Minutes of February 7, 2006 NVRC Meeting.
The
regular meeting of the Nittany Valley Running Club was held on Tuesday,
February 7 at the Hi-Way Pizza on Westerly Parkway. Another huge crowd
was on hand for the meeting. In attendance were Dave Eggler, Marty
Klanchar, Jerry Steffy, Marty Mazur, Boyd Brumbaugh, Amy Paster, Kim
Gasper, Mark Fedkin, Bob Radzwich, Mike Casper, Alistair Geddes, Morgan
Windram, Scott Brooker, Curtis Louder, and Tarah Murray, along with
Diane from the Association for Retarded Citizens (ARC) and Jackie from
Victory Sports. It's a good thing a few people had to cut out early,
otherwise three pizzas and several pitchers of beer would not have
covered the bases.
Before the main Club business, we heard from Diane of ARC and Jackie
from Victory Sports. Diane was on a fact-finding mission to see if
using a 5K race as a fundraiser for the ARC. She was interested in
logistics, course and planning, what to expect in terms of turnout,
proceeds, etc. We filled her in. She'll be in touch if they decide to
do one. Jackie at Victory Sports (in Hills Plaza) is interested in
doing a series of training seminars for Club members. The series will
be for runners who are in it for the long term and want to stay healthy
and injury free while improving their competitive edge. The series will
include information on diet, strength and flexibility training, and
other topics. Jackie wants to give the first seminar, with a nice
general survey of some of the topics, on Saturday, February 18, at 10
AM immediately following the Weekend Group Run. The plan is to have the
run start and finish at the Hills Plaza parking lot. More information
will be sent to Club members and posted on the web site.
The Club business was next. We first decided to continue giving away
NVRC Club singlets as prizes in the Indoor Mile series. Next, Marty
Mazur gave a brief report on Jeff Bundy's preliminary plans for a
Nittany Valley Marathon. Jeff is working on getting sponsorship for
such a race. Logistics, course, and date are big concerns. The Fall
calendar is generally pretty full of marathons. Too early in the Spring
brings weather into the picture, while an April race conflicts with the
Boston marathon, in which many in our Club participate for the benefit
of Centre Volunteers in Medicine. The goal is to have a race in late
Spring of 2007. Marty will keep the Club appraised of progress here.
The main topic of the meeting was NVRC sponsorship of running and
training programs. Last month, the Club officers met to hammer out a
straw man policy for such programs. Marty briefed the attendees and
will be putting out a draft of the policy for consideration by the
Club. Scott Brooker, whose Penns Valley Track Club receives a grant
from the NVRC was there to add to the discussion. One of the
requirements in the draft policy is that all participants in funded
programs should be members of the NVRC. Marty mentioned that Penns
Valley, while getting a good benefit from the NVRC grant and from our
help with the Egg Hill race, has a very low representation in Club
membership. Scott worries that adding $6 to his club's fees might drive
down participation. A possible "youth rate" was brought up in order to
address this, though our Club membership fee has remained unchanged for
decades and was probably low back then. This and other issues can be
debated among Club members when Marty posts the draft policy. The
attendees decided that we should have the policy finalized by the next
meeting. There have already been two formal requests for grants from
this program. Scott's PV Club and John Schmidt's Nittany Track and
Field program have requested a renewal of their grants from last year.
Amy Paster gave a report on progress regarding the Arts Fest Race. It
will again be two races this year, a 10K and a 5K. For the first time
in years we will use the same course two years in a row. Amy is looking
for some AF race photos because the race will be featured in the
Preview Guide for the Art's Fest. Jerry Steffy will direct the Kids
Races this year.
Mike Casper is looking for some help for this year's mOUnTaiNBACK 50
Mile Relay and Ultramarathon. Mike is about to become a father for the
first time and may have to (no, Mike, will have to) throttle back a bit
in his involvement in the race. He'd like to have a co-director or two
who can help direct the race. He assures us that the race is well
established and much of the "infrastructure" is in place. Whoever steps
up is not starting from scratch.
Morgan Windram announced that she and her fiancee Alistair Geddes will
be moving away in the early summer to continue and further their
careers. Both of them are in the field of Geography. Morgan hopes to
eventually attain a PhD. Their plans are not definite yet, but they
will miss the area and the people (and will be sorely missed). Morgan
and Alistair want to leave a gift to the Club to endow some kind of
runner's assistance fund, perhaps to pay entry fees for some worthy
competitor. Morgan's help and generosity with her time have been very
valuable to the NVRC. It's hard to accept even more from her when we
know we might not see her around much more. We'll keep you abreast of
their plans for this gift, and of their plans regarding their move as
they become known.
Kim Gasper, running coach at Bellefonte Area High School, directed a
series of races for kids 8th grade and younger in Bellefonte last
spring. She's doing it again this year. The Red Raider Rally Run is
scheduled for May 20 at the Bellefonte Middle School. There will be
races of varying distances for kids from pre-Kindergarten to 8th grade.
Details will be posted on our web site soon.
Curtis Louder gave a report on the Arthritis Foundation race that he
and Greg Dillon put on in Bald Eagle State Park in mid-December. Curtis
was grateful for the help e received from Greg and from the NVRC. The
race was not well attended (about 30 runners), but well received by
those who participated. Weather was probably a big factor. Our record
cold December was starting to show its teeth about then. Conflict with
Christmas activities and the remote (but wonderful) setting may have
been factors as well. Curtis and Greg are looking for ways to increase
participation, including moving the time and venue. They'll be getting
back to us.
Next Meeting: April 4.
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