Bird Dog Challenge information

BDC ADVISORY BOARD MEETING

Conference Call

July 1st

1. Attendees: Mike Pyle, Bing Wesner, Ray McVeigh, Richard Sipes, Scott Peterson, Chris Riddle, Ken Neese, Bob Garrity, Carla Haglund, J.Max Wroten, Dan Sojka

2. Event Scheduling

i. Super Majors

1. Worlds

a. Format – Head to Head – The format of Worlds being a head to head competition was discussed. Alternative options were brought up. After the discussion, a vote was held and it was unanimous to continue with the head to head format in Top Gun.

b. Format – brackets and seeding – There was a lengthy discussion on how the event would be bracketed to determine first round matchups. Richard Sipes gave the best description as it must be easy to explain and understand. Several options were discussed. A vote was held and it was agreed (6-2) to maintain what is printed in the current Rule Book. That is that Dogs will be seeded based upon ranking in Championship Points. However the group decided that the past year (January 1 – December 31) points would be used and not the past two years as listed in the rule book. There will be two caveats to a straight seeding:

1. No player can run more than 1 time in an 8 dog bracket.

2. Every attempt will be made to keep Amateurs together in one bracket.

c. A vote was held on whether to invite dogs and handlers from other circuits who may have won Championships in those circuits but did not otherwise qualify for the BDC Worlds. The vote was 7-1 in favor of not inviting unqualified dogs.

d. Entry Fees $395 and Payout 35% - The recent BDC Survey of Membership showed that 77% of the respondents voted that lower entry fees are very important. Given this fact, the Board voted unanimously to lower the fees for Worlds this year by $100 to $395. In addition, there was a discussion on how to keep entry fees down at all tournaments; qualifiers, Majors and Super Majors.

e. Dates – Based on feedback from competitors at this year’s Nationals, Dan proposed that the Worlds this year would be over one weekend with both Pointers and Flushers competing at the same time. This will require the use of additional fields. In addition, the sequestering and transport plan used at this year’s Nationals was well received. To accommodate sequestering and the need for additional fields the tournament was proposed to be held at K-Bar-C. In addition, Dan proposed that the dates for Worlds this year be changed from the normal October dates and moved into November. He pointed out that the best attendance at Worlds came when the event was in November. This would also eliminate some anticipated conflicts in October. In reviewing the dates, the weekend before Whiskey Springs was selected. This was due in part to the fact that some members who travel greater distances for the Worlds can also then take advantage of the drive to Colorado for the Whiskey Springs event. The Board voted unanimously (8-0) to change the dates to November 11-14.

2. Players – The Players Tournament was discussed. The suggestion was made that the tournament should be held at Chase the Adventure in Decorah Iowa. The tournament would be managed by Rob Ramer. A discussion was held on a couple of issues:

a. Cover – in the past at the Quail Classic at the same venue the cover was too thick – Rob assures cover will be fine.

b. Acquiring a Field Trial permit from DNR to avoid purchasing hunt club licenses for competitors.

c. Dates – Weekend of December 4^th & 5^th. This conflicts with Bing’s Western Nationals. Bing did not think this tournament would be a conflict.

The board voted unanimously to make the suggested changes (8-0).

ii. Majors

1. Quail Classic – Last year this tournament had over 200 runs but with the move of Players to the same hunt club and only one week away from the date last year, the Quail Classic will not be held in Decorah Iowa. This tournament is now available should a tournament promoter/Club wish to host this event this fall. Interested parties should contact Carla Haglund or Dan Sojka.

3. Co-sanctioning

i. Is it Working to BDC’s Benefit

ii. Review of Co-sanctioning options

1. Full Sanctioning – Every run of the tournament is sanctioned at $15 – If a series fully sanctions every run with BDC, BDC will work with the circuit on scheduling to protect dates and tournaments.

2. Optional – The player may choose to have runs sanctioned at the event by paying an additional $15. The election to sanction must be done prior the event starting and the sanctioning fee is paid to the promoter.

3. Declared Majors and Super Majors are fully sanctioned.

iii. The Board discussed the current structure and voted unanimously to keep the status quo.

iv. Discussion on sanctioning fees – If any tournament director or series does not turn in sanctioning fees for an event, the scores will not be posted and no further events will be allowed until past fees are paid in full.

