Events

American Motorcycle Heritage Foundation
Board of Directors Meeting
Pickerington, Ohio, October 7, 2007

Board Members Present: Stan Simpson (chair), Bill Baird, Rob Dingman, Ron Ribolzi, Don Rosene, Ozzie Scofield, Tom White and Mike and Margaret Wilson.

Board Members Absent: Jon Westling, John Parham, Tim Parker, Mark Mendell, and Pete Gagan.

AMHF Staff: Mark Mederski

Legal Counsel: Tim Owens

Mr. Simpson called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. and appointed Mr. Owens as recording secretary. He noted that, due to the resignations of Dr. Falco, Dwight Conant, Croft Long, Jeff Smith, and the death of Richard Sanders, and the absence of five other Board members, only nine of the 19 authorized Board Members were in attendance. Accordingly, per his initial discussion with Mr. Owens regarding the rules stated in the Code, there was not a quorum in attendance. Consequently, any actions taken at this meeting will have to be ratified at the next board meeting at which a quorum is present.

I. Approval of the Minutes from the July 29, 2007 Meeting

Mr. Dingman asked that the minutes be revised to reflect that his comments regarding his initial efforts of reorganizing will focus on racing because his overall plans for reorganization will include many other areas of the AMA besides the racing activities. Mr. Simpson, having noted that correction to the minutes, asked if there were any other discussion regarding the approval of the minutes. Hearing none, Mr. Simpson entertained a motion by Mr. Baird, with a second by Mr. White that:

The minutes of the July 29, 2007 Board Meeting be approved as amended.

The motion carried.

II. Chairman's Report

Mr. Simpson presented the Chairman's report.

  1. Traditions Park
    Mr. Simpson reported that after months of effort and study, the project has been abandoned due to lack of support from certain levels of the government whose support was necessary for the total financing package to be feasible. Mr. Simpson noted the Museum had not spent any money on the project as all of the funding necessary for the feasibility studies and related reports were either funded by the proposed partners in the project or by donations earmarked for the project. Finally, Mr. Simpson noted that despite the project not going forward, it had been a great learning experience for the Museum regarding its market, mission, and demographics that would prove useful in the ongoing efforts to move the Museum forward. Mr. Simpson agreed to distribute a complete written report at the Daytona meeting next March.

  2. Board Member Expansion Project
    Mr. Simpson stated that the focus of the Board in both filling the current vacancies and then expanding the Board up to 21 members, as allowed by the Code of Regulations, would be on both fundraising and friendraising. Efforts would focus on developing members of note from both the local and national levels.

III. Executive Director's Report

Mr. Mederski presented the report of the executive director.

  1. Collectors' Foundation
    Mr. Mederski introduced Bob Knechel, the executive director of the Collectors' Foundation that was established by Hagerty Insurance Group. Mr. Knechel provided the Board with an overview of the establishment, financing and operations of the Foundation. He also provided the Board with examples of the types of projects that the Foundation sought to fund – those that used classic vehicles as a forum to allow for mentoring and educational opportunities. Several members of the Board asked questions of Mr. Knechel regarding the opportunities available through the Foundation. At the conclusion of his presentation, Mr. Mederski and the Board thanked Mr. Knechel for coming to the Meeting.

  2. Hall of Fame Review
    Mr. Mederski informed the Board that the weekend's Hall of Fame Induction ceremonies had gone well and that there was positive feedback regarding the change in venues that allowed for a more upscale production level for the festivities.

  3. MotoStars Exhibit
    Mr. Mederski updated the Board on the progress of the exhibit. David Morris has been selected as the curator of the exhibit and will work with both the design and construction contractors to finalize the presentation of the exhibit. Terrence Sutherland is in charge of sponsorship solicitations and is focusing on non-endemic sponsors. An updated sponsorship report will be distributed to the Board in late January 2008.

  4. Arlen Ness
    Mr. Mederski informed the Board that Arlen Ness would be the focus of the exhibit that would replace the Malcolm! Exhibit in the summer of 2008. Michael Lichter, who has produced several photo books regarding Arlen Ness and his creations, will be the curator of the exhibit.

  5. Motocross America
    Mr. Mederski updated the Board on the efforts being made to have this exhibit travel to the Petersen Museum upon the conclusion of its current run. Mr. White has been of great assistance in this project. Mr. Dingman stated that through his contacts with the MIC, and most notably Tim Buche, he was hopeful of industry support for this project.

