October 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

October 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

USLRA Conference Call Minutes

October 18, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Present on call:  Troy Birdsong, Polly Pappadopoulos, Joanie Davenport, Shayna Magnone, Mary Ogle, Olivia Judd    Not Present:  Brian Larsen, Sam Hadley

1.) Approval of Minutes

September 13

http://www.uslogrolling.blogspot.com/2015/10/september-2015-uslra-board-meeting.html

Shayna Motions to Approve.  Joanie Seconds.   All Approve.

2.)  Committee Updates

·            Tournament Directors Communication/Judging Assistance Committee: 

-          Shayna reports on status of Chicago Fire Project

·         Communication and Social Media Committee

·         Membership Assistance:

-          Membership Application due date for 2016 to be determined.

-          Discussion to continue on need/usage of Day Pass.

·         Finance

Current Balance: $6034.41

Go Daddy: ($167.76)

Constant Contact: ($45)

3.)  Administrative Document

-  Board is looking at updating and revising USLRA Administrative Document.  All will review and make suggestions. 

4.)  Qualification System for LWC

            - Suggestions made for categories of qualification

           

5.)   Semi-Pro Rules/Qualification

            - Ideas presented to be added to by board members

6.)  Amateur Ranking 

            - Re-Evaluate formula or number of tournaments

            - Question posed – Should certain tournaments be weighted?

7.)  Vision Meeting Discussion

TOP TIER

a.   Create consistent by-laws, administrative documents, and rules

b.   Provide judges training, certification, and refresher courses

c.   Acquire directors and officers insurance

d.   Designate board members as chairs of committees

e.   Start small and follow a plan to establish/expand the geographic base of log rolling

Polly motions to approve 5 top tier goals as listed.  Olivia Seconds.  All Approve.

- Roth Judd consulted with the US Log Rolling Foundation Board.  They have offered financial assistance to help in achieving Vision Session Goals.
(To include:  Costs associated with judges' training, certification, and refresher courses, Partnering with tournament directors to guide and support events, Establishing and expanding the geographic base of log rolling.)

8.)  Miscellaneous

            - Troy will begin list of Annual Survey Questions and distribute via Google Document.

9.)  Next Meeting: 

            November 22, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Joanie motions to Adjourn.   Olivia Seconds.  All Approve.  9:28 PM.

September 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

September 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

USLRA Conference Call Minutes

September 13, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Present on call:  Troy Birdsong, Joanie Davenport, Olivia Judd, Polly Pappadopoulos, Sam Hadley,

Mary Ogle, Brian Larsen, Shayna Magnone

1.) Approval of Minutes

August 9 Meeting

http://www.uslogrolling.blogspot.com/2015/09/august-2015uslra-board-meeting-minutes.html

Olivia Motions to Approve.  Mary Seconds.   All Approve.

2.)  Committee Updates

·         Insurance:

·         Tournament Directors Communication/Judging Assistance Committee: 

·         Communication and Social Media Committee

Troy Motions to add John Pappadopoulos as a Communication and Social Media Committee Member.  Brian Seconds.  All approve. 

·         Program Development

-          Polly and Sam continue to develop postcards to be distributed to YMCA’s.

·         Awards

-          Super Series Awards:  Will remain in same format as 2014.  Troy will calculate point totals after the River Rat Roll.

·         Membership Assistance

-          Suggestion to make a push for Lifetime Membership purchases for the holiday season.

·         Finance

-      .Troy motions to combine Taxes committee with Finance Committee into one Finance/Tax Committee.  Polly Seconds.  All Approve.

3.)  Qualification System

            - Ideas will be collected for qualifying requirements from board members.

4.)  Administrative Document

            - Will be looked at for revision. 

            - Seeding Process listed is different that what is currently being followed by the USLRA.

            - Pros and cons will be assessed and discussed.

           

5.) Strategic Visioning/Planning

            - Prioritized Goals:  Olivia will send organizational email on prioritizing and scheduling.

6.)  Misconduct Policy: 

            - Fairness, Language and Conduct are main objectives.  

            - Sam and Olivia are creating a proposal.

- Suggestions include:  no input taken from Parents of Non-minors, 1 warning system, Approval of removal to be granted by 1 USLRA board member AND 1 Tournament Director or their representative, Competitors to sign policy at beginning of season.

7.)  Fall Newsletter

            - Information will be gathered for Fall Newsletter to be distributed ahead of fall tournaments.