BDC ADVISORY BOARD MEETING

Conference Call Agenda

Conference Call 2, July 14, 2010

Attendees: Richard Sipes, Ken Neese, Bing Wesner, Mike Pyle, Ray McVeigh, Scott Peterson, Dan Sojka, Carla Haglund, J.Max Wroten

1. Event Scheduling

a. Super Majors

i. Worlds

1. Payout for Prize Money

a. Last year – 50% 1^st, 25% 2^nd 25% 3^rd

b. Proposal for This Year

Pay to 5^th vote (6-0) unanimously approved to pay to 5^th place.

Options for Top Gun – by bracket – total option money taken in will be divided by the number of brackets – The winner of each bracket will then win option money. If a winner of a bracket does not chose to option, the option money will be divided by the number of brackets with winners that did.

Vote (6-0) approved

Mike Pyle discussed a separate meeting to discuss ideas for generating additional prize money.

ii. Classic

1. The Classic was discussed regarding ways to increase participation. Tim Brewster will be contacted for further discussions.

iii. Whiskey Springs

1. Status – Everyone agreed that Whiskey Springs has done a great job of growing and putting on a first class tournament. Discussions on the status were tabled on a vote of 3-2 with Mike Pyle abstaining to continue to discuss at the next meeting.

b. Majors

i. Application for Declared Status

1. Claude Trincale

a. In addition to hosting the Wild West Shootout (a Declared Major) Claude hosted three tournaments last year and all three attained Major status on the pointer side. This year he is developing the Belt Buckle Series in California using the three tournament and inviting flushers. He requested that all three tournaments be Declared Majors for this year.

The Board voted 6-0 to award Claude one (1) Declared Major (of his choosing of the 3) and review the flusher participation after the tournaments have been run.

2. Trigger Time

a. Last year, the Trigger Time tournament attained Major Status in Top Gun Flusher, Top Gun Pointer, Doubles Flusher, Doubles Pointer and Puppy Flusher. This year the tournament is also adding Amateur and Master stakes to the tournament. Carla Haglund, Tournament Director is requesting that the tournament be awarded Declared Major Status.

The Board Voted (6-0) to approve Declared Major Status.

ii. Quail Classic

1. Opportunity and Marketing

This is a Declared Major complete with format, that is available should a promoter/club like to petition BDC for hosting this event. The format is a 10 bird doubles run and two, five bird Top Gun runs added together. Interested parties should contact Carla Haglund. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

2. Marketing Discussion

a. $3 from Sanctioning Fees

i. Last Year TG and Doubles – Review

1. DOY

2. Additional Nationals Payback

ii. This Year

1. Puppy, Amateur and Masters – It was unanimously voted (6-0) that $3 from every puppy, Amateur and Masters run be spent on winning dogs or players from the stakes. The discussion and vote was then on how to spend the money.

Amateur -- It was voted unanimously (6-0) to spend the money received

from Amateur runs on extra prizes (not cash) for Amatuer Dog of the Year and Nationals Dog of the Year.

Puppy – It was voted 4-2 to spend the money received as additional prize money at Nationals and pay it to the top 3 finishers in each stake (the two desenting voters voted for the money to be paid to the Champion dog.

Masters – It was voted unanimously to spend the money received on the top 3 placements in the Masters Stake at the Nationals.

At this point the meeting had reached the two hour limit. The next meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, August 4^th. At that meeting, the following items will be discussed

- Board Make up –

- Survey results

Continued discussions on Marketing, Member feedback and the Website

BDC ADVISORY BOARD MEETING

Conference Call 3 Recap

August 4^th, 2010

Attendees: Mike Pyle, Bing Wesner, Ray McVeigh, Richard Sipes, Ken Neese, Bob Garrity, John Thompson, Carla Haglund, J.Max Wroten, Dan Sojka

1. Event Scheduling

a. Super Majors

i. Whiskey Springs

1. Status –Declared Major - The tournament is working and has been a big success. Mike is comfortable as the promoter being either a Declared Major or Super Major. At this time the tournament will remain a Declared Major for this year.

ii. Classic Update – The Classic will be adding a Puppy Division and a Masters Division this year. The Board discussed ways to support this tournament and increase participation to prior year levels. Tim Brewster will work on the tournament details and these will be published as soon as completed.

