We’re in the midst of election season, and that’s as true for the SCCA as it is for the rest of the country.
Since rogues-racing.com is only about 3 months old, that didn’t leave us adequate time to review all candidates for all positions as we might have liked. What we did decide to do, though, is cover the hotly-contested race for Area 4 Director of SCCA. Running for the position are Steve Harris, John LaRue, and Marcus Merideth.
Area 4 essentially is the Great Lakes region, and this particular position holds a seat on the Board of Directors for SCCA. So it matters. The person elected to this position will have a voice on all matters presented to the SCCA Board.
Our initial approach to get our readers the best information possible was to hold candid, one-on-one interviews with each of the candidates. We reached out to all three of them, but aligning schedules, particularly around the Run-Offs, proved to be difficult.
In order to get their responses to you before the election deadline is here, we had to change it up a little. We were able to spend time via phone with Marcus Merideth, but were only able to send our questions via mail to both Steve Harris and John LaRue. This didn’t allow us to follow up on responses the same way we did with Marcus, but then Steve and John could also answer the questions in their own time.
Rogues-racing.com’s core purpose is to serve to Solo community, so many of our questions are Solo-centric, since that’s probably what you care about the most. To keep it as level as we could, we tried to keep the questions and interviews to fit within 20 minutes of time for the participants. The responses of each of the candidates have not had their content edited. The responses are listed below alphabetically.
We hope this article provides some insight that will be helpful in your decision-making process. No matter what side of the issues you come down on, just please take the time to vote.
Steve Harris
PM: When did you first become active with the SCCA?
SH: I have been a member since 1985 — 23 years.
PM: What positions have you held within the SCCA?
SH: Regional Executive, Western Ohio Region, Asst. RE, Western Ohio Region, Deputy Executive Steward, and Executive Steward.
PM: You’re also currently campaigning for Area 4 Director? Why this position?
SH: The SCCA has an excellent staff; passionate members and a reasonably good product. What we do not have is good leadership. We have had bad leadership within the BOD for many years and this has resulted in many converging problems. We need Directors with vision and passion that have the business skills to right our ship. I have those skills and I am ready for the effort it will take to build consensus with the other Directors and move the club forward.
PM: What do you hope to accomplish in this capacity if elected?
SH: I am the only candidate who has offered a comprehensive plan for the future. My Platform is 7 pages long, but in it you will see our plan for success. I fully intend to accomplish every item on this agenda.
PM: So what would you say is the strength of the SCCA as relates to Solo?
SH: We have great members that have dedicated many hours to making Solo a success. We have tradition, infrastructure and name recognition.
PM: What area needs the most attention, again with regard to Solo?
SH: I began this campaign thinking that Solo was better off than other areas of the club. But I have learned in talking to many members that site acquisition remains our biggest concern. With many factories closing, it may be a good time to buy or lease some lots. The SCCA has a committee for track acquisition and has financial interests in several tracks around the country. The same program should be extended to Solo.
I also believe that National Solo sponsorships are not reaching the Regions as they should. One of my goals is a comprehensive approach to recruiting and retaining sponsors – something the SCCA has done a poor job of in recent years. With better management, money should flow from the National office to the Regions to help subsidize the Solo program, rather than the opposite.
Finally, 20% of the SCCA’s budget is payment of insurance premiums. Read my Platform as I have detailed some of the problems in this area that, when fixed, will lead to lower premiums. Lower costs will help all of our programs.
PM: So, why Steve Harris? What thoughts do you want to leave with the readers of Rogues-racing.com?
SH: All three candidates are good men and would make a good representative if all we had to do was represent our GLD members. But, the SCCA needs strong leadership with exceptional business skills right now. As President and CEO of a small business for 25 years, I have those skills. They were forged in a very difficult high tech field where my company has constantly been an innovation leader. We have the highest margin of return in our industry because I understand how to generate income, control expenses, and manage personnel. I also am a member of several public and private Boards, so I know how to build consensus and drive results.
In addition, the job of Executive Steward exposes one to all the inner workings of the club. I know all the current SCCA BOD members. I know the CRB, the COA, the National Administrators, the staff members, the President of SCCA Enterprises, GLD Inc. members, etc. I am the only candidate who can make an immediate impact to the club. And I am the only candidate endorsed by all of our recent GLD Directors (Larry Dent, Bob Burns, Eric Skirmants, Chuck Shapiro, Peter Hylton) because they know what I bring to the table is what the SCCA needs right now.
Please let your readers know that I will listen to their concerns and answer all their questions. I will communicate with our Regions at least once per month. I believe that all SCCA members are equal and all have good ideas that are worthy of consideration. Getting those ideas from concept to reality is where I excel and why our members should vote for Steve Harris.
