2017 Election Results and Treasurer Run-off

Posted on | by ben

The votes are in! Thanks to those of you who took the few minutes to participate. Here are the results:

  • Communications – Aileen Dinin
  • Head Reporter – Natalie McGuier
  • Webmaster – Krishan Taylor
  • Team Outreach – Edward Cao
  • President – Ben Matzke

During the election process, we had a few write-ins for Treasurer. None got enough votes for an outright election so once we get acceptances back, we will hold a run-off election for this position. Keep an eye out for more info, here are the current nominees:

  • Bryan Arsham
  • Ethan Gladding
  • Meghan Kaffine

Please join me in welcoming our new and returning exec board members!

Last Chance to Vote!

Posted on | by ben

BAA elections are ending this evening! Make sure your voice gets heard and VOTE! We’ve had a great showing so far and a few new nominations for Treasurer. Once these polls close, we’ll be reaching out to the new potential candidates and hold another round of voting in a couple weeks.

Today’s Wigle Barrel Roll event has been cancelled due to weather, so we will NOT be meeting at the distillery to walk over, however the event at the Barrelhouse is still on as planned around 6pm.

Thanks for everyone’s support this year, we can’t wait to see you all again next year, and remember –

VOTE NOW!

Elections all around & Wigle Barrel Roll THIS FRIDAY

Posted on | by ben

Election season is upon us and Sweepstakes is no exception. This Monday they held elections for the new team of Chairman, Assistant Chairman, and Safety Chairman. It was a relatively quick affair with some good discussion, and here are the results:

  • Assistant Chairwoman: Elyce Miligan – CIA/Atlas – Co-Founder of the Atlas project that’s been running as a sub group of CIA
  • Safety Chairman: Jasio Santillan – Apex – Chairman and builder over the last couple years
  • Chairwoman: Camilla Xu – SDC – Head Mechanic for last Raceday

All in all, a very promising group with a lot of expertise. We can’t wait to see what these guys are able to do next year!

UPDATE: BARREL ROLL WALK HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER. The event at the barrel house is still scheduled, but we will not be walking with a buggy.

Just like last year, the BAA will be participating in the Wigle Whiskey Barrel Roll. Those who joined us had a blast and we encourage any students and local alums to join us as we strap a whiskey Barrel to a buggy and walk it through the strip. The event at the Barrel House is $20 if you are over 21, and they will have drinks available to anyone underage. There will be live music, and some awesome contraptions that move the barrels – last year, Penn Brewery was also pushing a keg and pouring cups en-route.

Here are the specifics:

  • May 5th (This Friday) at 5pm
  • Starting from Wigle’s Distillery – 2401 Smallman St, Pittsburgh, PA 15222
  • ~ 1 mile walk to the Barrel House – 1055 Spring Garden Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15212
  • The Walk is Free, the Barrel House event is $20

And remember, our elections are still going on, so if you haven’t yet –

VOTE NOW!

2017 Elections Ballot Box

Posted on | by ben

After 2 weeks of Nominations, it’s high time we elect some new officers to the BAA!

Skip ahead and VOTE NOW!

We have short statements for all contested positions, and if you forgot, here’s a quick reminder of what’s happening.

This year we have a few contested, a few no-contest races, and an open position. All terms are for two years with potential for one re-election to the same position. Each position is looking for at least 5 votes or votes of confidence, contested positions require a simple majority after 5 votes. Additionally, each position will have a write in option.

NO-CONTEST RACES:

  • Communications: Aileen Dinin
  • Head Reporter: Natalie McGuier
  • President: Ben Matzke

CONTESTED RACES:

