Missouri Valley USATF

Board Meeting

10:00 a.m. October 17, 2004

Attendance: 

Wayne Armbrust,  Harold Cribbs,  Susan Melgares, Shawn Love, Alan Webb,  Casey Collins, Sherry Heim,  Darin Schmitz, Alan Poisner, Mark Stanbrough

 

Board members were asked to submit a list of strengths, weaknesses and priorities.  A master list was compiled as a basis of discussion for the meeting.

 

Strengths

  • Representation at national meet
  • Elite Club
  • Well rounded events
  • Officers
  • National USATF
  • Support from collegiate programs
  • Good youth meets when held
  • National recognition
  • Good territory
  • Officials
  • Enthusiasm
  • Knowledge of sport

Weaknesses

  • Membership numbers
  • Elite club and athletes
  • Road racers
  • High publicity events
  • Commitment and follow through
  • More officials
  • Lack of PR
  • Membership stability
  • Youth development
  • Size of territory
  • Cohesiveness
  • Lack of time to spend working on USATF

 

Priorities

  • High publicity events
  • Funding high caliber events
  • Developmental meet sites
  • Publicity
  • Elite athlete development
  • Competition from AAU
  • Sanctioned road races
  • More officials & race walk officials
  • Commitment and follow through
  • Clinics through USATF
  • Increase participation
  • More adult athletes
  • Youth camps

 

Elite Club

            Funding elite athletes

                        Sponsorships- have been difficult to obtain, continue to try to obtain

            Donations-Shawn has tried several ideas such as Olympic viewing parties

and barbeques and has lost money

                        Apply for a grant through the association for elite athletes to compete in

major meets-if membership rose and association increased income through meets

           

            Committee:  Chair Shawn Love, Ray Bingley,

 

Well Rounded Events

            Offered

            Not at our potential

            Advantage over AAU, we do more

           

AAU

            When AAU national meet is close it affects USATF participation

Membership Fee is about the same

            Not as competitive, they use that as an advantage

            1 year age groups are used as an AAU advantage

 

Officers

            Officers and board are often given a title, but not enough direction

            Need a committee to come up with guidelines and expectations, follow up

            Timeline, checklist

           

            Committee:  Mark Stanbrough, Shawn Love

 

Website

            Needs to be kept updated- has  not been functional

            Kim Dhority  dhority@osprey.net    has taken over as webmaster

 

 

Support from Collegiate programs

·        Some places we have good cooperation

·        Need cooperation from more places

·        Not many college coaches are USATF members

·        Not a strength

·        40 + track programs in Kansas, 30 in Missouri - how many are involved in USATF?

·        College coaches are restricted from coaching youth, but can conduct clinics, camps, host meets

·        Clinics and camps - should USATF hook into already existing clinics and co-sponsor – Insurance purposes, already established.

 

            Committee:  Darin Schmitz

                        Put together program to increase participation from college coaches

                        Get a rep from each level, Juco, NAIA, Div. II, Div. 1

 

Youth meets

·        How can we make them shorter?

·        Don’t know the # of kids that will be there, kids sign in day of meet

·        Development Meet grants were tried last year-  Gave free sanction, ribbons and prizes

                                    Should try it again, clubs didn’t follow through

                                    Send it to college coaches to encourage developmental meets

·        Officials, difficult to get them to summer meets

·        Encourage officials to become USATF members, could set-up travel grants for officials in the summer

·        Set up bidding process where MV would get more money from the meet and more money from officials USATF  membership fees, to give officials a stipend

 

 

Territory

             

            512 members from KS, 153 members from MO

           

Membership

Alan Webb discussed the Discount Card for members, board members voted in

 favor   

 

Road Races

            Communicate to race directors the importance of a sanction

            Jay Mulligan sent a sanction report- He recommended that sanction fees increase.

            A road racing Grand Prix was discussed.

            New Benefit of USATF- all sanctioned race results go to national database

Championships for specific distances was discussed

Start with 5k, 10k, Half-marathon

 

            Committee:  Jay Mulligan, Diane Hood

 

PR

·        Use high school/middle school meets to bring in elite athlete to run/throw, for example:  Turbo Jav. world record at Eudora

·        Discussion of High school “all-star” track meet, 1st and 2nd place finishers at state meet- Current high school rules would not allow

·        PR at Show-Me games and Sunflower games; Shawn Love contacting commissioner of event

·        Missouri Valley hand out at State

·        Coaches influence on athlete participation is extremely high, emphasis should be on promotion of USATF with middle and high school coaches

·        Setting up booths

o       Not effective at KU relays; coaches and athletes too busy

o       Set up at coaching clinics

·        Connect with existing clinics and camps; USATF cosponsor

o       This is a way to tie in with college coaches, camps and clinics

o       Cooperate with them

o       This falls under Coaching Education committee

·        Board agreed to hook up with existing camps and clinics instead of creating our own

·        Newsletter

 

 

World Youth Championships

$500 to world youth Morocco trip was requested from USATF

o       Board voted not to give $500

 

Kansas/Missouri

            The Missouri Valley USATF should be surveyed to gather information about

splitting MV

            Both organizations need to be able to survive on their own