2012 Board Candidate Bio Thread

[rybo]

Like last year - a consolidated place for candidates to post their bios for everyone to read.


If you already have a bio in your own thread somewhere, please copy and paste it here so they can all be in one place.

Thanks

[KFinn]

Rider Representative – Press & Contingency Bio
Thank you for the nomination for Press & Contingency rider rep Wyeth! I am honored.

Most of you may know me as KFinn or at the track, recently dubbed, Finne-ginger. For me the motorcycling love started when I was a young child. However I was unable to live the dream until 2004 on my 21st birthday when I enrolled in an ABATE motorcycle class to get my endorsement. It was more important to me to be able to ride than go to the bar (legally) for the first time. After many years of avidly riding the idea was planted to get my Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) certification and begin teaching new riders. So I enrolled in the class in October of 2008. I started teaching the Basic Rider Course in 2009. During this first year I not only learned how much work it is but more importantly how much fulfillment and enjoyment I got out of teaching people to ride. So the passion continued in 2010. My passion for the motorcycling world was in full swing. I became an active member with ABATE and started attending all the monthly district meetings. I participated and helped any where I could with ABATE events and also started becoming educated and active on the legislative aspect of Motorcycling. I believe with all my heart in the effort to keep our motorcycling freedoms, safety and education rather than legislation. In 2010, I became an addition to the MRA family. This was a whole new world to me and I absorbed as much as I could from anyone that was willing to spew out information and helpful hints. After the very first race I was hooked and I knew that this is what I wanted to do and had dreamed about doing. So much so, that I wanted to help out as much as I could. Thus in the opening of 2011, I volunteered at every MRA event and booth I could when I wasn’t teaching for ABATE. I had a great time hanging out with all types of motorcyclists, talking to other novices and strangers about the addiction and listening to great race stories from ‘the elders’ during the slow moments. Finally, a couple times this year I wrote articles for the ABATE monthly newsletter about racing and my experiences throughout the season. That just about covers all the major stuff up to present day.

Upon my nomination, I took careful consideration to the motivation and desire to accept the position before actually accepting. I wanted to ensure that if I got voted to the job that it was for the right reasons. During this process I discovered that the main driving reasons for me wanting to be a rider rep were to further immerse myself in the motorcycling community, to give as much as I could to help those that need it, and to share my positive attitude and high energy with fellow members. I also feel that a rider representative should be an approachable and friendly person to seek for help with good ethics and integrity. I feel that I am a good candidate with all of the aforementioned qualities because I am always evaluating my actions and striving to be a better person. That said, all the candidates nominated are very strong candidates and stand up people. I only hope that I can be considered a strong contender in your eyes as well.

My hopes for the press & contingency position are to continue to live up to the high standard that Wyeth has set. I also hope that in my press releases I can convey my exuberance to the readers to draw them out to our events.

If elected, my plans are to seek out any new avenues for promoting the MRA and attempt to wake up any dormant & unresponsive connections. I would also encourage feedback from the members on any new ideas or constructive feedback on improving our club and it’s press. I would also help the VP in any capacity that I am able on getting contingency forms compiled and mailed after a race weekend as well as helping the initial contingency process for 2012. Further, I would support board and non-board members where I can when they are in need.

Source:http://forums.mra-racing.org/viewtopic.php?t=13861

[rybo]

Rider Representative – Press & Contingency Bio

Hello fellow MRA members,

For the past two years you've known me as the Vice President of the club, a job that I've found both interesting and challenging. During that time I've had the honor of helping guide our club to a position of relative financial stability where the leaders can make sound business decisions in the best interest of the long term viability of the club and the best interest of it's members. It is my great hope that you will consider allowing me to serve you in a different capacity in 2012, that is as the rider representative in charge of press releases and contingency.

As a member of the board for the past two years I strongly advocated for some of the most successful new programs in the MRA. I wrote the original draft rules for the 4-Hour Endurance and the Production 250 cup along with being one of the strongest advocates for the SuperStreet program. Beyond talking about making these changes I backed up my commitment to the programs, the most obvious example being my support of the SuperStreet program where I was an instructor for every weekend during the inaugural year and for more that 2/3 of the weekends in 2011. I thoroughly enjoy working with riders, and as such I think my natural place in the board of directors is as a rider representative.

