glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

As we approach the election of a new president of the NSRCA, it is important to be able to ask the candidates questions about their vision for the organization. I'm sure many of us have read the respective resumes of Jon and Jon on the NSRCA website, but as with any job, a good resume is merely the start of the process. So, fellow members, let's post our questions here for Jon and Jon to reflect on....

Here is a start:

Why do you feel you are the best candidate for the job?

How do you approach conflict when it arrises while in a leadership position?

PatternPilot

My Feedback: (58)

Here is another..

How will you encourage, promote and bring in new pilots into pattern ?

s.

pvogel

For Jon Carter You listed several key goals, all of which relate directly to areas in which your background gives you ample experience:
>>My goals as president would be to continue to promote pattern nationally, improve our relationship with the AMA
>> (we are after all the AMA recognized SIG for pattern!), continue our work on judge training, improve the KFactor and
>> continue our work on sequence development. Another very important factor
>> is to ensure that the NSRCA is managed as “transparently� as possible.
Are these in priority order for you? Could you share one or two ideas with the community for how you hope to accomplish these goals? There seems to be particular interest regarding transparency in the NSRCA, but I'm interested in a taste of the "how" for all of the above.


For Jon Lowe: You list several goals here (http://www.nsrca.us/images/stories/r...e%20Resume.pdf) which roughly parallel the goals Jon C listed, though you got a little more into the "how". I asked this question on facebook, but I understand that not everyone is on facebook, so let me ask the question here: your resume has an impressive background in aerodynamics, and leadership in a military environment. but, other than serving as a CD for several contests and your impressive history as a competitor, I see nothing about your leadership in volunteer positions, your ability to lead change in an consensus driven environment, and your contribution to the broader pattern community. I'm not doubting your qualifications, but I am asking for some examples of success leading a consensus organization and your contribution to the national pattern community. Also, other than the recent mistakes by a few members of the current board in assuming lack of comment to the posted minutes proposing a change to the bylaws implied acceptance by the community of those changes, can you give us some examples of where you feel transparency has been lacking on the part of the board?

Thanks!
Peter+

Surefire

My Feedback: (1)

In response to your first question I have been working with/for the NSRCA for the last 5 years. In the last 3 years I have been acting as the District 7 vice President. During that time I have worked with all of the "incarnations" of the executive officers and the BoD effectively. I have experience working with pattern pilots across the country in all of our districts. Over and above that though, I have a "passion for pattern" and I really want to give back to the sport that I have enjoyed so much. In terms of resolving conflict I believe in working towards a consensus as much as possible. There is a point though when if a "perfect" consensus cannot be achieved a decision must still be made. That is why we have executive officers!

Thanks,

Jon Carter

Surefire

My Feedback: (1)

Scott - Getting new blood into pattern is very important to the future of our sport. In my opinion it is primarily a local club activity. Out here in D7 we have a growing "hot spot" at the Bakersfield club that is being fired up by Chip Hyde, we also have a real "hot spot" developing in Lancaster spearheaded by Tony Frackowiak in both AMA and Classic pattern, last I heard they had 5 new pattern flyers starting up at and around the Antelope Valley club! (That is really something!). Up here in the north we have a very active group of pattern flyers and we have several new recruits locally. The key is to show the local club flyers that we have fun doing this! We also have another "hot spot" starting in Arizona, again by local pattern flyers! As I mentioned in my brief discussion on the bylaws and a few other items, I believe we need to use the synergy between Classic pattern and AMA pattern. I am sure you know I am very involved in Classic pattern out here in California, we have picked up a few AMA pattern pilots from the ranks of the Classic flyers, and we have AMA pattern flyers trying Classic! While we are in a very early stage I also believe that we can use some of the same techniques to leverage interest from F3P. Remember, we are all potential "recruiters" for pattern!

Thanks,

Surefire

My Feedback: (1)

Peter - Working on your answers but I have to eat dinner!

Back later.

