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We made it through another successful AGM. This time, the event was held in Chandler, AZ, right outside of Phoenix. The Arizona club combined the AGM with the Western States event and it all merged together surprising well. Congratulations to the club and its organizers for a job well done.
The biggest issue at the AGM concerned the JCNA dues increase. I was pleased that it was passed with a strong majority vote. However, I do realize that there were some who were not in complete favor of the proposal as written. If anyone has any questions, either I or our business committee will be happy to help you or your club get the answers needed. Even with this increase, which does not start until next year, it will take a few years to put the JCNA back on a solid financial footing.
The JCNA stages the AGM early in the spring so that any rule changes are in place before the first event of the year. There were no Slalom changes. The Rally changes were wording and clarification issues. On the Concours event, besides wording issues, the S2 class requirements were tightened to require Wheel to Wheel qualification to participate in the class. Changing the rules can be an issue, especially when the first Concours of the season is the day after the AGM. However, this rule did not affect the outcome of the Concours and will probably have little effect on other shows this year as this class has a limited amount of participation.
The rules for the Fred Horner Award have been changed to count participation, not scores achieved in certain events. This is also new for this year and makes it possible for any active member to win it.
The weather was great when we arrived and remained consistent for the next five days. On Friday, the Board of Directors meeting was held. This went well and we were out on time, which allowed us to take in some of the seminars. Saturday was the AGM. This was well attended but could always use more delegates. There was nice healthy discussion where needed but for the most part, everything went well.
The main surprise was the launch of the Tool Loan Program. This has been in the works for over a year and now has cleared all of the hurdles to make it happen. We have already shipped out tools to members. With over 300 genuine Jaguar Tools and still growing, no other club offers a program anything like this. After working on cars professionally for decades, I know there is nothing quite like having the proper tool for the job. There is now a link for the Tool Program on the right of the header bar on the front page of the JCNA web site. Please check it out even if you don't need a tool right now.
The Concours was held right outside the hotel on the town square. I did not get a count of the number of cars but there were a good many that I had never seen. Norman Dewis happened to be in town for the week and stayed around to visit. He also turned out to be our guest speaker at the Western States Award Banquet.
The Rally was changed to a drive at the last minute due to technical difficulties. This meant that I was able to see some scenery as a navigator rather than watch the directions. I was a guest rider in a highly- modified XKE and must admit that I had never traveled faster in any car in my life. These cars are very impressive when set up correctly.
The Slalom was held on Tuesday in a school lot about four miles from the hotel. There were a few glitches that were easily overcome and we were slaloming. Art Dickenson suggested we process the entrants in groups as there was a limited helmet supply. This worked out nicely and we got the event done without having to be there all day.
Overall, the JCNA is off to a good year. Won't you dust off that Jaguar in your garage and do something fun with your club?
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