BAOC Board Meeting
Date: (Thu.) Mar. 14, 2024
Location: Video Conference
Event Directors: 
- 925.516.7622, - 650.906.9672
Type: Quarterly meeting of the Board of Directors; 8:00 PM; all club members are welcome
Minutes of the BAOC Board Meeting held March 14, 2024
Present: Officers – Marie-Josée Parayre (President), Stephanie Maclean (Vice President), Graham Brew (Event Coordinator), John Richardson (Secretary), Gary Kraght (Treasurer); Board members – Dan Greene, Steve Haas, Jay Hann, Jeff Lanam, Matej Sebo, Dennis Wildfogel; Visitors – Nick Corsano, Bill Cusworth, Tapio Karras, Vicki Woolworth, Gavin Wyatt-Mair
The meeting was held via Zoom. It was called to order by the President at 8:03 PM.
President’s Report – Marie-Josée Parayre
The President drew the Board’s attention to the upcoming Junior Nationals, which have a particularly high level of participation this year. It was suggested that the Club restart a BAOC junior team, however more participants will be required. The President also announced a number of ongoing Eagle Scout projects, including the addition and/or improvement of permanent courses.
Jeff Lanam notified the Board of the upcoming San Jose Conservation Corps Outreach event on April 21st. The organizers invited the Club to put on an orienteering exhibit (with booth fee waived), and we have agreed to participate. This will include a model course with pin punches in Martial Cottle Park. A large turnout is expected, and this will hopefully attract interest in the Club’s activities.
Secretary’s Report – John Richardson
The minutes of the previous Board Meeting were approved by email. There were no other email votes since the previous Board Meeting.
The Secretary reported on the first BAOC Casual Forum, which took place on February 6th. Topics included recruiting more volunteers, (not) adopting Livelox, and ideas to support other clubs. A more detailed summary is available on the Club website.
The Policy Review Committee presented the remaining four policies left over from the previous Board Meeting. These concerned:
- Reimbursement for event directors and course setters
- Time limit for expense reimbursement
- Enforcement of course time limits
- Required course-closure time
The Treasurer will craft a new policy to replace items 1 and 2 based on feedback from the Board, including a recommendation for travel reimbursement costs that will not require regular updates in response to changes in gas prices.
Policies 3 and 4 were rescinded by a motion proposed by the Secretary and seconded by the Vice President. There were no objections raised.
Treasurer’s Report – Gary Kraght
The treasurer reported an approximate income of $8,500 and expenses of $18,400 this year to date.
Income was primarily from the Club’s first two events (Harvey Bear and Calero; Browns Valley is still being calculated) and membership fees. Expenses include remaining items from Cal-O-Fest (including a $3,300 payment to the U.S. Forest Service and $3,800 to reimburse a Swiss tour group), annual dues to OUSA, Western Race Services fees, equipment locker rental costs, land use permits, and E-punch unit replacement.
Nominating Committee Report – Steve Haas
The Nominating Committee consisted of Nick Corsano, Steve Haas, Chuck Spalding, and Dennis Wildfogel. They motioned to recommend the following nominations for the upcoming Annual General Meeting:
- President – Stephanie Maclean
- Vice-president – Tapio Karras
- Secretary – John Richardson
- Treasurer – Gary Kraght
- Event Coordinator – Graham Brew
No objections to these nominations were raised.
Membership Report – Werner Haag
This item was skipped as the Membership Director was not in attendance.
The President noted that the Club has been reimbursed by MemberPlanet for the delay in releasing membership fees.
Event Coordinator’s Report – Graham Brew
The Event Coordinator presented the current status of planned upcoming events.
The events at Joe Grant and Indian Valley are confirmed; work on Point Pinole is in progress but the event is likely to go ahead. Spring Lake is at risk of cancellation as nobody has stepped forward to take the role of Course Setter.
Work is underway to plan a weekend of events at Lake Tahoe. The Board expressed interest in a Night-O for the evening of August 3rd. Candidate maps for August 4th (including Little Truckee Summit and Northstar) were discussed, and Sagehen was ruled out.
In November, there will be a Golden Goat event at Tamarancho and a joint event with NAV-X at Shell Ridge (now the permit issue is resolved).
The Event Coordinator explained the reduced number of events at East Bay parks, including Morgan Territory, is due to the difficulty of obtaining permits. Relatedly, the East Bay Regional Park District has voiced a strong preference to have the same person apply for all orienteering permits going forward.
The Club is looking for a new Regional Event Coordinator for the East Bay as the present incumbent is looking to take a break. This person would be best suited to handle communication with East Bay Parks going forward.
Other Business
The Course Quality Director presented a proposal for an updated policy for Brown courses. The Board’s consensus was that the guidelines should be strengthened to require (and not simply recommend) the addition of a shorter Brown course for local meets in more challenging terrain. It was also suggested the policy be updated based on the outcome of experiments already planned for upcoming events, including the Silver course at Joe Grant. Dan Greene will adjust the proposal based on the Board’s feedback and present at a future meeting.
The next meeting will be the Annual General Meeting, tentatively scheduled for May 5, 2024 to coincide with the Indian Valley event.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:03 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
John Richardson
BAOC Secretary