Skills that I have that make the Press / Contingency role a good fit for me, and ultimately for the club, include; I'm a skilled writer with the ability to tell a story. I look forward to picking up the work that Wyeth has done in this role. In 2010 she hit the ball out of the park with quality press releases to multiple media outlets, even succeeding in getting the MRA on one of the local morning news shows. This past season she hit it out of the STATE with press releases that made some pro team press releases look like third grade writing assignments. I want to continue this trend of driving high quality, informative and entertaining information about our club, our races and our racers to local an national media with the intention of attracting a lot of attention from around the country. I believe that the work that's already been done in this area is one of the reasons that our annual 4-Hour endurance race has been such a success over the past couple years. Furthermore as your VP I had a direct hand in the existing contingency program. I know the programs well and am in a strong position to support our new VP by assisting him with the programs that are already in place for the MRA and in seeking out new contingency sponsors for our club.

The MRA is in a unique position in the roadracing community, and I'm very proud to say that I've been a part of driving the club to this position. We are finding success in a world where these kinds of ventures are not presently all that successful. I'm asking for your vote to the role of Rider Rep - Press / Contingency for 2012 so that I may continue my work on the board of directors by representing you as riders both in our paddock and to the outside world.

Thank you.

[T Baggins]

Hello MRA Members,

Totally out of character, I won’t bore you with a long Bio since I’m running unopposed. That said, I hope there’s no opposition because you believe that what we’ve accomplished over the last couple years is positive, and the Leadership we have in place is strong. I believe this is the case ABSOLUTELY, but I also believe there is work yet to be done.

We’ve done a great job of surviving in tough times, but we are not yet prospering in the way I envision, and the foundation of the new MRA model is not yet firm enough to hand over to a new Freshman Board of Directors. This is my primary reason for running for President again and for encouraging our current Board to stay on another term.

My goals for 2012-2013 are to fully solidify the foundation of the club, have an adequate financial reserve, and have in place a defined business model that “nearly anyone” with basic management and leadership skills could take and run with successfully. We’re getting closer by the month, and we’re far from where we were just a few years ago!

I hope my gift to you will be to deliver an MRA that is financially sound, easy to run, and loads and loads of fun to be a member of, to the next leader and their Board. We’ve got two more years to get there, and with your help and the support of our wonderful Board of Directors – I’m confident we will get there!

[JimWilson29]

Thank you for considering for considering me for the position of Vice President of the MRA.

I have been a member of this club since 2003 and I’ve tried to be actively involved as much as possible. The past two years I served on the MRA Board as a Rider Rep P.R. Committee Chair. The experience I have gained from this has been invaluable and has provided me greater enthusiasm towards serving a larger role on your club’s board.

As Vice President, I will commit myself to maintaining a high level of service to the membership and board of this club by ensuring that my responsibilities and job duties are performed accurately and in a timely manner. I believe the club has made great strides in recent years due to the unrelenting commitment from your board of directors. It is my goal to continue working towards making the MRA the top road racing club in the country.

I will be honored to be your Vice President for the 2012 season.

[Ray-Ray]

To the MRA family,

It is with great honor that I have been nominated again for the
position of Track Marshal. This position is very important for the
MRA. Track Marshal has the responsibility of making sure the race day
goes without any issues and with my dedication and experience in the
MRA I feel I’m ready for the challenge again for 2012.

So, I’ve been around the MRA for a while now. I attended my first race
in 1994 in Steamboat and have not turned back. I started corner
working in 1996 and corner worked every race until 2002. I was the
head Corner Marshal (Nick's current position) in 2003. That year I
introduced my family to the MRA family (in La Junta of all places)
that’s where I was finally able to convince my wonderful wife Lisa to
let me start racing. In August 2003 I competed in my first MRA race
and have only missed 1 race since. In 2004 I joined the airfence crew
and from 2005 – 2007 was the airfence captain. In 2008 and 2009 I
served on the Board as the VP of Rules and Tech.

