The board met earlier this month for the first time since the summer and since Phil passed away. As many of you know, John Powell has taken charge of becoming tech director and put in a good bit of work picking up where Phil left off. Feel free to ask questions in the forum or message me directly.

Kissena board meeting 9/8/18

In attendance all expect Todd

Membership update

• Currently at 52 members and John M. is planning 2 more Meet Kissena rides for the Fall

Sponsorship update

• Sean is collaborating with Charlie re: sponsorship opportunity for young rider jersey at L&C races as well as with club 
• We are pursuing possible sponsors for this opportunity

Financial update

• Current finances are stable, due in part to renegotiated tech and coaching costs. We are negotiating with Tim Cusick to bring coaching costs in line with current usage

Tech update

1. Forum & Website

• John P. has updated Vanilla look and feel and negotiated with Vanilla to decrease costs to club 
• Website continues to be hacked but with limited impact. John P. is exploring alternatives

2. group rides and ICE

• Club is investigating tech solution to help coordinate group rides and provide members with easy access to member phone and ICE (in case of Emergency) info. Members with knowledge of phone apps that may meet these needs are encouraged to discus with John P.

VP update

1. Kit

• Blue kit has received positive feedback 
• One more clothing order before end of year

2. Social events

• Fall happy hour on Thursday Sept 27th
• Starting to plan/schedule end of year party

3. Elections

• Members interested in running for the 2019 board are encouraged to approach current board members

Development update 

1. CX clinic

• CX clinic was successful with 12 participants

2. Training rides

• Dan Reiners has recently inititated Winning Wednesdays in Prospect Park 
• Seen as valuable to team cohesion and race skills building
• Board would like to establish it as a tradition so it can become a regal event in the Spring
• Board wants to encourage members to train together more often

Public Relations update

• Eloy met with Prospect Park alliance to represent club and local cycling community for discussion of prospect park drive

Other business

Phil Ginsberg

• Club members assisted Phil’s family with his Celebration of life on September 8th
• Patrick sold Phil’s CX bicycle to a Mineola Cycling Club member. All proceeds went to the family. 
• Family would like club to Discussed ways to sell off some of this other things for family

Coaching for 2019

• Twenty members have downloaded Tim’s coaching plans this year (approx. 40% of membership). Board recognizes that this is not enough to justify coaching fees that were paid in the past. Tim reduced his fee back in May, and Patrick has reached out to him to negotiate a reduced fee for 2019

Board Meeting notes:

On December 9th we had our last board meeting of 2018. Here are some highlights from the meeting.

First, you may have seen on the forum that we are moving to incorporate the messaging platform Slack for organizing group rides and communications among members. We have been exploring ways to improve communications to meet up for group rides as well as to make emergency contact information easily accessible should they be needed. After exploring several options, we settled on Slack as a solution. It allows for easy messaging among members even without knowing each other’s pone numbers. Look for John Powell’s emails and/or forum messages as we get this off the ground. Note that we are still encouraging members to include ICE (in case of emergency) info on the lock screens of their phones and in their wallets. 

Membership is up to 62 members and we renegotiated the costs of coaching and Vanilla forums earlier in the year. As a result we have $3000 in the bank at the end of the year. This is an improved financial position than where we found ourselves last year. We decided to maintain our current membership fee and add member benefits and/or subsidize group orders (such as helmets) during the year.

The club has a credit with Champion Systems that has traditionally been used for mentors, juniors and women’s clothing. This year, JP Partland, John Malcolmson and Eloy Anzola were given clothing credit in recognition of their mentorship efforts. We encourage any experienced members who would like to mentor new riders to contact the development chair. The board agreed to use the remaining ChampSys credit to provide a free short sleeve tech jersey to all new members. This will included members who joined recently and those joining for the first time in 2019. The board will continue this benefit as long as we receive the ChampSys credit and will explore other member benefits. 

Starting in 2019, RedBeard’s relationship with Giant bicycles has changed, and as a result our new bike sponsor is now Specialized bikes. All members in good standing (regardless of category) get a 25% discount on all Specialized bikes and gear. This includes their wheels, helmets, shoes, tires, and other gear. Note that bikes will need to be ordered during “order windows”. The timing of these windows will be worked out with RedBeard and announced. In the meantime, anyone interested in purchasing something from Specialized should speak to Kasia or Ilya. 

The changes in bike sponsorship necessitate changes to the team kit. Therefore, the winter kit order has been temporarily delayed until all changes can be made. 

The club has been seeking sponsors to support a new jersey completion at the L&C cup races for 2019. So far the potential sponsors that were approached have not worked out.The L&C cup is an eight race series in Prospect Park that attracts upwards of 100 local racers per race. Kissena is the club sponsor for this race series promoted by Charlie Issendorf. Sponsoring a jersey is a good way for a local business or service to reach physically active individuals living in the NYC area. If members know of any potential sponsors who may be interested in sponsoring a jersey at the L&C cup series should contact the sponsorship chair. 

