Dotan,

I love the enthusiasm as well as the "dead to me" meme

Please allow me to bring up a couple of things in the spirit of making the club as good as it can be.

In no particular order:

If you're running for president, please give the club some idea of your qualifications - have you served on a non-profit board before, and in what capacity? Which past presidents have you met with to discuss what's involved in the role?

Women's riding - it's one thing to say "this is a problem" it's another to talk about real solutions. I can think of at least three distinct efforts to address this over the years - each with a different strategy - how many of these do you know about? Are you aware of the structural obstacles to this in NY cycling? Specifically the women's races that are closed to us, and the sponsorship obstacles?

Collaboration - I'm not even sure what this means? What collaboration is happening and what is missing? This could be quite insulting to the folks that are doing these roles now - either that you don't know or haven't taken the time to ask.

Lastly if you're going to be gone for a 1/3 of the year, a board position is probably not the droid you're looking for. One of the most harmful things to a volunteer organization is people who put their hand up for responsibility but don't have the time/bandwidth to do the work. You're probably better off helping the board members you mentioned with all of these initiatives.

I say all of this as someone who cares about the club and has seen 10+ years of boards, board members, good intentions, indifferent intentions, results and failures. This club is what the members make it.

Like most things in life, the will to succeed is the will to prepare. Best intentions - (of which it's obvious you have a surplus!) are not the same as preparation.

Peace,

j

I nominate @Jules for president!

JohnOlsson said:

I nominate @Jules for president!

I'm not sure the club is up for a remote Prez

Jules said:

Dotan,

I love the enthusiasm as well as the "dead to me" meme

Please allow me to bring up a couple of things in the spirit of making the club as good as it can be.

In no particular order:

If you're running for president, please give the club some idea of your qualifications - have you served on a non-profit board before, and in what capacity? Which past presidents have you met with to discuss what's involved in the role?

Women's riding - it's one thing to say "this is a problem" it's another to talk about real solutions. I can think of at least three distinct efforts to address this over the years - each with a different strategy - how many of these do you know about? Are you aware of the structural obstacles to this in NY cycling? Specifically the women's races that are closed to us, and the sponsorship obstacles?

Collaboration - I'm not even sure what this means? What collaboration is happening and what is missing? This could be quite insulting to the folks that are doing these roles now - either that you don't know or haven't taken the time to ask.

Lastly if you're going to be gone for a 1/3 of the year, a board position is probably not the droid you're looking for. One of the most harmful things to a volunteer organization is people who put their hand up for responsibility but don't have the time/bandwidth to do the work. You're probably better off helping the board members you mentioned with all of these initiatives.

I say all of this as someone who cares about the club and has seen 10+ years of boards, board members, good intentions, indifferent intentions, results and failures. This club is what the members make it.

Like most things in life, the will to succeed is the will to prepare. Best intentions - (of which it's obvious you have a surplus!) are not the same as preparation.

Peace,

j

Jules,

First, I mean no disrespect to the current board members. The club is doing great because of the time and effort they put into their roles. We have the end of the year party coming soon and it is not lost on me that people are working hard in making it happen. Same goes for the kit orders throughout the year, the Kissena Supercross cup, the many new members that joined because of the work of @JohnOlsson and @johnM@JohnMalcolmson, the subsidized new Orange helmets, the relationship with RedBeard that many of us are thankful for. And there are more things to celebrate in Kissena because of its dedicated members.

My point about collaboration is to build upon what we already have and enhance it. For example, we can use our social media platforms to attract more members. Our website can be more than an introduction to the team, and we can put content that is relevant to us there about training, racing, nutrition, routes repository, sponsorship deals etc. Changes like these require meeting the needs and goals of the different arms in Kissena - Tech, Membership, Development, PR, and Treasure. That's what I mean by collaboration. I know that each director is thinking about how to improve his field of responsibility, the board is the platform to work together on a small scale project and large scale projects. I think there is room for new projects that brings the goals set by Development and PR, or Tech and PR. They exist, and the list I mentioned above is partial, but if there's room to grow, it is in nurturing these collaborations.

About women riders membership. This is an issue I've been discussing with members here since I joined Kissena. I am aware of past attempts, and I know about the strategies we implemented. I'm sure that there are more things I don't know, but that's a bigger discussion. It is not an impossible goal to achieve. But we need to decide that we are going for that. I recognize the all-men-club as a problem, and I would like to open this discussion again, that was my point. I cannot offer solutions on my own, that is why we have a board where many minds are put together.