As you can see I’m very dedicated to the MRA and feel honored to be a
part of such a wonderful organization. My family is dedicated to the
MRA as well. Lisa is the Treasurer (2008/2009+) and Logan is, well I
guess you’d call him the MRA mascot. Breanna, my daughter, loves
spending time at the races as well. Both kids have grown up with the
MRA. Breanna even corner works when her schedule permits.

In 2011 I had several goals for the race season. I wanted to obtain a
sponsor for our crew. Abate stepped up and donated money for shirts,
new cones and some new fire extinguishers. I also wanted to bring
back the training program for all corner crew members. This was held
during the race school with Hugh success. I also thought it was
important to change some of the process's and procedures in day to day
operations. With the board's help we make the decision that if the
ambulance rolled on the track we would go to an immediate red flag. We
also added the procedure where we would bring the down bike to the
crash cart vs the crash cart to the bike so the it would not be in any
danger zone. The board of directors and essential safety crew hold a
debriefing meeting each Saturday after the races to go over the race
day. This has made great strides with communication between the teams

I look forward to being the 2012 Track Marshal.

Thanks,
Ray-Ray #16

[Louden]

Louden David #189

MRA Super Street 2010
MRA Novice 2011


If elected as a rider representative for the MRA responsible for public relations I will continue building upon the foundation Jim Wilson aggressively laid over the past two years. This will consist of continuing the most beneficial programs he created and implement my primary goal: reaching a much larger target market, providing them with clear and concise information, and requiring less MRA member involvement at the same time. To accomplish my primary goal I have broken it into 3 main goals. Main goal number 1 is to build E-Displays capable of delivering a message to a much larger target market without MRA member involvement. Main goal number 2 is making MRA events an actual event capable of bringing more spectators and or more income to the club. Main goal number 3 consists of selecting dedicated individuals capable of helping market the MRA and rewarding them for their service to the club. All of the goals I have mentioned above I have explained in depth below for those of you with the time to read all of it. On a more personal note I grew up working alfalfa fields in a rural town of southern Colorado. From there I moved to Fort Collins where I received a college education while collecting research for the USDA. Prior to graduation I landed a position in the medical field that I currently retain. I found the MRA online just prior to the announcement of Super Street and I raced every single one of them during the 2010 season. Sense that time I purchased a race bike, and with Bart leading the way we refurbished it to like new condition and the process of doing so provided me with a position at Faster Motorsports. Faster has offered me ample opportunity to spread the word of the MRA, and doing this taught me some valuable lessons regarding the marketing of this club and I have used those experiences to shape my ideas.


Main goal number 1:

I would like to create what I call E-Displays and distribute them to as many locations as possible, capable of reaching our target market. E-Displays can be considered an electronic device capable of attracting consumer’s attention while conveying a message, much like a T.V. commercial. We all know as club members, our financial situation will not allow us to spend the kind of money necessary to run such a campaign by conventional means. Through ingenuity I have created a device capable of delivering these services directly to our target market. The best way for me to tell you about this device is to describe a current company using something similar. If you have been to a motorcycle shop this summer you will have likely seen a GO-PRO display. This display has their products on shelves below a flat screen conveying what you could do with their product. The live images catch your attention with cliff divers and extreme snowboarding and then they hit you with their message. It’s simple advertising that hits GO-PRO's target market at no cost to them. The problem with something as fancy as the GO-PRO display for the MRA is the cost. I believe we as a club can create similar displays at a much lower price. Have any of you bought a new flat screen in the last few years? Do any of you have your perfectly capable tube T.V. sitting around in your basement collecting dust? I have already secured several of them, donated to the club at no cost. If members and supporters would donate such items to this cause we would have the most expensive part of the E-Display at hand. The next step would be creating an informative video capable of attracting attention and conveying a message packed with concise information leading consumers to the MRA. We clearly can't just put TVs on shop owner’s floors; therefore I would have to build attractive stands during the winter time. The stands are actually one of the best parts of the E-display, because we can use this stand to hold our brochures, two for ones, and information packets keeping them away from trash cans. I believe the materials for the stands can be purchased at a very reasonable cost with the connections the MRA has through its members. Prior to building anything we will find homes capable of reaching the largest number of our target market for these devices. Likely this will be at motorcycle shops, but we can put them literally anywhere there is someone willing to look after them. The beauty of this machine is its ability to work 24 hours a day 7 days a week attracting the attention of consumers without MRA member direct involvement. The one question I have asked myself is how will we be able to convince businesses to give us a section of there floor space that they could be using to make money. Clearly we cannot afford to pay rent for these systems, but there is something we can do as a selling point that will benefit us and the business owner. Therefore I would suggest locations containing an E-Display and proper credentials receive monetary compensation every time they sign up a new rider that has never attended an MRA event. This would help the business owner justify the use of the floor space and give his employees an incentive to tell their customers about the MRA. This will require me to do some training and determine the details of the monetary compensation logistics. Clearly this will be a big project, but once they have been created we can spread the word of the MRA and its supporters for years to come.

