Attendance
Paul Scalisi - President, Lambert Lai - Vice President, Reid Stava - Technical Chairman, Nancy Zangerle - Finance Chairman, Kelly Holmes - Governors' Representative and D14, Eric Faust - Executive Director, Molly White - D1, Will Welles - D2, Aidan Glackin - D3, John Surguy - D4, Angelo Buscemi - D6, Russell Cook - D7, Chip Till - D8, Brian Malone - D10, Kevin O'Brien - D12, Tim Oelschlager - D15, Todd Warnygora - D18, Douglas Schenk - D19, Jasper Van Vliet - D20, John Cianciarulo - D21, Kris Werner – Observer, Rob Whitley – Observer.

1. Call to order and attendance.
P Scalisi called the meeting to order at 2000 EST.

2. Approval of minutes of last meeting.
R Cook made a motion to, “Approve the minutes of the last meeting as presented.” The motion was seconded and approved.

3. President's Report - Paul Scalisi
P Scalisi thanked everyone for their participation in the meeting and noted that there were several new District Governors joining for the first time. He then gave a recap of the recent World Council Meeting in Jacksonville, Florida. The IJCA has elected Jim Farmer as Chairman, Robin Eagleson as Vice Chairman, Tim Winger as Chairman of the Technical Committee and Paul Scalisi as a member of the Executive Committee.
Several rule changes were presented and some were approved. A proposal to lower the all-up sailing weight to 1130kg was approved. This will allow for items to be dropped off of the optional equipment list and will not require the issuance of new measurement certificates, merely a change to Part C of the measurement form. A proposal to allow a wire strop attached to the mast support beam to the deck of the boat was approved in principle and the final wording of the rule will be circulated for approval by the NJCAs prior inclusion in the new rules. The proposal to change the overall crew weight and sail configuration was rejected. The proposal to allow GPS devices was narrowly rejected. Two proposals from the ITA-JCA regarding the builder’s weight of the boat and serial number requirements were also rejected. Three minor wording changes to the Class Rules were approved but do not affect the individual sailors or change the boat set up. It was noted that all the approved rule changes will need to be submitted to ISAF for approval before they will be included in the new Class Rules. It is expected that ISAF approval will be granted in the first quarter of 2011. A proposal from the Technical Committee was approved requiring all NJCAs to institute a system to scan all racing boats for illegal materials. The details of what tools will be used and the method for scanning boats will be distributed and it is expected that a large portion of boats will be scanned by the end of 2011. The World Council approved a bid to hold the 2014 World Championship in Newport, Rhode Island. The World Council approved a proposal to make the entry for the 2012 World Championship open to all members in good standing of the J/24 Class with the stipulation that all helmspersons were also members in 2011 and helmed in at least one District or higher level regatta in the calendar year 2011. The IJCA is also in the process of redesigning and improving its website. It is expected to go live in the near future.
P Scalisi thanked the Board of Governors for all their support. He noted that he has had a great experience as the USJCA President over the past 2 years but is ready to pass off the class leadership to new blood.

4. Office Report - Eric Faust
E Faust gave a report on the USJCA finances. The Class is in good financial shape with a small net profit projected for the year ending December 31. Sales of royalty labels have been strong as the economy has been improving slightly. Membership is down slightly for 2010 but it appears as if the decline has stabilized. The balance sheet shows the USJCA cash position sufficient to continue regular class operations. The 2011 wall calendar has been printed with photos once again donated by Tim Wilkes. It is available for sale now and will be again offered to all USJCA members when they renew membership. Membership renewals are being prepared and will be mailed before the new year while online membership for 2011 is available at the present time. Overall the class is in a good position to achieve growth over the coming years. R Cook made a motion to, “Approve the financial statements as presented.” The motion was seconded and approved.

5. Technical Report: Reid Stava
R Stava gave a report on technical issues. He indicated that most of the pertinent issues had already been discussed in the World Council Meeting report but noted that he had recently attended the South American Championship as the technical representative and had scanned all those boats for illegal materials. He is familiar with the process and will assist in implementing a plan to scan the U.S. boats at major events in the course of 2011. K Holmes stated that each district should probably purchase its own metal detector to carry out the plan. E Faust noted that after a boat is scanned, a rider will be attached to the existing measurement certificate indicating the date and location that each boat was inspected. This will remain with the measurement certificate and will be passed along to each new owner as boats change hands. R Stava said he would find out from the International Technical Committee the preferred equipment and would help to organize a group purchase of the proper tool. The expected cost is around $25 per tool.

6. Old and unfinished Business
B Malone gave a brief report on the Pan Am Games Trials to be held in Tampa, Florida in February. The NOR is posted, registration is open and regatta is coming together well. The event will include 7 races over 2 days. Crew is limited to 4 people and 320kg total. J Van Vliet noted that he had recently participated in the Pan Am Pre-Games and there was a question about weather genoas should be carried on the boat even though they are not allowed to be used. E Faust said this would be explored and a decision would be made for the Trials in Tampa.