OK - back! I would say they are not quite in order! In priority I believe that they are
1- promote pattern nationally. The NSRCA has many opportunities to impact pattern nationally. We run and manage the Nats, we control sequences flown in AMA pattern at the national level, we train and certify pattern judges nationally, all of these are important areas and there are improvements to be made in each area.
There is one area that I think covers items 1, 3 and 4 and that is the Rules Proposals committee. I think that we as the NSRCA should get a early start on this by forming a committee to ask our members what if any rules changes they feel are important, research them, write up proposals and then pro-actively work with the AMA Rules committee to promote passage in the next AMA rules cycle.
2 - improve the K-Factor. There are lots of ideas here which I know you know (You were on the committee!) but I believe we should make a presentation to the membership of some of our ideas and plans for the K-Factor's future..
3 - improve our relationship with the AMA. This has gotten some attention lately but I believe that this will not be very difficult to deal with. It really involves creating and maintaining better lines of communications with the AMA hierarchy.
4 - improve our communication with our membership so they have a better feel for the "what" and the "why" of what we are trying to accomplish. This has received quite a bit of internet and discussion chat lately. As I said in the other thread, the current BoD has made mistakes but I believe they have been addressed for the current issues but they do point out areas where the NSRCA needs to do better.
5 - continue and improve our judge training. As Chairman of the Judging Committee we brought the Judging certification tests online last year. We received much positive feedback on this but we are still working to improve this. We will continue to improve these tests and assist local seminars to be presented. The online judge certification tests will be free to all NSRCA members starting with the new year.

Thanks,

glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

Thank you for your reply.

PatternPilot

My Feedback: (58)

Jon Carter,

Thank you for you time and reply.


Scott Anderson

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

Here's my take. Out of all of the NSRCA members out there, do I feel I am the best qualified for the job? Probably not. But NSRCA has not actively searched out members willing to take on a leadership role in several years. I would reinvigorate that effort by appointing a nominating committee in accordance with the bylaws, and actively seek members willing to serve. But I felt I had to run given the current state of the NSRCA. We almost had bylaw changes imposed on the membership without a vote, and we almost had an "election" of officers that violated two separate sections of the bylaws. No one on the current board was being the gatekeeper making sure that they were following the rules of the organization. Every NSRCA member pays dues to the organization, and every member has a right to expect that the board will follow the rules. After Verne Koester nominated me, I felt it was my duty to run and make what changes I could to better serve the membership. No one else is running for President who wasn't on the current board where the problems orginated. I'm not pointing fingers at anyone in particular, it just appears no one was paying attention.

Conflict at some level is inevitable in any organization. One of the jobs as NSRCA president is to build consensus within the board and organization. But the any leader of an organization must eventually make a decision on a path to take. This is consistent with the duties of the NSRCA president, as outlined in the bylaws quoted here:

"Section 2 - The President

a. The President shall be the chief executive officer of the NSRCA and of the Board of Directors and shall have, subject to the advice and control of the Directors, general charge of the business of the NSRCA. The President shall execute with the Secretary all contracts and instruments which have first been approved by the Board of Directors."

Believe me, being a leader of 200 government employees took a lot more consensus building that it did decision making. Those same skills apply here. If people don't believe in what they are doing, through consensus, nothing will get done. My goal, then and now is to make everyone feel that they are part of the solution.

Hope this answers this question.

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

I think I answered the first part of your question in my answer above. As far as actively contributing to NSRCA as a whole, I will admit I was one of those on the outside looking in. Frankly, after my retirement in 2008, I was burned out from leading an organization. It took me a while to regroup. Is this the method or time I would have desired to get involved with NSRCA? Probably not. But I didn't see anyone else picking up the ball and taking a stand on what had to be done.

I was fortunate to be friends with and fly with the late Lamar Blair, who was president of NSRCA a few years ago. I learned a whole lot about the organization from him, and discussed regularly with him the state of the organization when he took the reins, and saw what he did to turn it around. I also have the fortune to have Ron Van Putte as a close friend, who has been involved in a leadership role several times, and is a wealth of knowledge. I will use his as a mentor and sounding board. Obviously, I will also draw on the NSRCA board for advice, and will ask one of the officers, should I be elected, to be a gatekeeper for the board to ensure we are following the rules the membership has laid down for us.

Transparency. I think the spilled milk has been discussed enough, from the AMA rules change proposal process by the board, to the bylaws, to the aborted officer election. One of the things we must do, is to establish one official means of communication with the membership. While I'm open to other ideas, I think it should be the K-Factor. It is the one mouthpiece of the organization that everyone sees, and it has strict due dates for material to be submitted, making it ideal for getting important information out for action by the members. I see other avenues as supplemental. I would like to see the board meeting minutes published in the K-Factor for all to see. I think that changes to the bylaws, rules change proposals to the AMA, nominations for officers and District VPs need to be put in front of the membership, and to give them time to consider, discuss, and respond to the prposals. I think that any proposed changes to bylaws should be presented to the membership as "Was" "Is" , so that the entire change can be understoond without going back and forth between minutes and another document.

