MTB Club – President’s report

23/24 has been a busy year.

In the last 12 months the Southland Mountain Bike Club has achieved an incredible amount.

Club membership is currently in the vicinity of 450 members. Our events and trail network attract hundreds of mountain bikers who are not members in addition to numerous other recreational users and other Clubs.

I’d like to acknowledge outgoing president Donald Heslip who resigned from the president’s role in September last year. His leadership has been a catalyst in the club which has really progressed us forward. His measured approach has improved the clubs position with Invercargill City Council, Mountain Bike NZ and sponsors while also bringing in a greater sense of club cohesion.

ICC have been nothing but supportive of the club the last few years and it’s great to see our collective relationship mature into a spot where there is mutual honest respect where they’re offering support across multiple aspects of the Clubs activities. Their role supporting the club does not go unnoticed and needs a recognition and a thank you. Trails at Sandy Point are rebuilt utilising the income generated from the harvesting activities, the Bluff tourism infrastructure funding application, project management, liaison and generally being an enabler are a few of many examples. Our Club Memorandum Of Understanding with ICC etches an enduring mountain biking presence at both Sandy Point and Bluff and hopefully many other locations in the future.

At Sandy Point, our trail network is expanding in terms distance, variety and complexity. Future harvesting is going to continue creating frustration and opportunities for the club to rebuild trails, meet the needs of our members and the direction of where we want to be.

Bluff. It’s fantastic and exciting to see our vision for a diverse, purpose-built community accessible mountain bike venue progressing into reality. A massive amount of energy has been invested into the Bluff masterplan, advocacy and fundraising which is now in the process of being built. It’s like we’ve won the lottery, and the assets currently being built in Bluff, will bear fruit for the club, for many generations to come. It provides a location for skills progression, new membership, events, community activation, community connection, commercial ventures, storytelling and ecological enhancement.

Unfortunately the club is still feeling the effects of loosing Mitch Knoll and Will Implemans who were assets to the club. Their ability to getting shit done behind the scenes is sorely missed, whether it was improving our trail networks, pulling strings in the background or impassioning newcomers. It’s only fitting that both their legacy live on in the form of track names for progressing forward the next generation of club, committee, competitive and weekend warriors who will attempt to fill their now hollow shoes.

This year the club has moved its membership to Hivepass which marks a new era for the club. It will facilitate greater partnership with our sponsors and provide greater benefits for our club members. It will ultimately grow our membership, financial bottom line and our power to advocate for mountain biking across the Invercargill area and wider Southland Region.

There are a heap of opportunities for the club in coming years to play a greater part in facilitating regional mountain biking development. Gore, Waikaia and Te Anau all have a mountain biking presence and they along with a number of other trails trusts throughout the region would benefit from the Club’s knowledge, experience and connections. This is an opportunity for us in the future which is worth investing in.

The last 12 months has been a hugely successful year with our competitive athletes. Numerous club members have been representing the club across New Zealand and around the world. They’ve shown commitment, resilience and a humble attitude which reflects well on the Club. There are too many podiums at south island, national and international events to mention here which demonstrates that our club facilities, events and vision for the future of mountain biking in Southland is working.

This year the Committee surveyed the wider club members in order to get a better understanding of what our members want. Overall 67 participants completed the survey and 97% were satisfied with their experience of the club. There are some opportunities for the club moving forward to hold more social events and hosting more events in Bluff.

Finally, our club is blessed with having a strong and loyal bunch of volunteers which enable all of the great things to happen. Everything outlined above has been activated and achieved by passionate mountain bikers. Whether its in the form of attending a working bee to improve our trails, sitting in registration tents, marking out courses, updating the website, posting on facebook, attending committee meetings, writing up minutes, donating fuel and sponsoring events with money or prizes, it is the committee and wider network of volunteers that keep the pedals turning for the club.

I want to conclude the presidents report with a wide ranging thank you to all of the volunteers, past and current who have donated their time, knowledge and money to progress the club forward. In the past few years the clubs has embarked on a number of ambitious plans such as the Bluff redevelopment project, rebuilding trails at Sandy Point and hosting secondary nationals which have asked a lot from our volunteers and it would be remiss of me to overlook the impact that our ambitious plans have had on a relatively small committee. I can honestly say that the club wouldn’t be in the strong position it is now without all the dedication of our volunteers. A significant thank you is owed to you all.

Southland Mountain Bike Club AGM

Present:  Marcus Roy, Ryan Harvey, Jamie Cross, Craig Holland, Kathryn McLachlan, Ben Frantz, Stu Hill, Aidan Baron, Ainslee Wilson, Ivan Hodgetts, Kirsten Rodgers

Apologies:  Jake Bradshaw, Analise Wilson, Steve Wilson, Darren Scott, Pete Jefcoate, Carey McDowall

Minutes of previous AGM:                                        Moved: Marcus Roy

Seconded: Jamie Cross

President’s report: Marcus Roy                                   Moved: Ivan Hodgetts

Seconded: Craig Holland

Treasurer report: Jamie Cross                                   Moved: Jamie Cross

Seconded: Kathryn McLachlan

Election of the committee and office bearers:

President:  Marcus Roy                                              Craig Holland/Ivan Hodgetts

Vice President:  Kathryn McLachlan                             Marcus Roy/Ainslee Wilson

Treasurer:   Jamie Cross                                                  Craig Holland/Kathryn McLachlan

Secretary:  Vacant

Media/Liaison:  Craig Holland                                       Kathryn McLachlan/Marcus Roy

Secondary Schools:  Pete Jefcoate, Ben Frantz, Darren Scott

Committee for 2024:

Marcus Roy, Ryan Harvey, Kathryn McLachlan, Darren Scott, Craig Holland, Jamie Cross, Pete Jefcoate, Steve Wilson, Carey McDowall, Lia Stiles, Analise Wilson, Jake Bradshaw, Ben Frantz, Stuart Hill, Aiden Barron, Ainslee Wilson, Ivan Hodgetts, Kirsten Rodgers

General Business:

Membership Fees

2024/25:  $20 student, $25 adult, $35 family

Southland Mountain Bike Club Volunteer of the Year

No nominations, to be discussed at a later date.

Life members

No nominations

AGM closed at 7.45 pm