TBRA - pivotal annual meeting on 12/8

This Saturday, December 8th is the TBRA general membership meeting being held here in Nashville. Representatives of all racing clubs in Tennessee are expected to attend and cover quite a bit of material. The biggest item on the agenda will be the election of TBRA board positions. Several of the current board members are not seeking re-election, so if any of you are interested in holding a position on the TBRA board then I'd suggest contacting the current president immediately for consideration.

The meeting will also cover new rule changes for 2008, the upcoming race schedule dates, and any other new business that club representatives want to address. All racers should contact their club representative to share their ideas, comments and suggestions. Be heard!

Off the top of my head here are a few ideas to consider:
1 - look at lowering the the number of races within the TBAR series, ie make the series more selective. In 2007 for example there were 42 opportunities for a road result (omniums/SR's included)
2 - revamp the points system; there are a number of ways to do this, but the goal would be to eliminate a winner winning because they did the most number of events
3 - for 2009 no longer allow TBAR winners to receive free race entries
4 - establish minimum standards on what a race promoter should offer, ie online registration, bathrooms, registration help, finish line cameras, results posting
5 - reinvest back into the growth of the sport, ie earmark a portion of the TBRA association's per rider tax on promoters to go towards regional race promotion (direct flyer mailings)
6 - expand the objectives for TBRA way beyond that of a best area rider (BAR) points clearinghouse
7 - invest in a chip timing system to get accurate and timely results
8 - seek partnerships and sponsors to invest in TBRA's vision for 2008 and beyond
9 - recruit potential racers from area cycling clubs
10 - bring back the Saturday night indoor banquet with a cool guest speaker!

Make no mistake that I feel TBRA does a pretty good job at achieving its mission, but it certainly could do more while doing some other things better. The organization set the standard throughout the Southeast on how to organize and manage a series, and that's a fact. Now, however, we all get the sense we are getting passed by and missing opportunities. That too is also a fact.

To improve will mean doing things dramatically differently, and that's what I am hinting at with #6. Sure, tweaking the system we currently have ultimately does nothing but change the rules of the game. What really must happen is a total shake up in logic and approach in order to achieve the goals we all want. We can continue down the same path and get the same results, or we can approach things much differently for a different (better!) outcome. Simply put, TBRA should start doing things it has never done before and state a new set of objectives.

I will be there listening in and participating in the discussions. I don't know how much of my ten items I will bring up as topics, or who knows, maybe I'll bring them all up. I have a feeling this will be a pivotal meeting for TBRA's future and greatly impact it for at least the next five years. If it stays the course then stagnation will prevail with no growth, but if real change can happen then Tennessee can once again becoming the racing center of the Southeast.