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

Didn't mean to skip over this one, sorry!

I pretty much agree with Jon Carter on this one, it is largely a local club activity. I've seen that where you have a critical mass of pattern flyers, such as the Eglin AFB club, RCACF in Apopka, FL, and elsewhere, new pilots get attracted from seeing several people practicing. My club, RCRC, in Huntsville, AL is approaching that mass, and we need another flyer or two who are out practicing on a regular basis. When I'm out, I try to provide help to anyone who needs it, pattern or not. I try to demonstrate than when I fly, I fly with a purpose, not boring holes in the sky. My experience has been that when I do that, people take notice, and start to ask questions. Having a sport flyer call for you is another way to point out what you are doing and why.

I also think we need to team with the Model Aviation pattern column writer to provide more info on the basics of the sport, and how to enter the hobby on a less expensive basis. I think we need to play to the point that if IMAC is the NASCAR of aerobatics, we are the Formula One, with three simple requirements for our airplanes; 2m, 2m, 5 kg. Everything else is wide open. We also need to play to the angle that flying with precision will improve all aspects of your flying, whether it be pattern, or 3D.

We need to recognize that not all solutions work in every part of the country. In the south, we fly AMA contests almost year around, so interest in indoor flying appears to be minimal. Our District Championships are in early November, and our season opener is in early December, with contests in February, and potentially March this next year. In the north, indoor flying is all they have in the winter months, and that may be a place to recruit new flyers.

I saw something this past weekend when I was in Chicago with Mike Wingo. The core group of pattern flyers like Mickey Loscardo, Mike Mueller, Bobby Satalino and Dave Snow and others meet for lunch each Saturday in the winter months. This is a way to retain interest over an enforced break because of weather. Establishing something like this and inviting potential pattern flyers may be another way to gain interest.

Thanks for the opportunity to answer these questions.

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

One area where I will disagree with Jon Carter is in the area of the NATS. NSRCA does not run the Nats; AMA does, and they are open to all AMA members not just NSRCA members. The Event Director, in this case, Archie Stafford, reports to the AMA Contest Director, now Dave Guerin. Our job is to assist the event director as he requests. I would try, as NSRCA President, to ensure that Archie would get the help he needs with minimal interference from the board. He has a tough job and he doesn't need two bosses. He has shown himself to be most capable of Nats organization, and we need to stay out of his way.

Sorry that this isn't an answer to a direct question, but I felt it had to be said.

jetmech43

My Feedback: (9)

Its hard to promote pattern in the club im in, just a hand full of us are doing it, I do wish we could change the way the club thinks, but trust me we have tried, all they want to do is the fun fly thing, if we mention anything about pattern they throw up the cross and push it back in the grave, we might as well ask for dental work than get the club to sponsor anything in pattern. Maybe you guys can give us a way to approach it in a different way.

glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

Outstanding responses, gentlemen, I appreciate your time and reflection. Here are some other questions I would like you to consider:

1. I have a small "E-Business" which sells CA glue, glow fuel, and promotes my hobby estate buying business. The advertising rates are listed in every K-Factor. Quite frankly, when as a businessman I consider the rate cost per issue going out to approximately 400 people (total membership of the NSRCA), the ROI makes advertising in the K-factor little more than a donation with the cost per member being astronomically high. What ideas do you have to assist mom and pops like myself to have an advertising presence in K-Factor?

2. In March 2012, the BofD was presented with the results of the NSRCA National Membership Survey. Other than Mr. Jim Quinn referring to it in several of his President's Columns in the K-Factor, I haven't seen a single reaction to its findings by any of the leadership of the NSRCA. Any serious candidate should take the results and recommendations of this survey seriously. I would like to know what your reaction is to the "Specific Recommendations for the NSRCA" Goals 1 and 2 on pages 21 thru 24.

Jon and Jon, I am looking forward to reading what you have to say!

Kind regards,
Mike

glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

In case you haven't read them, here they are:

Specific Recommendations for the NSRCA
Goal One: Retain current membership numbers.
 This will take a lot of work.

 Enhance the value of NSRCA membership.
Make membership more valuable and worthwhile for the current members.