8.)  Next Meeting: 

            October 18, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Olivia motions to Adjourn.   Joanie Seconds.  All Approve.  9:50 PM.

August 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

USLRA Conference Call Minutes

August 9, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Present on call:  Troy Birdsong, Polly Pappadopoulos, Shayna Magnone, Mary Ogle, Sam Hadley, Brian Larsen, Joanie Davenport 

1.) Approval of Minutes

June 28

http://www.uslogrolling.blogspot.com/2015/07/june-2015-uslra-board-meeting-minutes.html

Annual Meeting

http://uslogrolling.blogspot.com/2015/08/july-2015uslra-membership-meeting.html

Brian motions to approve.  Troy seconds.  All Approve.

2.)  Committee Updates

·         Insurance:

-       USLRA needs to clarify 501c3 before insurance paperwork can be completed.  August 18 deadline set for paperwork.

·         Tournament Directors Communication/Judging Assistance Committee: 

-          Training Sessions have gone well.  High Attendance at Hayward Training with lots of good feedback. 

-          In Person Training should be continued.

·         Program Development

-          Programs have been contacted and will be updated on website.

-          Polly and Sam plan to develop postcard to send to YMCA list.

·         Awards

-          Suggestion made the 2^nd and 3^rd place professional Log Rolling competitors should be recognized at LWC.  

·         Membership Assistance

-          Memberships have been updated to include LWC registrants.   117 Amateur, 35 Professional

·         Finance

Current Balance: $6292.17

Membership: $1618.99

Constant Contact: ($45)

Judging Materials: ($133.75)

3.)  Resignation

Leah Stanton has submitted a letter of resignation from the USLRA Board of Directors.

Olivia Motions to accept resignation.  Shayna Seconds.  All Approve.

4.)  LWC Follow-Up

·         Starting on a #2 Log was successful for amateur competition.  Average match time went from 9 to 6 minutes.  An average of about 2 minutes was cut from each match.  (This should be shared with membership and LWC organizers.)

·         Boom Run Issue:  Boom became loose during competition.  

-          USLRA Boom Running Rules Should be included and followed.   Rules will be reviewed for clarification for 2016.  

           

5.) Strategic Visioning/Planning

·         Successful meeting held in Hayward on July 18.

·         Polly will compile all notes and results from the visioning session.

·         Strategic Planning session will be set for Fall 2015.

6.)  Fall Area Rule

·         New Wording Proposal

Judges are required to call "time out" before the log reaches a parallel distance from a barrier that is equal to the height of the taller roller, or if the log is within one (1) foot of a barrier in a perpendicular position. Tournaments held in tanks or in pools that do not meet this requirement may set a different safety standard, with USLRA approval, so long as the Tournament Director, Tournament Director’s representative and judges receive additional safety training.

Olivia Motions to approve new wording of Fall Area Rule.  Joanie seconds.  All approve.

7.)  Misconduct Policy

·         Sam and Olivia will develop a proposal to be sent before the September Meeting.

8.)  Semi-Pro Division

·         A U-13 Age Division Roller entered Semi-Pro this season, creating confusion in awarding super-series and ranking points.

·         Semi-Pro will be added as a separate category to Super-Series and Amateur Ranking.

·         The definition of Semi-Pro Division needs to be updated and clarified.  (To be discussed at a future meeting.)

9.)  Administrative Document

·         Needs updating.  Troy will start work on this.

·         https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4fBb2T9fU-4SkY1b0Rzam9rVUE/view?usp=sharing

10.)  Qualification System for LWC

·         As amateur numbers continue to grow, this may become necessary.   Will be explored for 2016 season.  Board members will suggest ideas.

11.)  Miscellaneous

·         Joanie Davenport recommends the USLRA holds a meeting with LWC officials before and after competition to encourage communication and discover ways that the USLRA can support the event.

·         Suggestion made to complete more work in the off season between November and March, setting deadlines and action items.  

·         A summer wrap-up letter to be written for newsletter.

·         Survey Questions to be developed.

·         One board seat is open in 2016.

12.)  Next Meeting: 

            September 13, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Brian motions to Adjourn.   Joanie Seconds.  All Approve.  9:50 PM.

