The meeting was called to order by President Karl Seeger at 7:07 PM at
Karl’s home in Sammamish. Karl and his wife, Lori, provided a wonderful
meal including barbequed hamburgers. There was even a birthday cake for
Jim Millet, who dropped several hints to Karl about the Board meeting
falling near his birthday. And then Jim didn’t attend the meeting!
Those in attendance were:
Karl welcomed everyone. Introductions were unnecessary.
Insurance
Karl mentioned that last month the News from National included
a four-line paragraph simply stating that the insurance reimbursement
program to the chapters would be ending due to the huge premium increase.
Scott Adare from Spokane started a discussion on the Presidents’
Forum about how this was affecting his chapter. Scott’s point,
according to Karl, was that the notice from National came so late that
event fees couldn’t be adjusted to compensate for the increased
cost to the chapter. Karl also agreed on the Forum that some chapters
might not be able to afford the additional financial burden.
Scott, Karl and the other chapter presidents got a response from Wynne
Smith, BMW CCA Executive Director. Wynne basically said that the previous
insurance company, K&K, was unable to provide coverage at any cost.
A scramble began to find replacement insurance. A carrier was found
but at a greatly increased rate and at the last moment. Keith Wollenberg,
Regional Vice President, also sent an email to Karl about his concerns.
The conclusion of the local Board was that the national board could
have warned the chapter earlier that a big increase in insurance costs
was likely and that the chapter rebate program was in jeopardy. While
non-specific, this would have allowed chapter officers to adjust event
fees in anticipation of an increase in costs, even if the specific amount
of the increase was unclear.
Reinstatement of the chapter rebate program will be considered at the
August National board meeting in Pasadena.
Forms to apply for event insurance coverage are now available. There
is also a 24-hour claims line: 800-364-4476. Bill Spornitz is going
to look at alternatives to using the National insurance policy.
Newsletter/Website Conference
Karl reported that materials from the Newsletter/Website Conference
will be sent to those who could not attend. Lucetta did attend and said
it was worthwhile. Especially useful was ideas on handling advertising.
Lucetta reported that there were several working sessions, some with
the whole group, some segregated by chapter size and some separated
for web site vs. newsletter.
Oktoberfest 02
Jaime Thomas is leading four local members to Colorado. Alan said he
was going.
Raffle 2002
The raffle cars will be M3 Coupes this year. There will be eleven plus
cars given away.
Ken Hill said he mailed the survey results to everyone after the last
Board meeting. No one received them.
Lance reported that tee-shirt sales were good. The Board approved making
75 more short-sleeved shirts.
SAE/WWU Visit
Ken Hill reported that 28 members went on the tour to Western Washington
University in Bellingham. They were all very impressed with Dr. Seal,
the students and the projects they saw. Ken will write a short follow-up
article for Zundfolge.
Kirkland Fourth of July Parade
Karl received a call inviting the Club to participate in Kirkland’s
Fourth of July parade. The call came too late for this year but we may
get invited back next year.
RMS at Carb Connection
Karl reported that the owner of RMS (Race Marque Systems), Osh Minelian,
came to Carburetor and Fuel Injection Connection in Kirkland on June
15th. He worked on John Carpenter’s Z3 until blowing the head gasket.
The eventual goal is to get 480 bhp out of an M roadster. Carb Connection
provided food and display cars. About 30 people attended.
Washington Wine Tour
Karl reported the tour was just about perfect. He had 32 cars, 63 great
people who were well behaved on the road and off, good weather and good
wine. The hotel did screw up a few reservations but otherwise the whole
weekend came off flawlessly. We used Club insurance for a tour for the
first time. Ken Olson volunteered to write a follow-up article.
02 Fest
Ken Wear updated the Board on the upcoming 02 Fest in North Bend. Forty
cars are registered at this point with many more sure to come. A nice
poster is being distributed to local businesses. Ken Olson will be doing
a short tour between the show and dinner. The main athletic field being
used is huge and has Mount Si as a backdrop. Lots of sponsors are in
hand. People with 2002s from all over the West Coast are planning to
attend.