What if a member could get back a few dollars of his yearly dues every time he makes a purchase because of being an NSRCA member?
Consider negotiating small discounts on purchases for members with vendors to the pattern community as well as major distributors such as Great Planes and Horizon. These vendors want and need our business, and offering a small discount, a free bottle of glue, or some other savings will increase their bottom line in the long run.
Example: I own a small CNC vinyl cutting business. I can offer any renewing NSRCA member his AMA or NSRCA number for half price @ $3.50 shipped and waive the initial $7.00 set up fee.
 Consider ways to reduce membership annual dues and utilize available financial resources for other vital organizational functions.
Go electronic with newsletters, mailings, and communication.

 Maintain inclusiveness in the leadership with representation from all classes flown, AND increase face to face contact of the leadership to the general membership of the NSRCA.
The purpose here is twofold.
First, the membership demographics will be better represented within the leadership of the NSRCA, reducing the impression only the top classes of fliers hold leadership roles.
Second, inclusive representation can expand the reach of personal, one on one contact of the general membership with NSRCA leadership. Patterning (no pun intended) itself after the current AMA district structure, I recommend that District Vice Presidents appoint capable and committed “Associate Vice Presidents� who compete in different classes from the class the VP participates in to assist in representing the NSRCA at local and regional events. Given the enormous size of the NSRCA districts, if a District VP is unable to attend an event that is a great distance away from his home, a district AVP’s who lives in the area could be that vital NSRCA leadership presence at that competition. Personal contact with the “organization� is essential to retaining membership.
Remember, the biggest pool of volunteer leaders come from fresh, new members and veteran old timers. This kind of mix can be very productive in getting things done because it helps eliminate “Groupthink�.

 Consider ways to reduce the travel costs associated with pattern competitions.
• Make local contests “one day� events with a guarantee of (weather permitting) five rounds flown for all classes.
• Urge CD’s and sponsoring clubs to have the lowest possible entry fee. Example: District 6 entry fees average around $40…. Can this be reduced and still pay for contest expenses and help the sponsoring club with raising funds?
• What else?


Goal Two: Recruiting New Members
The modeling/hobby community as a whole is experiencing diminished participation, particularly with youth. Recruiting new members will be challenging, but with the right incentives, small gains are possible.

 Offer NSRCA membership to first time members at a reduced cost.
Be advised, however, this is not going to be enough. A potential new member needs to know why he should join the NSRCA when all he has to do is show up at a pattern competition, pay his entry fee, and compete.

 As with renewing members, brainstorm ways to enhance the value of NSRCA membership to new, first time members.
Example: Create a vendor sponsored new membership package. As a part of the “new membership package�, I would offer free of charge to any new member their NSRCA member number in 2� CNC cut vinyl, a $7.00 value, along with the opportunity to purchase their AMA number for $3.50. Other vendors may be willing to participate as long as they have an opportunity to make money from the good will generated in providing something to the value of a new membership free of charge or at a discounted price.

 Have a contest in which the entire membership can send in their best “catch phrase� that will be used in an ad campaign for promotion of the NSRCA. This catch phrase needs to capture the essence of pattern.
Offer a nice prize package (provided by vendors) and/or a year’s free membership to the winner of the contest.
Example: “On the Knife’s Edge of performance; that’s Pattern Flying!�

 Utilize all available funds to market the NSRCA as the premier organization for people who are interested in precision aerobatics.
Purchase banners on popular r/c websites. Solicit Model Aviation magazine for discounted advertising rates and have a monthly ad presence in this publication. Describe in detail the NSRCA and what it offers to its membership. Make sure what the public sees is first class in every detail.

 Reduce the cost of getting into pattern in the two developmental classes of Sportsman and Intermediate.
Consider allowing “any AMA legal airplane� to be flown not only in Sportsman BUT ALSO Intermediate pattern. Seasoned pilots who heretofore have not flown competitive pattern may want to start out in the Intermediate class, but hesitate because of the cost of a pattern airframe. These are the pilots who have 20cc, 30cc and 50cc Extra 300 style airframes that are so popular in today’s ARF market. Letting them fly these airframes in Intermediate may increase membership numbers, AND increase the numbers of potential pilots who move up into the higher classes.

 Each member is the “public face/ambassador� of the NSRCA.
It is vitally important each member enhance the public image of the NSRCA. All members, particularly officers, board of directors, prominent pilots, and event organizers should carefully consider what they say (and write), particularly in the electronic media, about issues related to pattern flying, rules, and opinions about the NSRCA. Personal attacks, feuds between individuals, and recreational arguments should be held in private conversation, not public forums. Potential members are reading these forums, too, and asking the question, do I want to be a member if this is what goes on?