If you have questions about any of this feel free to message me

Thanks for the updates.

Thank you for the updates!

Thanks for the update @PatrickGrehan. 

The board had their second meeting of the year last week. Below is a summary of what was discussed, including @Bruce van-Schalkwyk's comments from earlier. Apologies for the formatting since the secretary and his formatting skills were missing. Feel free to reach out to me directly or any member of the board if anyone would like to discuss further. 

Kissena board Meeting notes

April 18

Attendees: John M, Will K, Eloy A, Patrick G,  (Rich F)

 

-Financial situation is stable - about $5500 in bank. Includes payment for helmet subsidies

 

-24 people ordered Kask helmets - popular order

 

-Emergency contact - Will will send email to club and we will distribute to new members and send out once a year

 

-John Olsson report - 9 new members in 2019. A few members need to renew

 

-Clothing - some confusion as clothing order was not fulfilled completely. Members complained to Kasia. Ask members to direct inquiries to Patrick or Chris @ CS. There will be another order windows possibly in May or early June.

 

-Discussed possibility of giving members option to ship clothing direct to themselves for extra $30 with Kasia. Members will likely appreciate the opportunity for direct shipping (albeit it at a cost), but we want to do right by Redbeard who have requested all orders be sent to the shop in the past.

 

-Jersey order for new members has arrived. List of members to receive jerseys needs to be created and forwarded to Kasia.

 

-John M - development

Crit workshop successful and cold

Planning a new member skills ride

 

-Eloy planning to include new member stuff (skills, strategy, club information, coaching information, etc.) for look sharp rides on Friday.

 

-Eloy reported that Prospect Park alliance looking to make changes to park rules. He continues to attend PA meetings so that cyclists have representation and we can be updated on Alliance decisions.

 

-Will willing to do a midweek Workout ride in prospect park.

 

-Eloy proposed a semi-private website with on boarding info re: pages for coaching, clothing, group rides, etc. This would make getting critical information to new members easy and straightforward.

 

-John developing a new member workflow/website/booklet?

Will develop framework

 

-Weekend in Catskills - Patrick will aim for June 1st. Has most interest, does not have conflicting event in area (less traffic on road), is less expensive, and has option to cancel if the weather is awful

 

-Patrick will explore creating new batch of club t-shirts

 

-Board reviewed ideas presented by Bruce on the forum

1)      Should Board meeting be open. Decided: The board will offer members opportunities to meet with board members to discuss any questions or concerns, however board meetings themselves should not be open for anyone to join. We can also consider an all member meeting once a year at the beginning of the season to get everyone familiar with club goals, races, state of the club, etc. Minutes: Commit to posting board meeting minutes to forum regularly.

2)      Redbeard ride/synergy: Rich, Eloy and others have already been joining Redbeard rides after park races regularly. These seem to be popular rides, and are/will be tagged appropriately on social media.

3)      Sponsor access to forum: Only Redbeard and Velocious coaching have forum access. Decision: They provide useful information and will continue to access the forum. Part of Velocious’ service to Kissena is to be available to members to ask questions, and the forum provides an ideal platform for that. If members have complaints about the services provided by other sponsors, there are other avenues available for those discussions.  

4)      Waive Cat 3 membership fee: Decision: No. Not financially prudent nor does the board think this would be a significant incentive to Cat 3 members leaving club. All upper category members receive enhanced discounts through sponsors, which can easily be worth more than annual dues.

5)      Single discount for all categories: Currently the case for group purchases (including subsidized helmets) and Specialized bikes. Decision: See above. We will maintain 123 vs. 45 difference for shop purchases as incentive for Cat 1,2,3 members

6)      Free membership for Chris Yack and Mark Bertucco. Decision: The board will not offer free membership to entice these former members to re-join. Their affiliation with the club was highly valued, however they are unlikely to re-join in the eyes of the board. Members are also encouraged to reach out to former members themselves and lobby for re-joining. If there is a desire to re-join the club but economic factors that make it difficult, the board can make decisions on a case-by-case basis.

7)      Micro-sponsors: this is a good idea and one that we tried to action last year. The board is actively trying to find sponsors of all sizes for cash infusions.

8)      New member buddy system: The board has discussed this as an option. There are some logistical hurdles to implementing a buddy system and pairing new members with veterans, but we feel that organized rides during weekdays and weekends, both at workout and social paces, can fulfill the role of a buddy system sufficiently. See above for details on the push for more frequent recurring rides. 

