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In the last newsletter edition, I gave you some history about how the MTF rides got started. This issue, I’ll answer the question, “How does the MTF develop its ride calendar?”
The Ride Committees
There are three ride committees: Long Distance, Flower Sniffing, and Rough Road Riding. An MTF Board Member is responsible for overseeing the committees: Kevin Lechner (LD), John Wynes (FS), and Andy Simons (RRR). To this point the MTF Board Members providing oversight have also chaired their respective committees. As the MTF matures it is our goal to develop committee chairs that are not MTF Board Members.
Each respective ride committee is responsible for putting together their desired schedule of events. More importantly, the ride committees are also responsible for implementing and managing the schedule of events they have chosen. The fact that the ride committees must also manage the events typically is a big part of determining the make up of the committees. A lot of people want to participate on the committee but not all are willing to sacrifice the amount of time necessary to develop and manage an event.
Criteria for Ride Events Selection
The committees are given very little direction from the MTF Board. For 2008, the committees have been given three criteria:
1. Limit rides to a maximum of four with a preference of three events per riding style. We have a lot of new committee members and we need to focus on quality and not quantity. And we need to get event details posted to the web in a timelier basis this year.
2. The Founders Feast is now held in conjunction with one of the events and rotates by ride style. In 2006, it was held with the RAT, a LD ride; in 2007, it is being held with the ILRRR, a rough road ride; and in 2008, it will be held in conjunction with a Flower Sniffing ride. The Founders Feast site for 2008 will be set in Clarksdale, MS so it will be the challenge of the Flower Sniffing Committee to develop a ride in conjunction with this event.
3. The rides need to be geographically diverse. In the past the rides tended to be offered in the east, simply because this is where the original volunteers were located. This means we will be looking for some of western members to step up and be active in ride management.
4. The rides need to be spread across the calendar so that one event is not competing with another for attendance.
The Planning Process
Beginning in June or July, the respective committees begin brainstorming the events that they want to offer in the coming year. They may also solicit suggestions by posting on the forum. The members begin to rank-order the rides and select potential dates. The committee chairs then begin working together to set the ride calendar. Sometimes dates are inflexible, e.g. the 2008 Founders Fest which is pre-set for October 17 and 18, 2008 or the IBA ride-in that has held in conjunction with the annual IBA party. Aside from the fixed dates, spreading the selected events across the calendar is a give-and-take situation among the three committee chairs. Sometimes it even becomes necessary to drop an event and add another simply due to conflicts. It is an imperfect process of trying to fit 9-12 events into a schedule.
The committee chairs submit their proposed schedule of events to the MTF Board at their October meeting. Once the calendar is approved by the MTF Board, it is published to the forum, advertised on the MTF website at www.mctourer.com, and web development and ride management begins. By publishing our calendar in October of the previous year, we hope to give our members as much time as possible to make decisions regarding which events they can attend.
Volunteers Make It Happen
It takes an overwhelming number of volunteer hours to offer these events. We have been blessed in that we have folks who are willing to give something back.
How do you get your “special event” on the MTF Calendar? The best way is to be willing to serve as the ride manager. If you are not ready to go quite that far, participate in the discussions on the forum when asked, or contact the committee chairs.
How do you get on one of the MTF ride committees? Through participation. We are hesitant to put new members or members who have not been active onto committees or allow them to serve as ride managers. We prefer to work with people “WHO WE KNOW.” It is less likely that the ball will get dropped, forcing us into a bad situation.. However, even if you are new to the forum, if you have a desire to participate on one of the ride committees or in any other volunteer capacity, submit your request to Alan Leduc
(
amleduc@insightbb.com ) and he will add you to the volunteer pool from which committee chairs draw when they have an opening. You may also contact the committee chairs directly.
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