NORTHBROOK ATHLETIC CLUB ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

held on 25th January 2012 at Jaguar Sports and Social Club, Browns Lane, Coventry

  1. Present: 50 members.
  2. Apologies – Cluadie Combelas, Dave Fawkner, Penny Wilkin
  3. Matters From Last Meeting – Last year’s minutes accepted (Proposed: Jack Langman, Seconded: Tony Murphy).
  4. Chairman’s Report – Bob Adams - verbatim – “It’s been another eventful year for Northbrook A.C. One of the most pleasing things that has happened is the revival of interest in the cross country season. We recently saw a record number of ladies running in the Midland league fixtures, and we have also seen more than 20 men running in the Birmingham League races. This is a great credit to our captains Alix Critchley and John Wilson, who have both led from the front. The ladies have performed very well and only a couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough witness a very proud day for the club, with Amanda Deavy and Becky Smith both winning individual medals in the Warwickshire cross country championships, and the team finishing in 3rd place. The mens team has also performed well in division 3 of the Birmingham League. We are currently lying in 5th place overall, with one race to go. Whilst it is going to be tough to get into the top 3 positions we are only 1 point behind the 4th place team, so that should be a real incentive for the final race at Stafford.

    On the road both teams performed with credit in the Warwickshire Road Race League, with the mens team finishing in 4th place and the ladies finishing 3rd. With the form they are in at the moment, I am convinced that the ladies win the league this year. In the individual placings John Wilson finished as 3rd senior man, Pete Fellows was 3rd over 50 man, Bob Simpson was 2nd over 60 man and Anne Hughes was 2nd over 55 lady. The club also competed well in the Cotswolds Hilly 100 relay. It’s one of my wishes for 2012 for more people to run this fantastic event. We are very fortunate to be invited to compete in this unique event every year, and it would be great to see two or three teams running in Northbrook vests.

    An event that I’m sure will now become a permanent fixture for the club is the Thunder Run 24 hour relay. Having heard a lot about it, I did pop over on the Sunday morning to see what all the fuss was about. When you get there it looks like a running version of Glastonbury, with lots of tents as far as you can see. What struck me was the fantastic atmosphere between the teams, with everyone encouraging each other regardless of the vest they are wearing. The mens team of 5 finished in an excellent 4th place, having covered a total of 193 miles in the 24 hours. There were also excellent solo runs from Paul Stead, Alix Critchley and Tony Bowe.

    Clive Horton has done a great job in co-ordinating the Wednesday evening training groups, and it’s very encouraging to see the number of runners who have joined in the Sunday morning marathon training sessions as well. Corinna O’Connor has also done a tremendous job in organising the social events throughout the past 12 months, and only a few days ago we saw over 90 people attend the Awards Night. This was a 50% increase in the number who attended the 2010 event. The Olympic outfits looked great, Kevin Coughlan was in fine voice, and a good night was enjoyed by all. I feel that there is a great atmosphere in the club at the moment, and it is also very encouraging to see the number of new members joining the club every week. Roger Ladbury does a great job with the website which is a great asset to the club. Tony French and the 10Km race sub-committee did a tremendous job organising the race. The 10Km is the best value for money race in the area, and it is an event we should be proud of. This year we will not organise a 5Km race, but we will move the 10Km race to July, in conjunction with the Allesley Festival. We could also benefit from the interest in the London Olympics.

    I’d like to thank all of the committee who have given me tremendous support this year, and all the people who have given up their time for the club in the last 12 months. Tonight is your opportunity to have your say. I look forward to a constructive meeting.”
  5. Treasurers Report – Paul Stead circulated a report. The balance has decreased. Paul Stead and the committee recommended that subscription fees are raised to £20 with concessions. This compares well with other clubs. We pay £5 of every fee to England Athletics.

    Accepted (For 43, Against 2). – Fees are now due.
    Renewals £20 (concession/2nd claim £12), New Members £28 (includes vest).
  6. Proposals Received –
    1. Proposal - Wednesday night training start times

      Move the start time to 7pm to allow for better 'quality' training that takes a little longer. Will also take advantage of more light in the Spring and Autumn. Alternative is just to do this for Level 1.