Thank you @Will Kalbacker

Here are the notes from the most recent board meeting held on Sunday:

Date: July 14th, 2019

Attendees: John Malcolmson, John Olsson, John Powell, Giacomo Vischi, Will Kalbacker

Notes:

Group Riding Safety

·         The board discussed an increase in recent crashes during group rides

·         It’s important that all members have the skills and confidence to safely ride in large groups, and the board will work to raise awareness of the importance of proper riding protocol and etiquette at all times

·         Emails will be sent to all members outlining club policy on group riding protocol and safety

·         The board will vote on requiring new members to attend a training session that focuses on safety. CRCA already requires something similar

o   John M and John O will work on developing a procedure and mentor manual for these rides

·         Veteran riders and mentors will be encouraged to be more vocal during group rides to draw attention to issues concerning rider and pedestrian safety

Membership

·         Club membership is growing

·         We are currently at 68 members, with 19 new members joining this year

o   This is 90% of our annual goal of 75 members before year end

·         John O will tap veteran riders to assist with meet Kissena rides as an increase in new member interest is expected in the coming months

Development

·         Track day at the Kissena velodrome was a success with 4 or 5 members attending

·         John M will organize a Rockleigh Crit day in the coming weeks to allow newer members the opportunity to practice race skills and drills

Technology

·         The club’s website was recently hacked and we were forced to transition our website to a static page

·         There is an appetite for moving away from the Wordpress environment and towards something more stable

o   John P will keep up updated on recommendations

·         John P will be stepping down as Technology Director in the months to come as he and his family move back to Texas – if there are any members who are interested in volunteering for this board position we would love to hear from you. John P would be on hand to help with a transitional period to ensure responsibilities are cleanly passed

Kissena Women

·         The board is hopeful to grow and foster women membership

·         The idea was floated to seed an autonomous Women’s Team that would act as a sister club

o   This would allow for women’s specific goals, training, racing, etc. while maintain a healthy relationship with the men’s side

o   This would require infrastructure and administrative changes, as well female leadership

o   The board is open to suggestions about how to move forward

o   Further discussion required

Finances

·         The club is currently financially healthy, with over $7,000 is cash on hand

·         We expect to remain financially solvent for the foreseeable future considering our current expenses and membership growth

Sponsorship

·         There have been several successful group orders over the past several months

·         The team kit store is currently open for both white and blue kit

·         The club is actively seeking new cash sponsors

o   If any club member has connections to a business that is open to cash sponsorship of the club, we would like to hear from you

Miscellaneous

·         The board is weighing the question of how to encourage increased weekday group training for those who want it

o   The training plans that are offered may lead to individuals having different workouts than other teammates on any given day

o   The board feels that committing to a couple set weekday group rides, such as the current Wednesday and Friday rides, will allow members to ride in a larger group with minimal sacrifice to their training plans

·         The board can also encourage members to pick from a smaller number of training plan options to increase the overlap of shared workouts – open to member feedback

·         The issue of moving up board elections to earlier in the year was raised

o   This would allow for a longer transition period to transfer responsibilities

Thank you Will and the board.
I really appreciate that steps are being taken in order to enforce a safe riding etiquette in a swift manner. Kudos to all of you.

Super encouraging to read about committed board members working hard to improve the club year in and year out. 

Bummed of course to read that safety and crashes are so prominent; this has always been a challenge for a club where the the ratio of experienced riders to "new" folks is steep.

As a follow-up to the board meeting summary from a couple weeks ago, the board has voted to make group-riding-skills training compulsory for new members. The rides will be held approximately quarterly, or more often depending on demand and mentor availability. New members will be asked to participate in a ride after joining. There is no requirement to attend a skills ride before attending any other group rides, however it must be completed as soon as possible after registration . 

If there are any questions about the new policy, feel free to reach out to me or any member of the board. 

Hi all- here are the notes from the most recent board meeting we had last Thursday (2/6/2020)

President:

- Discussed how the board can better serve the club and increase our communication regarding decisions that are made

 

Vice President:

- New kit order to open 2/7/2020 (currently open- go order kits!)

- Floyd Bennet Field Races- discussed Aviator’s possible breach of contract, will follow up with necessary parties

 

Treasurer:

- Team is in good financial health

- Membership to remain at $175 per member for 2020

 

Development:

- Discussed rolling out a mentor program to help connect senior members to new members

-  John Olsson walked the board through idea of getting more members to train together (keep an eye out for thread posts/emails related to this)

- Went over upcoming workshops

        o   Race Workshop lead by John Malcomson (this weekend, keep an eye on the forum!)

        o   Grants Tomb

        o   Cornering

        o   Pace Lining

        o   New Member workshops to be held every 2 months or so

        o   Discussed idea of holding USAC upgrade workshops

 

Sponsorship:

- Board approved moving forward with Kask Utopia order

- If needed for 2021, Kissena may sponsor the white jersey at L&C- Eloy will continue ongoing conversation with Charlie

- Board discussed trying to create more off bike Kissena clothing

 

 Membership:

- Membership renewal emails will be sent shortly- please keep an eye on your inboxes

 

Public Relations:

- Discussed the possibility of creating a one off charity kit- exploring idea and viability of moving forward

 

Technology:

- Discussed new website and how to make it as useful to new and current members as possible

- Board approved One Pass Family plan in an effort to facilitate easier board transitions in the future and better keep track of Kissena passwords to various accounts

Thanks for the update Matt.