7. New Business
a. 2012 World Championship in Rochester, NY
Requirements for Entry - As noted in the President’s Report, the 2012 World Championship in Rochester will be an open entry event. After discussion it was determined that the requirements for entry established by the motion approved at the IJCA World Council meeting would be the only requirements for entry for U.S. participants. Namely, that each entrant shall have been a member of the J/24 Class in 2011 and shall have helmed in at least one District, Regional, National or International level regatta during the calendar year 2011.
Clarification was made that participating in one single district level regatta is sufficient for U.S. entrants. If a district holds a series to determine its champion, an entrant in the World Championship is not required to “qualify” for series scoring but rather participate in a single regatta.
Measurement – K Werner, representing the Rochester J/24 Fleet indicated that he has been working on several ideas to assure that all boats are measured fairly at the World Championship. Several different plans have been suggested and he and the local organizers will work with the IJCA Technical Committee to develop a workable system. It was agreed that all boats wishing to participate in the 2012 Worlds should be measured prior to arriving in Rochester to ensure that there are no slowdowns or surprises at the regatta site. P Scalisi indicated that there is an existing lack of measurers and efforts should be made to train more qualified measurers around the country. K Holmes said that there is interest in holding a measurement training seminar in conjunction with the U.S. National in 2011.
Charter Boats – K Werner indicated that he has already begun the process of obtaining high quality charter boats and has the assistance of the entire district in this project. The Rochester fleet will also be working on a regional basis to locate boats available for charter. Again the organizers will be working with the Technical Committee to develop a plan for measurement that maximizes the benefit to the competitors. P Scalisi noted that a standardized charter agreement is being developed by the Technical Committee to assure that all parties are covered in the charter arrangement.

b. IJCA Website Development
N Zangerle spoke about the development of the new IJCA website. It is almost ready to go live. The new system will allow news and articles to be posted easily. There will be opportunities to have banner ads for major regatta hosts and will give new opportunities for regatta sponsors. The website is now in template form and can be adopted to fit the needs of country websites including the USJCA. As the website is deployed, N Zangerle will be looking for feedback and critiques to help improve the format, especially for the discussion forum which has been a great asset for the members over the years.

c. Regattas Status Reports
2011 Midwinters/Pan Am Games Trials - Tampa, FL. B Malone indicated that the regatta is well organized and everything is set for another great event. Mount Gay rum will be the lead sponsor and sponsorship from Layline and several sailmakers is in place.

2011 Nationals – North Dallas, TX
K Holmes stated that the regatta will be held on the week following the annual Leukemia Cup, which will serve as a warm-up event for the nationals. They are actively seeking sponsors, but several are already in place including Layline and Z Sails. K Holmes noted that a letter is being created to solicit potential charter boats for the regatta and it is expected that several good boats will be available in the near future.

2012 Midwinters
N Zangerle made a motion that, “Fleet 86 and the Davis Island Yacht Club be awarded the 2012 J/24 Midwinters.” The motion was seconded and approved.

2011 Worlds in Buenos Aires, Argentina
E Faust stated that there was significant interest from U.S. sailors wishing to sail in the 2011 Worlds. There are still berths available and anyone interested should contact the class office for further information. Berths available from all NJCAs once again include one women’s team and one youth team. Colin Leon, who represented the U.S. as the youth representative at the 2010 Worlds is interested in participating in the 2011 Worlds. E Faust said it would be good to also have a women’s team in attendance and all leads should be directed to the class office. A small cash grant from the US SAILING Foundation has been arranged and will be distributed to the youth team and the top amateur team from the U.S. An email vote will be arranged to determine the recipient for the top amateur grant.

d. Future Events Planning
2011 Regional Championship Dates and Locations
E Faust noted that some of the regional championships for 2011 still need to be scheduled. Each District Governor responsible for the 2011 Regional Championships should contact the class office as soon as possible when the location and dates are determined.

2012 National Championship
As determined at the 2009 meeting, the 2012 Nationals should be held in the western U.S. T Warnygora stated that the fleet in Dillon, Colorado has been in discussion with the class office and are very interested in hosting the regatta. It would be scheduled for late June of 2012. The lake offers a great vacation opportunity and had the facilities to accommodate a large fleet. He indicated that he would prepare a formal proposal to host and would distribute it for approval through the class office by January 11, 2011.

2013 Nationals
E Faust noted that with the current regatta schedule, the 2013 Nationals should probably be held in the central part of the country for geographic reasons. T Oelschlager stated that Fleet 1 near Minneapolis, MN would be very interested in hosting. He will also put a formal proposal together for distribution and approval through the class office.

2013 North Americans
W Welles stated that the Newport, RI fleet is very interested in hosting the 2013 North Americans in advance of the 2014 World Championship in the same location. He agreed to prepare a proposal to host and distribute it for approval through the class office.

e. District Governance
It has been recently noted that the method for governing districts within the USJCA is not clearly articulated in either the U.S. or IJCA Constitutions. C Till indicated that he is interested in helping to establish some guidelines for district operations and will be writing a draft amendment to the USCA Constitution. E Faust indicated that any change to the USJCA Constitution would require approval by 2/3s of the Board of Governors. C Till was encouraged to create a draft document that could be circulated among the Board of Governors for input and amendment. The final motion could be distributed and vote on by email during the course of the year.

8. Nominations and Election of Officers
As required by the USJCA Constitution, the members of the Executive Committee shall be nominated and elected annually. P Scalisi asks for nominations from the floor.
P Scalisi nominated Kelly Holmes for President. C Till seconded and the nomination was approved unanimously.
R Cook nominated Lambert Lai for Vice President. P Scalisi seconded and the nomination was approved unanimously.
N Zangerle nominated Will Welles for Governors’ Representative. R Cook seconded and the nomination was approved unanimously.
L Lai nominated Reid Stava for Technical Committee Chairman. N Zangerle seconded and the nomination was approved unanimously.
R Cook nominated Nancy Zangerle for Financial Chairman. K Holmes seconded and the nomination was approved unanimously.

9. Schedule of Next Meeting
It was agreed that another teleconference should be held in 3 or 4 months. K Holmes stated that he would determine a good date and schedule the next call.

10. Adjournment
At 2235 EST P Scalisi made a motion to, “Adjourn the meeting.” The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.