Ahead of the 2026 racing season, the Board has completed an audit of the CRCA bylaws and will be proposing updates, to be put to a vote with membership, on Monday, January 26.
CRCA bylaws are a crucial component of how we run the club, and your voice matters in these changes. CRCA has not updated the bylaws in many years, and so these changes are necessary to reflect the current reality of the club. Below is an overview of the updates the Board is proposing with an explanation of why these changes are important to help you prepare for the vote.
FIRST UPDATE
Article I, Section 2:
Current wording: Section 2. Affiliations. The Association is organized as an Affiliated Club of the United States Cycling Federation, Inc. (USCF) as described in Section 6 of the USCF By-laws.
Proposed change: remove this section.
Reason: This language is outdated, as the USCF no longer exists (it is now USAC), and removing this language entirely would bring us in line with the state’s association (NYSBRA). NYSBRA removed affiliation requirements to USAC in 2016. This change does not affect how CRCA sanctions its races or affect whether subteams or individual racers choose to be members of any organization.
SECOND UPDATE
Article III, Section 1:
Change “Directory of Advocacy” to “Director of Community” (with intention for role to be membership events, group rides, etc)
Change “Director of Open Racing” to “Vice President of Open Racing”
Change “Vice President of Racing” to “Vice President of Club Racing”
Move “VP Open Racing” before “Secretary”, so that seniority is reflected whereas all VPs come after President
Reason: These changes will better reflect the actual responsibilities of each Board role, helping future Board members and the community understand each person’s duties and hopefully will encourage more people to volunteer for the board and participate in the governance of CRCA.
THIRD UPDATE
Article III, Section 2:
Add language to require the incoming President needs to have previously served on the CRCA board in another board role
Add language allowing the incoming Board to appoint candidates to Board positions if no candidates run for a particular board seat
Reason: Running CRCA is complicated, and ensuring the incoming President has past experience with the Board will ensure a smooth transition and consistent quality year-over-year. Clarifying that vacant seats will be appointed by the incoming board will also ensure each calendar year we have a full Board that can work together from the first day of their term.
Article III, Section 4:
Change term from “concurrent to calendar year” to “From November 1 to October 31 the following year”
Add language that specifies the incoming board will be responsible for setting the next year’s racing calendar
Reason: Moving up the Board’s start date ensures that each Board has more time to prep for the next year’s season. This will improve the quality of the club’s planning and early races.
Article III, Section 5:
Update Advocacy description if we agree to change to Community
Reason: If membership votes to update the Board member titles, this change is required to ensure consistency throughout the bylaws.
Article III, Section 7:
Change the nomination period from 30 days to 21 days
Reason: Shortening the nomination period will ensure elections can be help and the Board can transition by November 1, ensuring the new Board has enough time to properly plan for the upcoming race year.
The ballots for this vote will arrive in your inbox next week. Thank you so much for your participation in CRCA helping make CRCA the best bicycle racing club in the country! If you have any questions about these changes before the vote, please reach out to Secretary@crca.net.
