Chuck Kenlan
First of all, I wish to apologize to the OBRA membership for the lack of communication from the Association. It is important for you to know what is going on. The discussion on OBRA chat about the problems with the email server brought that point home.
There have been two OBRA board meetings since I began as OBRA's Executive Director. Here is the link to the meeting minutes: https://industry.obra.org/blog-multi-author/ Please feel free to write if you have any questions. We will do a better job of getting these posted right after the meetings in the future. I want to highlight three important discussions that were held at these meetings and give you more detail than what is in those minutes
1. We are seeking bids for a new website. We have two strong candidates which are up for consideration. I guess the buck stops with me on the decision however, I want the OBRA board to support this investment. We have had solid presentations in which OBRA board and staff members have participated. OBRA's network administrator and our webmaster have been involved and have been able to ask the right questions. The goal is to have one, completely functional website; we currently have six domains, we need everything under one. User/member engagement is a priority for the new platform, I am excited that we will be able to roll out something that is exciting engaging and still provides all the useful functions of the current site: calendar, results, online registration, chat, a promotors page etc.
2. As you have seen via email and in the Newsletter, the OBRA board voted to amend the rules for cyclocross regarding age classifications for juniors so that they are in line with USAC. I can tell you, they didn't make this decision lightly. Many valid points were made on both sides of the issue. In the end, the change was seen as a benefit to OBRA's junior athletes as they develop as racers and chase the dream. I personally feel bad for the 18 and some 17-year olds that can no longer race as juniors at OBRA races. I know it's a tough pill. The other consequence of this change is that now a 7-year old can race as a junior in cyclocross and have an OBRA license. I hope that promotors will be conscientious of this.
3. Lastly, With the pro-bono help from Bend Attorney/OBRA racer Anthony Broadman, OBRA now has an up to date bylaws document. The last articles of amendment were in 1992 so it was time. The key points to the new bylaws are regarding how the board is elected and the structure of the board. First, we needed to clearly state how the current board is elected to reflect how it is done in practice. We also added another class of board members (At Large) who are recruited and elected by the current board. Six (6) board members will be elected by a delegate from each OBRA club as they are now. The board can recruit and elect up to five (5) additional directors. This gives OBRA the ability to recruit individuals that can bring specific skills and backgrounds that the board feels it needs. I am especially excited about this change as it will enhance our committee structure and take some of the load off the six current directors. The bylaws also require the board to have officers (we currently do not) in the form of a President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. This will add much needed structure to how OBRA operates.
One last item for you; have you ever heard of NABRA? Not many people have. NABRA is the North American Bicycle Racing Association. It is a separate entity form OBRA with its own FEIN. NABRA was started by Kenji and Brad Ross in 2012. It was formed to offer an alternative to USAC for race promotors around the country. It is managed by the OBRA Executive Director. This year I have sanctioned races in Alaska, Oklahoma, Utah, California, Texas, Kentucky, Nebraska and Hawaii. I cannot tell you how grateful these promotors are that NABRA exists. Most of promotors used to use USAC but because of the excessive cost and requirements, they have sought other ways of getting their races insured. We do buy a separate liability insurance policy for NABRA. The sanctioning and insurance fees that promotors pay more that covers the expense. Though you'd like to know.
Thank you to all the racers, promotors, officials and volunteers that make OBRA great. I get multiple emails and phone calls each day that offer suggestions to improve OBRA; keep them coming (even you Mike Ripley).
Have a great Cyclocross Season!
Sincerely,
Chuck Kenlan
Executive Director