Detail Session
Tom had 75 people reserve but only 50 showed up. While there was room
for more, this was still the biggest crowd we’ve ever drawn to
Exeter Garage. A violet M3 was the demo car. Tom will do a short follow-up
article.
Corral at Vintage Races at Pacific Raceways
Lucetta said that both days at the Corral were full by the end of May.
We were not able to get more tickets this year. We had far more demand
for tickets than we were able to accommodate. Lance will be bringing
water to the corral; Lucetta will bring cookies.
Monroe to Mt. Vernon Tour
Doug Haussler wasn’t present but Ken Olson reported that Doug has
pre-driven the route. Event insurance has been handled. Doug will write
a final promotional article for the next Zundfolge. At the end of the
tour there will be a karting event.
European Car Show at Ste. Michelle
Lance reported on the event progress. The event chairman is someone
from the Porsche Club who has very ambitious goals for a first year
event. Kevin Chow is our main contact with the event. The winery hopes
to sell lunches at $42 per person! The hope is for 150 cars and vintage
cars are desired. The event date is September 14th.
Wine Tasting
Kevin wasn’t present, so no news on setting a date for this event.
An August date is now impossible due to Zundfolge lead times.
E30 SIG Picnic
Lance reported on this event held at Newcastle Beach Park. What started
out as a low-key, picnic-type of event ended up being quite a bit bigger.
Eighty-two cars and 160 people attended. Thirty-six feet of Subway sandwiches,
15 cases of pop and plenty of chips were consumed. Awards were given
for highest mileage (288K), lowest mileage (31K), and greatest distance
driven to attend (from Northern California). There were beautiful M3s,
a Baur Cabrio, a Hartge E30, a DTM replica and more. Event sponsor Auburn
Foreign Car donated $300, site rental was paid for by the chapter and
donations were taken. In the end, Lance had $25 over expenses. This
money will be spent on water for the Corral at the Historics.
Tours/Rallies
Ken Olson reported that the Classic Rally (a non-Club event) had a poor
turnout with only fourteen cars. The Poppy Rally is scheduled for this
fall. The first day is put on by Doug Breithaupt and the second day
is organized by the Canadians.
Oregon Wine Tour
Tom Williams and Bill Linder are well advanced on planning for this
event. Given the success of the Washington Wine Tour, a good turnout
is expected.
Concours d’Elegance
Lance brought the event posters, which were well received, and handed
them out for distribution to area businesses. On the day of the event,
the grass will open by 9:00 and cars must be placed by 10:30. Judging
will occur from 11:00 until about 2:00. A meeting of the judges beforehand
will train the judges on the standards to be used. Lance has 18 judges
so as many as six teams can be used. Scoring will be done manually this
year with calculators. All score sheets will be double-checked by a
second scorer.
The trophies have been received and are said to be beautiful. Lance
explained how the attendance raffle would work. The evening of the Concours,
Lance has planned a dinner at King Ludwig’s Restaurant, a half
mile south of Northgate. For the dinner after the Concours, people will
call the restaurant directly to make a reservation, and they will be
notified in their confirmation packet that they will receive two weeks
before the event.
Treasurer’s Report
Tom said we have a balance of $29,678.67 in the checking account and
an additional $6,266.00 in the CD.
Tom, Greg and David have begun looking into the amount we’re getting
from National vs. our membership. It doesn’t look like we are getting
the extra amount we are supposed to get for former ACA members. There
was concern that our deal with National is undocumented and we may have
difficulty enforcing the agreement. Those involved will try to find
whatever documentation they have. Greg and Doug Adams will determine
how many members we have had each month since the merger and how many
ACA-only members have renewed each month. Tom will contact Keith Wollenberg
about our concerns.
