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My Motive - Digital APBA
Motive. An underpinning of the legal system that is a pillar of our democracy. It is only fitting that you question my motive. So, I'll lay it out for you to ponder.
My brother Ed, who many of you know, has long begged me to support APBA with a plan to go digital. It wasn't until Grant won two nationals in 2010 with Ed's Mercury did he have any leverage. It wasn't that I didn't want to help, it was just that I knew the headache and heartache the comes along with such an endeavor as I had seen it first hand with both Ed and My father, Steve in their tireless commitment to the sport. So, I reluctantly agreed to lay out a vision for the APBA BOD. I told him and the BOD that I would guide and support APBA, but that my company, Crown, would not do it.
Why then is Crown now doing this work? A fair question that I'll attempt to address. As I dug into what needed to be done and how much it would cost I became distraught that the "APBA.org = All things Power Boat Racing 2015" was doomed to failure. There was far more to be done and far more costs required than APBA has or will have funds to implement. So, I offered an alternative solution. Crown would undertake this project at our direct costs and, if we go over the budgeted costs, Crown will foot the bill (which we most certainly will). There would be no markup for software, hardware, hosting, and salary of folks doing the work. Additionally there would be no SG&A (Sales, General and Administrative expense aka "overhead") cost allocation. And further, 100% of my time would be for free. Yet still further, we would work with vendors to convince them to undertake this as a charitable endeavor and seek to get as much for free or at cost as possible. A program that Crown frequently sells for 10 times (not a typo) to the "for profit" world for far less of a solution (ask anybody in this industry and they will tell you we can't do even a fraction of this for the budgeted amount -- no way, no how -- not even at cost). We would strive to achieve 80% of the typical results for 20% of the cost (or 10% as it may be). This was the only possible way I saw to undertake the Digital APBA endeavor in a manner that has any chance of success for APBA.
But why? Why on earth would I offer this alternative? It doesn't address MY motive.
My motive. APBA has shaped me and is shaping my family. For those of you who don't know me, I'll introduce myself. I come from a long history of boat racing. My father started racing in APBA at Huntington IN in 1958 when he was 21. He carries an APBA membership number of 2 (my son is 13070). I went to my first boat race at only several months old (far older than Kelly and Ed's newest at 2 days). My childhood memories are mostly filled with boat racing trips including (but not limited to) traveling / sleeping with 13 family members in a 20' Mini Winnebago (I had to sleep on a board across the driver and passenger seat along side my sister Beth). I remember the trip to Oroville, stopping by the Grand Canyon and Yosemite National Park for the 1983 nationals (I was 11). I remember all those trips to Wakefield with drivers meetings in the ice rink and riding my bike to the top of the hill just across the road. I remember my first race in a Junior Runabout at the 81 nationals in Dayton OH (not so coincidentally now where I now live). I remember all those testing trips to Florida in the spring to prepare for the season. I remember leaving nearly every weekend on Friday and getting home on Sunday when my friends wondered what was so special about boat racing that I would want to give up messing around with them on the weekends. I remember working my tail off to win the Nationals because of it's so highly coveted position (and narrowly missing oh so many times). And I'll never forget my favorite lesson, only recently put eloquently into words by the great Ricky Bobby: "if you ain't first, you're last".
As I've grown older (some would say grown up), I look back at all of those experiences as a kid and know how much it shaped me. Made me who I am. Competitiveness yet cooperation. Race course enemies, yet on shore best friends. Give (patrol boat duty), and take (my time to race). Community, yet individualism. Team sport on shore, yet individual sport on the water. Most of all, family AND friends.
When I quit boat racing altogether in 2001 after 20 years of racing, I thought it was for good. It was the same year I started Crown Partners. While Crown has grown to be something special to me and had many accomplishments, I alway felt there was something missing in my life. The hole was filled when I received a call from my son Grant in August of 2008 (I remember it vividly as it was a Friday afternoon). He was calling me to tell me that his uncle Ed had put him in a J hydro and that it was the coolest thing he had ever done. And, he wanted permission to race it that weekend. Ironically it was a race in Dayton OH. I reluctantly agreed. Reluctantly because I had a business to run. I had friends to be with. I had chores around the house to attend to. And I KNEW the commitment racing would take.