Hi all- here are the notes from the board's first ever zoom meeting we had last Thursday.

President:

- Continue to follow city/state mandates

     o Keep training inside and try to mitigate risk, do our part to try and help alleviate strain on hospitals

- Possibility of doing a cycling trip somewhere late summer

 

 

Vice President:

- Kit orders

     o   Last order is in at Redbeard! (Please call/text/email Redbeard to coordinate pick up)

     o   New order window upcoming soon

     o   Champion System Masks: Board approved purchase of masks for members. Will update once they arrive at Redbeard

- Discussed setting up a paid zoom account for the club to use for meetings/zwift group rides/social events

 

Treasurer:

- Team currently in good financial health

- Purchased insurance

- Paypal- Going forward, please use “personal payment” to avoid fee when paying the club (will include reminders on payment emails going forward)

Development:

- Training through the pandemic:

     o   Zwift and Trainer Road offer good workouts

     o   Velocious has plans geared toward indoor training and uncertainty of the road season (John is reaching out to Kathy to see how we can all sync up these plans to train together indoors)

- Zwift meetups: Keep an eye out for virtual Look Sharp rides and others (Kevin already has a ride put together for this Sunday!)

 

Sponsorship:

- Keep trying to support Redbeard as much as possible (nutrition, water bottles, gift cards, literally anything bike related- they’re shipping and will get you the products you want/need!)

     o   Keep an eye out for indoor riding group orders! (Will likely be a Skratch order and a Redbeard Indoor Essentials Box)

- Helmet order- Kasia will reach out to Kask and follow up on the mediums

Membership:

- Please pay membership for 2020! 

     o   About 39 members have paid so far

     o   If you are having any financial difficulties or other issues, please reach out to a board member so we can work together

- 5-10 potential members reached out pre-pandemic

 

Public Relations:

- Kevin is putting together an at home series of stories for Instagram of how members are training at home, what are we’re eating, how are we keeping the club active (check out the “MORE CONTENT 2020” thread on the forum for more info)

- The Bike Parade

      o   Check out the podcast (super entertaining- great for company during indoor rides!)

     o   Production quality on the up and up- making the sponsors proud

 

Technology:

- Website re-design open discussion

     o   Discussed whether we really need a new website at this point or can retool current website to meet need

KCC Members far and wide! The board will be holding our first town hall next week on April 8th! We're hoping down the road that as the pandemic hopefully wanes and as more people continue to be vaccinated we can do these in person in the future, but alas, this one will be via zoom (we'll post the exact zoom info in a few days). The board will be taking questions, listening to any comments and concerns, and giving a general overview of the what's going on with the club and where we're at.

Feel free to drop in for the whole shindig, or pop in for a few minutes, say hi and hear some questions. This is also a chance for members who haven't had the chance to meet or haven't seen their teammates out of kit to see one another!

Please also feel free to send anything to any board member ahead of time and we'll include it on the zoom!

At the end of the town hall we plan to hold an intro session for new members.  All are welcome to join, but new members in particular should try to participate as we will be going over some important information about the club.

Has a time for the town hall been set yet?

We're still figuring out the exact time, but likely to be around 8, 8:30ish EST

Greetings,

AndrewJohnson said:

Greetings,

I just went over the email sent out regarding the Board Meetings Minutes, and I have a question regarding the whole USAC thing? Can someone elaborate, I know I heard some rumblings about USAC backing events in less than tolerant states, or something to that nature, but can someone elaborate on the situation? Maybe I've been wrapped up in my own things lately and kinda out of loops of sorts...

Thanks.

Andrew

You can start with the impressive CRCA statement and go from there.

https://www.crca.net/crca-news/2021/4/statement-from-the-crca-board

Cool thanks!

The conversation really centered around USAC's (in my opinion) appalling response to the legislation in Arkansas's transgender legislation. CRCA publicly announced that they planned to disassociate from USAC as a result of this, so we, as a board, discussed the feasibility of what we as Kissena would look like without USAC, what USAC does offer, and how we can set ourselves apart from the USAC's statement and support our local LGBTQ community

On the topic of password management from the meeting minutes, I highly recommend 1Password now. Recent updates have made it vastly superior to its competitors. My wife and I are on the family plan and its shared vault feature is very well done. It's also very easy to install on desktop and mobile and the experience between them is seamless and easy. It's the hotness.