FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: Fellow Friends and AHRMA Members, Actions speak louder than words. My short campaign for the position of AHRMA Trustee has been an opportunity to demonstrate my perspective and my abilities to AHRMA members. In order to communicate my message directly to the members, I created, www.alicesextontrustee.com, which contains my platform, a continuously updated blog, and my contact information. Statements on my candidacy have appeared on www.roadracerx.com, www.roadracingworld.com, and other media sites. Responding to your emails and phone calls has given me an opportunity to learn about your love for AHRMA and your concerns for our future. Unlike one other Trustee Candidate and their supporters, I have particularly avoided negative campaigning because it hurts our organization. I ask you to closely examine my actions as well as the actions of my fellow candidates and their supporters. Read the candidate statements. Do your homework. Then ask yourself who is qualified to lead our organization in the 21st century. Under Attack From AHRMA’s Political Elite. AHRMA member Kay Mann (wife of Trustee Dick Mann) has once again used her political influence within AHRMA to have her letter printed in the December 2008 (Election) Issue of Vintage Views. Mann’s letter endorses specific candidates for Trustee. This same issue of Vintage Views features the Trustee candidate statements and the ballots. This is a clear effort to influence the AHRMA election. I think most AHRMA members find such shady behavior by AHRMA’s political elite unethical and appalling. Kay Mann has never been elected to AHRMA’s board, but she continues to act on timely confidential AHRMA information such as candidate nominations. Such behavior should simply not be tolerated. If Kay Mann wants to lead AHRMA, then she should do as I have done and run for AHRMA Trustee. Make Peace Not War. Some AHRMA’s Trustees have squandered their political capital defending their own poor behavior. They chased away members due to petty philosophical differences and they stumbled foolishly into ego-driven lawsuits. These same AHRMA Trustees should have been working to attract and involve members, developing new racing opportunities and growing our organization. When I was AHRMA Communications Director, one current Trustee instructed me to skew all communications to favor his specific racing discipline, which I refused to do. This is emblematic of some Trustees’ shortsightedness. I’ve also received numerous emails from disenfranchised AHRMA members. Some were put off by AHRMA’s refusal to consider AHRMA youth racing classes. Some left AHRMA to start their own regional series. Some were frustrated by AHRMA’s inability to avoid schedule conflicts with other regional races. AHRMA Trustees have not addressed these specific issues effectively. Our strength should come from our diversity and our willingness to be leaders in the vintage community. As I said before, AHRMA is the premier vintage racing organization in the USA and we need to start acting like it. As a leader in the vintage community, AHRMA should be working with these other groups, not against them. As a Trustee, I will represent the interests of all AHRMA members in addressing such concerns. AHRMA’s Dirty Little Election Secret. The mechanism of this election is different from others because you are asked to vote for two (2) candidates. The candidates with the two top vote counts will be elected as Trustees. One thing that AHRMA does not readily advertise is the fact that you are not REQUIRED to use both of your votes. If you identify only ONE single candidate that fits your criteria for Trustee, then consider voting for that person alone! This fact has previously been spoken only in whispered tones and it’s AHRMA’s dirty little election secret. My position is that members are responsible enough to make their own decisions about voting if they are informed about such mechanisms. Ten votes either way may decide the fate of our organization, so please mail in your ballot! AHRMA is a family to me. I want to increase AHRMA’s transparency, improve our profitability and raise our media visibility. I want to end the corruption, shady dealings, and infighting that has lost us members and income. I want to help set AHRMA back on a path to growth and prosperity. I ask for your support as AHRMA Trustee. Ballots are posted to: ~http://ahrma.org/forms/0_trustee_ballot_web.pdf~ Now it’s up to you. Please mail in your ballot today! Sincerely, Alice A. Sexton [email protected]