After the Grant's first race on Saturday, when he came in with an ear to ear grin that would make any mother and father give in, we were officially back in boat racing. We dove in head first after the Dayton race. We even made the trek out to the 2010 Oroville nationals (when my son was coincidentally also 11 years old). We've had our share of ups and downs and were recently able to put another Hearn (our 4th member) into the Hall of Champions. So, here I am. At the same point my father probably was around 30 years ago. Do I take only "take" from the sport that has meant so much to me and my family -- and will mold my family for the coming decade(s)? Or, do I "give" like he has in a way that will help this 100 year old sport that has changed the lives of so many families get back on track? Knowing full well the criticism I was about to receive.
Enough on motivation. If you don't see my motive at this point, I just can't help you see it.
My philosophy. APBA is of the members, by the members, for the members. Anything APBA does is for the benefit of the members. If it benefits APBA, but not the members -- its not the right thing. Sometimes its hard to connect these dots, but if they can't be connected, then we shouldn't be doing it.
Criticism / Mistakes. We will make mistakes. I promise. As Mario Andretti said: "if you aren't banging it up, you just aren't driving it fast enough". I invite your criticism. Know that I'll also reach out to you for your own contribution when you do so.
Right thing to do? I believe so. But, it isn't the only thing to do. There are still lots of other things that need to come together in order to reverse the current downswing trend. We need simpler classes. We need simpler / clearer rules. We need more competitive racing equipment that can be bought new. We need an ecosystem of providers that see a benefit in selling (making a profit) by supporting the sport. We need equipment (not just motors) more readily available. We need more members and probably employees of APBA to help prospects move from "interest" to ownership of equipment (kudos to the racing schools that are having success in this area) to first race. Most of all, we need more members to do more to help. Part of my aim is to take much of the burden off of the now overworked folks that donate tireless time to the sport in "transfer" activities and allow them to refocus towards "transform" activities. There is just far too much manual work being done to operate APBA, races, etc. Transforming APBA is what needs to be done and I for one believe it can be done. All I ask is that you Believe, even if you do nothing else. For without it, we're all doomed to a tireless defeat.
Worth It? You certainly are entitled to your opinion. My perspective is that the end result of keeping the sport around is definitely worth it. We have a better product than many of the other racing communities. As this is a member lead organization, it's on us collectively if it doesn't succeed.
What's your motive? To save $25/year? Really? That' won't even get you 6 gallons of fuel. C'mon. What is it? To show the members you know a better way? I hope so. Contribute it and jump on in.
Thank you Hydroracer for this forum and community to enable me to post this.
Richard
Motive. An underpinning of the legal system that is a pillar of our democracy. It is only fitting that you question my motive. So, I'll lay it out for you to ponder.
My brother Ed, who many of you know, has long begged me to support APBA with a plan to go digital. It wasn't until Grant won two nationals in 2010 with Ed's Mercury did he have any leverage. It wasn't that I didn't want to help, it was just that I knew the headache and heartache the comes along with such an endeavor as I had seen it first hand with both Ed and My father, Steve in their tireless commitment to the sport. So, I reluctantly agreed to lay out a vision for the APBA BOD. I told him and the BOD that I would guide and support APBA, but that my company, Crown, would not do it.
Why then is Crown now doing this work? A fair question that I'll attempt to address. As I dug into what needed to be done and how much it would cost I became distraught that the "APBA.org = All things Power Boat Racing 2015" was doomed to failure. There was far more to be done and far more costs required than APBA has or will have funds to implement. So, I offered an alternative solution. Crown would undertake this project at our direct costs and, if we go over the budgeted costs, Crown will foot the bill (which we most certainly will). There would be no markup for software, hardware, hosting, and salary of folks doing the work. Additionally there would be no SG&A (Sales, General and Administrative expense aka "overhead") cost allocation. And further, 100% of my time would be for free. Yet still further, we would work with vendors to convince them to undertake this as a charitable endeavor and seek to get as much for free or at cost as possible. A program that Crown frequently sells for 10 times (not a typo) to the "for profit" world for far less of a solution (ask anybody in this industry and they will tell you we can't do even a fraction of this for the budgeted amount -- no way, no how -- not even at cost). We would strive to achieve 80% of the typical results for 20% of the cost (or 10% as it may be). This was the only possible way I saw to undertake the Digital APBA endeavor in a manner that has any chance of success for APBA.
But why? Why on earth would I offer this alternative? It doesn't address MY motive.
