South Eastern Centre Motocross Combine Minutes July 2002

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE SOUTH EASTERN MOTO CROSS COMBINE HELD ON WEDNESDAY JULY 10TH 2002 AT BLINDLEY HEATH

PRESENT : 22 Delegates were present representing the following Clubs :- Brighton, Crawley, GEST, Greenwich, Premier, Sidcup, SE Marshals and Twickenham. Also represented were the Permits Secretary and representatives on the London Federation of Sport.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE : Were received from Ashley Gregory and Jamie Clarke and Mr. Batten confirmed he was indeed present and not on his holidays as noted on the agenda.

CHAIR : Mr. Eddie Herd took the Chair.

MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING : It was proposed Mr. Horton and seconded Mr. Burton that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 10th April 2002 be accepted as a true and accurate record. Carried.

MATTERS ARISING THEREFROM :

Names : Mr. Frank Dixon said on reading through the minutes it gave the impression he had been accredited to saying things when he was indeed not present. The Secretary would make sure the minutes stated the different Dixons in future.

Abandoned Crawley Meeting : Mr. Frank Dixon said the Crawley Club had tended to take the first aid cover for granted but they had received assurances it would not happen again. Mrs. Clarke said there had been no reply from the Centre.

NFU Adverts : Mrs. Clarke apologised she had not managed to get around to doing this yet.

Background Colours : Mrs. Clarke had written again to the ACU Moto Cross Committee sending samples of 3 different yellows that she had obtained from Werx Ltd. The suppliers of background coloured plastics pointing out the benefit of the fluorescent yellow against that of the standard colour and asking the Committee to revisit their decision which is due to be implemented in 2003. To date there had been no reply, Mr. Herd said he felt the decision to go to a single colour was likely to be reversed because the 125 colour needs to be recognised at British Championship Meetings. Apparently teams and spectators had objected. there was some discussion about the benefits of having it introduced on a Centre level only,

Riders Handouts : Mr. Wood apologised that he had not had time to move forward and Mr. Herd reissued his offer to proof read the document when it was finalised.

TTC's : Everyone had their new TTC's but some Steward's present said the form needs redesigning as there was no space for the Senior Steward on the day to sign to say he had approved the track.

Website : Jamie Clarke was not present and Mrs. Clarke read his report. He has made a temporary site at www.geocities.com/mxsoutheast/ whilst he looks for a proper site which he has two options, 1. Buy the address and use free web space . 2. Buy the address and web space. The first option has unwelcome advertising implanted on it. On the temporary site he has created a page of all the dates, a page for each track, a page for every club, Championship Standings and Rules plus sundry minutes. A who to contact and links page. He encouraged people to look at the site and then send in contributions that can be updated. He has also created a mini website offshoot from the new ACU website for the Combine. Mr. Powell suggested he puts a counter on his site to see how many hits it has before any money spending decision is taken.

14/28 Day Rule : Mrs. Clarke had received a missive from the ACU regarding the latest developments which was read out urging Clubs and individuals to write once again to their MP's not all Clubs had received a copy and Mrs. Clarke promised to photocopy it and send it out to delegates urging everyone if possible to print it in their Club magazines for members to use when writing to their own MP's. Delegates were advised to keep themselves up to date by checking the ACU website and the ACU magazine.

Radios : Mr. Herd had sourced the prices of hand held radios at £329 each or a cheaper version at £239 with a charge it would cost £319 and headsets £155 each. Extended warranty, VAT and annual licences all had to be paid for as well. There was much discussion with most clubs saying they had there own radios except Crawley who were about to buy some. Mr. Frank Dixon said he had found a company that would hire them for £5 a week but he recommended headsets be bought for Health and Safety reasons. Agreed it would not be practical for the Centre to buy them and then let Clubs use them.

CENTRE MANAGEMENT MEETING : Mrs. Clarke read from a report on the last Management Meeting :-

NMC : Accounts presented showed another deficit this year of £106,742, Centres are seen as branch offices of ACU so long as they are not limited companies but clubs running big events are recommended to be. Matchams Park Incident : still rumbles on with 17 names being struck off the writ after a visit to a London barrister costing £6000. Website : new design with 140 clubs having mini sites off it. Super Moto : infighting between who should organise it in England, Road Racing or Moto Cross. Remembrance Sunday : Vote not to lift ban on events. Technical Committee : discussion on noisy fourstroke machines and the way they are measured.

Court of Enquiry : Secretary was asked to write to Twickenham asking for their expenses regarding a recent court of enquiry.

Chairman's Dinner : New idea for Clubs who have difficulty getting enough people to attend club dinners, a combined event was being planned for February near the M25.

Permits Secretary's report : on Horsham MX where a marshal got very abusive about the use of the red flag. Premier Club has run successful meetings and Stewards would now only be sent to new venues.