  • Webmaster
    • Madison Scott – I am currently the head driver for Fringe and will be graduating next month with a BS in ECE. Throwing myself head first into big projects is something I really love to do. Seeing as the website could use a little TLC, I’d be more than happy to take on this position and make the website more reliable and user friendly.
    • Krishan Taylor – Hi everyone, I’m Krishan! I’m a former member of Fringe, and I’ve been working on and leading web development teams since graduating from SCS in 2010. As Webmaster, I’m going to make our online experience more mobile friendly, give the website a more modern look, and roll out some new raceday tools, in addition to making the usual bug fixes and security updates. I look forward to hearing your suggestions on how else I can improve our website.
  • Team Outreach
    • Ethan Gladding – I originally joined on with what remained of Pioneers and I fell in love with Buggy. I have been a Pusher, Mechanic, Amateur Machinist, Assistant Chairman, and all around enthusiast. After Pioneers folded in the Fall of 2011 I worked with the school administration to transfer Pioneers resources into the fledgling Apex buggy and stuck around to help them build their first buggy. This year I helped operate the buggy safety net as a member of W3VC-Radio Club. I also have been assisting the Buggy Alumni Association by providing notes for the roll-reports. I’ll be staying in the city after graduating and would be honored to represent the BAA. Making buggy more accessible has always been a goal of mine. All sport is weird and arbitrary, but buggy takes it to the nth degree and that makes it special.
    • Edward Cao – Hi, I’m Edward and I was the Sweepstakes Chairman for Raceday 2016, I was a pusher and push captain for SDC Buggy, and also am a brother of Phi Delta Theta and helped procure them Perun and get their buggy program started with the help of KDR alums and Sweepstakes. I think I’d be a natural fit for this role given my experience with Sweepstakes and helping Phi Delt start their buggy team. I am still in contact with a good number of current students and recent alums such that I would be able help new or prospective teams connect with knowledgeable alumni for guidance. Furthermore, I’d be happy to help out with the publications that the BAA puts out.

NON-NOMINATED POSITION:

  • Treasurer – This position manages our financial reports, organizes our membership roster, and coordinates the Lead Truck Auction.

Happy Voting!

Last Call for Nominations

Posted on | by ben

Nominations for the BAA end TODAY! Here’s a quick update of the slate that members will be voting on next week:

  • Reporting Lead: Natalie McGuier (2nd Term)
  • Communications: Aileen Dinin (2nd Term)
  • Webmaster: Madison Scott
  • President: Ben Matzke
  • Team Outreach: Ethan Gladding
  • Team Outreach: Edward Cao

We are still lacking a nomination for a Treasurer/Membership Lead for next year. If you might be interested but are unsure of the commitment, feel free to reach out and our current treasurer Dan Becerra would be happy to tell you about what he does behind the scene.

Being the unique organization that we are, we are always open to suggestions for new seats or roles that may not currently exist. For example, Regional Outreach, Raceday Coordinator, Social/Party organizer, or whatever you think the BAA might be missing!

YOUR LAST CHANCE FOR NOMINATIONS IS TODAY!

SDC Reclaims Men’s and Women’s Titles

Posted on | by ben | 4 Comments on SDC Reclaims Men’s and Women’s Titles

Congratulations to SDC on retaining and retaking the Men’s and Women’s titles in spectacular fashion! They are again in a league of their own setting new course records of 2:02.16 & 2:23.27!

If you didn’t catch the awards ceremony after the races, here’s what you missed:

  • King of the Hill: Jacob Hoffman – SDC A
  • Queen of the Hill: Mary Garrett – SDC A (previous queen)
  • Chairmen’s Choice: SigEp
  • Spirit of Buggy: Fringe
  • T-Shirt: SigNu
  • People’s Choice – Design: Inviscid – Spirit
  • Design Comp 1st: Inviscid – Spirit Blueshift – Fringe
  • Design Comp 2nd: Blueshift – Fringe Equinox – CIA
  • Design Comp 3rd: Equinox – CIA Inviscid – Spirit
  • Design Showcase Spark: Beyonce – SigEp

This was a fantastic year on many fronts. Special thanks to our Volunteer team this year who helped make these races happen. Thanks to cmuTV and their team who did a great job producing and filming this year’s races and of course own own broadcast team who kept up with challenging delays and schedule adjustments. We were impressed with the work done by Sweepstakes this year along with the extraordinary effort from the CMU Staff lead by Kaycee Palko.

