ABATE of Indiana Inc. Board of Directors Meeting
January 17, 2004 --- Four Points Sheraton, Indianapolis, IN

Executive Director Jay Jackson opened the meeting at 11:50 am by leading everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance. Those present were: Reg 00 - Teresa & Ray Bodle; Reg 1- Al Putman; Reg 02- Doug Kreag, Jeff Willingham (arrived later); Reg 3 - Roger “Twister” Mitchell’ Reg 04 - Steve & Pam Madary; Reg 06 – Robert & Lois Sipes; Reg 7 - Joe “Rico” Riley, John Noyes, Dennis Tyger; Reg 8 – Jim Boyd (Asst-director); Reg 9 – Thomas Buchanan, Andrea Maetschke; Reg 10 – Lenny Stancombe; Reg 11- Carol Poe; Reg 12 – Tim & Debi Iltzsch; Reg 13 – Eugene Abbott, Angie Abbott; De Dillon; Kim Tyger; Bob Dillon; Gino Johnson – PSW; Rod Taylor - ABATE Legal Services; Judy McMillan – Ad Comm; Guest: Dave Stedry, Chris Waddell; Bobby Coffey – Security. (Reg 5 – absent)

Rico Riley addressed the new board as to the purpose of the Board of Directors and what is and is not appropriate at these meetings.

(Jeff Willingham, Reg 2 arrived)

ITEM #1 – Chris Waddell, MSD instructor from the Muncie site, presented on Vericon Internet program. Jay and De have written documentation of this confidential presentation. General questions and answers followed. The board will need to decide if any further action is appropriate.

ITEM #2 – Jay asked De for any explanations on the December financials, which were distributed at this meeting. Financials included role up for whole year. Change will be made on next report excluding BINGO and MSD as they are part of Inc. Directors were given a list of what was sent in through the foundation per region. If your region has nothing listed that means that you sent nothing through the state office last year. De, Gino, and Jay expressed concern that everything needs to go through the foundation. De explained each sheet of the financials and what it includes. (Motion #1).

ITEM # 3 – Jay asked if everyone had received the November minutes. Some did not. No questions have been posed to the office. Each region was given a report card on turning in reports to the state office. Reg 7 was recognized as doing an “admiral” job on turning everything in. Jay explained to directors what should go into the minutes. Board meeting minutes will soon be posted on the website in order to keep accountability and clarification. (Motion #2).

ITEM #4 - We expect to close on the purchase of Freedom Hall mid-Feb. Jim has submitted bids on sound equipment and a stage. We are looking into opening the hall to other venues such as “Grand Ol’ Opry” night. We still operate the third largest Bingo operation in the state.

Jay and De, with the help of the Dept. of Revenue, are working on having a Boogie Bike Raffle again. Reg 11 is willing to work this at the Boogie. No prizes will be awarded for selling tickets. However, we would like to have advance ticket sales without this incentive. We are already working on getting a bike. Discussion followed.

ITEM #5 – Judy McMillan gave the Ad Comm report. Ad Comm is still looking over the by-laws in the guide book, as requested by previous board. Please get any changes or suggestions to Judy within the next month.

Ad Comm reviewed the event calendar and is concerned about the number of charity events not being reported. This is being looking into because of a situation in Reg 10. The committee will investigate this further and report back to the board. Please be sure that any and all funds raised at events for charity go through the state office. Jay reiterated this for legality purposes. Discussion followed.

Gino Johnson discussed need for all events to be sanctioned for insurance and government purposes. This protects the individual putting on the event and the organization. Do not put the ABATE name on non-sanctioned events. Discussion followed.

