April 2022 board meeting

April 29, 2022 by Gary "Story Hawk" Henry

April 27, 2022

To: Todd Chandler, president Jordan Shrack, vice president Josh McVey, treasurer Mike Miley, social media director Caroline Wroczynski, membership director Hollie Davis, quartermaster Mary Ann Frevert, swagmaster

From: Gary Henry, secretary

Subject: Minutes of April 26, 2022 board meeting

1. Meeting called to order The Lawrence Trail Hawks held their monthly board meeting 6-8 pm April 26 at the Lawrence Beer Company in east Lawrence.

2. Events The meeting began with a review and progress report of the club’s upcoming events.

Though not a club event, the Trail Hawks plan to represent the club at Free State Brewing’s “Trails that Connect Us” event, Friday, April 29. The event, free to exhibitors and visitors, will be held 5-8 pm, weather-permitting at Free State’s brewing facility, 1927 Moodie Road along the Burroughs Trail. The event tries to gather, for the public, all area trail organizations.

Skyline Shuffle 5K is on track for Sunday, May 1. RD Hollie Davis reports that the race currently has 29 entrants, though more are expected for race-morning sign-up. Many are first-time trail-racers. Packet pickup will be 5-7 pm Friday at Garry Gribble's Running Sports, 839 Massachusetts St., in Lawrence. In addition to the usual place-awards, Hollie has added a last-place “Barely Beat Sky Clintie” award.

Night Hawk 50K, 20- and 10-Mile Trail Race is on track for June 25, according to Co-RD Mary Ann Frevert. Currently, there are 29 entered in the 50K, six in the 20-miler, and 16 in the 10-miler, which is down from pre-Covid years. Mary Ann is confident the numbers will be back on track or close-to by race day. The RDs are looking at having two medical volunteers on hand.

The SNAKE 10-Mile Trail Race is set for July 23, after a two-year Covid-induced “hibernation.” In addition to a high-budget stainless steel logoed travel cup for swag, RD Gary Henry also plans some great volunteer swag. Currently 14 runners have entered.

The HAWK 100-, 50- and 26.2-Mile Trail Races have 51 runners registered so far across all three races. The race will be capped at about 200 runners. Co-RD Jordan Shrack reports a relay for charity is being considered, four or five teams maximum. The HAWK is part of the 2022 “Flyover Slam,” which also includes Mines of Spain, the Hitchcock 100 and the Outlaw 100. Three of the first five runners who have entered the slam are Trail Hawks. There are only 10 slots left in the slam, since Mines of Spain only has 10 openings left. So far, no women have entered the slam. Golden Hawk – this event, which challenges participants to run every race on the Trail Hawks annual calendar is back after a two-year absence, now managed by Steve Crutchfield. The Golden Hawk will kick off with the Night Hawk, and end with Skyline Shuffle 2023. Finisher awards will be handed out at a celebration following the Shuff. Currently, there are five new entrants added to the eight who signed up in 2021, before the event was canceled. As a special perk for Trail Hawk race directors who would like to participate in the Golden Hawk, but can’t step away from managing their own races, Steve is offering a special deal in which they can run their courses outside of the race, and get Golden Hawk credit. RDs who would like to take advantage of this deal should contact Steve for details.

3. Carport Tent The board agreed that a heavy-duty carport tent of the type the Hawks have been borrowing from David “Happy Hawk” Simmons is a must for the inventory. Pop-up tents just aren’t able to withstand the extreme weather that sometimes occurs during The HAWK and Pi-Day. Todd will reach out to David for assistance in buying a carport tent from Costco, where David has bought his tents.

4. Quartermaster Chosen Hollie Davis volunteered to serve as Trail Hawks’ Quartermaster after Todd discussed the need for better inventory control in the storage unit. Hollie has professional qualifications for this type of work, and says she enjoys it. Todd and Hollie will begin going through the inventory during the gear check-out and check-in for Skyline Shuffle.

5. 2022 Sanders’ Saunter Charity In the past, the charity beneficiary of Sanders’ Saunter was chosen by the RD, as a perk for the time and effort of putting on the race. More recently, the beneficiary was chosen by club-vote after members nominated candidates. Both systems had drawbacks. The first method precluded member participation, and the second allowed charities to be chosen from outside the Lawrence/Douglas County Community. As RD, Todd plans to combine these methods. He will work to identify several worthy charities in the local area, then the club will vote to decide among them.

6. Celebrating Trail Hawk Racers Trail Hawks represent the club in great races throughout the country, and even the world. The board agreed that recognizing, publicizing and celebrating Trail Hawks’ entry and participation in such races is a worthy effort. Social Media Director Mike Miley plans to regularly query the membership about race plans and achievements, and post the responses on Facebook and Instagram. Members don’t have to wait to be queried, however; they should contact Mike via email, Instagram or Facebook with information, and hopefully photos, of what they’ve got going on.

7. Swagmaster Chosen Mary Ann noted the need for more Trail Hawks-branded swag, such as shirts and ballcaps. The board agreed that it was worth looking into. Josh pointed out that there are direct-to-consumer companies such as Threadlist that may make the effort of buying and distributing branded items easier. Mary Ann agreed to take on the project, and the board confirmed her as “Swagmaster.” Mary Ann plans to report her findings on the best way to get branded swag for the club at the next meeting.

8. Recognizing Volunteers The board talked about ways of recognizing volunteers, since their time and effort are crucial to the club and all of its events. Celebrating their contributions on social channels, in the club’s monthly newsletter and at an end-of-year picnic were all discussed. After Cactus Roulette, the three RDs sent volunteers emails which recounted their individual efforts during the race and personally thanked them. The email letters seemed to be well-received.

9. Open Trails Initiative Gary Henry, who is also the Kansas Trails Council’s North Shore Trails Coordinator, reported that progress is being made on the Open Trails Initiative of strengthening the trails, but the initiative needs more volunteers. Gary said that he is flexible and can work with volunteers on a short-notice basis when they notify him they are available. Todd suggested that events which have a volunteer-requirement, such as the HAWK and the Golden Hawk, could recommend the OTI as a way to get required volunteer hours.

10. Brochure Update The updated Trail Hawks trifold brochure is in-hand, and copies were distributed at the meeting. Contact Gary Henry if you would like some copies to hand out. The trifold was last updated in 2015.

11. Next Meeting The next Trail Hawks board meeting is set for Wednesday, May 18, 6-8 pm at the downtown location of the Lawrence Beer Company, 826 Pennsylvania Ave. The board plans to meet in the brew-pub’s outdoor dining patio, instead of the indoor meeting room. All dues-paying Trail Hawks are invited to attend.

12. Meeting adjourned With all issues addressed, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully,

Gary Henry Secretary

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