      Proposed by: John Wilson, Seconded by: James Joyce
      Proposal withdrawn until informal arrangement tested. Show of hands for information only: 24 For, 17 Against. Also 32 people were in favour of trying a 7.15pm start

    2. Proposal - London Marathon Club Draw

      Add marshalling to the London Marathon Club Draw qualifying events. This should encourage more marshals and widen the pool for the marathon draw.

      Proposed by: James Joyce, Seconded by: John Wilson

      Proposal Accepted (For 39, Against 0)

    3. Proposal - To consider rescinding rule that requires marshalling as condition of entry to Northbrook 10k

      That the rule requiring that an entry submitted by a Club member to run in the Northbrook 10k race either be accompanied by a name of a marshal or helper, or show evidence of the Club member having marshalled at another Club race be re-considered with a view to it being rescinded. This rule was introduced following a vote in favour at the Club’s AGM in 2010. In practice, it has proven to be largely ineffective, has led to some ill-feeling amongst some Club members, and has possibly turned out to be counter-productive. It has also proven burdensome to police and to enforce.
      In its place, it is recommended that there exists a clear understanding among the membership that Club members have an unwritten obligation to support this major Club event in the knowledge that if an insufficient number of adult helpers commits to being available on race day that the event will not go ahead.

      Proposed by: Roger Ladbury, Seconded by: Tony French

      Proposal Accepted (For 40, Against 2)

    4. Proposal - To revise the Club's Constitution and establish a set of Club Rules

      1. That the Club’s constitution be thoroughly revised and re-written based on the UK Athletics Sample Club Constitution, amended as appropriate, supported by a set of Club Rules,
      2. A draft Constitution and Club Rules then be made available to Club members by 31 August 2012 for consultation, with an invitation for comments to be submitted to the Committee by 30 November 2012,
      3. A resulting proposed new Constitution and Set of Rules be considered for adoption at the Club’s Annual General Meeting to be held in 2013.

      A similar proposal was approved by the Club’s Annual General Meeting held on 24 January 2006 (see item 8d of the minutes “The committee will form a sub-committee to look at Constitution and advise other changes required at next AGM”), but was never actioned. The Club Constitution should document those aspects of the Club that change very rarely if at all, eg Club Name, Objects, Election of Officers, Powers of the Committee, etc. Periodically changing information such as membership fees, road race categories, etc should be contained in Set of Rules.

      Proposed by: Roger Ladbury, Seconded by: Tony French

      Proposal Accepted (For 40, Against 0)

  7. Election of Officers -
    1. President - Bob Awcock
    2. Chairperson - Bob Adams
    3. Secretary - Mark Baker
    4. Treasurer - Paul Stead
    5. Mens Captain - John Wilson
    6. Ladies Captain- Alix Critchley
    7. Membership Secretary - Andy Houston
    8. Social Secretary - Corinna O'Connor
    9. Running Advisor - Clive Horton

    Non committee

    1. Summer Handicap - Richard French
    2. Website - Roger Ladbury
    3. 10km race - Tony French, Roger Ladbury, Corinna O'Connor, Sean O'Connor, Kevin Coughlan, Tony Mackness
  8. Awards for 2011
    1. Mens Road Race (overall) - Richard Hodge
    2. Ladies Road Race (overall) - Amanda Deavy
    3. Senior Mens Road Race - John Wilson
    4. Senior Ladies Raod Race - Alix Critchley
    5. O/40 Mens Road Race - Mark Baker
    6. O/35 Ladies Road Race - Rebecca Smith
    7. O/50 Mens Road Race - Peter Fellows
    8. O/45 Ladies Road Race - Sarah McNaney
    9. Veteran of the Year - Anne Hughes & Tony Hughes
    10. Mens Summer Handicap - Kevin Viner
    11. Ladies Summer Handicap - Sarah McNaney
    12. Paul Kelly Trophy - Peter Fellows
    13. Clubperson of the Year - Corinna O'Connor
    14. Most Improved Runner - Gemma Nash
    15. Animal of the Year - Paul Stead/Corinna O'Connor
  9. Any other business - none
  10. Meeting closed at 9.50pm

Minutes prepared by Mark Baker