Thank you!
John LaRue
PM: When did you first become active with the SCCA?
JLR: I first became a member in 1993. Previous to that I was involved in kart racing throughout North America.
PM: What positions have you held within the SCCA?
JLR: I have been a participant. I own, sponsor (haha), wrench, engineer and drive my own car. I have also served as a driver instructor at a number of racing schools sanctioned by the Indianapolis Region, SCCA.
PM: You’re also currently campaigning for Area 4 Director? Why this position?
JLR: I believe that it is in this position that I can have the greatest impact. The club has been in a definite state of decline with respect to participation and its stature in the motorsport community. I believe that change must come from the top. We have seen a continuing stream of poor management and decision making at the top which has given rise to potential liabilities and loss of competitors; this must be corrected. I believe that with my credentials I can help to effectuate that change. I will be approaching this from a car owner, sponsor, wrench, engineer and driver’s perspective. If you will, the participant or customer’s perspective which I think is critical to the future health of the club.
PM: What do you hope to accomplish in this capacity if elected?
JLR: Given your “customer baseâ€? I’ll assume the question is to be answered specifically towards Solo, as in “what do you hope to accomplish for the Solo Program if elected.” If you wish for me to revisit other concerns, please let me know.
So proceeding on that path ….
Generally from what I understand the Solo program is in good shape. It sounds to me that many autocrossers perceive that the BOD, while truly interested in Solo being successful, doesn’t understand it and doesn’t take the time to understand it. Even from my perspective it is apparent that the BOD signs off on everything the SEB sends to them unless someone has made a stink directly to the BOD.
In the conversations that I have held with autocrossers this is a double edge sword because at the same time that they want the BOD to understand them, they would also probably be wary if the BOD started making decisions about Solo on their own! All I can say is that as a member of the BOD I would encourage a better understanding of the program and even encourage all of the members of the BOD to take part in a solo event during the year as a true competitor!
In the printed statement that I sent out to the Area 4 members I have indicated that I would like to see someone at the National office assigned to the post of a site/facility liaison. This person would be charged with the responsibilities of interacting with existing facilities where SCCA events are held to improve accommodations, safety, scheduling and decreasing costs. They would also be responsible for developing and finding new facilities/sites for SCCA events.
PM: So what would you say is the strength of the SCCA as relates to Solo?
JLR: As I previously mentioned on the phone, the strength is in numbers (members) and history which the SCCA has in spades. From what I understand, the Solo National rules are essentially very good with only small class by class issues that need to be addressed. This is much the same as in the road racing arena of which I am more familiar. Again, as with road racing, the SCCA solo/autocross rules are looked upon for use or at least a foundation by other organizations throughout the country for staging like events. This puts the SCCA in a unique position to dictate safety and competition and to likewise increase the pool from which new Solo members are derived. If they are participating under SCCA rules it should be a logical step to bring them into the SCCA fold!
Being a part of SCCA allows the easy spread of information on how to best run events from all over the country. Our Divisional and National conventions are a wonderful means to spread the word of the best operating methods for Solo events and for being a part of how to improve the program. These events can and should be used and marketed to autocrossers across the country.
SCCA further offers an excellent insurance program although costs have gone up. I hope to delve into this matter in more depth when elected.
SCCA’s steward program is the best. Simply stated it gives good training to those who administer our programs. This is across the board for all SCCA events! We need to encourage more people to join this program and infuse new blood. In the turbulent economic times this is an excellent program to market to new members.
PM: What area needs the most attention, again with regard to Solo?
JLR: From what it sounds like to me it would be site acquisition. Again, as I have said previously, I think it is important to Solo and all of our programs to have someone on staff working to develop new sites and maintain existing ones. If we lose the sites upon which to stage our events we no longer have a program. In this day and age site acquisition for any SCCA event is becoming a more difficult issue. Whether it be cost, liability, competition for dates or simply a perception problem we need someone who is well spoken and trained as to how to cultivate and develop these relationships and to address the needs and concerns of the facility owners/managers. This is not to say that the regions should not be active in such pursuits, they simply need the assistance of someone who would be dealing with these issues on a daily basis. We need a professional tending to this critical issue.
PM: So, why John LaRue? What thoughts do you want to leave with the readers of Rogues-racing.com?
JLR: Solo, to me, does a number of things for SCCA. Most importantly to its participants it is a fun but ultra-challenging motor sport that in many ways is probably more difficult than road racing, and believe me I’m not taking ANYTHING away from road racing. I can’t imagine showing up in my FC to a track I have never seen before, getting no practice or qualifying time only the opportunity to review a track map and walk a course defined by cones and then laying down ONE lap on COLD tires. After that you have to make adjustments to go faster…..yeah right! I need repetition!!