2. Recap of Survey

a. How did you hear about Bird Dog Challenge

i. Word of Mouth - #1

ii. Media - #2 – still important – down the road, would be nice to return to television if sponsors can attracted and it can be done in a financially sound manner

b. What is the #1 reason to attend

i. Fun and enjoyment with dog is #1

ii. Lowest vote was prize money –

1. The biggest tournaments all have prize money

2. But, there are also a great many small events that make up a large amount of the total runs.

A good deal of discussion was held on the variety of the responses on the differing questions regarding and relating to Prize money.

c. Satisfaction level

i. Dissatisfied – 21%

ii. Neutral – 24%

iii. Satisfied – 53%

1. Discussed Bird planting as one of the biggest pieces of dissatisfaction.

2. Multiple entries was discussed as another issue of dissatisfaction. It was brought up that BDC has limited the entries in every stake at Super Majors for the past 12 months. Despite this, the survey comments indicated that respondents did not feel it went far enough.

These two issues will be discussed further at the in-person August meeting.

d. Event Types and Importance Factors

i. There is a portion of players that enjoy participating but may not necessarily want to go to Super Majors. BDC needs to be aware of this as it relates to continued growth.

3. Board Make up Issues

a. Replacement for Jaime Butler

Three potential candidates were discussed. Dan will contact the three board members not in attendance to discuss their input. The goal is to have a new member announced at the August meeting.

b. Mark Sweeney Update – Mark has been unable to participate currently due to work schedule and originally offered to step down. The board asked if he would stay on and attend as his schedule allows. He agreed.

4. Marketing Discussion

a. Masters Player of the Year –

The idea would be to add a Masters Player of the year award. The discussion started with questions on how the points would be tracked – Masters events only or also include Top Gun events as well. The question then turned to how to query the database in order to get points. This question needs to be answered prior to a vote taking place.

A second discussion was initiated on whether to raise the age of Masters from 50 to 55. A study will be conducted to see what the impact of such a move would be on the current Masters players and the information brought to the next board meeting.

b. 1 Dog/Open Stake –

The discussion started with the results of the survey that was recently completed on the subject. The majority were overwhelmingly in favor of the idea. The questions began regarding the exclusion of shooting as a scoring factor, what if any points will be awarded and what would they count towards. Dan stated that he would like to keep this stake as a fun, low pressure opportunity open to all. The discussion was continued until the next Board Meeting.

BDC ADVISORY BOARD MEETING

August 28, 2010

RECAP

1. Board Make Up

a. Replacement for Jaime Butler

Tom Glynn was introduced and welcomed.

2. Marketing Discussion

a. Masters Player of the Year

i. Masters vs Top Gun/Masters

Dan – Current database cannot accommodate both Top Gun and Masters

Ray – do it once and don’t change format

Ken – Master ptr and flusher both – not just 1

General agreement – Start on Jan 1, w/ Masters scores only.

Tom – asked about an event for older dogs – Super 8 has been done in the past at Top Guns. May be looked at again (stake for dogs 8 years old or older)

 

General agreement- Keep Master age at 50

b. 1 DOG Stake

Seek commitment for 1 Dog stake at Players – Richard to draft Constant Contact detailing the opportunity for the Players Championship. Dan to send out Constant Contact then follow up.

c. Amateur Division re-visited

Discussion – not working as currently defined. Changes in the current rule book are not enough. Need to review the entire amateur status and format. For now the AB has decided that effective immediately, the only requirement for a competitor to run in the Amateur Stake is that the Player has less than 80 points as currently defined in the rule book. There will be no point limit on the dogs. Also as stated in the rules, BDC reserves the right to not allow a person or dog to run amateur.  The objective of the change is to increase participation (i.e. allowing family, and friends to run their dogs in Amateur regardless of points).  It is not designed for the most seasoned amateur to pick a top dog just to enhance their chances of winning. This would be a case where BDC reserves the right to restrict participants in the Amateur Stake.

 

d. Amateur Worlds

Due to lack of players, this is not an opportunity at this time

3. Member Feedback for Discussion

a. Conduct Review Committee

Subset of AB/or AB – Any issue (i.e. DQ) at a tournament is reviewed by CRC

Ray – to put together proposal for Board to review.

 

 

b. 4 Bird plant vs. 3 bird plant at Super Major

Feedback is that a 4 bird set is a better set than a 3 bird set. Currently use two – 3 bird sets. Plus 5 bird sets in Nationals and Worlds run off. Cost is currently also an issue based on feedback. Increasing sets to 4 birds would increase run prices. General agreement to keep as is.

 

c. Sequestering

AB agreed that it worked very well. Will not mandate for all tournaments but encourage where possible.

 

d. Bird Planters

i. Plant Cards

This is but one of the issues. Richard suggested we go back and list all of the issues that are impacting not only planting but quality of the experience for the hunter.

