The meeting was called to order at 7:20 PM at the Half King on 23rd St., attended by Mike Cook, Ray Fusco, Jeff Folmsbee, Bill Bergeron, Marcus Demuth, Olly Gottel and David Michael.

1.    Plans for the spring Boating Safety Workshop were discussed

Background: the proposed Safety Workshop will be hosted at Pier 66 by the Guild and be designed to give paddlers and representatives from the Coast Guard, New York Harbor Patrol, NY Fire Rescue and ferry operators a chance to spend a few hours with paddlers to share insights on water safety and protocols, and generally gain face time and have a friendly dialogue, with practical demos, so that everybody has a better idea of the issues we all face in the river and New York Harbor, so as to increase boating safety. This will be achieved by demonstrating paddling safety procedures (self-rescues, assisted rescues, towing) and discussing topics such as what kind of safety equipment we carry; visibility (day and night, including lighting and other equipment); rules of the road; radio protocol; ferry terminal crossing protocol; how to tell the difference between a paddler in trouble and a paddler taking a break; generally, to hear each others’ concerns and answer questions regarding human-powered boaters.  Another goal of the workshop will be to get some of the non-paddlers into boats.

Following this review it was suggested that practical demos, both “live” at the event and on videotape, might include: towing, T-rescues, 2-person (or more) “all-in” rescues, and self-rescues including rolls, the re-entry and roll, and use of a paddle float. “Cleopatra’s Needle” and timed rescues were also discussed.

It was suggested that a rescue taping session be scheduled the week after Thanksgiving.

The list of paddlers who have expressed interest in helping to organize and/or participate in this event includes Dave Michael, Olly Gottel, Fiona Cousins, Jim Hoffman, Steve Del Gaudio, Andrea Hecht, Tim Gamble, Dan Starer, Lyn Goldsmith, Joe Calto, Peter Riley, Ray Fusco, Bill Bergeron, Marcus Demuth and Jeff Folmsbee.

It was agreed that the Guild should reach out to representatives from other human-powered boating organizations (such as the LIC Boathouse, Sebago Boathouse, Floating The Apple, others) after a preliminary planning meeting has been held with the Coast Guard.

If you would like to participate in the planning of this event, please contact Jeff Folmsbee, Jeff@hrpg.net.

2.    Plans for the proposed Teva Film Festival, presented by the Guild and hosted by New York River Sports at Pier 66, were discussed at length.

Upshots from that discussion include:

•    The date to float to NYRS will be January 12th, with a storm date of January 19th.
•    Discounted Tickets will be sold in advance, probably by using Paypal on the HRPG.net site; full-price tickets will be available at the door.
•    Permission will be sought from the Trust to sell beverages and food.
•    A silent raffle or auction may be held.
•    In addition to Whitewater and Sea Kayaking films provided as part of the Teva Film Festival package, locally-produced trip slideshows and films may also be shown, perhaps in the Pier 66 classroom, simultaneous and/or in conjunction with the films screening in the main boathouse. Screening times will probably include a whitewater film session, followed by an intermission, followed by a Sea Kayaking film session.
•    Justine Curgenven and Brian Smith may also be contacted to discuss the possibility of contributing material to be screened.
•    Marcus estimates audience capacity as +/- 100 people in the main boathouse.
•    Ticket prices should be “reasonable” but are not yet determined.
•    Blue Man Group will provide a large projection screen and DVD player for the event.
•    Bill can provide an additional amp and speakers, if required.
•    The Trust will be asked to provide tables and chairs.
•    Marcus will draft a press release for review, which will serve as the template for event promotion.
•    The Promotion Campaign will include: targeted mainstream media outlets to be determined, including the Village Voice, New Free Press and Time Out; notices on all local paddling sites and lists, such as Nyckayaker, Sebago, Yonkers, LIC, Connyak, MKC, NYRS, Pier 63 Hold Group, Paddle.net, and others; the Trust will be asked to post a notice/link on the Hudson River Park Trust site; Carter Craft will be asked to post a notice and write an article on the event, in addition to posting a Film Festival link on Waterwire; postcards will be printed and distributed at targeted sites across the city such as EMS, Paragon, Princeton Ski Shop; John Doswell and other active personages on the waterfront will be contacted for more promotion ideas; outreach should also include whitewater sites, interested groups and venues, to be determined.
•    Insurance for the event will be researched by Mike Cook.

3.    Mike reported that he has an application for insurance that would cover this event, to be discussed when we get more information from the agent as to coverages provided.

4.     It was agreed that Guild business cards should be designed and printed. Bill volunteered to follow up on that.

5.    Bill reported that the HRPG.net website is up and still under construction and introduced the subject of how to upload content therein.

6.    The possibility of securing a pool for winter rolling sessions was discussed, with Bill reporting that he has made preliminary contact with a private health club in the basement of the St. George Hotel in Brooklyn, and that they might be open to further discussion if the sessions were open to all club members. It was agreed that this would be an excellent arrangement and Bill will follow up.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:30PM.

Submitted for Board Review on November 26 2007 by
Jeff Folmsbee, Secretary
HRPG