The ballots are counted and this is how the membership voted:

President          Tom Hitchcock (19 votes)

Vice President Bill Hamilton (12 votes)
                           Susan Danvers (7 votes)

Treasurer          Bonita Hamilton (19 votes)

Site Director     Fletcher Grosz (19 votes)

Thanks to everyone who participated by voting and especially those who ran for offices. Next year we will get the process off about 2 months in advance and really get the word out for the folks wanting to hold a board position!

Our latest meeting was held on July 19^th. Attendees were Davy, Jason and Carlton Tipton, Carl Ross, James Tate, Susan Danvers, Joel Martin, Christian Ginter, Tom and Melanie Hitchcock, Bill Hamilton, Mason McCombs, Jonathan Hicks and myself. The next meeting will be held on August 19^th at 7:30 PM at A2Z Race Park. PLAN TO ATTEND.

A special guest to the meeting was A2Z Pest Control owner and ORCCC landlord, Tom Peak. Tom stopped by to check things out. The board discussed a few issues and we are happy to report that all is well. As the old saying goes, sort of, when the landlords happy, everyone is happy!

Tom Hitchcock and Matt Mosieur have chosen their first official job after being voted into office this term. They are going to re-vamp, re-write, re-vise and otherwise get the ORCCC a useful rulebook. This book will be chocked full of racing rules, as well as useful etiquette rules that will all help to make visits with the club enjoyable. We will get the revision printed and provide a copy to all members and make a copy available at the track.

It looks like we’ve got some helpful members willing to act as backup for the "regular" crew that runs the Saturday races. Carl Ross and Mason McCombs have agreed to cover for Tom Hitchcock on race days as overall race director and answer man! Matt Mosieur, Mason McCombs and Fletcher Grosz have all expressed an interest in learning the computer and cover for Bill Hamilton as needed. Carlton Tipton graciously volunteered his wife to help with concessions, but until I hear those words come from her mouth, I’m not falling for that one! Ha! Thanks to everyone for helping this all come together!

Speaking of running the computer…as per our vote at last month’s meeting, the new transponder system has been ordered. It should arrive in 3-4 weeks and will be followed quickly by new software to run it all. Bill Hamilton has the lowdown on all these new fangled gadgets; I just know it’s going to be cool! The board is also considering obtaining a desktop computer instead of the laptop, since we aren’t lugging the stuff back and forth from home every Saturday. We can get a faster processor, more memory and additional enhancements that will help run additional equipment as future needs arise. After the new package is functional and we’ve got all the bugs worked out, the club will be looking to sell the current system and the laptop. We already have bids on both items, but if you are also interested in either item, let me know and we’ll add your name to the list!

So far the lawn guy has worked out like a dream. Since his prices are so reasonable and he does such a good job, we want to make sure we keep him around. Tom "the prez" suggested signing a one-year contract to keep him around to keep the park in tiptop shape. Tom will meet with him to discuss his views on the idea.

The signs spoke of at the last meeting are on their way to the track. Soon no one will have to speak at the track ‘cause there are signs to answer any question anyone might have! Actually, the signs will assist those new to our track figure out how we operate. We look forward to this addition to the best little R/C car club in Ocala.

The newly elected board made a few board changes at this meeting. By unanimous vote, Susan Danvers was appointed as Public Relations Director (PR chicklette sounds better, but I was vetoed!) for the ORCCC. Susan is a businesswoman by trade and knows how and who to talk to in order to get the job done. Our goal is to get our name out in the community as a fun and family oriented hobby that anyone can enjoy. We are leaning towards newspaper and radio coverage with possible TV coverage for the big events! The board also re-appointed Carl Ross as the track liaison. Carl held this position last year and we were so happy with his work, we voted him back in this year! Seriously, folks we thank you for offering to help keep us #1 in the R/C community.

Last but not least, the club has talked about hosting a big race event other than a regular series race. Bill has contacted Dan and Tammy Rodriguez, the folks that handle the Region IV Off-Road Series, to see if they knew of anything we can get our hands on. The calendar is full of various races and we really couldn’t come up with anything. Low and behold Tammy e-mailed us a fabulous idea; a Region 3/Region 4 shootout race! Region 4 is the entire state of Florida and Region 3 is Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee! Now if we can’t round up a great gaggle of racers out of this many states, we’ve got a problem. Everyone at the meeting thought the idea rocked, so we’re going to get the ball rolling in order to hold the race some time in the first week or so of November. The current "Shootout" Committee includes Jonathan Hicks, Carlton Tipton, Melanie Hitchcock, Carl Ross, James Tate (he wants to run the blower?!) and Tom Hitchcock. By the next meeting this committee will provide me with a list of classes we will run during the race, the date(s) we will run the race (including scheduled practice days) and the jobs/positions needing coverage in order to host a successful race. One specific sponsor for the event would be nice, but maybe multiple sponsors is the way to go. Whatever we decide, the flyers we mail out to everyone will tell the whole story! KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN FOR DEVELOPMENTS TO THIS SPECTACULAR EVENT. If you have a fabulous idea or want to offer your assistance, please let me know. Thanks in advance for all the help and remember gang, this one is going to put us on the map!!!

We are happy to announce new members since the last newsletter include: Don Stephens, the Cook Clan (a/k/a Randy, Trey, Vern and Blake), James Reedy and Jason, Davy and Carlton Tipton. Welcome aboard folks. Let us know what we can do to make your R/C experience enjoyable and we’ll let you know what you can do to make the club and track enjoyable for everyone!