Present: Mike Karnes, Doug Pilcher, Samantha McKinney, Phil Vance, Primo Rivera, Brad Davy, Toby Silhavy, Rich Whitlow, Alex Dreiling, and Manrico Mincuzzi.
Absent: Clark Hymas, Jorge Guzman, and Michael Hobson
Guest: Adi Kochav
Meeting began 10:04 p.m. EST.
Covid Direction Thoughts/BOD NATS Thoughts – All BOD Members
Doug asked the BOD their thoughts about the Covid-19 and the 2020 NATs. Texas has begun a limited reopening. Schools are shut down. The states have different reopening plans. There still isn’t a whole lot of flying going on.
Doug suggested that we make our decision on the NATs and get it out to the membership and to AMA.
Rich conducted a poll on attendance for the 2020 NATs. There were a total of 60 votes, with 47 “no” and 13 “yes;” with 9 of the “yes” votes being staff. Only 4 pilots voted that they would attend the NATs. Rich’s recommendation is to cancel the NATs. It will not be a good turnout for the amount of money that has to be spent on the event. There are too many members that said they wouldn’t attend due to the Covid-19 virus, financial restrictions, mandatory quarantines, etc.
AMA isn’t making a decision on the 2020 NATs until June 10th. Pattern cancelled their NATs last week.
Brad wanted to know what is the driving factor to cancel the NATs now, instead of waiting on AMA’s decision. Many of the pilots/staff must schedule their vacation ahead of time. Some companies won’t let employees take time off or won’t allow time off if they only have 30 day notice.
Right now in Indiana, the parks aren’t open yet and not quite sure when they will open. Currently, there are no facilities at AMA that are open. They are requiring pilots to social distance.
The logistics are too great to handle for the NATs. The judges, pilots, and callers would have to be six feet apart. There would have to be social distancing in the pit areas. The bathrooms would have to be cleaned after each use.
Rich has gotten some feed back on why we are even considering having the NATs. He hasn’t gotten any positive feedback. The risk is too big to have the NATs. On top of the Covid-19, it’s not worth the money to host a national event for 10 or less pilots.
Rich also said that we have lost our sponsorship, due to the companies also hurting during this pandemic.
Manrico cancelled the 2020 Europeans in March, when the contest was going to be held in August. This contest had 150 pilots registered. After the contest was called, within the next few weeks everyone was very happy that the decision to cancel was made early. Manrico suggests that we make a decision now.
Toby informed the BOD that Scale and Pattern have cancelled their NATs. He says we have to protect our membership.
A motion was made to cancel the 2020 NATs by Rich Whitlow and seconded by Doug Pilcher. Motion carried unanimously.
Treasury/Membership Renewals – Phil Vance
As of tonight, the balance in the general operating account is:
Checking $ 3,317.26
PayPal $33,307.70
Total $36,624.96
Regional/Covid Issues/Directions in Region – All RDs
Brad said the NE cancelled their season opener. The Canadians wanted to cancel their Quebec contest, but Brad asked them to wait until it was closer to the event. The region still has their fingers crossed for the July contest. The local jurisdictions still have more restrictions in place. They are discussing going to 50 people or less within the next 2-3 weeks. Restaurants have been open through the closings with take-our or curbside. A lot of pilots in their region camp at the fields, and very few stay in hotels.
The SE has had one contest in Miami and events have been cancelled since then. There is a contest scheduled in North Carolina next month, and Primo is checking with the CD on the state/local guidelines. As far as he knows, there is still 10 or less people required for a gathering. Georgia is slowing reopening.
Toby reported that the NC has cancelled all events up to the NATs. Ohio is in Phase 1 of quarantine. People can go out a little more. They are letting a few areas open to Phase 2, where restaurants can have 1/3 capacity. Toby’s employer is predicting that as soon as everyone goes back to work that more cases will arise. Toby is concerned about the rest of the NC season. Currently, we can only have 10 or less for gatherings.
Rich has cancelled 11 events in the SC. A good portion of the season is gone. There will be an aerobatic fun day in Kansas, with a restriction of 10 or less pilots. The Broken Arrow contest is on the books for June 6th, they are waiting to make a decision. The next contest is June 27. Rich is predicting by early July, their contests will be going. Louisiana won’t be out of Phase 1 until mid-June. They still have limitations on out-of-state travel. If they go East, there is a mandatory 14-day quarantine.
The SW has cancelled everything. California is on lock down. Los Angeles has extended their lock down for another 3 months, which affects 3 contests. Arizona has a few things going on. They have rescheduled contests from September to November, every other week. The Tucson Shootout was cancelled.
Manrico said some Europeans countries are coming back. There will be 2 open International competitions, Switzerland and the Czech Republic. There are both held in August. There was originally 8 scheduled and they are down to 2 remaining. Many countries are still shut down. The UK is open. The contests on the website are the ones still happening. Israel is having a couple of events. Most of Europe is still grounded. They are hoping to fly in September, but there won’t be a National Championship this year.
Adi informed the BOD that the online judging school had 30 pilots from around the world. Israel is having a contest in June when they will start their season. The Nationals will be in November. Adi is still working with Facebook and social media to show the pilots that IMAC is still going strong.
Primo asked what we do for the RPS system. Brad says it’s whatever points you got. Rich set a minimum of 3 contests to qualify, due to the restrictions.
Manrico said that there is no danger in IMAC going away. There is a lot of expectations and excitement on what will happen next year.
Mike asked to keep your regions informed and busy with IMAC. Everyone needs to keep their attention and focus on IMAC.
Meeting adjourned 10:45 p.m EST.