July 2015 USLRA Membership Meeting Minutes

Hayward, WI

July 22, 2015 – 7:00 PM

Board Members Present:  Troy Birdsong, Polly Pappadopoulos, Sam Hadley, Mary Ogle, Olivia Judd, Shayna Magnone, Joanie Davenport 

1.) President Troy Birdsong addresses Membership

·         Finance Report - $6,100 Current Balance.   Expenditures:   Judges Training Materials, Taxes, USLRA banners, $1,000 Grant to the Three Rivers Roleo. 

·         Rule Changes in 2015 – Amateur Log Time (Log time stays with the Log number), Tournament Directors Discretion added to define fall space (3 Foot, or Tournament Director’s Discretion), Language added to rules in which “Tournament Director” is used, to include “Tournament Director or Tournament Director’s Representative.   Recommendation made by USLRA to rollers to begin matches on a #2 Log at LWC (in response to the time constraints at LWC).

·         Judge Training – Training has been developed by USLRA.   Standardization of Judging is desired result.   3 step training system:  1. Online Assessment 2.Volunteer Hours Logged at Tournaments 3. Attend Judging Workshop held before and in conjunction with Tournaments.   USLRA has added Judges Lanyards equipped with Rule Reminder cards and Coins to call falls.

·         Visioning Session – Held July 18, 2015 in Hayward, WI.  Ideas for the framework of the association for future years set. 

·         Marketing – Social Media:  Steps have been taken to promote and Market our Professional Athletes and increase our presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  A series of articles has been developed with a combination of In-depth profiles and Q & A shorts.   USLRA Brackets for Tournament usage have been updated to include match order, seeding and full names.

2.)  Member Based Comments/Questions

·         Inventory at Chris Fischer’s House:  Need better location (tanks, trailer, logs), and to be made more accessible to Tournament Directors.  The Deithert family offers to work with this.

·         Thank you extended for the Judges Training, and suggestion to continue training and education of judges.

·         Suggested to be certain at tournaments that rollers aren’t facing away from the dock.

Meeting Adjourned.  7:35 PM.

June 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

June 2015 USLRA Board Meeting Minutes

USLRA Conference Call Minutes

June 28, 2015 – 8:00 PM

Present on call:  Troy Birdsong, Brian Larsen, Polly Pappadopoulos, Sam Hadley, Mary Ogle, Olivia Judd, Shayna Magnone, Joanie Davenport  Not present:  Leah Stanton

1.) Approval of May 30, 2015 Minutes:

http://www.uslogrolling.blogspot.com/2015/06/may-30-2015-board-meeting-minutes.html

Olivia motions to approve.  Sam seconds.  All Approve.

2.)  Committee Updates

·         Communication and Social Media:  

- More photos are needed to post after tournaments.

- Athlete and Feature Articles have been well received.

·         Tournament Directors Communication/Judging Assistance Committee: 

-          6/27 Judges Training was successfully held in Madison before Midwest Championships

-          Rules were brought up to be changed or clarified (Olivia kept list)

-          Another training will be held on July 11 before the Three Rivers Roleo

-          Judges Lanyards have been well received and used.

·         Fundraising and Sponsorship: 

-          Tank tops were made and sold at Midwest Championships

·         Membership Assistance:   SportsSignup is working well.

·         Finance:   USLRA, ILRA WI Business Registrations have been paid for 2015.

3.)  Strategic Planning Session

·         July 18 – will be held at the Hayward Public Library 10am.

·         Additional persons will be invited from Charitable Foundation, Tournament Directors etc.

4.)  LWC

Shayna motions to hold Annual Meeting July 22 at 7:00 pm.  Polly Seconds All Approve.

·         Wednesday, July 22 – Annual Member Meeting to be held – 7pm.

·         Schedule for Volunteer Dock Workers will be sent around.

·         Question raised:  Should we offer a reduced fee for competitors who compete in other timber sports than logrolling at LWC, and may already belong to an association for those fees.  It is suggested that we offer a $20 day pass for professional logrollers.

Vote Taken:  Should a $20 day pass be made available for professional logrollers in 2015:

5 yes, 3 no.   Not approved.   This issue will be revisited in a later meeting for the 2016 competition season.

5.) Tournament Reminders:

A person will be elected to send out information to tournament directors, and remind to post their tournament info with at least 30 days notice.  (To help keep in compliance with USLRA rules.)

6.)  Next Meeting: 

            July 22, 2015 – 7:00 PM (Venue TBA)

            All USLRA Members are invited.

Olivia motions to Adjourn.   Sam Seconds.  All Approve.  9:50 PM.