Senior Administrative Officials : Mr. Burrell had investigated the officials listed in a month's copy of the TSM with the list he had from the ACU of affiliated members and found several clubs officials were not listed, this called into question whether the insurance would be valid for these people.

November board meeting : new ACU Chief Executive to be invited Clubs urged to make a good attendance.

ACU MOTO CROSS COMMITTEE MINUTES : Mrs. Clarke read highlighted points from the 2nd and 3rd meetings :-

Insurance : A] The ACU has lost the weekly benefit scheme, however Alexander Forbes are providing a personal scheme for riders to take which gives them weekly benefits. This cover is provided on the basis of "financial loss" i.e. If the competitor receives full wages from his employer, then he has no claim. The scheme is to part replace loss of earnings. The cost for Moto Cross is £135 for a weekly benefit of £50 excluding the first 21 days and up to a maximum of 104 weeks. B] Circumstances have dictated that the wording on the temporary Track certificates is changed to ensure they only apply to ACU permitted events. TTC's will be valid for a two year period, it is now necessary for all course certificates to be issued by the ACU HQ, although local inspections will carry on as before. Validation of the certificate requires inspection of the course by the Steward[s] and the Clerk of the Course before the event commences. C] Mr. Bellars asked the Committee to look into the medical requirements at Moto Cross events. This is currently being reviewed by the ACU Medical Panel and the Moto Cross Committee await their recommendations. D] With thieves in hypo mode at the present time, the ACU on collaboration with Alexander Forbes, the ACU insurers are to offer insurance for racing machines in storage, in transit to events and against fire and theft [ not during racing ]. Further information is available from Alexander Forbes direct.

Centenary Off Road Festival : To be held in the Isle of Wight in 2003, moto cross to be a major player.

Any Other Business : a] Mr. Humphrey again re iterated that riders from 1.1.2003 would be required to purchase their own transponders in order to compete in the British Championships. Riders are expected to purchase transponders as part of the registration for the series and will be responsible for ensuring that their transponder is maintained and fully charged for use when arriving at an event. The transponders are guaranteed for three years but have an expected life span of five years. Riders should purchase their transponders through nominated agents. C] The use of 250cc machines [ 2 or 4 stroke ] for 15 year olds will be permitted in 2003. This will apply to adult events only. Riders will be allowed to compete on machines of a larger capacity than 250 cc when they reach 17 years of age.

THE SPORTING MOTORCYCLIST : Mr. Andy Wood said there were encouraging signs with more regulations coming in from the Southern Centre, there is also an offer from someone in the South Midland Centre who will take some photos from that area. He appealed for views from the riders on the new TSM to see if it was meeting their needs. Mr. Bramall had asked if advertising could be 2 way with moto cross events advertising the TSM in their programmes and vice a versa, and also asked if anyone wished to take on the mantle of a Motocross gossip column. Mr. Jim Wood queried the reason for these meetings being after the 10th of the month as the minutes would miss the publication date in the TSM, Mr. Brown said any important points were always actioned separately and not left to be read in the minutes in the TSM.

LATE ENTRIES : Mr. Burton said his personal view was no 300 numbers should be taken and only 4 blocks raced but Mrs. Clarke said the Sidcup Committee had discussed the matter and after their first event when the query came up the very next event was oversubscribed and no 300 numbers were issued. The Committee however wished to keep 5 blocks for financial reasons. Mr. Brown said everyone could go home earlier on 4 blocks and if money was the worry prize money could be cut out. Mr. Burton said he had reviewed entry fees and they ranged from £27 to £35 and prize monies from £250 to £750. Mr. Herd said all the time clubs continue to take late entries riders will try it on. No formal proposal was made so the status quo was left as it is.

LOTTERY FUNDING : Mr. Claridge said the lottery funding had been successful and £5000 had been granted to run a Golden Jubilee meeting this year. He also felt this could be a precedent and future funds could also be available. The meeting should cater for all classes, have disabled toilets and free admission, entry fees could be charged because of the insurance fees, the meeting could make money for the Combine which could then be used to buy much needed equipment. He felt the big chiefs from the Sports Federation would come this time and urged the meeting to be held somewhere impressive like Canada Heights. Mr. Burton appreciated what had been done but said unfortunately there were no free dates left for 2002 at Canada heights and the Sidcup Committee were not prepared to give up one of their own meetings to run this one on the Combines behalf. There was some discussion to clarify the finer points of the conditions and Mr. Brown proposed we ask the premier Club to run a meeting at Ellens Green on September 29th. Seconded Mr. Burton. Carried. It was agreed that Messrs herd, Brown, Claridge and Wood meet with the Premier Club on 21st July to discuss the finer points.

BIBS : Mrs. Clarke said following the very wet meeting at Canada Heights in May when the Clerk of the Course declared the meeting a " bibs only " meeting the Combine's stock had sold out, she had ordered a fresh supply using the monies from sold bibs.

