So I’ll kick off the nominations with this;

Jana & Kathy have decided not to seek re-election for their board seats (Vice President & Events Coordinator respectively).  On behalf the entire BOD I’d like thank them both profusely for all of their effort and accomplishments this year as CSS Officers.  Jana & Kathy have been on the BOD this previous year and many other years before, their contributions to the CSS cannot be overstated.

So, I would like to formally nominate Ben Kanselbaum for Vice President and Mimi BowQuay for Events Coordinator.

Ben is a P4 PG Pilot and has been flying for 9 years.  He is one of the friendliest and most even-keeled Pilots in the air and hanging out in the LZ.  I believe he would be a great addition to the CSS BOD for his communication skills, judgement, and character.

Mimi BowQuay is also a P4 PG Pilot and has been part our CSS family for the past 5 years.  She has one of the brightest personalities in the LZ so if you haven’t met her yet, well I guess you don’t fly much!  Mimi actually has significant professional experience as an Events Planner & Business Owner so I believe she’s the perfect fit for our new Events Coordinator.

I accept the nomination to run for CSS President and I appreciate the gestures of confidence posted above.

I’d like to take a minute to bring you all up to speed on some the issues that the BOD has been dealing with over the past year and share how that will shape the board’s agenda going forward.  Please keep in mind that there is some heavy stuff on the horizon, so I’m not speaking in terms of just what I personally see as my own agenda if elected, this what the CSS Board will have to tackle no matter who has the job in the coming year (and possibly for several years to come).

I’ll split these into more digestible bites, one thread at a time.  In no particular order;

The LZ and the grass – In December of 23 we spiked for aeration, spread two truckloads of fresh topsoil, and spread out 34 bags of fertilizer.  During 2024 we fixed or replaced every sprinkler head in the LZ.  The result was the greenest, healthiest LZ we’ve seen in years and made for some amazing landings in the spring through early summer.  Unfortunately we eventually lost the battle in late summer to the heat and some plumbing issues.

We were losing water in the pond and it got to danger low levels in July and August.   We couldn’t find any leaks at the time but after countless sessions of testing zones, fixing smaller problems, replacing some parts, we finally isolated a leak in the South-East corner.  We recently dug it up to get a plan for repairs.  It’s a cracked ‘T’ fitting in the 3 inch supply line and explains a lot about why we were slowly losing water without ever seeing as serious blow out.  We will get those PVC parts and get that fixed as soon as possible, hopefully before the end of March.

We did have ‘blow out’ of sorts in November… The pressure relief valve blew off at the south side of the LZ and almost drained the pond.  I was able to get that fixed in December/January with the help of a few volunteers.  The new parts are a little more ‘hardened’ and there is a new shut-off valve adjacent to the pressure-relief valve in case it needs to be isolated or secured faster in the future.

I fully expect the LZ to be as green and vibrant this spring as it was last year.  With a little luck and a few more fixes I think we will do better keeping it green longer into the summer this year.

Another issue that is like a dark cloud looming on the horizon, and will be for the foreseeable future, is the Developer that has purchased all of the land to the east of the LZ.  Several CSS Members outside of just the BOD attended a meeting last year where the a representative of Encore University Hills showed us the draft concept drawings for the 300 plus homes they intend to build directly next to us.

Let me be very clear about this – while it is not the end of the world that homes will potentially be built in the area where we make our landing approaches it is, at the same time, probably the most serious issue we face.  What we DO NOT want to do is to turn this into a hostile situation with the Developer, that is the most sure way to lose.

Now please understand that the Developer does not have approved plans or building permits from San Bernardino County… yet.  We are not sure how many years it could take, or if it could take a turn and rapidly accelerate.  What we know for sure is that a special committee of the Club’s most dedicated and experienced members are keeping on top this and making sure we take all the right steps in this process.

We don’t have a general time-line right now… the bureaucracy is slow moving.  All I can say for sure right now is that, again, this is the most serious issue we face and it will take the cohesiveness of our Free-Flight community along with every resource we can muster to make sure we preserve what so many people have worked so hard to build at CSS.

So those are the simple facts about how we got here on this wild, expensive, and frustrating insurance ride.  What can I do about it?  I have to do what is best for the Club, and what is best for the CSS is to have coverage that we can afford, coverage that insures our actual activity, and adequate insurance that won’t leave us hanging out to dry in the event of a claim.

Myself and Jamie Shelden (Secretary) have spent the better part of the last two years rebuilding trust with both USHPA and RecRRG.  It hasn’t been easy, it hasn’t been fun, and certainly wasn’t done without due consideration from the entire BOD.  I know people have some very strong feelings about the ‘establishment’, but let me assure you that we didn’t go into this trying to spite anyone’s feelings or experiences.  It boils down to this simple question;

Should the club continue to pay over $26k per year, or would you rather pay $10K?

We have to be the adults in the room, and we have to do what is best for the Club… the ENTIRE Club Membership. We have spend CSS funds on a policy we can afford and one that also provides legitimate protection from legal actions. Its. That. Simple.

So in summary, I’ll give you my final pitch to earn your vote for CSS President.

I don’t toot my own horn much, but with the issues we are faced with I’m going to have to set humility aside for a moment and not pull any punches…

For the last two years I’ve bloodied my knuckles almost every single weekend of the year at AJX, even through the winter.  I’ve skipped multiple flying days to fix the tractor, mow the LZ, chase gophers, fix the roads, fix the plumbing, kill weeds, paint the Pavilion beams, change windsocks, and fix a dozen other random things.  I’ve spent numerous hours at home and in my office finding tractor parts, shopping for maintenance supplies, writing risk mitigation proposals, calling insurance companies, building relationships with the Forest Service,   the Sherif, CAL Fire, and rebuilding bridges with USHPA and RecRRG.  I would be remiss to not mention that were a few die-hard volunteers who helped me do many of these above tasks, and to them I am forever grateful.

I’ve got 10 things cooking but I’ve only got 4 burners on the stove.  I certainly can’t do all of this alone.  I need good people on the board, and I’m going to be asking for more engagement from members to get through some of these future challenges.  When its time, and its a necessity, I’m going ned every last member of CSS on-deck to get us through what might be a tough situation with the developer next-door.

It’s not going to be easy, I never believed it was going to be.  Just know that one thing I will never do is quit.  Let’s leave the drama behind and work together on these things, its the only way.

Please vote for me for CSS President, Ben Kanselbaum for VP, Jamie Shelden for Secretary, Jeff Bether for Treasurer, Mimi BowQuay for Events Coordinator, Nate Halahan for Communications Director, and Peter Song for Site Coordinator.

I’ll leave you all with one quote, its not the most famous but it sure is inspiring… the Veterans in the Club will understand this one;

“WHAT makes the grass grow?! BLOOD makes the grass grow!!!”