Updated 10-18-00

AGM REPORT
US SAILING Multihull Council and Multihull Committee
October 13-14, 2000

Multihull Committee Working Party The Multihull working party met and discussed putting in place a youth championship. It was decided we would support a qualifying event for the ISAF Championships to be held year 2001 in France. The event would be the Midwinters East in Hartwell, Georgia, and would be an open event held on Easter weekend.

The Multihull Committee would like to have a presence at JO National event to be held June 21-27, 2001. We have asked the event organizers to include our children and are awaiting their decision.

Fast and Fun Youth Program   Our sponsor committed to $15,000 towards the Fast and Fun Program in 2001, $10,000 less than last year at this time. There is a possibility he will cover more but won't know until after the first of the year. We will start booking a schedule next month. Fast and Fun will attend the Sail America Boat Show in St. Petersburg to be held the first week in November. A video and/or CD is available on the activities of this program during the summer of 2000.

Terms of Reference for the Multihull Committee The Multihull Council approved the establishment of the Multihull Committee based on the Terms of Reference. See Action Item given to Board of Directors for approval. (This was approved by the BOD at the meeting Sunday, October 18.

Website   Ken Signorello, US SAILING Webmaster, made himself available to the Council for questions. Ken estimates that there are 10,000 to 20,000 hits per month on the Multihull Council site. Statistics are public and available on the home page of USSA. US SAILING is doing some marketing via the Web Pages, but it’s mostly word of mouth at this time.

Chat Room   The Multihull Council set up a Chat Room (through CatSailor forum) with a simultaneous Audio Cast concurrent with the Multihull Committee and the Multihull Council Meetings. This was the second trial at giving a presence to sailors who could not come to the US SAILING meeting. The MHC is the first to utilize the Chat Room to do business at US SAILING meetings. Very poor response was experienced again and consideration is being given to not spending the money required to rent expensive phone lines at the hotels.

Budget Review and Discussion  It seems that many sailors in the Multihull world do not see the value of membership in US SAILING. Members of the Council will try to revamp the various ads published in Multihull publications and class association newsletters. A membership drive is planned.

Again, for the 14th year straight, the Multihull Council will have no budget. Any programs it desires to accomplish will require self-sufficiency. This is the main reason to start a Multihull Committee. Committes are allowed to have budgets and councils are not.

Alter Cup   Steve Leo reports that the Alter Cup Event held in April 2000 at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club, California, was a successful event with 20 teams and 10 boats. They had tremendous coverage of the event on the Internet and through American Sailor Magazine, SailingWorld and CatSailor Magazine.

The next Alter Cup Event will be held April 22-26, 2001, on Inter 20s. The venue will be Pensacola, Florida. A presentation was given by a representative of Pensacola Yacht Club and The Key Team to host the event and was approved by the board.

Election of Officers and Area Representatives   Gordon Isco, Chairman of Nominating Committee, submitted a Slate of Officers for the year 2001. Additional nominations were submitted from the floor. The following nominations were approved: 
          Chairman – Arthur Stevens
          Vice Chairman – William Doelger
          Secretary – Deborah Schaefer
          Area A – Mike Grandfield
          Area C – Mark Santorelli
          Area E – Jamie Diamond
          Area F – Doug Camp
          Area J – Roger Brown

Women’s Sailing   Kathleen Tracy has been appointed as Women’s Representative to the Multihull Council. Women’s Teams are making headway in the world of Multihull sailing. Paul Ulibarri reports that in an open fleet of 100 boats at Hobie 16 Continental Championships, a women’s team finished 4th overall. At the last Hobie 20 Continental Championships, the women finished in the top twenty and even made the cover of CatamaranSailor magazine. And for the second year in a row, we've had a women’s team competing in one of the most grueling races of all, the Worrell 1000.

General Services The consensus of the Multihull Council is that we do not support a dues increase. Our members feel that it should be an aim of US SAILING to maximize inclusion and remove barriers to the sport of sailing. However, if a dues increase is inevitable, we would not want to see an increase above $45.

