CLICK THE ABOVE LOGO FOR THE SEPTEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER
SRQ Board Meeting
September 7, 2011
Operations Building
Members Present: Paul Jantzen, Jim Martin, Steve Sundheimer, David Speed, Al Jensen, and Don Janssen.
Absent: Jim Holloman
Guests: Dick Bobb, George Jenkins
The meeting was called to order by President Jantzen @ 7:05 P.M.
President’s Report: None.
Safety Officer Report: A member received a cut on his finger by reaching into the prop arc of an unfamiliar aircraft. His tendon was cut requiring surgery to reattach the tendon. All members are reminded that our airplanes can be very dangerous. Please be careful. A report of injury will be filed with the AMA.
A member’s airplane is suspected of exceeding the club’s limits on noise. The member will be notified he must schedule a test with the safety officer and a member of the Board to certify that his plane is within club requirements.
Treasurer’s Report: Mr. Sundheimer presented the August financial report. The financial report was accepted as presented.
The proposed 2012 budget was presented to the Board. The Board will recommend to the membership that there will be no change in the initiation fees or dues for 2012. The Board will recommend to the membership that the new Associate Membership will have dues of $20.00 per year.
Al Jensen reported we currently have 292 members.
Old Business:
The new SRQ membership application form has been updated to include the new Associate Member classification. The Board reviewed the application and approved it for publication.
SRQ’s participation in AMA’s Gold Leader Club was discussed. There were several items that prevented SRQ from qualifying for membership. The Board decided SRQ would complete the necessary actions to become a member of the Gold Leader Club. This includes providing a Model Airplane News subscription to the Fruitville library and reviewing the AMA safety code at a future membership meeting. A motion was made and seconded to subscribe to Model Airplane News and have the subscription mailed to the Fruitville library. The subscription will be paid for by SRQ. The motion passed and George Jenkins agreed to implement the motion.
George Jenkins reported for Dave Hasler that the Light Plane and Golden Age Fly-in is on schedule. There will be Belly Busters for lunch along with ice cold soda and water. George Jenkins has mailed flyers to other clubs and posted flyers in the hobby shops. There will be a plane for the raffle. Please come and support your club events.
The Open House scheduled for October 1st is also on schedule. Notices have been placed on several websites and on Craigslist. SRQ will invite the County Commissioners, Parks and Recreation County Officials, and Waste Management Officials.
We ask that the members bring as many old R/C related magazines to the next membership meeting for distribution at the Open House. We would like them at the meeting so we have an idea of how many we have to give out. Tell your spouse. They will help you carry them to the car.
George Jenkins showed the new signs that will be posted from I-75 to the field showing how to get to the air show. They have the county logo, so they should not be removed by the county. They are very nice and much sturdier than our past signs. The Board thanks George for his efforts.
SRQ intends to have a schedule of demonstrations posted at the field for the Open House. The intent is to inform the public at exactly what time they can see demonstrations of a jet, helicopter, gaggle of T-28s, etc.
We need some helicopter pilots to fly at the event. If you are willing to fly, please contact Jim Martin.
All of the events other than the Light Plane Fly-in, will be catered by an outside vendor. We are negotiating pricing and commission.
The county has indicated the club must apply for permits for all events. Paul Jantzen has agreed to negotiate with the county on this item. If we are going to have overnight parking of RVs, permits are required and must be applied for and paid. George Jenkins will handle this item.
The proposed by-law changes are complete and will be published on the website and the Newsletter. There will be copies available in the operations building as well. Approval of the changes by the membership will be sought at the September membership meeting.
New Business:
Ron Nash has notified the Board that personal commitments prevent him from continuing to be our Newsletter editor. The Board understands the time commitment required and, on behalf of the entire membership, we thank Ron for all the great Newsletters he published.
Fred Bigio has agreed to be SRQ’s new Newsletter editor. Fred will edit the Newsletter, but will need contributions of articles, photos, etc. Please help Fred out. The membership thanks Fred for taking on this responsibility.
Al Jensen made a proposal that SRQ change its membership application period to coincide with the membership application period of AMA. The AMA recently allowed new memberships or renewals to be submitted on 9/15 of the year prior to the membership year. A motion was made and seconded to permit new or renewal applications of SRQ to be accepted on 9/15 of the year prior to the membership year. The motion passed.
The membership asked the Board to review its decision to require pilots to fly from one of the existing pilot stations. For safety reasons, the Board affirmed its decision to require all flights to be conducted from one of the six pilot stations.
The Board received an inquiry as to whether additional pilot stations could be installed. One would be at the east end and the other would be placed at the west end of the runway. After discussion, it was decided to keep the pilot stations as they are.
The books have not been audited for the year 2010. We have no volunteer to audit the books and after review of the by-laws and IRS regulations, it was determined there is no requirement to audit the books. If a member with qualifications is willing to volunteer to perform an audit, please contact a Board member.
The feasibility study being conducted into removing 35’ of the north side of the runway and replacing it with grass continues. The Board would like information on which county officials were contacted during the feasibility study. President Jantzen will gather that information.
SRQ has been informed the water line that brings the water up to our field in the responsibility of SRQ. The water line does not appear to be on the land that is leased by SRQ. This presents a potential problem as SRQ cannot control the county trucks that may drive over and break “our” water line. President Jantzen is working with the county to resolve the issue.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:17 P.M.
