President's reports

MAY/JUNE 2012

Posted: 16 May 12

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We are all only too aware of the devastating floods which have wreaked havoc in Qld NSW and Victoria in late December and January. To any members who may have lost friends or family in these tragic events please accept our deepest sympathies at this time. To all of you who have property damage and an impact on livestock we wish you a speedy recovery. To our members in the West, you have had both extremes; flood and drought. We can only hope for a balancing act somewhere soon for you as well.

The wet weather has forced the postponement of a Management Committee meeting twice in Dec/Jan, with a potential date in February being explored at the time of writing. Several key issues will be debated at this meeting. An item which has been on our agenda for quite sometime is rider insurance. At this stage it is only a proposal so if you wish to have any input or share some ideas please do not hesitate to write to the ACA or contact a councillor. This is an issue which can be emotional so please consider this matter rationally. Council would really welcome feedback so as to gauge the general feeling towards the offer. To keep the premium affordable, it would appear at this stage that it would be necessary to purchase the policy for all members and inlcude this premium in the annual membership fee. Once again it is only a proposal, so please provide some feedback.

Another item is the changing of the number of wins required to change a horse’s status from Novice to Open. The proposal is to reduce the number from 6 to 4 (or 5 to 3 if a horse wins another event such as a maiden or ladies). This matter relates to an NCCA rule and has been considered following request from a fellow member of that organisation. The Rules Sub-committee or any councillor would welcome your feedback.

Also in this magazine is the National Finals program. The committee at Bundarra have been striving to ensure a great program is put in place to help celebrate the first ACA National Finals to be held in NSW. It will be a wonderful occasion so be sure to nominate and be a part of a memorable event.

Membership renewals are also not too far away. This year for the first time the ACA will be offering the option for online membership renewals. Further information will be provided with your membership renewals to assist in the process. This will greatly reduce operating costs and speed up the processing and turn around of memberships. We ask that you try this new feature and help us enter a new era of the administration in ACA.

Information will have been forwarded to all committees regarding disaster recovery grants which are avaliable. Please utilise these grants wherever possible to help your community restore its facilities and once again enjoy rural sporting activities. Should you require assistance please contact our office or your local council.

Over the past few years those of you who contact the office would have at some stage dealt with Jessica Wilson. Jessica has been an invaluable member of our loyal and hard working team, acting as Secretary on occasions when Robyn has been away. Her steadfast dedication is to be applauded and commended. In Febraury Jessica will be leaving the ACA and on behalf of all members I would like to recognise all the unseen contributions made by her. Good luck Jess.

A recent judge’s clinic held in South West Western Australia was very well attended. My thanks to Phil Panoramenko and Damien Reid for their efforts in organising what was a very good clinic, albeit with a few tyre and BBQ issues! Thanks also to the open judges who attended and shared their experiences with the group.

In closing I hope that all areas continue to receive weather as favourbale as possible.

Good Luck and Good Health

Sean Dillon

November 2010

Posted: 17 Nov 10

Members

Excellent early rainfall was received by many areas in the Eastern States during September/ October which led to several drafts being cancelled or postponed. If rescheduling has meant that your committee’s campdraft now will not be held before the end of March please feel free to contact the office to discuss options with your public liability insurance.

The ACA has entered into final stages of a sale contract on an investment property that I have alluded to in earlier reports. This is an exciting and strategically important decision which has been diligently overseen and driven by Michael Hayes and Noel Chiconi. My thanks to those two men for the work so far contributed and to Michael for the foresight to engage the ACA in responsible, timely forward planning and asset management.

Development continues within the ACA Office. Our wonderful team hosted members of the Finance & Admin Subcommittee recently for a meeting to among other things review office operating procedures, both physical and systematic. We were given an excellant glance into daily operating procedures and the environment that our staff operates in daily; which was extremely insightful and will help guide future decisions and interaction between not only ACA Councillors but members and the office as a whole.

Currently under development for the commencement of the 2011-2012 ACA membership renewal period is an online portal which will allow members more control over their data and the power to effect immediate payment of membership, thus negating turn around time, lost mail, and hundreds of hours of labour in processing returned forms. The existing paperbased renewal will still be sent to all members to provide you with choice and as cover for those members without computer/internet access. A streamlined email capability has also been developed to allow for the transmission of important information in a timely and efficient manner.

Campdrafting continues to demonstrate its family inclusive atmosphere at every opportunity. As we head towards another festive season, please take a moment to reflect on your contribution to the sport and the ACA over the last 12 months and then look forward to plan for future involvement and assistance; be it with donating cattle, time, resources, labour, Judging, administration, promotion, sponsorship and a whole host of equally important yet uniquely different roles that campdraft volunteers and competitors play/undertake. Your continued support is both vital and greatly appreciated.

Holiday safe, or for those not taking a break, enjoy the close of another eventful year for the ACA.

Sean Dillon

January 2010

Posted: 01 Jan 10

Dear Members

At long last useful rain has fallen over large parts of western NSW and QLD, NW Western Australia and parts of the NT. Whilst there are still some places waiting for the real break in the season (including the ACA office) at the time of writing the Cyclone Season appears to be starting for real so with some luck this could bring widespread rains and as little damage as possible.

Since the last magazine your NCCA delegates travelled to Tamworth for the Annual NCCA meeting. Several major rule changes were enacted as a result of that meeting, chiefly concerning status of horses. These rules will be brought into effect from the 1 February 2010 Nationwide and appear in this magazine and on the website. A new rule book will be forwarded to all members shortly. I ask all committees and competitors who are unsure of the new rules to contact the ACA office or any councillor. One other interesting outcome from the NCCA meeting was that member bodies agreed that a suspension from any NCCA affiliated association would automatically be extended to all other organisations.

The management council of recent times has received a significant number of Code of Conduct Complaints; which have contributed to a disturbing trend. We have a experienced growth over recent years, some areas more so than others. As a new competition year nears, I would like to ask all Campdrafters, both young and old, rookies or seasoned travellers, to reflect on the core principles of our sport. Without the huge numbers of volunteers who put on our events, we would all be playing tennis or lawn bowls. Now whilst in some instances you as a competitor may feel aggrieved over a decision made by a judge or a committee, at no stage do you ever have the right to be abusive or conduct yourself in a manner that is offensive to the individuals involved or those nearby. There are appropriate channels for you to lodge your complaint if you feel that it warrants further attention, and I can assure you that concerns voiced through the proper channels to the ACA Management Council WILL be investigated fully. However as in any other sport, sportsmanship must be shown. Not every matter will be resolved to every individual’s satisfaction.

The wonderful world of campdrafting is still a sport. The friendly, inclusive community that exists at each and every event is testimony to that. However we need to respect that culture and the fact that the volunteers are just that, volunteers, or we run the very real risk of losing committees and judges, which would be fatal to the sport as we know it now. We do ask that committees also be mindful of the fact that many competitors go to extreme lengths to be able to participate in your events and as I stated in an earlier report, please don’t forget that only 5-6 years ago drafts were being cancelled due to lack of nominations.

As you will no doubt notice the ACA has included a new event at the Black Toyota Blackall National Finals; the Top 30 Open Rider Shoot-out. This is bound to be an exciting spectacle. Preparations are in full swing for what promises to be a memorable event for the Blackall community. Get your nom’s in early and get set for what lies Beyond The Black Stump! We wish the Blackall committee well with the staging of this prestigious event. Until we all meet along the road wishing you all the best of health.

Sean Dillon
ACA President