In Board action taken Sunday it was voted to increase the dues on a tier basis encouraging members to purchase a three year membership by increasing the dues for regular membership from $40 to $50 at the one year level, $40 to $45 at the two year level and $40 at the three year level. Because the Multihull Council has a Golden Anchor membership program in effect, our members will see an increase of only $5 per year when they sign up through the program. It wouldn’t matter how many years they sign up for.

Attendees and special guests at Friday's Committee Meeting

John Lovell, Olympian – Tornado, Southern YC
Doug Camp, Area F Nominee, US Tornado Assoc. 
Mike Grandfield, US Tornado Assoc., Vineyard Haven YC
Tami Shelton, 18 sq., Coast Catamaran Club, Ocean Springs YC
Janet Baxter, Budget Committee, Chicago YC
Roger Brown, Area J Nominee, NAHCA
Steve Leo, Alter Cup Chair, Hobie Flt #3
Darline Hobock, Portsmouth, Golden Anchor, Web Liaison, Windycrest SC
Bill Jolley, Sponsor, Choctawhatchee Multihull Assoc.
Nel Roberts, Membership Dir., US SAILING
Gordon Isco, Past Chair, MHC, Nominating Comte., Tampa Bay Cat Sailors, Gulfport YC,
Bill Doelger, MHC Vice Chairman, Safety-at-Sea, General Services, Alter Cup Comte., NEMA
Kathleen Tracy. Women's Rep., NAHCA, H-16
James B. Frederick, Area E Rep., PHRF Comte, Offshore Comte, PIBYC, Lake Erie Multihulls, FCA
Jamie Diamond, Area E Nominee, Facilitator-Chat Room, Portsmouth, Alum Creek Sailing Assoc,
    OCRA
Paul Ulibarri, Area H Rep, NAHCA, Race Chair
James Appel, Chair, Youth Championships Comte
Rich Brew, Training Comte, Rudder Club
Fred Hagedorn, Youth Dev. Working Party, Chicago YC
Lee Parks, Staff Liaison, US SAILING
Betsy Beddow, Area F Director, Windycrest SC, CSSA
Deborah Schaefer, MHC Secretary, Inshore, Alter Comte, PIBYC, Lake Erie Multihulls, Div. 10HCA
Art Stevens, MHC Chair, Regional Training Coordinator, King Harbor YC
Via the Chat Room: Thom Merrill and Mary Wells

Attendees and special guests at Saturday's Council Meeting

Mike Grandfield, US Tornado Assoc., Vineyard Haven YC
Doug Camp, Area F Nominee, US Tornado Assoc. 
Roger Brown, Area J Nominee, NAHCA
Steve Leo, Alter Cup Chair, Hobie Flt #3
Darline Hobock    Portsmouth, Golden Anchor, Web Liaison, Windycrest SC
Gordon Isco, Past Chair–MHC, Nominating Comte, Tampa Bay Cat Sailors, Gulfport YC
Bill Doelger, MHC Vice Chairman, Safety-at-Sea, General Services, Alter Comte, NEMA
Kathleen Tracy, Women's Rep., NAHCA, H-16
James B. Frederick, Area E Rep, PHRF Comte, Offshore Comte, PIBYC, Lake Erie Multihulls, FCA
Jamie Diamond, Area E Nominee, Facilitator, Chat Room, Portsmouth, Alum Creek Sailing Assoc.,
    OCRA, LYC
Paul Ulibarri, Area H Rep, NAHCA, Race Chair
Deborah Schaefer, MHC Secretary, Inshore, Alter Comte, PIBYC, Lake Erie Multihulls, Div. 10HCA
Art Stevens, MHC Chair, Regional Training Coordinator, King Harbor YC
Ernie Bain, Jr., Area J Judge, Balboa YC
John Williams, The Key Team/Pensacola YC
Corrine Isco, Wife
Stephen Jeffries, Treasurer
On the Chat Line: "Fast Sailor" from TX, Thom Merrill, Tom Korzeniewski–NAHCA,NY