ITEM # 6 – Jay reported on the MSD News Brief (Attached). Additionally, letters were sent out to the 150 member General Assembly advising that we would happily inform them of our opinion on any motorcycle legislation. There will be roughly 1500 bills submitted in this short session. We are looking at several that are of some concern to us on issues such as gaming and transportation. ABATE day at the State House is Wed. January 21st. It would be nice to have a good crowd this year. Discussion followed. Nationally, new subscription for email alerts from the Motorcycle Riders Foundation was submitted by Kathy VanCleff, the lobbyist for Motorcycle Industry Council and the MSF.

Correction Kids Day at the State House is March 3rd

Rod Taylor, Jay, and Phil have met with Gov. Kernan’s Chief of Staff. They came away with the feeling that the Gov is on our side.

NHTSA is still doing regional conferences around the country concerning motorcycle fatalities. In Indiana, the number of fatalities is down. Our registrations have increased.

Jay and John Bodeker will be in Chicago for the Region 5 conference for NHTSA Feb 17-18. They plan to take with them: Jeff Bryner from Lake Cycle to represent the industry and Bart McAtee to represent law enforcement.

Lastly, please respond to the State Representative surveys that are arriving in the mail.

ITEM # 7 – Little John was not available to give a LINC report. Twister addressed the need for forms for the Region and county LINC officers. We are still waiting on a formal proposal from Little John.

ITEM # 8 – Herb Archer was unable to attend the Board Meeting because Debbie has been in the hospital. She is home now. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

We are talking with the Spelunkers (cavers) on renting the property for their annual meeting there. We are also working with dealerships on holding customer appreciation days at the property.

We are still working with Dept of Health on compliance issues.

Rain has once again attacked the bridge at the property. Reg 04 has been out there cleaning out the creek and has made great improvements. Reg 04 has a concrete culvert that they are willing to give to the property to improve the bridge. However, they have no way to haul it. Discussion on installation and transportation followed.

Bob Dillon asked that regions wishing to come and work on the property do it prior to the Boogie. They will no longer be loaning out equipment during the Boogie.

Lenny asked about regions using the property for events. Jay stated that they could discuss this further. The date Lenny is requesting is the same as the Spelunkers.

Rico asked about naming the hill “Swannie Hill”. This is something we will look into but obviously could pose some problems as we are getting request for other deceased members to get recognition. The issue of naming all of the streets at the property was again brought up by Carol Poe. Jay suggested that ideas and requests for names be brought to the next board meeting for discussion.

ITEM # 9 – Awards Banquet: Ad Hoc will be meeting immediately following this meeting to discuss awards. Region Directors input on this is welcome. De Dillon stated that the State Office will be paying for rooms at the Awards Banquet for Friday night and Saturday night for the current Region Directors. Last years Directors will be given a room for Saturday night only. Please keep in mind the cost involved when considering the need for extra rooms etc. Jay will act according to the boards vote. Regions are not to pay for rooms.

Jay asked for suggestions on the Mike Lake award and how the recipient is selected. Jay suggested that the committee look at a three or five year average. Discussion followed. The committee will discuss this further.

De asked if anyone is having problems getting rooms. She stated that if you are, please call into the hotel and ask to speak to Kim. Please do not use the national 800 number.

ITEM # 10 – Congressman Bill Janklow, Republican (SD), has been found guilty on three separate charges. His sentencing is to be January 21st.

Jay stated that he is disappointed on the response from Directors reviewing the Boogie Video. It was accompanied by a letter stating that it was not the final cut and to please make suggestions. Some members have expressed concern about the video based on misinformation. Jay stated that some members of board that made the motion to proceed with the video did not stand behind that decision. The Boogie video has been suspended as decided by the 03 Board of Directors. We will still get a promotional video out of it. Those that ordered videos will be receiving a T-shirt, refund, and a letter of apology for any inconvenience to be mailed out on Tuesday. Please return your copy immediately. Discussion ensued.

Fall Seminar/Officer Training complaints and suggestions were made concerning timing as it coincides with Deer season. Jay stated that the intent is to try and get it done before new officers take over and avoid the holiday season. Most of the reviews were favorable. More in depth information on secretary and treasurers jobs was requested and is being looked into for next year. Jay stated that the nuts and bolts are in the guide book for each job description. Discussion on these issues followed.

