This past weekend- I joined Phil and Ted on a ride to the Aviation Museum in Long Island. We had a newbie, and some real old timers , on the ride we had many years of leadership over 50 between Ted and Phil. The ride was leisurely, and well shaded. This was Phil 25 anniversary as a Ride Leader, and he shared his history of years gone by, and his beloved Mets. Ted who was recently seen at summer streets was a joy to see , and hopefully we can get him to lead additional rides for us again. It was over six years ago that Ted did his War of the Worlds Ride, so look for the 80th anniversary in 4 years. So here is to Phil and Ted and me having a good time-

ELECTION TIME AGAIN—
AND WAYS, LARGE AND SMALL, ELECTED AND OTHERWISE,
WE CAN ALL SUPPORT OUR CLUB!!!!

In telling you a bit about the elected and non-elected positions in the Club, I wanted to talk firstly, more generally, about how, giving a little bit of your time in various ways helps keep our Club going and strong. Concerning Board and Coordinator positions—detailed far below—we (the current Board) ask for nominations by our Annual Meeting in October (date TBD), to fill elected Board positions. Below I also summarize explain what our bylaws require for those positions.

We are our club—a collection of people who commit to put on and participate in bike rides, largely in the NYC area, and to promote cycling, including cycling safety, more generally.

Activities and opportunities—whether given to someone with a title or otherwise-- do not happen magically. They happen because we make them happen.

What does it mean to help our Club? There is no standard of perfection—we all do the best that we can. Yeah, there may be typos in this writing. A notice of an event might not be as timely as we would like or one of us might have to step back unexpectedly from a commitment, big or small, because of competing personal or professional pressures. Life happens.

We are all volunteers. Those who contribute for all of our benefits, do so in any number of ways. The elected roles are described below. If you are a Club Leader we want you to lead rides.

We have other recurring needs—if you want to help out either individually or as part of a team, it’s great. You can sign on at any time by talking to one of us on the Board. And you can help on a one-time basis, too. Maybe you can just commit to helping out with getting a venue or a speaker for one membership meeting or arrange a single bike repair class at your local shop. That’s just fine, too. We thank, too, those of you who distribute Club literature in your neighborhoods and those who have come to help wave the Club flag by tabling or helping out at area bike events.

There are activities which folks think of which expand our networks and foster good will. For example, we have Ed Ravin to thank for taking the initiative and ownership of our annual participation in Summer Streets—in doing bike repair, we are the only area bike club which is represented there. And, of course, it couldn’t have happened this year without Steve Bauman, our Wrench-in-Chief. We have Bob Castro to thank for strengthening our relationship with Bike New York by giving our leaders the opportunity to help out teaching cycling skills.

The unelected positions/teams with titles—those recurring needs---and some of the folks who have helped out in these areas this year-- are as follows:

• Program Coordinator-- Coordinates Membership meeting dates, places, educational and entertainment contents. This year David Meltzer and I arranged the Socials held in various places.

• Bicycle Course Coordinator arranges and runs repair courses. You don’t need to be a wrench yourself—just get one and a place for him or her to spend a couple of hours one or a couple of evenings. While we won’t dissuade you from indulging your inner bike geek, classes which show people basic maintenance and fixing flats help us all out, too.

• Weekend Trips Coordinator plans, schedule, budget, oversees and sends out weekend trips. Supporting and drumming up Leader interest in running weekend trips is sorely needed.

• Communications/Public Relations Coordinator publicizes and promotes Club activities, and represents the Club in all things media. Wendy Frank and Alan Friedman lead this team. Peter Engel has agreed to help out in the coming year.

• Newsletter/Bulletin Coordinator issues, compiles and/or writes regular and periodic publication of information of all kinds which are of interest to the Membership—includes reporting on past Club activities. Alfredo Garcia has, for years, taken this on. He’s always looking for articles and other news of interest to us. Why not share a cycling adventure or report on a Club ride you particularly enjoyed?

• Special Events Coordinator oversees and coordinates our special events, like the Holiday party. Thankfully, we had Ken Williams take charge of last year’s wildly successful holiday party at Dinosaur BBQ.

• Advocacy Coordinator coordinates the on position on and keeps us apprised of public policy issues of concern to the bicycle community. Steve Vaccaro took that on this year

As to the elected roles in the Club, please let me know – Secretary@5bbc.org if you are interested in being nominated—or just show up at the Annual Membership Meeting in October (at this time, looking like October 1st—stay tuned) and nominate yourself. The results of the ensuing election will be presented to the at the November Membership meeting (also on a yet to be determined day).

Our Board consists of seven (7) members: President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Coordinator, Rides Coordinator and Leadership Coordinator. We meet at least six times per year and communicate more frequently by email. Detailed descriptions are contained in the Bylaws, which can be found elsewhere on our site. Three roles require that you be a Club leader—this means having taken and passed the Club’s Leadership Training Course, given once a year. Most of these roles can be handled by two people jointly.

• President presides at all Board meetings. Must be a Club member for at least two years or a member of the Board for at least six months and a Club Leader.

• Vice-President assumes the role of President in their absence and may head specific projects. Must be a Club Leader.

• Secretary is responsible for Board meeting minutes and general Club correspondence.

• Treasurer directs Club finances and does things like receive and deposit collected dues, coordinate insurance coverage and file of the Club’s tax returns. Must be a Club member for at least two years or a Board member for at least six months.

• Membership Coordinator promotes membership in the Club, coordinates with outside organizations on membership related matters, respond to member inquiries.

• Rides Coordinator coordinates and oversees the scheduling of all rides offered by the Club. Must be a Club Leader.

• Leadership Coordinator organizes and gives the annual leadership training course and promotes bicycle safety. Must be a Club Leader.

So, Please participate, vote and think about doing more. Thanks for reading this. See you on the road.

Andrea Mercado
Secretary

Yes - there is a Manhattan about 110th Street. The 5BBC is helping to lead a push for greater bicycling infrastructure in Harlem. As the Summer Streets Program kicks off - the 5BBC is featuring two rides from Harlem. These rides have been recognized by the New York Daily News. The article quotes such 5BBC luminaries as Wendy Frank, Ken Williams and David MEL Meltzer. Great to see the club shown in such a good light - and supporting such a worthy cause. http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/uptown/bicycle-club-seeks-bigger-cyc...

Dear 5BBC - There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes of every ride that we do. This is the essential work of the 5BBC Elected Board and various appointed positions. Without these positions being filled, the Club cannot operate properly. We currently have the need for a few good people to work as Day Trips Coordinator, Weekend Trips Coordinator and as Membership Coordinator. These positions can be filled by one person or by a team working together.

WHAT IS REQUIRED; You must be organized and able to work with minimal supervision. Having a good team spirit is essential. The positions will only take several hours per week of your time, and there are monthly Board Meetings.

If you are in the 5BBC, we know that cycling is your pleasure and possibly your passion. If you have the skills to fill these positions, we need you ! Please contact David MEL Meltzer at bklynmel1@gmail.com if you can pitch in. If there are other areas where you have talents that can serve the club, please let MEL know as well. WE NEED YOU !