Main goal 2:

It seems many new riders can never figure out why we don't have any spectators, and being a motorcycle racer myself has lead me to the conclusion there is no other place I'd rather be on the weekend why wouldn't they want to be here to. Unfortunately coming to an MRA event as a typical outsider loses its luster after about one weekend, if you can even get them to come at all. I believe the answer to this problem is obvious, we have created a program entirely focused around the racer and what we want. When you arrive at a major racing event you’re surrounded with things to do, food to eat, side shows, concerts, a place to sit, and a place to get out of the weather. Clearly were not a huge racing series, but one of the reasons we are not is because we don’t focus on spectators. There are only so many people in this area that want to go road racing and if we don't tap into another means of income we as an organization may fail. That is why I propose we start making MRA events exactly that, an event. Of course this is easier said than done, and that's why I do not propose we try to make every weekend a huge event to start with. I would like to focus on just one this year. To create such an event were going to have to provide some pretty amazing means to bring out a crowd, and were going to have to do it cheaply. I have ideas of how we can do that, but I'm reluctant to describe them all here until I have further confirmation by the MRA board that such ideas can be accomplished. With the release of the E-Display an event like this may actually have a shot, and if we continue to build upon this, we as an organization will become more financially stable, allowing us the ability to offer larger cash prizes, lower racing fees, and give sponsors a legitimate fan base to present to.

Main Goal 3:

Time and time again I hear someone say we need more involvement from our members. I wish I could agree with them, but I know we at the MRA ask quite a bit of our members already. That being said if we as a club are going to continue to marketing at motorcycle shows, bike nights, and so on with live representatives and not just E-Displays then we need select a small number of riders to man those events and compensate them. The MRA needs representatives that are knowledgeable and capable of actively spreading the word to future riders. Novices, who have only raced one weekend and never did a single superstreet, will likely be unable to answer questions appropriately. We don't want to lose a single opportunity because we were unable to answer question or convey our message in an appropriate way. Not to mention a hand picked representative receiving compensation will be held accountable for the events they are assigned to versus volunteers that say they are coming and never do. With a well prepared representative available, the board members not responsible for PR events will finally be able to focus on what they were elected for and go forth in creating a better MRA.

In closing, I would like to thank the MRA for a wonderful season of racing and my praise for many years to come. I would also like to thank everyone that has forthrightly supported me in this venture, and I would like to thank you for your consideration of electing me as your next rider representative.

[chris nami]

Hello MRA,
I have been a member of the MRA for 12 seasons and in all those years I have learned a few things.

1. Mark Schellinger can probably kick your ass on a BONE stock bike in a race if you *bust his balls about free tires. (true story)

2. Brownie batter is not something that can be bought at king Soopers. As it shouldn't be!
2.5. *Brownitis is for girls!

3. Badgers love Bacon.

4. Shane Turpin doesn't like it when slow people practice with him on the track. So get the f--- out da way! Haha...Shane also has bigger sack than a mountain gorilla.*

5. No matter how fast you are or think you are Shannon Moham will score more points than you.

6. The witchcraft that Bart can do with Xr100 jetting is probably illegal in most states...as it should be!

7. Getting most racers to commit to a tattoo is like watching old people f---.
*
8. You can eat food off any part of Crash Lowes *race bike...you can also bet that Bacon has been rubbed all over Crash's bikes.