 WHAT ELSE??? THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX


Summary

This national membership survey has yielded some interesting results that suggest the membership is, with a few exceptions, satisfied with the organization. The NSRCA is not alone as a special interest organization in its experience of declining membership, but does face a unique challenge in sustaining and growing its membership with the high cost of the hobby/sport of radio controlled precision aerobatics and a bad economy being the key indicators of declining membership and participation. The NSRCA leadership and membership does have control over its ability to enhance the benefit of membership in the organization, reduce the cost of membership, and how the organization as a whole is perceived by the modeling public. Retention of current membership numbers is vital to the survival of the NSRCA, while thinking outside the box for developing creative incentives for new members to join will provide a chance for the organization to once again grow. If the leadership of the NSRCA decides to take on the challenge of retaining membership and growing the organization, it will take out of the box thinking and a tremendous amount of work and dedication.

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

Believe it or not, this one is fairly easy. Don't ask your club to sponsor anything. If your club rules have a way to make an event proposal, do that. It only takes two or three people to put on the contest. You basically just need a CD and a scorekeeper. Just ask for the field for 1/2 day on Friday for practice, all day Saturday, and 1/2 day Sunday. Don't ask for any help, other than perhaps someone to help you set up the poles. Don't ask for any money up front. Tell the members of the club you promise them a profit. Believe me, you will make one.

I CD'd two contests this year, one for BPA, and one an AMA contest. Total income from the BPA contest was $505, and total expenses including lunch, water, trophies (simple picture frames with a certificate and a picture), and other sundries was $127.47. We returned $377.53 to the club and charged $35 per entry for 14 entries. We also had one small contribution from a club member, around $20.

The AMA contest returned $469 with 19 entries to the club, and we only charged $30. In this case, trophy cost was zero, because one of our regulars had a friend who makes really nice plexiglass plaques, and all he asked was that he put a sticker on the back of the trophy with his company name and address.

The club is estatic because we are the biggest money makers for the club for the last several years. They don't have to do anything except loan us the field. Any other events give most of their money away in the form of door prizes or fancy trophies, and some end up costing the club money. If anyone makes noise about "those pattern guys" we and the club board just point out how much money we give back. Door prizes are nice, but pattern flyers understand the need to keep clubs happy, so they don't care.

If we could do a 50/50 cash raffle where the winner gets 50% and the club gets the other 50%, we could make more. But because we are in a city park, our contract with the city prohibits it.

Hope this helps give you some ideas.

wattsup

My Feedback: (1)

glowplugboy, would you consider running for the office of President of the NSRCA? Your ideas and suggestions are the MOST refreshing and sensible I have read lately. At least you don't have any excess baggage weighing you down! Just thought I would ask, Everette

PatternPilot

My Feedback: (58)

Glowplugboy,

I agree the advertising rates for the mom and pop shops or even other groups is way to high to do more than maybe a month or two... Maybe a reduced rates for NSRCA members or something.


So are you going to be the 3rd horse in this race?

glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

It will be my pleasure to continue in a consultanting role pro bono for the NSRCA, if the B of D calls upon me to do so.

Kind regards,
Mike

jonlowe

My Feedback: (12)

Glowplugboy,
Congratulations on finding the results of the survey! You are doing better than I am. I've looked on the NSRCA site and Facebook, but have yet to find them. Can you point me to them? This is part of the problem I've been commenting about; too many places to look for official club business.

I cannot comment about why you've seen little board action on the survey since I am currently not on the board. One thing I'd do, if elected, would be to ask the Secretary to review that last two years of board meeting minutes for actions/motions/assignments and so we could follow up on them. I would conduct the board meetings generally following Robert's rules of order, with minutes, old business, new business, etc, so we could keep on track and make sure things don't get forgotten.

Regarding more value for the money. First of all, membership costs in the NSRCA are minimal compared to the cost of building and flying a pattern model. That being said, I don't see the membership benefit as a financial one. The NSRCA has to represent the pattern community as a whole, and not just the board members. Rules proposals, if any, have to represent the vast majority of the thinking of our members, not just a simple majority in a limited survey. Business has to be conducted above board, so that people can see what is going on and provide input to the board in a timely manner. Relationships with AMA have to be enhanced so that our interests are known and considered in overall AMA processes. We have to initiate contact with the AMA Contest Board during the rule change process. That is how we add value. I've had several people come up to me or call me saying that they were thinking about not rejoining NSRCA since they saw it as ineffective, and not representing pattern as a whole. We have to add value if we are to succeed and change that thinking.

