Annual Meeting summary and a look ahead from our SFWDA President

From our recently re-elected President 2016-2017, Ray Stanley;

  First, I would like to thank each of you that shared time with us on Saturday, December for 2015 SFWDA Annual Meeting. We had approximately 40 people in attendance including Todd Ockert, President, Blue Ribbon Coalition and Vernon Ball, Vice President UFWDA plus an additional 35-50 on-line participants.

I would like to thank the 2015 SFWDA BOD for all their hard word work and support as we rebrand our association and build an incredible path for each of you, our MEMBERS!. Thanks Overlysoffroad Brian, Aimee Darnell, Doyle Punches, Kendall Flint Holbrook, Lucas Weidner, Jon Plazaand Walter Shafer. We have made significant strides because of each of you.

Our 2016 calendar was approved during the annual meeting and is attached in a PDF. Please include in your club calendars for 2016. Key dates are TrailFest 2016, April 29-30/May 1, Adventure Offroad Park and Dixie Run 30, September 22-25, Golden Mountain Park.

Several highlights from our meeting included a review of our membership growth and business support; our social media growth and the expanding footprint and a review of the 2015 SFWDA Grants. Thanks to Rock Solid Jeep Club for an outstanding job at Windrock Park; and Ohio River Fourwheelers for work on the Old Fincastle Road repairs as b part of the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway. We also introduced in 2015 our first series of SFWDA Educational videos; and the next series of videos will be completed soon for introduction in 2016.

Several initiatives approved for 2016 include regional Tread Lightly Training for our local clubs and the Trick N Traction folks have agreed to step up first and help us build the model. Additionally we approved moving forward with the 2016 additions of the SFWDA Educational videos under the guidance of Doug Wooten. Further we committed to sending one SFWDA designee to the 2016 Volunteer Leader & Land Stewartship Workshop with Del Albright in April 2016.

2016 SFWDA Grants approved include the digital mapping of the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway; Uwharrie Friend request for the Uwharrie National Forest; Friends of Boone DBBB Hollerwood OHV mapping request from the ORFW,

We also had extensive reviews of land issues impacting Beasley Knob OHV, Daniel Boone, Uwharrie, TN Council on Greenways and GA Trails and Greenways.

2016 Officers for your association include Ray Stanley, President;Brian Overly, Vice President; Aimee Darnell, Secretary; Doyle Punches, Treasurer; Kendall Flint Holbrook, Conservation and Land Management; Lucas Weidner, Membership and Jon Plaza and Oscar Indreland, Public Relations. Walter Shafer, System Admin. Oscar Indreland, welcome aboard!

Two Leadership initiatives for 2016 will be a review and revisions of the association bylaws (Kendall Flint Holbrook, Dave Halstead, and Oscar Indreland); and UFWDA Four Wheeler of the Year nominations (Kendall Flint Holbrook)

To all, 2015 was a busy year and we thank you for your support. We have a lot of work to do in 2016 and will continue to solicit your support, your energies and your guidance.

Thanks.

Ray Stanley
President SFWDA 2016-2017
www.sfwda.org
www.facebook.com/groups/SFWDA/

---

2016 Calendar of Events

•January, 2016 – Board of Directors Work Session
•February, 2016 – Board of Directors and Leadership Council Meeting
•March, 2016 – SFWDA Meet and Ride, Stones River Jeep Club, Middle TN
•March, 2016 – Board of Directors Work Session (As Required)
•April 8-10, 2016 – VLLS #6, Ashland, MA
•April 9, 2016 – Overly’s St. Jude 4 Wheeling for the Cure
•April 2016 – TN OHV Day on the Hill
•April 16, 2016 – Georgia Bounty Runners Mud 4 Blood
•April, 2016 – Board of Directors Work Session
•April 29-30/May 1, 2016 – TrailFest, Adventure Off Road Park
•May, 2016 – STLCA GSMTR
•May 31, 2016 - Damn Locals Memorial Day Bash
•June 3-5, 2016 – Unlimited Off Roads Expo, Louisville, KY
•June, 2016 – SFWDA Meet and Ride, Rock Corps 4X4, SHOP, NC)
•June, 2016 – Board of Directors and Leadership Council Meeting
•August 14-16, 2016 – Uwharrie Off-Road Training Center and "BFG 36 Hours of Uwharrie"
•September, 2016 – CTB Fun Caravan
•September 22-25, 2015 – Dixie Run 30, Golden Mountain Park
•October 1, 2016 – Knox Off Road Wounded Warriors Project
•October, 2016 – Board of Directors and Leadership Council Meeting
•October, 2016 – Board of Directors Work Session (As Required)
•November, 2016 – SEMA and NAMRC Meeting, Las Vegas, NV
•November, 2016 – SFWDA Meet and Ride, DB Backcountry Byway, ORFW
•November, 2015 - Board of Directors Work Session (As Required)
•December 3, 2016 – SFWDA Annual Meeting and Leadership Council

Southern Four Wheel Drive Continues to Gain Momentum

    As we tally up the results from an exciting year in 2014, it's clear that SFWDA is continuing on the momentum of renewed enthusiasm! After just recently adding several more new business members we are connecting to the Off Road business industry in exciting new ways. We have a renewed sense of energy among our clubs and members, and we are beginning to all become better focused on how to strive together.

 Just this week alone we have added two new Business Memberships in Tennessee, and a first time club from Georgia. Our members are loyal and dedicated just like our business's who offer our individual members opportunities an and savings you wont want to pass up. Let's all please warmly welcome the following new members of the SFWDA family; 

       
 We're also making strides in our Membership Database through the support of Lucas Weidner our newly elected Co-Director of Membership as he aggregates data on daily basis in-between breaks at his real job and with his little spare time as a father he has single handed managed to wrangle up all of our historical membership data and compiled it into one clean database of approximately 4,300 unique identities. We plan to be reaching out to the most recent part of that group in the near future to invite  them back once again into SFWDA and our free Newsletter Subscription as blaze forward into 2015.  

 
2014 Membership Status; As discussed in our Annul Meeting last weekend our current membership numbers are rising quickly. To date we have the following active Business, Individual, and Club / Group Members;
 

• 21 active businesses 
• 786 total active people
• 409 active people who are club members
• 377 active people who are individuals
• 27 of which are premium individual members
• 34 total clubs / groups 
• 18 active clubs / groups

  We already have commitments from several additional large Clubs and Groups within the next month. Who will be the next Business to join forces in our mission for 2015? 
 

  ET4WD just assisted us with hosting our productive and efficient Annual Meeting last weekend in Oak Ridge, TN. If you were not able to attend in person or on the webinar we also have the complete presentation posted as a PDF file on our website message board.

 As we wrap up a successful year lets all take a moment to reflect on the success of 2014 and remember those who helped make this happen.  We have an amazing and diverse Board of Directors, Delegates, and Leadership Council deeply involved in a variety of aspects within SFWDA day to day operations. However, it is only with the support of each individual like yourself that we will continue to make it happen. So Thank You to all the individuals reading this all the way to the last detail to stay in tune. Thank You to the many clubs who collectively volunteer thousands of hours to numerous and elaborate volunteer efforts and Thank You to those business's who continue to support us among our common goal. 
 

* Conservation * Education * Recreation