December 26, 2004 – As 2004 comes to an end I would like to extend seasons greetings to everyone who has helped make this past season such a success. Congratulations to all of the athletes who represented Canada with pride and achieved many outstanding results. Thank you to all of the volunteers and staff who helped with the many Team Canada projects. I would also like to thank all of the thousands of supporters here in Canada who are behind the athletes and who helped put on events from grassroots club racing right up to international events. You all play an vital role in helping our sport succeed and thrive. My 2004 Annual Report, as presented at the AGM, is posted on the CCA website: http://www.canadian-cycling.com/English/other/prnovember04_agm_president_report.htm Please read this report and feel free to call or email me at bkinash@accesscomm.ca with feedback now, or anytime of the year. Do remember that since we changed the governance structure two years ago, the role of the President and the Board, is now mainly strategic. And we work through the Director General (or COO,) who is responsible for all operations. The CCA AGM was held a month ago in Toronto and here are only a few comments on the weekend. Watch for a detailed communiqué which will report on the many decisions made at the meetings. First, I want to thank the OCA for hosting the Cycling Celebration at the Olympic Spirit facility. The OCA put on a great show, with a long list of distinguished presenters and recipients, and I was impressed by the huge crowd of supporters. The other highlight of the weekend was likely the strategic planning session facilitated by Rose Mercier. Rose used a unique format to involve the fifty or so participants in a brainstorming session that provided many ideas that will be used as input into the next stages of planning. The entire weekend was packed with meetings and we plan to review the purpose and format for the 2005 AGM. We were also faced with financial reporting limitations and have taken corrective action by purchasing updated accounting software. The audited financial statement will be completed early in the new year. The AGM elections ended the weekend. John Tolkamp was returned to the Board for a second term and is joined by three new members: Andrew Feenstra, Kevan MacNaughton, and Aaron Hershoff. Retiring from the Board are three long term volunteers that I would very much like to thank: Loyal Ma, Pierre Thibault, and Brian Jolly. There were two changes in committee chairs with Henry Pejril taking on the Events Committee while Louis Barbeau moves to High Performance. I welcome everyone to their positions and know that we’ve got very strong and experienced people in our leadership positions. I would also like to thank Curt Harnett, who retired from the HP Committee Chair position. I would summarize this year by saying that change has been slower than we planned but we have still made major strides and have ‘turned the corner.’ Last year we focused on the governance transition while this year we shifted to resolving staffing issues. The pace of change was also impacted by the extra demands on our resources to host the 2003 World’s and to prepare for the 2004 Olympics. I am confident that we are now building a team with enthusiastic and capable people and expect 2005 to be even better!

Bill Kinash
CCA President

June 17, 2004 – Now that we’re in the middle of the cycling season, it’s
time for an update from the Board. Before beginning I would like to
recognize the effort and accomplishments of our athletes and their
supporters so far this season. We’ve seen some super achievements in all
disciplines, especially from the women. In one week alone Canadians won
World Championship medals in track, won a road World Cup, and placed 2-3-4
in a World Cup Mountain Bike race. WOW!

Both road and mountain bike men have had a lot of success in North American
races, in particular. The road men achieved one key goal, three Olympic
spots, by collecting enough UCI points to place Canada in the top 30
countries. Now as we move into the middle of the season, I look forward to
action closer to home with World Cup Mountain Bike races and the three
national Championships. Then our attention focuses away again on the
Olympics and World Championships. Good luck to all!

Now on to Board issues. First, we just received word that Pierre Hutsebaut
will be on medical leave for at least two more months. Brett Stewart has
agreed to continue filling in as Acting Director General. Please join me in
extending get well wishes to Pierre and in supporting Brett and the rest of
the CCA staff through this period.

On April 23-24. we held our last Board meeting in Vancouver. Two highlights
of general interest from that meeting were: 1) plans for Board member
representation at National Championships and International events in Canada;
and 2) tentative strategic planning process and timelines.

The Board decided that it is important to establish a greater presence at
key domestic events. This is a chance for the Board members to represent the
CCA and to obtain feedback from the membership. We have set up this schedule
with a view to minimizing costs since many of the Board members live close
to these events or are planning to attend as competitors. Please note that
various CCA staff and other committee members will be in attendance at many
of these events.

May 29 – Montreal Women’s Road WC – Pierre Thibault
June 24-27 – Kamloops Road Nationals – Bill Kinash
June 26-27 – Mont St. Anne MTB WC ­ Lesley Tomlinson
July 3-4 – Calgary MTB WC – Bill Kinash and Loyal Ma
July 17-18 – Mont St. Anne MTB Nationals – TBA (Thibault or Harnett)
August 5-8 – Victoria Track Nationals – John Tolkamp
August 28-29 – St Jean sur Richelieu BMX Nationals – Pierre Thibault
Nov 6 – Dieppe Cyclo Cross Nationals – Andreas Hestler

As the current quadrennial (four year cycle) draws to a close, it is time to
start thinking ahead. Our last formal strategic planning session was held in
fall 2001. That plan has been updated annually as we neared the Olympics.
However, now is the time to evaluate critically all of the CCA programs and
set a new direction for the 2005-2010 planning cycle. We are tentatively
planning to add a day to each of the fall Board, committee, athlete council,
and Interprovincial Council meetings to conduct this strategy. This will be
the chance to review priorities in all areas such as high performance and
development, our relationships with the provinces and the National cycling
centers and our communication and marketing direction.

Before closing I would like to welcome two new provincial presidents
appointed since the AGM. Mark Foster takes over at Bicycle NS while Dave
Barkley is the new Manitoba Cycling Association chief. Congratulations to
you both!

As always, please feel free to call or email me with any questions, ideas,
or concerns.

Cheers,
Bill Kinash
CCA President