You raise a good point about cost to advertisers for a small business. If it doesn't make sense from an advertisers point of view, we need to rethink things.

Some things I've learned in the last few weeks. If we mail 250 K-Factors, our postage costs are the same as if we mailed 500 due to our taking advantage of pre-sorted mail by zip. Printing cost differences are small as set up is a big part of the cost. Everybody seems to think going electronic for a portion of the K-Factor is going to be a big cost savings; it isn't. We also have a vocal part of our membership who wants the paper K-Factor to remain. I guess I fall into the later camp as I find I'm more likely to look at a paper copy than I am to remember to download an electronic copy. We also have some who've said K-Factors in the last couple of years go straight into the round file, either because of lack of content of interest, or they are so late that any news to too old to act on. If elected, I would ask for input on what form of communication we make as the official voice of NSRCA. Then we have to make that form relevant and timely. Sounds like you have some good ideas. You willing to help?

I'm not a fan of one day contests. Depending on the field situation, it is difficult for many venues to start before 10 or 11AM due to the sun. That reduces the number of rounds that can be flown. Many contests are several hours away. If I'm going to drive all of that distance, I want to fly 6 rounds, and I will be staying overnight anyway because I'm beat. Over 4 rounds in a day takes it's toll on competitors, especially in the heat of summer. But if some areas find that one day contests work for them, fine.

I also don't believe in high entry fees. I gave a couple of example above with $30 and 35 fees. I don't beleive entry fees are drivers in determining if someone comes or not, but I don't beleive we should gouge either. I do know that some clubs want a "rental" to use their field. That may demand higher entry fees. Fortunately, we don't have any in our area at present.

Regarding goal 2:

I think I have addressed the question of growing pattern in my other answers. The ideas listed in the survey are all good. I do think we have to encourage flyers with non-pattern aircraft to participate. We also need to give them a chance to fly a proprerly setup pattern airplane. It usually takes only one flight to set the hook. When I apply for a sanction, I allow for any plane in sportsman up to 15 lbs, but don't strictly enforce it. I've seen contests where someone shows up with a 35% Extra, and that doesn't mix well with other airplanes, so we try to rule them out. Anything else is fair game.

Thanks.

Surefire

My Feedback: (1)

The Nats are an interesting item. They are the premier event for precision aerobatics in the USA and of course they are run at the top level by the AMA. I would like to point out though that the NSRCA selects the Pattern Event Director and the NSRCA pays the Event Director, the Site Chiefs, Line Judges etc etc... (I would bet that roughly 100% of the workers at the Nats are NSRCA members!) Another point that often gets forgotten is that we are the AMA SIG for pattern. From all I have heard Arch did a great job with the Nats in 2012 (work prevented me from attending!) and I expect he will do another great job in 2013. One thing that Arch did was to provide a communication path back to the President and the BoD during the planning phase of the Nats that really helped the BoD understand what he was planning and enabled the BoD to assist him in several ways. Once the Nats, or any contest, begins, it's the CD's job to run the event. I think that the key takeaway here is that the NSRCA has a very definite "stake" in the Nats and should, and was, be kept in the planning loop by the Pattern Event Director.

Thanks,

glowplugboy

My Feedback: (17)

Thanks Jon, for your continued input.

Kind regards,
Mike

wattsup

My Feedback: (1)

Mike/glowplugboy, as a consultant (pro bono) to the NSRCA you have the unique opportunity to access and evaluate information that the average individual out here will never be able to have_ ie, you are on the inside! The NSRCA needs a President who has hands on experience and knows the current "ins and outs" to make this operation functional again. I may even be talking about a current or past Vice President or current board member. What I am not talking about is someone stepping up to this position and learning OJT (On the job). Please do me a favor and at least consider my suggestion. Everette

wattsup

My Feedback: (1)

Posted in error

wattsup

My Feedback: (1)

Just for the record, I reread Pete Vogel's comment above and feel there are several areas of interest that both candidates need to address for the sake of clarification. For starters how about THEIR past in-depth experience related to the operation of the NSRCA and my favorite, "excess baggage" (past and current affiliations, promises and deal making, etc)! Both are related to the call for openness and transparency. Thank you, Everette