Jay asked that everyone respect excise laws when attending events such as the Fall Seminar and the upcoming Awards Banquet. The hotels are willing to work with us but please do not exploit this by carrying large quantities of alcohol into the banquet. Discussion followed.

Charity for 2005 will be MDA. A letter has been sent out to those that were not chosen. The results of the vote: City of Hope – Reg 00; MDA – Reg 01, Reg 03, Reg 04, Reg 06, Reg 07, Reg 08, Reg 10; MDFF – Reg 02; Murat Shriners – Reg 05, Reg 13; Indiana Children’s Wish Fund – Reg 11, Reg 12; Region 09 abstained.

Last years board had been approached for a donation to the Perry Twp. Fire Dept for radios. The board approved this as the fire department helps us out at LCRP and this will demonstrate our commitment to the community. The fire department supports ABATE of Indiana.

ACTION ITEM – ID’s for the staff members at the Boogie. We will pass this off to Marc. Dennis Tyger has a prototype. Jay asked Dennis to get with Marc on this so that it can be discussed at the next board meeting.

ITEM #11 – Boogie Entertainment: George Thoroughgood is not available. Ted Nugent may be available but will not take bids until after Feb. The Doobie Brothers are available as well as REO Speedwagon. We are looking at doing Thurs night as 80’s night with Warrant and Saturday REO as our headliner. Warrant has already been signed. Friday will be left as TBA to take advantage of routing dates to get a band at discounted rates. Jay asked the board their feelings on paying $50K to get a large band that will bring people in to the Boogie with the idea of balancing the cost with the other bands. Judy McMillan reminded the board that we are in competition with Little Sturgis. Discussion followed.

The 7th Annual Hoosier Motorcyclist Round Table will be February 28th at 9:00 am. The round table is composed of any motorcycle group and dealerships to identify and solicit feedback. Please let them know of any group that is not represented and they will be sent an invitation.

T-shirt sponsors for the Miracle Ride are being solicited. The cost is $300. This gives the sponsor 2-VIP passes and 2-T-shirts.

Twister approached the board to move the board meetings to bi-monthly with a minimum of 6 meetings a year. Discussion followed. Dates proposed: Jan, Feb, April, June, August, September, and November on the third Saturday. The next Board meeting will be February 13th at 7:00 pm with the Ad Comm meeting beginning at 6:00

(Motion #3)

ACTION ITEM – Putt asked that the board consider Lifetime memberships. The state office will look into the number of 20 year and above members and bring this back to the board in February.

(Lone Wolf had asked for time to address the board at this meeting. However, because of the weather, he was unable to attend.)

(Motion #4)

Respectfully Submitted,
Kim Tyger

MOTIONS

#1- Motion made by Roger “Twister” Mitchell and seconded by Steve Madary to approve the October financials. The vote was: Yes- Reg 00, Reg 01, Reg 02, Reg 03, Reg 04, Reg 06, Reg 07, Reg 08, Reg 10, Reg 11, Reg 12, and Reg 13. Reg 09 abstained. (Reg 5 was absent) Motion carried.

#2 – Rico Riley motioned, seconded by Tim Iltzsch to approve the November minutes. The vote was unanimous in favor; motion carried.

#3 – Motion was made by Roger ‘Twister’ Mitchell and seconded by Eugene Abbott to go to bi-monthly board meetings; at least six per year with a schedule to be determined. The vote: Yes – Reg 00, Reg 01, Reg 02, Reg 03, Reg 04, Reg 06, Reg 08, Reg 10, Reg 13; No – Reg 09, Reg 11, Reg 12; Abstain Reg 07. Motion carried.

#4 – Rico Riley motioned, seconded by Tim Iltzsch to adjourn the meeting at 4:00 pm. The vote was unanimous in favor; motion carried.