About myself. I gained my experience in the non-profit field when I co-founded an NGO in Israel called Breaking the Silence (https://www.breakingthesilence.org.il/) in 2004. Back then it was a tiny organization of 4 people and about 20 volunteers. Today it is the 3rd largest human rights organization in the country. I established the research division, worked on our education plans, and did some fundraising when needed. I understand that whistleblowers' human rights organization is very different than a sports club, but I'm ready to translate the skills I learned there to Kissena. I will reach out to our current and past presidents to learn more about the role, absolutely. My absence is something I would like to ask about, that is why I put it out there on my post.

Peace, indeed.

D.

Well said @DotanGreenvald

@DotanGreenvald I speak for the board when I say that we are very excited about your enthusiasm and dedication to the club. An infusion of fresh thinking is always good. As Jules mentioned, many of your thoughts are items that the club has attempted to address in the past, if not several times. However we are always willing to try and move Kissena in the direction its members feel it should go. 

I would love to see you run for a non-presidential board position. It's a bit hard to jump directly to president since it's extremely helpful to get a good picture of how the board operates beforehand. This is especially true if you will be out of the country for several months. All of the points you raise above are topics that you can raise with and work through with the board, regardless of your position, for the betterment of the club. 

Please let me or any other board member know if this is something you'd be willing to do!

@Will Kalbacker, I had a good conversation with @PatrickGrehan the other day. We discussed the requirements of the role, challenges and opportunities it offers and most importantly its impact on the club. I learned a lot, and it gave me a better perspective on our board. I see what you meant when you wrote that Patrick "is the top quality motor oil that keeps the engine of this club running smoothly".

I'm looking forward to our discussion as well, I'm sure you can offer a different perspective and I would love to hear it. There's no substitute for experience, right?

On that note, I would like to address the club.

Some of you get to see me more frequently than others. There are Kissenas that I've only seen once or twice too. Since I cannot come to the end of the year party on the 15th (I'm flying westward that very same day), I will probably miss the chance to talk with you all. Feel free to reach out to me and we can talk about the club. I would love to hear about your vision. I'm less of a digital person when it comes to things like this. A phone call is my preferable media, after an old fashion face-to-face conversation. I'm on Slack, but if you aren't - my number is 607-592-5128. Call, rumor says I'm nice.

D.

I'd like to nominate Ian Ellis for president. Ian, who has been a Kissena member for 10 years used to be very active until his parents in the UK became ill a few years back. He is getting back into racing and wants to bring his experience as former COO of IT at Morgan Stanley to the board. Happy to have him run for the board 

It is a sign of the club's health that people are running against each other for board positions. We are a club run on the energy of its members. Once again, I encourage any and all members who are considering running for any of the board positions to reach out to me or other board members and toss their hats into the ring. Nominations close on Tuesday

Thank you @PatrickGrehan for the nomination and I am delighted to run for president.

Many of the newer members probably have not seen me around and may only know me as the guy who doesn’t like bike cargo shorts. So here is a little bit about me:

I have raced bicycles, off and on, for a long time, (when I started as a Junior in the UK the Tour De France was usually won by a French rider !), predominantly road races, Time Trials (we do like a TT in the UK) and track.

After moving to the US 16 years ago I picked up racing again, firstly with CRCA as an independent and then I joined Kissena 10 years ago. What attracted me to the club then (and what has kept me here all these years) is how open the club is to new members and how supportive of them the board and membership are. Kissena really is a special club with strong principles of inclusivity and camaraderie.

I was a very active racer with the club for many years, riding Charlie’s races in Prospect Park and FBF, but also travelling to upstate NY, CT, NJ and PA for opportunities to race on open roads. In the last 4 years though I was unable to train and race as I would like due to travelling extensively in my career, until I then stepped away from work to support my ageing parents back in the UK.

I now find myself in the fortunate position of being able to re-focus my attention back to cycling and with significant free time as I no longer have a full time work commitment. Furthermore, after a decade of reaping all of the benefits of being a member of Kissena I want to take this opportunity to give back to the club and its membership by working with the Board.

