I was given permission by Roy Creel to post the following:
----- Original Message -----
From: "Skip Higginbotham" <Saltrat@LubricationDynamics.com>
To: <cree@antelecom.net>
Sent: Tuesday, October 25, 2005 9:00 AM
Subject: Voting
> Hi Roy,
> Just wondering why I have to be a member of BNI in order to run at the
salt
> but I have no vote when voting time comes around?
> I think that BNI members should be able to vote for the management of the
> organization just like the "dirt" guys/gals.
> If I am missing something here, please let me know. Probably am........
> Skip Higginbotham
From: "Roy Creel" <cree@antelecom.net>
To: "Skip Higginbotham" <Saltrat@LubricationDynamics.com>
Subject: Re: Voting
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 2005 22:12:32 +0000
Skip, see reply below, feel free to post.
Skip et al,
In response to your question, vote on what?
There is an org. chart on the SCTA-BNI.org home page web.
I realize the organization may be confusing to those who don't ask, and
since you asked, here goes:
The Parent Corporation is the SCTA, a non-profit volunteer organization. The
mission is to provide safe and user friendly landspeed events for our
membership. We have only one paid employee, Joann at the office.
The 5 officers of the SCTA board are elected by the members of the
association annually. Those five appoint the rest of the board members from
the general membership (that are willing to serve; sometime hard to find!)
To be an SCTA member, one must be a member of one of the affiliated clubs.
Each club is entitled to representative/s according to club size and they
represent the clubs at the reps/board meetings. All of the rules, polices,
etc. are adopted by SCTA board vote. It is very seldom that the board votes
on a matter against the wishes of the reps. (Clubs) The rep system advises
the board as to the feelings of the clubs. The only thing the SCTA general
membership votes on is officers and bylaw changes.
The BNI is a separate corporation under SCTA board control with their own
bylaws and subordinate board.
The BNI is charged with the responsibility of planning and organizing the
Salt. events and those logistic matters thus pertaining.
As I have said at every driver meeting I have conducted at Bonneville, The
BNI organizes the event and I hand the reins over to the SCTA, who conducts
the event under their rules.
The BNI officers are appointed by the SCTA board, all must be SCTA board
members and they choose who will serve in what capacity amongst themselves.
All decisions made by the BNI board are done by consensus
The BNI makes neither rules nor policy; this is all done by the SCTA board.
Your being a member of BNI is akin to joining the discount club at a store.
By joining and helping to support the cause, it gives you the right to
participate in the event(s). It doesn't give you a right to determine how
the store is run.
Now having explained all this, I suspect there will be folks who say, "it
shouldn't be this way". Well the SCTA has been around for over 50 years.
They started Bonneville racing for the masses and are now bigger than ever.
The task of managing both a 6 event dirt season + 2 salt events is
mind-boggling. So, somehow it must work pretty well.
If this was a "for profit "corporation, I estimate your SW entry fee would
be well over $1000.
All of this stuff is done by volunteers, not someone mandated by pay to do
things to the satisfaction of a certain boss. I don't type well and I took
about 3/4 hour away from my projects just to answer this inquiry. When I was
president, I spent about 80 Hrs per week on SCTA business. ( by choice of
course)
As I see a lot of ez e- mail criticism of things, I see few folks stepping
up to help.
Hope this clears things up for yourself and the masses too.
Roy Creel