NATIONAL MEMBERSHIP OF THE ACU : Mrs. Clarke said she had not yet had a chance to get together with Mr. Brown to discuss the matter further.

CENTRE CHAMPIONSHIPS : There had been a mix up over Premier MX wanting to use the Hellingly track on a date already granted to the Crawley Club for a Centre Championship round for Juniors, Experts & 4 Strokes. Although no longer being used by Premier, Crawley moved their date to Monday 6th May, seemingly without seeking permission, although they were aware they would lose their Championship status the regulations somehow still got printed bearing Championship status. On further investigations it would appear the wrong calendar of Championship fixtures appeared in the TSM showing the May 5th/12th Dates of Crawley and Twickenham being reversed. It was agreed that the Twickenham problem was beyond their control and will still retain Championship status but Crawley would not. The Secretary was instructed to publish these details in both T & MX News and the TSM. Mr. Batten said the first Junior round at Golding Barn had been abandoned after the 2 heats had run and therefore no championship points would be scored. He also raised a point at both the recent Sidcup and Horsham events some names had not appeared in the programme. Apparently they were not late entries bearing 300 numbers but either had been omitted from the programme or been received before the closing date but after the programme had gone to the printers. After some discussion it was agreed these riders had entered the meeting correctly and it was not their fault their names had not appeared in the programme so they would be eligible for points.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS :

Mr. Herd said Neil Hellings the new ACU Chief Executive had recently had a meeting with T & MX News to try and bury the hatchet and they had agreed to print a fortnightly ACU column.

Horsham : Mrs. Hayden said the Horsham Club had found it difficult to put meetings on this year due to lack of support and would not be running any events in 2003, however they did not want the track at Winterpick Farm to be lost to MX and were prepared to negotiate with any clubs up to 3 times a year to run jointly. Applications must be sent to her in writing for discussion by the Horsham Committee.

Permits : Mr. Piles said if a Club cancels an event he must be notified and the permit returned for re issue and he reminded clubs they have 7 days in which to pay invoices.

No Fear Body Amour : Mr. Lane said he had been approached by the first aid people about No Fear body amour which had a hump on the back and meant riders could not be laid flat when being checked for neck/back injuries, Mrs Argent said she was not aware they were any different, agreed to check at the next event before we send a letter to the medical panel.

Mr. Jim Wood : asked if GEST had any joy with the benchmark, Mr. Horton replied they had felt unable to go ahead with it. He also mentioned Sports Clubs could now get charitable status which might benefit some clubs. The London federation of Sport were going to have an award evening for helpers over 10 years, 20 years and 30 years of effort, each Club could nominate someone.

GEST : Mr. Horton asked if there had been any changes to the double jump rules - Mr. Herd confirmed there had not to any ACU event.

Brighton : Mr. Brown announced there had been a change to the format of their meeting in September where there were now accepting Pre 85 sidecars and would not be running a Centre Championship Round for Sidecars mainly because their Secretary was a bigger fan of this class. They would be running separate classes for Experts and Juniors as they were concerned about mixing different ability riders.

Centre Dinner : Mr. Brown enlarged on the idea of having a Centre Dinner either at the end of January or the beginning of February, he would like any club running a dinner to let him know their date so clashes did not occur. The Chairman of the Centre holds an annual dinner and this would be the starter to build numbers on. There would be no dancing or presentations just a congenial dinner with perhaps it starting earlier than normal, gathering at 4 O'clock for tea and then an early meal so people who had longer distances to travel could stay and enjoy the whole event. Publicity would be in the TSM but it also needed the clubs to get on board the bandwagon to publicise it.

Dates : Mr. Batten felt the recent experience of 2 meetings on the same weekend and then a further 3 proposed was detrimental to the sport and must be avoided next year. Mrs. Clarke felt the problem stemmed from the fact there were too many ACU Championships, Clubs naturally did not want to clash with these events and therefore all went for the only free dates and then clashed with each other. Mr. Batten thought the Combine should have a joint dates meeting with the other centres or ask the clubs to come separately like Eastleigh, S. Hants, Winchester, Luton , Oxford and Northampton and perhaps the Eastern centre Clubs. Mrs. Clarke to try and arrange something.

Championship Rounds : Mr. Frank Dixon had a query about a Four Stroke Championship round at Twickenham. Crawley's Championship meeting on August 4th has been cancelled because they have lost the use of the track on that date. Mr. Andy Wood felt there should be some sort of Championship advertiser's acknowledgment at the signing on desk. A banner was discussed and it was agreed there was a surplus of funds left over from the advertising budget that this could come from.

Inter Centre Team Scramble : Mrs. Clarke read a letter from the ACU asking for Clubs to run the event. No one was interested, Mrs. Clarke said it was a shame we had not thought about the idea earlier and applied for lottery finding to run the meeting.

DATE OF NEXT MEETING : SEPTEMBER 11TH

There being nothing further to discuss the meeting closed at 10.45 pm.