Your Club at Work
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2022 is looking as if we might see the full return of our usual club activities, some of which generate income for us. I wanted to review the financial end of these events a bit, particularly for those of you who are newer club members. ✎
PIONEER CENTURY™
As I write this, the Pioneer Century™ is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, June 11, 2022. Historically, our signature event, PIONEER (aka SPRING Century), has been held the first Saturday in June. However, due to various conflicts with venues, this is the date Doug has claimed as ours – our best option. Too early in the season, and inclement weather is a good possibility; later in the summer, heat and smoke become factors. Not to mention conflicts with other local event rides…
PIONEER CENTURY™ is OUR (PBC’s) event ride. We lay out the routes, provide the amenities such as food and toilets, arrange for Support-And-Gear (SAG) wagons to help riders in need, get permits, pay fees, mark courses, plead for volunteers, rent trucks – the list goes on and on, and we anguish over every decision. Our objective is to present an event that entices our friends, fellow road-bike riders, to join us and pay for the enjoyment of this cycling event we call Pioneer Century™. This event has evolved over the years from a basic loop or two to multiple offerings including a short family ride and a challenging 104-mile endeavor. All included renowned rest stops and, for a time, a free lunch at the finish. Participation has varied with a maximum at one point of over 1,000.
Doug Myers has taken it upon himself to breathe life back into this event and has worked hard to at least get a footing for 2022. This is OUR event. I know, I said that already. But PIONEER represents us, demonstrates our passion for cycling. Ideally it brings in a nice profit. Doug has scrutinized the spreadsheets and meticulously ferreted out any and all nonessential expenditures. One suggestion is to have the board members work the main rest stop of the event. Previously, some rest stops have had paid volunteers from other organizations. Doug has reduced the number of routes to limit the number of rest stops.
This is not to suggest that our event in the past was done improperly. But things that worked well in the past have ceased to serve us well. A good hard look and a more austere approach may bring success.
Event rides such as PIONEER are part of what separate a CLUB from a more informal group such as a MeetUp. Our objective is to have a safe, fun event and give other riders a good day of cycling. Help us share our passion for cycling.
The point being, save the date, June 11, 2022, as a day you will volunteer for your bicycle club.
SEATTLE TO PORTLAND (STP) BICYCLE CLASSIC
STP is Cascade Bicycle Club’s (Seattle) signature event. For decades we have run the finish line for them at various locations in Portland. We enter into a contract each year. They tell us what we need to do, and we reach an agreement on compensation.
This arrangement has resulted in our club’s secured solvency year after year. Additionally, PBC arranged for buses and trucks to haul riders and their bikes on the Friday before STP, so locals had a way to get up to Seattle. This was separate from our contract and earned us several thousand dollars a year. Cascade has advised that they will now provide that service in 2022.
Cascade has set July 16 and 17, 2022, for STP this year. This is another Save the Date notification. Please set aside the weekend. Give a few hours each day if you can. There will be no club rides on those days.
Ideally, between these two income-generating events we will be able to remain solvent as a club. We’ll pay our bills, provide certain amenities and perks for members as appreciation, maintain our impressive website with professional help (if necessary), pay for a club meeting location when we can meet again in person, etc. But again, ideally, we bring in sufficient funds not only to support ourselves in a comfortable manner but have surplus to donate to other like-minded, non-profit organizations that we as a club see as allies.
Ann Morrow and Kathleen Hellem deliver Portland Bicycling Club’s (then PWTC’s) $4,000 donation to the Portland Bike Anti-Theft Program at the Portland Police Department.
At the end of 2022, if all of this occurs as suggested above, the board will sit down to allocate some funds to other local organizations. YOU will have helped earn these funds. YOU can have a say in where donations are sent. The board, in my experience, does not treat our financial resources frivolously. We know you worked hard to earn them for your club. We want YOU as a club member to enjoy the fruits of your labor but also the joy of charitable giving.
I apologize for the length of this article to the three of you who read this. My intent is to inform and also to emphasize the complexities of producing these money-raising events.
Ann Morrow, Vice President