Just get back from our club year end meeting.
The Kayak Committee have our meeting an hour before the general club meeting. Nothing to report from the kayak meeting. Jerry is reelected Kayak chair uncontested. The usual club politic get air out but nothing get resolve. One hour is not enough time to cover everything we have to cover but I was grateful for the short meeting.
We are scheduling another meeting to discuss what boats should be allocate to where. I am tire of this question. One member of our more advance paddlers, Elizabeth, wanted to have the better boats down at the Brooklyn clubhouse for her use instead of up at the lake. Her constance demand is stirring up petty issue of Lake vs Brooklyn clique (Culture?)which is a constant undercurrent at the club. Waldo and Holly touched on this when Elizabeth brought this issue up today. Waldo believed that our emphasis on rolling and other Greenland skill at the lake are detracting from Sebago being an "urban kayaking club". Holly position is that we are wasting too much resource both in money and human power, and pulling people away from events in Brooklyn which people who join the club is paying for. I disagree with them that have certain boats up at the lake are short changing the people who refuse to go up to the lake. We need something to draw more members to use the cabin so I don't see having these boats up at the lake for training is misusing club resources. This issue have been going back and ford for a while with Elizabeth, first with the Avocet, then with the two new boats we get this season. I really don't want to get involve but as fleet captain I will have to take a position.
Stevie and Jerry get a great deal on two great mid level to advance boats for training, and left it at the lake for training purposes. I have misgiving when intended purchase was announced but I had no idea it was going to balloon into such a major thing. I agreed with them that these boats should stay up at the lake for that purpose because I don't want them for general use from a maintenance perspective. I have enough on my hand with the Epic Explorer and there other two fiberglass boats we have at the Brooklyn clubhouse. Every time someone carelessly handle the boats my heart skip a beat.
I don't think that the club, or the Sea Kayak Committee should maintain a high end kayaks for general member use. Club members who need more advance boats should be at a place where they are committed enough to the sport to get their own boats. The only way to make this clear is to not have any high level boats around for general use. I don't want have to deal with competing demands for favorite boats if we have high skill level boats here in Brooklyn for general use. I opposed her argument that the general club member in Brooklyn deserve to use the more advance boat we get at the lake by principle. We should not have boat that encourage already committed paddles to used club resource instead of getting their own boat.
Speaking of Fleet Captain, I am a bit confused as to me duties know that I learn that the Kayak committee have it own little subcommittee to deal with the kayak fleet. First time I hear about this. I will have to speak with Jerry and John about this. I have been doing inventory, inspection of boats and equipments before the season, and spot check of boats when they go out on paddles so I have no idea what the subcommittee do. As I understand it, the duties of Fleet Captain was redefine when I take the job to mean just maintain the Sebago kayaks fleets and kayaks related equipments so I can't decide if the kayak boat repair committee that Jerry talk about is headed by me or it an entirely separate entity.
The general meeting held no surprise. The incumbents officers get elected unopposed, and we get a slate of 4 candidates for four open board positions so there is no contested election. The secretary case one vote the officers, and another for the boards slates, and we were done.
Embarrassingly I was honored as Volunteer of the Year - for last year. Much more well deserve is Stevie McAllaster honored as Volunteer of the Year for this year. A harray for Stevie - who was not at the general meeting. I could used his voice at the meeting today.
5 comments:
Hi Minh
This whole debate about what is more important, the lake or the bay is a real time waster and it makes me mad that certain people have to tie up committee meetings about it.
It's like argueing about religion and if I were Jerry I would ban mindless discussions from the kayak committe meeings. There isn't enough time.
There are too many people who want to have lots of community activities on the bay and then complain because they can't get enough people to get involved.
Most people don't join Sebago to peform all kinds of public service. I'd personally get rid of as much of that crap as possible to allow people to enjoy the club.
Jerry schedule another meeting for Nov 16 just to discuss this issue.
I hate meeting but I think it time we get all this silliness air out.
Hm, that particular issue didn't come up, did it?
Really just seems like one of those things where there's always a good chance that somebody is going to feel like they are somehow getting shortchanged.
Makes me glad I have my own boat!
Truly a drag about the dissappearing gear.
If it had come up, I was going to suggest that we shut down the Brooklyn part of the club and go back to our roots at the original clubhouse and drop all the community service crap:-)
Yes, there are always annoying members that use meetings as a way to shoot off their mouths. It only takes a couple. That's why I am no longer a board member it was going to make me go postal:-)
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