summer party at Barry Seiller’s and a Ravinia Night are also in the planning stages. Miki Tosic will once again be organizing the Thanksgiving Day races. December 2 has been selected as the date for the holiday party at Hotel Morraine. It is felt that attendance at club social events in general is down, and board members and others should do more to encourage attendance.

Newsletter: Joan Elliott

Joan stated that the monthly news email seems to be well received. Several members have commented that they like getting the updates on coming races and other events. However, she would like to put out a full newsletter at least twice a year, and is looking for articles and input for a summer edition. It was suggested that we reinstate the member profiles which were done in past years. Steve Weinstock also presented the idea of publishing a list of questions posed to a club member, along with his or her answers, and having members guess who it is.

Race Director: Jack Zordan

Jack mentioned that the club needs to have better attendance at CARA circuit races if we are going to have a good showing in the CARA results. There was also some discussion regarding a possible bike-fitting clinic to be sponsored by Chronometro Bike Store.

Treasury: Ron Thomas

Ron presented a written treasury report in which he updated some of the previously estimated expenses with actual costs. Our big expense since the last meeting was the Fashion Show /Pizza Party, which cost around $800. Also, the club sponsored a water stop at the Equestrian Connection Races on April 24, and donated $250 toward that event. We also paid $115 for our new USATF membership. We still have quite a bit of outstanding income from membership dues.