Of course an extra huge shout out to our BAA board members this year who put in a tremendous effort writing Rolls Reports, the Raceday preview, running the Auction, and helping organize all of our various activities throughout the year! We would not be able to do what we do without their time and effort all year long.

Along those lines, if there are things you saw this year that you think should be run differently, it’s time to put your money where your mouth is! We will be running Nominations to fill our vacant board seats through the end of this week and holding elections the week following. Please check out this earlier post for more information.

NOMINATE NOW!

See you next year!

Saturday Events Schedule

Posted on | by ben

Here we go again! Good luck to all teams, we will be watching for you to finish strong.

  • 8am – Exhibition Races – Flagstaff Hill & cmuTV
  • 9am – Finals Races – Flagstaff Hill & cmuTV
  • 4pm-7pm – BAA Happy Hour – The Porch in Schenley Plaza
  • 4:30pm – Awards Ceremony – Tennis Court Amphitheater

If you won a finals heat in the lead truck auction, be sure to stop by the BAA tent to check in before your heat. Here’s a handy map to help you find things around the course:

Friday Events Schedule

Posted on | by ben

The Races are upon us if the rain gods cooperate. Here’s what’s going on for this potential first day of Racing:

  • 8am – 12pm – Prelim Races – Flagstaff Hill & cmuTV
  • 12:30pm – BAA Lunch Gathering – Donner Ditch
    • Food at All-Campus BBQ
    • Reserved area in Donner Ditch Tent
  • 1:30pm – History Of Buggy class of ’92 edition – Danforth Auditorium (CUC)

Nominations Update

So far we’ve had a few nominations but are still missing some key roles. Here’s who we have nominated so far:

  • Reporting Lead – Natalie McGuier (2nd term)
  • Communications – Aileen Dinin (2nd term)
  • Webmaster – Madison Scott
  • Team Outreach – Ethan Gladding

Remember, any graduated, or soon to be graduated alumni are eligible. Check our earlier news post for more info.

CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE

Thursday Events Schedule

Posted on | by ben

Today’s the Day! CARNIVAL IS HERE! If you missed last night’s WRCT Broadcast, you can catch up on it RIGHT HERE.

If you’re in Pittsburgh for the weekend, be sure to check out the buggy things going on:

  • 10am-12am – Design Competition – Weigand Gymnasium
  • 12am-2pm – Design Showcase – Weigand Gymnasium
    • Presentation and Q&A from Robobuggy and Atlas discussing their Autonomas Buggy Projects.
  • 7pm – BAA Welcome event – Hough’s Taproom @ 563 Greenfield Ave

We can’t wait to see you!

Alumni Networks Challenge Update

We’ve made some progress, but we still haven’t broken half way to our goal. The end is near for this challenge so THERE IS STILL TIME! Thanks to those of you that have donated and helped us in this challenge. For those of you that are still on the fence, remember that it doesn’t matter how much, or where you send your donations. You could give 50c to the Kiltie Band and it would still count for us so long as you’re on our list, so don’t hold back!

WRCT Broadcast TONIGHT!

Posted on | by ben

For those of you in Pittsburgh Tune in at 88.3 FM or if you’re outside the city, you can stream the broadcast at wrct.org @ 8pm EST

Hear from:

  • Jordan Kunz – Former SDC pusher and buggy fact man
  • Ethan Gladding – Up and coming Rolls Reporter
  • Randy Garcia – Current Spirit Co-Chair
  • Ben Matzke – Moderator for the evening

We will be answering questions Live during the show! Send us your thoughts and we’ll respond to them On-Air. We’ll be responding to as much as we can fit. You can:

Soon after the broadcast ends, our Lead Truck Auction will be entering it’s final hours with the cutoff @ 11pm EST, get in your bids and win a heat for you or a friend!

Remember, if you’ve never donated before, right now is the perfect opportunity thanks to the Alumni Challenge running through Raceday, if we hit enough new donors (not a monetary goal), CMU will give us a chunk of money that will go straight into making these races bigger and better! So you can win a heat in the lead truck, become a member and get the Raceday Preview, and help us towards our goal all in one!