My role of Chief Operating Officer of Technology involved collaborating with peers to ensure that new strategies were implemented and communicated effectively, that the budget was balanced and that we had the best practices around Human Capital such that we attracted, retained and motivated talent. I feel this experience fits very well the responsibilities of Club President.

I believe the successive boards in recent years have evolved this club tremendously, with a clear focus on Technology, Public Relations, Sponsorship and of course our Membership (not forgetting that we have the best kit in the region). Where I can help the board continue to deliver for the club is through my servant leadership, bringing the board together to ensure they continue to deliver for all of the club membership and assisting these fantastic volunteers with anything they need to ensure they are successful in their roles.

Finally, there is clearly a lot of enthusiasm within the club membership to look at new strategies for membership, racing, etc. and if elected I would work with the board to provide an open forum for members so those ideas are heard, discussed and prioritized. All organizations are constrained by resources, both people and finances, and to ensure that the club targets those resources appropriately the board will communicate clearly what input is needed to drive those ideas forward and to what expected outcome/benefit to the club. Given the time I personally have available I would therefore provide transparency to the club membership about why certain objectives are being pursued and others not.

I will be at the Holiday Party on Sunday. I hope to see you there.

while it is not a done deal, I am very excited about the prospect of Ian being President of the club!

Well said @ian ellis

@ian ellis, when are we going to have an election debate? 

I think @ian ellis would make a great club President. His deep experience with both the club (over a decade!) and racing (specifically racing in NYC/Brooklyn) make him a great candidate.

He has seen many seasons of this club's successes and failures and I think that puts him in a very special position for experienced stewardship.

Even though I live far away my door (phone/email, etc) is always open to club members (new or old) interested in understanding more about what's involved in sitting on the KCC board, or local racing, or even club history (as far as I know it.)

I'd like to nominate @eloy for Sponsorship Director. Eloy is a longtime board member, Kissena member, and general good citizen. I have no doubt his experience and dedication will serve the club well in this role. 

Correct me if I'm wrong but @Eloy might be the "longest" Kissena currently in the club (apologies for outing you!). Over a decade ago when I first joined the club he took me under his wing and explained so much about local race organization, sponsors, club history... I would have completely face-planted as a board member if it wasn't for him.

In addition to his peerless #looksharp - seriously has anyone ever seen him #notsharp? Eloy is a former KCC president, Kit Designer, mentor, and pro mtn biker. I'm certainly missing several things on this list.

#Boom
#nomorehiding

I recall @Eloy co-hosting a very informative tactics class with JP in some swanky bike store in TriBeCa back when I joined so he has certainly been a long serving member of the club.

"Mercer Day 2"

Thank you all.

I accept the nomination for Sponsorship Director.

Many of you know me... been part of Kissena since 2003, as Public Relations Director for the club for the past 2 or 3 seasons. Was Kissena's Sponsorship Director for a few years in another lifetime, including when we raced the 2009 USGP Mercer Cup -- where did you get that photo, Jules!?!

About me, until a few weeks ago, worked for 9+ years as Tech Director at R/GA, a large marketing agency. Around 4 weeks ago started as Technology Manager at Equinox, where I am in charge of their member app. Still new here, but surrounded by lots of smarts and great work about membership, premium experiences, and fitness!

As sponsorship director, I hope to continue Erik's work strengthening current relationships -- Redbeard 🔥🔥. And, with everyone's help, to look for possible new sponsorships.

Looking forward to 2020!

I'd like to nominate Erik Pfiffner @ErikPfiffner  for President of the Kissena Cycling Club.

Over the past few seasons, Erik has been increasingly more involved with the club, a fantastic member, racer, and serving on 2019 in the board as Sponsorship Director.

He brings the right kind of experience, knowledge, empathy, and enthusiasm to provide direction and keep moving Kissena forward during 2020.

Also, important, he can wheelie, and owns one of the sharp & coveted orange kissena champion jerseys.

@ErikPfiffner The Man, The Myth, The Legend.
Some say he saved a cat stuck on a tree, but I say he saved a dozen cats off the tree single-handedly while doing a wheelie on the bike. 

"Reach for the star" - ERIK2020   

That poster is pretty funny. Now you need to make one for Ian and Dotan to make it a fair game.

That wheelie shot is redonk.