9. HPR has a blue streak and a brown spot.*

10. Everything is better with Bacon and so is the MRA!

After all of the years I have been racing I think I got it covered. Give me a chance to contribute to a group of people that I consider family and a club that I want to see thrive in the future.*
(boring stuff) I understand that nothing is a quick fix, I run a small business in this economy and know that there is no one way to attack problems and challenges. I offer a little bit different view on how we as a club can grow.
Thanks, Chris "Bacon " Terranami (aka Fuller)*[/i]

[sheispoison]

Carl Sorensen
VP of Rules & Tech

Hello. *First off I'd like to thank you for the nomination for the VP
of Rules and Tech position. *I moved to Colorado in fall of 2007 from
Virginia where I had done track days for a few years. *During the
winter of 2008 I decided I'd give racing a shot and got my license
after taking the MRA race school. *I raced a full year as a novice in
2008 and had the time of my life. *I was impressed by how helpful
everyone was and how tight of a family the MRA seemed to be. *I've
raced full seasons for the last 4 years and have got to know the club
pretty well. *I've always had a strong desire for technical knowledge
especially with motorcycles. *I'm an industrial mechanic by trade
working in wastewater treatment plants for the last 16 years which as
exposed me to lots of different types of mechanics. *I've always done
the majority of my own work on my bikes and cars and feel I have a
good mechanical background. *That coupled with the good network of
people and resources that I have made in the racing community make me
well qualified for the technical side of this position. ****I'm
committed to keeping things as safe and as fair as possible. *I'm
dedicated to doing anything I can to see that those two things are
never compromised. **I love racing with this club and really want to
see it not only succeed, but grow and prosper to be the best that it
can be. *Thank you!
carl
217

[peteyt328]

Pete Tabor - Rider Rep Trophies

Why hello there fellow racers and MRA members!

If you don’t yet know who I am, I’ll start off by telling you a little about myself. My name is Pete Tabor (#599) and I ride an 09 Kawasaki ZX-6R. Some of you may know me as the Guy with the Crazy Clown Suit, One of The Guys with The Bright Green T-shirts, or maybe that guy who crashed a lot his first year.

For those of you that don’t know my story I’ll give you a quick overview. I started racing with the club in 2009. I learned a lot that year, but in the process ended up spending a lot of time rubber side up. I also missed a few races that season and ended up finishing the year just out of top 10. In 2010 I was unable to put together a complete race effort and only raced 3 weekends for the season. I did however come out to the track for almost every race to see my friends, cheer people on, and participate in the club. For the 2011 season my biggest goal was just to complete a full season. I joined up with 2 of my closest friends and we became “3 N’ Some Change”. This season ended up being the best yet hanging out with friends and family and winning 3 championships.

If you have ever been around me at the track you know that I am all about having a good time and helping people out. I love to push myself and am very competitive but racing to me is more about surrounding myself with great people while doing something I love. I really enjoy getting to know new people and helping out less experienced racers on and off the track.

Now to the subject at hand! First off, I am honored just to be nominated for this position (thanks Hersh). I have to say, I never really put much thought into running for a rider rep position because our board members have always done such a great job and I have never believed I could do better. This also applies to Mr. Fisk and his hard work as the trophy rep this season, which is why I’m not going to tell you that I will do a better job. To be honest, I don’t know what goes on behind the scenes well enough yet to even propose how I might do things differently. What I do know is that I would like to push for the highest quality trophies possible, maybe by asking for a higher donation from our class sponsors. I will attempt to keep good relations with our current sponsors while trying to reach out to new ones. I also know everyone loves the picture plaques at the yearend banquet so I would like to make sure we are able to continue providing those in the future.

The other reason I’m running for this position is because I think we have a great club here in Colorado and I want to do my part to help out. I love helping others out and teaching people new things and I think this will put me in a better spot to do this with both new and current racers. In addition, I think it’s beneficial for the club to continue shuffling up the board members to get new thoughts and ideas passed around. Past that, all I can tell you is that I would always be up for new ideas and take suggestions from anyone and everyone. I also promise to put in all my efforts and do my best for the club.