Ray, the people that most represent BDC are the bird planters and score keepers.

ii. Supervision

e. Masters Stake at Nationals - 2 runs added together to get to runoff

In reviewing the subject - cost was an issue – to do so would double the cost of an entry (i.e. instead of $159 for one run, it would cost $318 for two runs added together). This may limit some players who would otherwise choose to run two separate dogs instead of one dog two times.

Instead it was decided that for 2010 Nationals a dog will only be allowed to make the runoff one time. A dog may still be entered twice but only the highest score will move forward to the runoff. If a dog qualifies twice, the lowest scored run will not make it to the runoff and the qualification will slide to the next qualified dog (i.e. if the top three dogs are taken to the runoff and one of the top three dogs has qualified prior with a higher score, the qualification for runoff will fall to the fourth position).

f. Scorekeeper training and or certification

This will be folded in as part of the process in D above.

 

g. E Collars at Worlds and Nationals

Discussion was held. This has not previously been an issue. The decision is not to change now.

 

 

4. Website

a. Importance of Website

b. What has been accomplished

i. Hall of Fame update

ii. Board Minutes

c. What is left to do

i. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Page

ii. Multiple entries for same player

Will take time as these players have multiple TH ID #s. Challenge is to go back and re-enter all old results. Will take time and effort to research.

iii. Points Updates not in sinc

Suggest eliminate the “last updated” date as the information is being updated as the dates are not always correct. Correct the dates 100% or eliminate them.

Need to Update Results and Photo section.

Get report information to AB for comparison to other similar websites.

Suggest looking into what are the options for “selling” marketing space.

 

d. Web Administrator

Stan Cromlish is now the Web Administrator for BDC. His duties will include maintaining and updating all areas of the website (i.e. Events, Race & High Point tabs, etc.)

5. Rules

a. Rule Book

The Rule book has just been reprinted. Except in extreme circumstances (see Amateur Stake above) the intent is to have an organized process where member input is received, reviewed and acted upon by the Board in a timely manner. This will coincide with re-printing of rule books on a consistent time frame.

 

b. Rules Process – How to change

Anyone with suggestions on rule changes is encouraged to contact the Advisory Board Members from their region and speak with them regarding suggestions, comments, concerns and ideas. The AB members will then bring these issues to the meetings for discussion (all issues under point 3 were issues brought to the Board by existing members). As the items are discussed and decisions made, the information will be posted on the BDC Website as part of the Board Meeting Minutes.

c. Member concerns, ideas and feedback

i. Define the Process – see above

ii. Using the website to document – see above

Next BDC Conf Call is Wed. Oct 20^th 9:00 Eastern, 8:00 Central, 6:00 Pacific

BDC Advisory Board Meeting Minutes
June 27, 2009
K-Bar-C Hunting Ranch

Present (*denotes present by phone): Jamie Buttler (Club owner), Bob Garrity* (Region 2), Carla Haglund (Op. Coordinator and Member Rep.), Ray McVeigh* (Region 3), Ken Neese (Region 2), Scott Peterson (Region 1), Richard Sipes (Region 3), Dan Sojka (Owner/President), Mark Sweeney* (Region 2), John Thompson* (Club owner), Bing Wesner* (Region 4), Max Wroten (Treasurer)

Absent (*denotes provided votes): Dan Cathcart* (Region 4), Chris Riddle* (Region 1)

Guests: Duane Buster, Arnold Thompson

I.   Meeting was called to order by Dan Sojka at 10:15 a.m.  He welcomed everyone and thanked them for attending.

• He made introductions of the newly appointed Advisory Board (AB) and explained to them what their roles will be and what the expectations of the AB will be.  He explained to them the duties of the board.  The board has been put in place to advise and that Max, Carla, and Dan are not to advise the board.  Dan is implementing a 5% rule.  He explained that 95% of the time the board will have complete voting power, but that 5% of the time he can veto a vote where he strongly disagrees.
• Dan gave a brief history of the Bird Dog Challenge.  He explained to the board what has worked well in the past, what has failed in the past, and importantly, how does the BDC move forward.
• Dan discussed that the future goals of the BDC are to make it viable and profitable.