Anyway, I think it is an excellent program and one in which SCCA must look to grow its membership. Autocross is more visible to non-members because it can be staged in a parking lot across from a crowded mall or in otherwise populated areas. It is SCCA’s street race! People see us and want in! Later, they may try road racing or rally or maybe they’ll want to work races. Conversely I think many will be very happy with what they find in the Solo program and remain active there. Solo is the obvious public arm of the club’s various activities and for that reason alone SCCA as a whole must devote more resources to find and keep event sites. The return is more success for Solo and more members for the rest of the programs. The bottom line is that the BOD must better understand this critical asset.
On a more general premise I believe that the BOD must not only hear what the membership tells it, but it must listen and respond. We need to decrease the cost of participation in those areas over which we have some control. We must encourage intelligent decision making and reduce the liabilities that the club seems to find itself mired in on a daily basis. We need to decrease the “hassle factor� associated with being a member and participating in SCCA events and finally, we must call upon our members to determine what “they� want and what will encourage them to participate on a more frequent basis. While Solo is an important asset, the members are the most valuable.
Thank you for taking the time to hear me out. If you have further questions or comments my door is always open!
Marcus Merideth
PM: How are you Marcus?
MM: Pretty good. How are you guys doing?
PM: Good. We appreciate taking the time to sit with us this morning.
MM: My pleasure.
PM: I was hoping to talk to you a little bit today about your role in SCCA, looking backward, in the moment, and at what you are hoping to do looking forward if you don’t mind.
MM: No problem.
PM: Okay. So just to kick it off, a lot of this information is on your website, but if I can ask you to briefly tell us when you first became active with the SCCA.
MM: Well I became active with the SCCA back in late eighties. Just after college, actually.. Wait. Step back. I actually went to a couple of things when I was in college, back in the mid-eighties.
PM: When did you start off with it?
MM: Ah.. In college we had a little club we used to do some rallies and some autocrosses… back in.. oh boy, 1985 probably?
PM: All in the St. Louis area?
MM: Yes.
PM: Okay. So since then, looking at your site, and reading some of the things available when I type your name in Google, there’s a bunch of stuff that comes up. I know you’ve had several different positions with the SCCA, but if I can ask you to talk about some of the more prominent positions you’ve held — what some of those positions have been?
MM: I was on the Detroit region Board of Directors for a while. I was RE [Regional Executive] for a while. I’ve also been on the Solo Events Board for SCCA, and I was also chairman for the last three years. I retired last December. I had this year off, and it was kind of nice.
PM: So of the different positions that you have held, which ones would you say you’ve enjoyed the most or you felt had been the most rewarding.
MM: I guess they’ve all been pretty rewarding. I’ve learned a great deal of… Well, being the RE for Detroit – Detroit is a very large region — , It really requires that you learn how to manage people. I hate to say that. But it’s been a real nice way to learn things, also how to make things work. The SCCA is a club. And a lot of club members are very passionate about their club. And its also a business unfortunately. We have to make money to stay in business, right? So it becomes very interesting challenge to balance those two things out sometimes.
And being an RE… That was educational for me to learn how to do that. To learn how to balance. To manage people, manage personalities to some extent. It was very rewarding. Being on the Solo Events Board… The people that were on the boards… On the advisory committees and on the board itself were very good people. They work very hard. It was very nice to see that commitment at such a high level. The Board of Directors I worked with over the years had been very good also. So it’s always been very nice to talk to those people… and hey, you’re dealing with a bunch of Type A personalities, so that was always entertaining [laughs].
PM: I can imagine you are probably dealing with a lot of opinions from the participants as well when you’re on the SEB.
MM: Oh yeah. It’s funny. People coming up to me at events, saying things about this rule change or that rule change, you know… Everybody’s got an opinion. Some are right, some wrong… and often times more than one is right! Depends on how you look at it. So you have to take it as their passion about it, just as I’m passionate about what I care about. So it’s just part of the entertainment sometimes.
PM: So, of course we know you are currently campaigning. Can you tell me exactly what position you are campaigning for?
MM: Area 4 Director for SCCA. Basically that’s for Great Lakes Division.
PM: So then if elected to that capacity, that is a Board Of Directors position, correct?
MM: Yes. One of the Board of Directors.
PM: Okay. So why are you interested in this position? What do you think draws you to want to fill this role?