Tom prepared a written agreement for Zundfolge advertisers. It was
adopted without modification. It will be used with new advertisers and
whenever thought necessary due to potential confusion.
Web Site
Miki checked into to her ISP and decided she wants to stay where she
is. The Board approved $20 per month each for Miki and Greg to partially
subsidize their Internet access costs since their Board positions require
them to use the Internet extensively. Some things never change: the
server still sucks.
During the last month there was one thread on the bulletin board that
was turning into a flame war and was pulled at the request of the originator.
This resulted in 31 responses regarding censorship. Any controversial
topic is to be referred to the relevant Board member for response, if
appropriate.
Zundfolge
The deadline for the August issue is next Tuesday, July 9th. Lucetta
reminded authors of articles to add a byline if they want one to appear.
The July issue was delayed by Paulette, the desktop publisher, having
a family emergency and Lucetta moving. It should be out in the next
few days. Lucetta said that we are losing a page and a half of advertising
and need replacements.
Roster/Membership
Greg reported that we have 2863 members, including 263 associate members.
Public Address System
Rick Gulstrom is buying the Fender system which was considered at the
last meeting. It will be available for use at the Concours d’Elegance.
Track Events
Jacqueline said that Dave Ely is her Bremerton local contact. He will
be taking the inventory of cones and other equipment in the trailer
at Bremerton. The Alfa Club has agreed to contribute to buying new cones.
Other clubs will be asked to contribute. Those that do will be given
access to the trailer. A new lock will be purchased for the trailer.
Last month we agreed to contribute $200 to IRDC’s efforts to improve
the corner stations at PR. Jacqueline asked to get the check so that
she could send it to IRDC with a letter.
At the June track day the black flag was located at Turn 7 so that
drivers could exit almost immediately. The entry/exit point to the track
will remain at Turn 8 for the next couple of years.
The “passing zones” vs. “let-by zones” were discussed
briefly. The flashing of headlights by the overtaking car was also mentioned,
however, for now no flashing is allowed.
The July event is full but Jacqueline needs more Instructors. Those
on the wait list for July will get priority for the August event.
Jacqueline has passed on any budgetary information to Tom.
Jacqueline said that she will not be continuing with track events for
next year. She is ready for a change and wants to pursue some personal
opportunities (the Indy Car ride has been firmed up) available to her.
She has suggested four persons that could succeed her next year. Karl
will be talking to the four of them and any others that might be interested.
Everyone on the Board thanked Jacqueline for her years of service and
the outstanding job she has done with the Club’s track program.
Banquet
A subcommittee including Kevin Chow, Jacqueline, David and
Doug Haussler was set up last month to come back to the Board with recommendations.
Kevin, David and Doug met earlier this week and Jacqueline provided
her input by email. David reported on the discussions held so far.
The basic problem is that few people attend. The committee is trying
to find out how the banquet would appeal to more members. The cost will
be reduced and it will be made less formal. The location will be more
central, probably in Seattle or Bellevue. The length of the event will
be three to four hours. The auction will be shorter and more car-oriented
with fewer large items.
More of a car-orientation will also be attempted. Kevin is looking
at banquet facilities that can get cars onto the banquet floor.
It’s agreed that a speaker is still a good idea, but only if the
speaker is well-known and a draw. David Hobbs is the first choice and
David (Lightfoot) agreed to try and contact Hobbs. Second choice is
Satch Carlson. If we can’t get either, we’ll try something
else.
Everyone took the opportunity to thank Jacqueline for all of her efforts
over many years on the track events.
David—Z3 production ended last Friday, BMW announced the Z4 officially
on Monday. Photos of the production cars are on various web sites but
not on BMW’s press site yet. BMW will have a large presence at the
Goodwood Festival of Speed in England.
Tom—saw a 6 Series convertible on Lake City Way.
Lucetta—has the Club’s old coffee pot; was advised to give it
away.
Ken Hill—told about attending Bobby Orr’s amazing stunt driving
school.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:10 PM.
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