II. Max Wroten gave an overview of the financial situation of the BDC.

• Max discussed the need for the BDC to stand alone.  He discussed the needs for viability within the BDC organization.  BDC needs to be solid financially and structurally.
• He briefed us on TV explaining that BDC being televised on the Outdoor Channel is currently on hold but we are actively looking at alternatives.  TV has been a huge financial drain for the BDC.
• Max discussed with the AB the equity funding plan.  Max has a meeting scheduled with a potential funder to accommodate this equity funding plan.
• Max discussed in great detail with the board the goals and vision for the future of the BDC.
  • Stable finances
  • Publish the pay-outs prior to any Super Major and guaranteed Majors whether it is a payment percentage guarantee, option pots, or Calcutta’s.
  • Pay all bills and employees at days end at each event.
  • Pay-out a minimum of 30% if published and follow through
  • Make BDC events affordable.
    • Decreasing entry fees will actually increase BDC income which means more participation which means more payout at Nationals.

III. Carla Haglund provided an overview membership and event status

• Membership status
  • Last year (2008-2009) BDC had 426 memberships.
  • As of July 1, 2009, we are in great shape to increase our total memberships for the year.
• Carla opened the table to discuss how we can increase memberships and event participation. 
  • Integrity:  Provide the fairest game in tournament hunting.
  • Better utilization of the website
  • Make events fair but fun
  • Provide contacts within the organization to new members
  • New members need to be published
  • Find out why members come and go
  • Veteran players help new players and make them feel welcome.
• Update of World Championships
  • World’s to be held at Flyin’ B Hunt Club in Guthrie Center, IA
  • Pointer World Championships – October 16-18, 2009 (Registration 10/15)
  • Flusher World Championships – October 23-25, 2009 (Registration 10/22)
  • How do we market the World Championships to get the best turn-out?
    • Should pay-out go to 1st place only?
    • Should top 12 get their entry fee back?
    • Do you pay-out to the top 20?
  • Dan called for a vote to decide if we pay-out 50% at the World Championships?  Yes (10)/No (0).
    • Pay-out at Worlds will be 50% of the entry fee provided there are 60 or more dogs in the event stake.
      If there are less than 60 dogs in the event stake, payout will be published at 40%.
      
  • There was a Second vote on 100% of that going to first place:  Yes (4)/No (6).
    • Pay-out will be split.  Therefore, if there are 60+ dogs, payout in Top Guns will be 50% of the Entry Fees to the Top 3.  With 80+ Dogs in the Stakes, places 4th-12th will receive their entry fee back.  Payout in Doubles will be 50%, 30% 20%.
• Should the BDC continue to promote Major tournaments? 
  • Dan called for a vote to decide if we continue to promote the already “grandfathered in” Majors as Declared Majors:   Yes (9)/No (0).
  • BDC will continue to promote certain events as Majors.  However, if there is a year that the Major does not meet the criteria (20 fully sanctioned dogs, 30 entries or 40 runs), they are put on probation. If the following year they do again do not meet criteria they remain on probation and if the third year they do not meet criteria, the tournament will lose the events Declared Major status.

• Any event with 20 sanctioned dogs, 30 entries or 40 runs will receive Major points for that year and has the right to request to become a Declared Major for following year. If each day is a separate event, day points will also be awarded.
  • • Any Declared Major that does not meet the above criteria of 20 sanctioned dogs, 30 entries or 40 runs will be awarded ½ major points (10, 8, 6, 4, 2).

Example:

Year 1 – Declared Major – if less than 20 dogs in Top Gun, only ½ points are awarded and the event goes on probation.

Year 2 – if on probation must hit 20 dogs in Top Gun or only ½ points are awarded and remains on probation.

Year 3 – probation from year 2 – don’t get 20 dogs in Top Gun, ½ points awarded and then lose Declared Major status.

Note:  Even in a Declared Major that meets the criteria in the Top Gun division, only ½ points will be awarded in other divisions that do not have 20 dogs (doubles, puppy, over 50, etc.).

• List of Declared Majors:
  • Labor Day Challenge
  • PHU Nebraska Event (October)
  • Quail Classic
  • WI Series Invitational
  • Nebraska State Pheasant (March)
  • Heartland Challenge
  • Oregon BDC Finals
  • Whiskey Springs

Scheduling event

• Dan called for a vote to decide if there should be a timeframe (21 days) in which Carla Haglund is notified of an event:  Yes (9)/No (0).
  • Carla Haglund must be notified by all event holders wanting to sanction events with BDC 21 days prior to the event or the event can not be sanctioned by BDC.  If we have not been contacted by an event holder or it is not posted on the website it is NOT considered a BDC sanctioned event and therefore BDC points will not be awarded.

Membership process

• We assessed what type of membership renewal process should be used at the BDC.  Do we continue to use the June 1st to June 1st membership renewal process or do we implement a revolving membership (starting the date that you purchase your membership)?