MM: Well, when I was growing up as a kid, my parents taught me that if you care about something, be it a club or whatever, you need to give back to it. You know, I always thought that was the right thing to do. That’s why I was on the Detroit Region Board, that’s why I was on the SEB, that’s why I chaired test and tunes… or whatever, because I thought that since this is something that I love a lot, I should give back to it. The current board of directors over the years have been very… umm… not Solo centric, to put it that way. We have not been, as soloists, represented very well. And so whether this is good or bad to you, we haven’t been. I dunno. I guess I feel I have a kind of different perspective from a lot of the members on the board right now. I’ve been an RE, I’ve chaired events. I’ve conducted a lot of events. I’ve road-raced in the past. I’ve rallied in the past a little bit…. I’ve had a pretty broad background.
PM: So you’ve had enough positions to justify running, and not just in a Solo capacity. But I kind of want to focus on one of the statements you made; You talked about the SCCA not being as solo-centric as maybe it could be. Now I’m going to ask you to speak to the inverse in a moment as well, but what would you say is the strength of the SCCA as relates to support Solo? In reference to either resources or governance?
MM: I think the way the club runs… The Board of Directors has to approve the rules, but then the SEB presents those rules and those changes. The Rally committee is the same thing. The Road race committee also is the same thing. The club is itself is set up to be run by volunteers, and the Board as more of an oversight type of group. In the past, the board has been more hands on in road-racing, and I think they need to be. And very little hands-on in Solo. I think that’s good and bad. There are times when the Solo community needs direction, and there are times we don’t want direction. So you get both. You don’t want too much, but you want some. It’s always nice to have some direction or some feedback. And always bad to have too much or none at all. So… I think the club as a whole needs to understand that idea a little bit better.
The Board in my opinion right now is too hands on. The Board of Directors should not be making rule changes. I think that’s a last gasp effort. It should be done well below the board level. The volunteers that work in the committees are picked because A) they care and B) they are knowledgeable. So they do a good job. Everybody makes mistakes but, in general, they do a pretty good job.
PM: Okay. So what would you say, if you were elected in this position on the Board of Directors, are the areas you think need the most attention? Maybe less in regard to how much guidance they give, but what is it that you think that the SCCA Solo program really needs?
MM: My belief has always been that, if you’re somebody’s boss, or somebody’s leader, that you give them the tools they need to do their job.
In the case of the Board of Directors, the SCCA needs to provide tools to the membership to do those volunteer jobs. Finding volunteers is tough because the jobs are tough. We can improve that. Technology is a great thing. We can go out and improve our management of letters to the SEB, or whomever. We can be much more transparent about it. There’s a lot of technology out there to make a much more transparent process. I think a lot of that would solve the ‘Secret Car Club of America’ thing.
You’ll hear people talk about ‘us versus the guys in Topeka’, and that isn’t the way the club is. The club is everybody. And if you care about something, your voice should be heard. You may not always get the answer you want, but you should always be heard. It’s very ‘closed door’ right now. It has been like that forever, I think. But there’s technology available right now we should push for. Making that technology available to us, to our club members working on those committees, would make their jobs much easier, and make the club much friendlier.
PM: Working on a Board of Directors for a professional organization myself, I wonder if, like other organizations, you think that part of the problem is that the SCCA has to serve multiple masters. In this case, torn between road racing, rally, Solo…? Is there a problem with dedicating efforts and resources to Solo?
MM: I think it’s the same core customer. The core customer is the motor sports enthusiast, right? Whether it be drift, rally, road race, solo, drag race… The core customer of the SCCA is the motor sports enthusiast. And making it easier for those different areas of the club to work is part of the Board of Director’s job, in my point of view.
PM: One last question: Marcus Merideth is running for the Board of Directors in Area 4. Why should I vote for Marcus Merideth?
MM: Well, I think I bring a broad background. I’ve done everything in the club. Corner worker on some occasions, chaired some events, been a Chief Steward at a ProSolo and National Tour event, been an RE, to being on the rules committee for Solo. So I’ve got a pretty broad background. I’ve worked at every level in the club. I’m fairly open-minded. I try to be level headed whenever I possibly can…
The club is going through a tough time. We have competition right now. We’ve never really had that before in our life as a club. We need to get better, so we can address that. If we don’t we’re going to be in trouble. I’m concerned about that. I want us to do well.
PM: Do you have anything else to say?
MM: People should vote. I mean, I hope they vote for me, but they should vote either way. Express your opinion. Steve’s a nice guy. I don’t really know John, but I’m sure he’s a fine guy… Express your opinion. Go vote. The last time there was a vote, out of 5000 people in the area, I think around 1000 voted last time, to give you an idea.
PM: Wow. Twenty percent participation in a volunteer organization is pretty poor.
MM: Yeah. My opinion is, if you don’t like me, fine. You don’t have to vote for me, but do go vote. [laughs] You know… But really, the only way things get better is if someone says or does something about it.
PM: I hear ya. Thanks so much for your time. I really appreciate it.
MM: No problem. Glad to do it.
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