Thanks,
Pete

[Kingpin]

Aaron Fisk—Rider Rep Trophies

Thank you for nominating me for a second year as Rider Rep Trophies. It’s been an honor to be able to give back to the club in an official capacity this year. For those who don’t know me, I’d like to share my history with the MRA.

Although I‘d followed the MRA for years, I just started racing in 2009. I was so excited to be involved that I worked off my novice hours before the season even started. I raced every weekend and went to every meeting. At the end of 2009 the MRA was in financial trouble, and the board asked for volunteers to work events and promote the club. I immediately stepped up and started working events, and kept working them during the off season of 09/10.

In 2010 the board again asked members to help out and “rebuild” our numbers by volunteering at events. I was now an expert and didn’t need to do novice hours anymore, but I felt strongly about supporting this club for its future. Even though I hadn’t thought about running for the board yet, I worked events throughout the 2010 season--including hauling bikes and the MRA display booth around, setting them up and tearing them down at the end of the day. Additionally I volunteered to set up the Air Fence at PPIR and helped establish lines around the water seepage. By the end of that season I had decided to step up my MRA workload and run for a rider rep position. I was appointed to the rider rep trophy position at the end of 2010.

During the fall of 2010 I was hand delivering banquet tickets to prior year sponsors and assisting with the banquet. Additionally I thought about new ways to provide value to the trophy sponsors—I created a slide show of class sponsors for the 2010 awards banquet as a way to say “thanks”, and get their name up there one more time in front of folks.

Continuing to brainstorm new ways to deliver value to our trophy sponsors, last winter I created the “Announcing Book” for the 2011 season. I researched every sponsor, chatted with them on what they wanted to communicate, and wrote up advertising for the announcers to use during that sponsor’s race. Hopefully you heard the announcers reading it in the pits this year—it was a huge hit with our class sponsors and I plan to continue it next year.

During the past winter I spent my weekends working for the club-- driving around town visiting 50+ potential trophy sponsors, as well as continuing to work MRA events. Some of the past sponsors didn’t want to re-up, some did. Most sponsors took multiple visits before their commit in our tough economy. I gave my presentation in shops and offices around the Front Range trying to get business owners to sign our sponsorship agreement. I’m proud to say at the end of the winter I had filled every spot, and had several classes that multiple sponsors wanted. We’ve never had sponsors compete to support the MRA, I’m happy all my hard work paid off.

With sponsors secured for the 2011 season now we needed a good cost effective trophy plan. I presented a plan to the board with 3 cost effective solutions for 2011, including a focus on recycling to not waste any of the clubs’ money. This also included budgeting to support the year end picture plaques that everyone loves. Hopefully MRA members enjoyed the new variety we saw this year in the silver and gold cup trophies as well as the big ROR podium trophies. This cost effective solution seemed well received, and with proper management of recycling I am thrilled to say we ended the season with only 4 left over trophies. This was a new record, as in past years the club usually has boxes of left over trophies. Additionally even with canceling our Round 8 race, we did not incur any extra trophy costs.

I’ve really enjoyed the riding part of being a rider rep this year--helping out new racers at the novice school and in Super Street, as well as helping novices with advice or showing them the line at a new track. This is the best part of the volunteering I’ve done for the club, having fun with other racers. I continued to work MRA events throughout the 2011 season, meeting new people and talking to them about the club.

One of the specialized skills I feel I bring to the board is my professional background. I’ve been a program manager for 15 years, and have found this very beneficial to managing work flow on the MRA board. A lot of the behind the scenes board work is about running a business and working through tough decisions as a group. My professional experience is in this field, I’m glad I’ve been able to contribute during this challenging time for the club.

I’m currently working on the 2011 banquet trophies, and preparing to start driving around the state again, meeting with potential trophy sponsors.

In closing I’ve really enjoyed working for you the past few years and I hope you’ll re-elect me for Rider Rep Trophies.