• Dan called for a vote to determine if we continue to have membership start June 1st:   Yes (8)/No (0).
  • Memberships will continue to run from June 1 – June 1.  However, if a membership is purchased anytime March 1st and beyond, the membership is good for the full year and would expire in the June of the next year.

IV. Survey Results

• Carla and Dan spent a lot of time reviewing a slide presentation with the June survey results.  While most survey results are positive, there is a large number of the membership that did not respond.  Carla is going to provide the exact survey to event holders who will survey their event attendees and send the results in with their event results. 
  • Sanction fees
    • A lot of discussion was held regarding the need for a sanction structure.
    • Currently, sanction fees are all over the board.  Dan called for a vote as to whether or not all events should pay $15.00/entry in sanction fees:   Yes (6)      No (3).  BDC sanction fees will be $15.00/entry.
    • The meeting attendees discussed whether or not there should be a per event cap making an event holder only pay up to a certain amount ($900).  Dan called for a vote:  Yes (2)/No (7).
      • There will not be a sanction cap put in place.
  • Major events will pay $15.00/entry
  • Super Majors will pay $15/entry.
  • BDC events will include sanctioning fees in the price of the entry (not added on).
• Co-sanction fees
  • An extensive discussion took place with respect to co-sanctioning and whether or not co-sanctioning event holders should pay $15.00 or if BDC continues to offer optional sanction fees at a lesser amount.  Dan called for a vote as to whether or not the sanction fees should be consistent across the board and all co-sanctioned events (PHU, WI Series, UFTA, NUCS, etc.) should pay $15.00/entry also.  Yes (10)/No (0).
    • Sanction fees will be $15.00/entry for all co-sanctioned events without a cap. Co-sanctioned events will likely be optional and added on to the entry fee.
• Dog of the Year (DOY)
  • Should the Masters division points count towards DOY?  Dan called for a vote:  Yes (4)      No (6).  The Master’s division points will not count towards the DOY award. We will have a separate National title for the Masters Division.
• Road Warrior Award
  • The board discussed awarding the dog (flushing and pointing) with the most qualifying points every year.  Dan called for a vote:  Yes (8)      No (0).  A new award will be created that signifies the pointing dog and flushing dog with the most qualifying points each year to be awarded at the National Championships.
• Scoring system
  • Bob Garrity brought to the table a discussion about the possibility of changing the scoring system to bring the total seconds into the equation  Dan called for a vote:      Yes (8)/ No (1).
    • The scoring system with change as noted.  Max is to send Richard a new score sheet that incorporates total time.  Richard will distribute to the AB for review.  It was noted that prior to any change, the new sheet must be tested and be assured of working.
• Advisory Board Chairman Nominations
  • Ray McVeigh and Richard Sipes were each nominated.  Dan called for a vote:  Ray (5)/Richard (6).
    • Richard Sipes will be the BDC Advisory Board Chairman.
• Other Discussion Topics
  • After several rules issues were brought up, Richard has committed to set up a rules sub-committee.  All rules issues will first be sent to the sub-committee for review.  The sub-committee will bring rules suggestions to the board at the next meeting.
  • Entry Express was discussed.  In order to achieve the goals associated with publishing pay-outs prior to the event, paying everyone prior to the end of the tournaments, etc., Dan announced that Entry Express will be used at both the coming Worlds and Nationals.  Entry Express will be further discussed at the next meeting.
  • A discussion was held on plaques and trophies at Super Major’s.  It was decided that trophies would be awarded to places 1-3, plaques to 4 and 5 in every division.  In addition, some form of recognition will be given to everyone making the run-offs in Top Gun and Doubles.
  • A discussion and vote resulted in reimbursement to Dr. Kyle Kerstetter for a mistake we made on a score sheet for his dog, Bennelli at Nationals resulting in the dog not making the finals. Voted to give Kyle the option of cash equivalent, or free entry at next season’s event.
  • A discussion was tabled for sanctioning fees from Region 4 staying there in region 4 to support the Western Nationals.
• The ambitious agenda resulted in an 8 hour meeting with many items to be followed up on by the board.
  • TV – How do we pay for it and edit it for Season 6
  • If a Board Member is not in attendance, can he vote?
  • How can we post results faster on the web?
  • Additional discussion on use of the Web-site included:
    • Posting all scores from events – this is being reviewed on how to accomplish
    • Use the website to show episodes of the television show.
    • Use the website to post video including tips for hunters, setters, judges, etc. on a rotating basis.
• The meeting adjourned at 6:05 p.m.