David M. Speed
SRQ Secretary
SRQ Minutes
Membership Meeting August 24, 2011
Twin Lakes Park, Sarasota, FL
The meeting was called to order @ 7:01 P.M. by President Paul Jantzen.
He led us in the Pledge of Allegiance.
There were 36 members present.
New members or guests: Gary Durham is a new member from Pennsylvania. The membership welcomed Gary to the club. Brian and Mike from the hobby shop in Port Charlotte were guests.
Program: SRQ had a special guest this month, so the program portion of the evening was moved to the beginning of the meeting. V.P. Jim Martin introduced Polly White who was a member of the Woman Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) during WWII. The WASPs were used to ferry aircraft within the United States and other non-combat duties to free up the male pilots for combat duty. Although 25,000 women applied to be a WASP, only 1,830 were accepted and of them, 1,074 passed the training and were accepted as WASPs. We were in very special company. Polly was qualified to fly single engine aircraft up to and including the P-40. She was stationed at the Foster Air Force Base in Texas. She spent most of her time towing targets with an AT-6. The membership spent time asking Polly questions about her service and time in the WASPs. SRQ thanked Polly White for her service in WWII and for coming to visit us and telling us her story.
Announcements: David Speed reminded the membership of the semi-annual swap meet that will take place at Graves Hobby in Orlando on September 10th. It starts at 9:00 A.M. All items in stock at the store are 10% off during the swap meet.
Castle Creations has recalled their Phoenix HV ESCs. They warn you not to fly with one until it is repaired. If you are using one, please go to their website for instructions. www.castlecreations.com
Mike and Brian Hague from The Hobby Shop in Port Charlotte announced they will be opening a new hobby shop in Sarasota called Gator Hobbies. It will be located on the south side of Clark Road next to Tire Kingdom. The store will be about the same size as the one in Port Charlotte and the plan is to be open by October 1st.
Solo Certificate: Cliff Root presented a solo certificate to David Christian. Cliff Root was David’s instructor. David Speed performed the check out flight. Congratulations David Christian!
President’s Report: Paul reported the paving of our road is still in the works. We watch, we wait. When the current road washes out, some members have driven off the road and onto the grass. Since this is against county policy, if you get stuck, do not call the county to get you out. Call your own wrecker company or make other arrangements.
There was a leak in the water line coming from the bottom of the hill to our facility. The leak was repaired by the county, but SRQ received a water bill for about $572 dollars. Dick Bobb negotiated a settlement with the county where the county would absorb $500 dollars and SRQ would pay the balance.
A motion was made and seconded to accept the July minutes as published. During the discussion period, several members pointed out that a statement made at July’s meeting, and reported in the minutes for that meeting, specifically “The area that has been referred to as the “grass runway” does not meet the AMA requirements for a runway” was not accurate. President Jantzen agreed that the statement was not accurate. The motion to accept the minutes was approved with the understanding that the incorrect statement would be noted in the current minutes.
Additional discussion on whether the area at the east end of the paved runway could be used as a runway continued. President Jantzen indicated the issue was one of safety. After further discussion, President Jantzen agreed to have the Board revisit this issue at the next Board meeting.
Joe Wright asked if the Membership Manual could be published in its entirety on the club website. It was agreed that after the new Membership Manual is completed, it will be published in its entirety in PDF format on the club website.
Please remember that all SRQ members are safety officers. The Board knows everyone is not comfortable in approaching another member if they see a safety violation. If you are not comfortable in doing this, please tell a Board member and they will address the issue.
Treasurer’s Report:
Treasurer Sundheimer presented the July financial report. A motion was made and seconded to approve the report as presented. The motion passed.
Old Business:
Dave Hasler showed the new flyer for the Light Plane and Golden Age Fly-In. The event will take place on 9/17/2011 and the flyer is available on the club website. David read the names of the volunteers and their assignments. Frank Tiano has seen to it that every pilot will receive a product from his ZAP line of glues. Thanks to Frank for supporting our club, again!
At the July meeting, Vince Veltri proposed the idea of removing 35 feet X 500 feet of the north side of the runway and replacing it with grass. Vince reiterated his proposal and indicated that he had started his investigation of what it would take to complete such a project. This would include buying a new reel mower to cut the grass, installation of an irrigation system to keep the grass watered during the dry season, permits, etc. A motion was made and seconded to have Vince Veltri complete a feasibility study on removing 35 feet X 500 feet of the north side of the runway and replace it with an irrigated grass runway of the same dimensions. The motion passed.
Jim Martin discussed the upcoming Expo that will take place on October 1st. Jim is looking for volunteers to assist in making displays for the public on electric aircraft, radio systems, training systems, scale aircraft, turbines and other facets of our hobby. Please contact Jim if you can help with ideas or displays.
New Business:
It is a requirement of the club to appoint at least three SRQ members to a Nominating Committee at this meeting. Volunteers were requested and the following SRQ members were appointed to the Nominating Committee: Vince Veltri, Jim Behanna, and Jim Holloman. The committee will notify the membership of the individuals running for the Officer and Board positions, preferably by the October general membership meeting.
The raffle was conducted by Steve Petitto. This month’s raffle was for a Cub that was donated by Eric Hall and John Stileman. The prize was won by Cliff Root.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:22 P.M.
David M. Speed
SRQ Secretary
V.P. Jim Martin introduced Polly White who was a member of the Woman Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) during WWII.
Cliff Root presented a solo certificate to David Christian.
The raffle was conducted by Steve Petitto (r), the prize was won by Cliff Root.