Back 2012 to enhance NAMBA’s online
presence and services offered to its
members. It started with the “Online
Registration System” enhancement to
the NAMBA website and development
of our Social Media capabilities. These
efforts have been met with over-
whelming success by membership. The
membership portal is the next generation
of the “Online Registration System” to
extend its functionality to include club
registration, site insurance, race
sanctions and voting. Additionally, non-
members can apply for and purchase a
“Single Event Insurance” online for a
one event per year.
Fun Fact: Over two thirds of current
NAMBA members joined or renewed
in 2015 through the current online
registration system!
To access the new Membership Portal
just go to the NAMBA webpage
) and click on the
Membership Portal link at the top of the
page. If you are a current NAMBA
member as of September 1 ,2015 we
have already created your account for
you. All you have to do is get a
password and update your data. If you
are a new member you will need to
create a new account by clicking the
“Let’s Get Started”
link in the center of
the page. For current members to get
their password, just click the “Login”
link at the top right of the page, enter
your email address and then click
“Click
here if you forgot your Password”
link
in the upper right of the login box. A
password will then be e-mailed to you so
that you can log in.
The Membership Portal has full
support for mobiles devices so you can
apply for your NAMBA membership or
Singe Event Insurance from your phone
and mobile device. This is huge benefit
to boaters who wish to attend a race
event and process their membership or
Single Event Insurance almost
immediately.
Membership Applications and
Renewals
The membership portal will provide
you with a tool to very quickly apply for
or renew your NAMBA membership
online.
(Continue on page 16)
PROPWASH
October 2015
15
If it is a very long proposal, it is easy for a person to miss something no matter how
small it may be. If you don’t like any part of the proposal you are to vote no. You
can’t pick and choose. It’s all or nothing.
If it is a very long proposal, some people think that a lot of thought went in to the
proposal so it must be a good thing. There is nothing wrong with that thought process.
About 5% of the membership votes on rule proposals. That is not very many people
who are determining the future of what you can build and race.
So lets take a look at Proposal#3. In the building of nitro sport hulls and gas sport
hulls, we all realize that there are some big differences. Pipes, cowls, transom widths,
drive dogs, riding surfaces, etc. Proposal #3 was written to try and keep some sense of
balance and credibility to the look of a gas sport hydro so that it would not possibly go
in a direction that didn't resemble any kind of a race boat. The intentions were good
but was it conveyed properly in rulebook form? That is the question.
The key part of the rule proposal that caused it to be withdrawn was as follows.
Minimum transom width “D” will be 8” measured at the narrowest point.
Now that
seemed like no problem to me when I held up a ruler and looked at eight inches and
said to myself that the transom on a gas sport hydro had to be wider than the eight
inches. There was even a picture diagram in the proposal to assist me. But then I got to
thinking. The diagram was an overhead view of a sport hydro. The diagram should
have been the rear view of a hull. I had to make a lot of telephone calls because of my
lack of knowledge with the latest and greatest gas sport hydro hulls. I am old
fashioned in that any sport hulls I have owned, gas or nitro, have all been flat at the
transom with no cutouts or rises of any kind.
I spent hours looking up the definition of a transom which led me to what a stern is
on a boat and when the stern changes to being called a transom. The bottom line was,
if it extends flush with the back of the hull, it is part of the transom. That includes the
bottom of the hull width, the waterline width, the very top of the rear of the hull width
and all points in between. Since that was not specified in the rule proposal, the eight
inch minimum measurement would have to be taken where ever it was at its minimum
on the back of the transom. That could be at the bottom under the boats strut mount if
there was a small surface that extended all the way to the back of the transom or the
top the transom if there was a small rise on the hull for the radio box. As a result of
this finding, I concluded that 95% of all of the existing manufactured gas sport hydro
hulls would be illegal. Keeping the integrity of the current hulls was the intention. Not
to make them illegal. So the submitting district withdrew the proposal.
Now the interesting part. As mentioned earlier, 5% of the membership voted. If this
proposal would not have been withdrawn, it would have passed by an easy majority.
20% of those who voted knew that the proposal had been withdrawn. And twice as
many people voted yes as those who voted no. If there is a message here, it is read the
proposal in its entirety and fully understand it. Ask questions of others. Don’t think
that because you don't currently run the class, that it doesn't apply to you or won’t in
the future. There are many new model boaters who are excited to be NAMBA
members and will take the time to vote because they want to participate.
Do you remember the voting graphic on page 9 in this
Propwash?
Hopefully you
did not have to go back and look to remember. Understand what you read.
With all of this being said, there are two proposals for the general membership to
vote on included with this
Propwash
. Please read them carefully and understand them.
Your vote counts. Not voting counts also.
The Membership Portal is Here!
By David Santistevan
NAMBA Director of IT
After three years of the development the new NAMBA Membership Portal is
finally online! Many thanks to everyone involved in getting the portal up and running.
A special thank you to Al Waters for his tireless work in testing and getting the data
into the system. It was a big job!
The membership portal is part of an initiative started by Robert Holland dating