^@Eloy I sucked down every last file from the old Kissena.info (seriously, dot info? what even is that?) site before we shut it down. Most are painfully small tiles like this

Jules said:

^@Eloy I sucked down every last file from the old Kissena.info (seriously, dot info? what even is that?) site before we shut it down. Most are painfully small tiles like this

you should go through Eloy's old Flickr account--or he should share it.  Lots of old kissena shots there.

Whew, great to see such spirited candidates!

Just a reminder that nominations close tonight. Don’t be shy if you are on the fence.

The current nominees are
President: Dotan Greenvald, Ian Ellis, and Erik Pfiffner
VP: Patrick Grehan
Membership: Rich Freeman
Development: John Olsson
Sponsorship: Bobby Peras and Eloy Anzola
Treasurer: Jim Nelson
Secretary: Matt Budofsky
Public Relations: Kevin Man

The posts in this thread and discussions at the holiday party suggest that there are many more passionate members than there are positons on the board. This is a great problem to have and I think the club can only benefit from having a larger tent in which members can participate. The current board met Sunday afternoon and thought that regardless of the outcome of the elections, we would like to encourage the development of committees of members that could work on passion projects. I hope to see members who don’t get elected (as well as those who care but don’t run for office) serve on these (future) committees. 

Elections will open tomorrow or Thursday and remain open through Thursday of next week to allow everyone a chance to vote. I will post info about the elections as soon as it is ready to go. 

Thank you for the nomination @eloy


I am very excited to run as President of Kissena Cycling club for 2020. 

For those who do not know me, I joined in Kissena in 2017 after finding a passion for road cycling. Prior to that, I grew up mountain biking and building dirt jumps in upstate NY. So naturally after moving to Manhattan, I grew the desire to race and found Kissena after some thorough research and membership rides.  The culture and passion for cycling was extremely present right from the get go and I naturally felt comfortable and at home within this club.  Relationships with incredible people @Redbeard make it possible for our wheels to keep spinning.  While membership directors such as @JohnOlsson
continue to find some incredibly talented and kind people.  

As for my background professionally, I have worked in customer service, Sales and now product management at CME Group (A financial Exchange).  Keeping people happy, while continuing to move forward with a goal has always come naturally to me.  I hope to be able to work on the board with some gifted and intelligent cyclists and teammates who all have the same goal in mind to maintain the spirit and function of this club!

After serving on the board as Sponsorship Director, I was able to get a grasp of how organized @Will Kalbacker was while serving as President.  I also had the privilege to make some great relationships with other members of the board and always kept the dialogue opens amongst teammates.  As others had said, the utmost respect must always go out to our volunteers.  That being at Park races, Supercross, mentors leading group and training rides and especially @mugwump
bringing us through a wormhole in god knows where NJ/NY.  I believe it is imperative to create a direct mentorship program here at Kissena and that all rests on the backbone of our mentors.

For now, I wish everyone a Happy Holiday and a great New Year!  Please feel free to reach out to me on Slack or even a quick text if you have any questions regarding sponsorship and/or riding bikes! 914-224-8920

All the best,

Erik

The election opens tonight at 10pm and closes Friday December 27th at 11pm to give members who are away for the holidays a chance to vote. 

We are using an online election system to tabulate our votes. At 10pm Thursday all members will receive an email (at the address associated with your membership) with a unique access key which can only be used to vote once, and your voting choices will remain anonymous. It is also possible to write in votes. 

If you have questions about the election or have any difficulty voting, message me on Slack. 

Good luck to all nominees!

I second the nomination of Ian for President, because he's a Brooklynite who's ridden a TTT with Sean Yates (the guy in the Yellow jersey). Any man who's had to suffer through that has some gumption.
Apropos of nothing, back when it was cool to wear trade kits—never—I rocked the Gan kit on the right of this picture. Totally tubular 90s rad.

Rider on the right is the only person I know that Merseyside Police have ticketed for speeding on a bike. 

IMPORTANT: initial election was cancelled. I left a position off ballot. It’s only fair that all postions be voted for - regardless if there is only one person running.  Use the email named “2020 Kissena Board version 2.0” that was sent at 9:30 am Friday. If you voted with the prior ballot you will need to vote with the new ballot. Only votes made with the new ballot will be counted as the prior ballot was deleted. Sorry for the confusion