My motive. APBA has shaped me and is shaping my family. For those of you who don't know me, I'll introduce myself. I come from a long history of boat racing. My father started racing in APBA at Huntington IN in 1958 when he was 21. He carries an APBA membership number of 2 (my son is 13070). I went to my first boat race at only several months old (far older than Kelly and Ed's newest at 2 days). My childhood memories are mostly filled with boat racing trips including (but not limited to) traveling / sleeping with 13 family members in a 20' Mini Winnebago (I had to sleep on a board across the driver and passenger seat along side my sister Beth). I remember the trip to Oroville, stopping by the Grand Canyon and Yosemite National Park for the 1983 nationals (I was 11). I remember all those trips to Wakefield with drivers meetings in the ice rink and riding my bike to the top of the hill just across the road. I remember my first race in a Junior Runabout at the 81 nationals in Dayton OH (not so coincidentally now where I now live). I remember all those testing trips to Florida in the spring to prepare for the season. I remember leaving nearly every weekend on Friday and getting home on Sunday when my friends wondered what was so special about boat racing that I would want to give up messing around with them on the weekends. I remember working my tail off to win the Nationals because of it's so highly coveted position (and narrowly missing oh so many times). And I'll never forget my favorite lesson, only recently put eloquently into words by the great Ricky Bobby: "if you ain't first, you're last".
As I've grown older (some would say grown up), I look back at all of those experiences as a kid and know how much it shaped me. Made me who I am. Competitiveness yet cooperation. Race course enemies, yet on shore best friends. Give (patrol boat duty), and take (my time to race). Community, yet individualism. Team sport on shore, yet individual sport on the water. Most of all, family AND friends.
When I quit boat racing altogether in 2001 after 20 years of racing, I thought it was for good. It was the same year I started Crown Partners. While Crown has grown to be something special to me and had many accomplishments, I alway felt there was something missing in my life. The hole was filled when I received a call from my son Grant in August of 2008 (I remember it vividly as it was a Friday afternoon). He was calling me to tell me that his uncle Ed had put him in a J hydro and that it was the coolest thing he had ever done. And, he wanted permission to race it that weekend. Ironically it was a race in Dayton OH. I reluctantly agreed. Reluctantly because I had a business to run. I had friends to be with. I had chores around the house to attend to. And I KNEW the commitment racing would take.
After the Grant's first race on Saturday, when he came in with an ear to ear grin that would make any mother and father give in, we were officially back in boat racing. We dove in head first after the Dayton race. We even made the trek out to the 2010 Oroville nationals (when my son was coincidentally also 11 years old). We've had our share of ups and downs and were recently able to put another Hearn (our 4th member) into the Hall of Champions. So, here I am. At the same point my father probably was around 30 years ago. Do I take only "take" from the sport that has meant so much to me and my family -- and will mold my family for the coming decade(s)? Or, do I "give" like he has in a way that will help this 100 year old sport that has changed the lives of so many families get back on track? Knowing full well the criticism I was about to receive.
Enough on motivation. If you don't see my motive at this point, I just can't help you see it.
My philosophy. APBA is of the members, by the members, for the members. Anything APBA does is for the benefit of the members. If it benefits APBA, but not the members -- its not the right thing. Sometimes its hard to connect these dots, but if they can't be connected, then we shouldn't be doing it.
Criticism / Mistakes. We will make mistakes. I promise. As Mario Andretti said: "if you aren't banging it up, you just aren't driving it fast enough". I invite your criticism. Know that I'll also reach out to you for your own contribution when you do so.
Right thing to do? I believe so. But, it isn't the only thing to do. There are still lots of other things that need to come together in order to reverse the current downswing trend. We need simpler classes. We need simpler / clearer rules. We need more competitive racing equipment that can be bought new. We need an ecosystem of providers that see a benefit in selling (making a profit) by supporting the sport. We need equipment (not just motors) more readily available. We need more members and probably employees of APBA to help prospects move from "interest" to ownership of equipment (kudos to the racing schools that are having success in this area) to first race. Most of all, we need more members to do more to help. Part of my aim is to take much of the burden off of the now overworked folks that donate tireless time to the sport in "transfer" activities and allow them to refocus towards "transform" activities. There is just far too much manual work being done to operate APBA, races, etc. Transforming APBA is what needs to be done and I for one believe it can be done. All I ask is that you Believe, even if you do nothing else. For without it, we're all doomed to a tireless defeat.
Worth It? You certainly are entitled to your opinion. My perspective is that the end result of keeping the sport around is definitely worth it. We have a better product than many of the other racing communities. As this is a member lead organization, it's on us collectively if it doesn't succeed.
What's your motive? To save $25/year? Really? That' won't even get you 6 gallons of fuel. C'mon. What is it? To show the members you know a better way? I hope so. Contribute it and jump on in.
Thank you Hydroracer for this forum and community to enable me to post this.
Richard
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