  6. Restoration Services Shop
    Mr. Mederski updated the Board on the status of the restoration shop which is intended to balance out the museum exhibits. When exhibitions in place are weighted toward racing or motocross for example, machines related to touring or very early street bikes may be selected from the Museum collections and displayed in this shop space. One hydraulic lift table and two work stands have been donated to the workshop and will be delivered in the near future.

  7. Vice President of Institutional Development
    Mr. Mederski reported that the search contract involving Doug Allinger had yet to produce a viable candidate despite the efforts of all involved. This is a frustrating situation but efforts to obtain a viable candidate will continue.

  8. Café Colorado
    Mr. Mederski informed the Board that he had been approached about a fundraiser for the Museum to be held on the roads of Colorado. The event is currently being done with classic race cars with the support of Colorado government and law enforcement officers. If preliminary talks go forward, the event could provide the Museum with up to 50% of the total entry fees for the event.

  9. Miscellaneous
    Mr. Mederski informed the Board that as of September 30th the AMA had 293,984 members, many of whom cited the Museum as a primary reason for their membership.

    He further informed the Board that the Marque of the Year for VMD in 2008 will be Triumph. Finally, Mr. Mederski urged the Board to provide him with contact information for potential donors for the Exhibition endowment to help put it on track of raising 5 million dollars in five years.

IV. AMA Report

Mr. Dingman presented the Board with the report of the AMA. He informed the Board that he had announced the direction of the AMA in a guest article in Cycle News as part of an overall strategy to have the AMA focus on its core mission of protecting the rights of motorcyclists. He also informed the Board that in his vision of the AMA, the Museum would be a major contributor to attracting members.

V. Committees

  1. Finance Committee
    Mr. Simpson presented the report of the Finance Committee. He reported that the Museum may close FY2007 with approximately a $50,000 deficit. He further reported that the FY2008 Budget had been prepared and approved by the Museum's Finance Committee and submitted to the AMA Finance Committee for approval.

  2. Hall of Fame Committee
    Mr. Rosene presented the report of the Hall of Fame Committee. First he stated that the committee had just held a meeting the previous Friday and that it was working smoothly and that the bylaws of the committee were in the process of being updated to reflect the way the committee's work process had evolved. He next informed the Board that with the endorsement from the AMA CEO, members of the Hall of Fame would be issued applications for Pro Racing credentials in 2008 so that they can attend races in a manner to benefit the promoters, the fans and the Hall of Fame Members themselves.

  3. Exhibits Committee
    Mr. White provided the Board with a brief report given the other exhibit updates that had already been presented by Mr. Mederski. He informed the Board that the main focus of the committee was to make certain that the Motocross America exhibit travels to the Petersen Automotive Museum.

  4. Governance Committee
    Mr. Scofield presented the report of the Governance Committee. He informed the Board that the Recruiting Package for new Board members had been finalized and the current focus was to recruit qualified board members to fill the available positions.

  5. Development Committee
    Mike Wilson presented the report of the Development Committee which consists of Mike and Margaret Wilson and Ozzie Scofield. He reminded the Board of the efforts of the Museum Development Staff – Dan and Toni. The focus would be on making friends before soliciting donations. Mr. Wilson also briefly lead a discussion regarding a survey that Board members would implement via telephone calls to attendees of the Hall of Fame weekend.

VI. Old Business

Mr. Simpson reported that he and Mr. Scofield would visit with Dr. Falco to present him with a certificate and bookends thanking him for his service on the Museum Board.

VII. New Business

The Board discussed the letter sent to Museum Donors regarding the new level of donations (i.e., $500 to $1000) to retain their recognition plaques on the wall. AMA Congress, at is annual meeting yesterday, recommended that the new policy be rescinded as it went back on a promise made to the original donors to the Museum. The Board discussed the pros and cons of rescinding the new policy. Mr. Mederski reported that less than 10 formal complaints had been received. At the conclusion of the discussion, Mr. Wilson moved, with a second by Mr. Baird, to

Rescind the revised standard for Museum Donor recognition plaques via a letter sent to affected donors by Museum staff.

The motion passed unanimously.

VIII. Meetings

The Board discussed its upcoming meeting schedule and determined that further efforts to refine the schedule as announced on the meeting agenda would be undertaken so that the schedule could be finalized at the January teleconference. This review will be lead by Vice Chair Ozzie Scofield with Simpson & Mederski assisting.

IX. Adjournment

Pursuant to a motion by Mr. Dingman, with a second by Mrs. Wilson, the meeting was adjourned at 11:55 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Timothy J. Owens, recording secretary