TCTC Annual Meeting Minutes
April 10, 2023 23 people were present, 4 more that joined virtually.
Meeting was called to order at 6:10pm by Deb Liang.
Introduction of officers:
- Helmut Porcher - President
- Mark Seaburg - Vice President
- Matt Tillotson -Secretary
- Deb Liang - Treasurer
The current officers are willing to continue for 2023. The floor was opened for volunteers or nominations. There were no volunteers or nominations. The vote to re-elect the current slate of officers was unanimous. As mentioned before, to keep the club running, we do need to have other folks be willing to take on leadership roles.
The club webmaster has moved to Arizona. He is willing to continue on, but it would also be good for the club to have a local currently active member to help out with webmaster duties. If interested, let any of the officers know and we can hook you up. The site is fully setup, so this is just maintenance and data updates to the site.
Financial Report
Club expenses for 2023 as follows: Website $279.76, LAB renewal $75.00, Insurance (estimate) $570.00. To break even with expense this year, we need approx. 37 teams to join or renew with the club
The jerseys we had last year are available for order, if we can get a minimum of 4. We do have two 2XL jerseys from last year on hand. Cost for the jerseys is $72 a piece. Contact Helmut if you are interested in a jersey.
Helmut put together business cards which he made available to those at the meeting. Anyone can take a small stack to use when out and about – hand off to anyone interested in the club but not yet a member.
MTR (Midwest Tandem Rally) Discussion
Helmut has been attending MTR remote meetings, organized by the HOOTS – hosts of MTR 2023.
All clubs are seeing a decline in membership, and the fate of MTR is very much in limbo at this time. We have hosts for this year, and 2024 (PIGS) and then the HOOTS again in 2025, but no current plans after that. One way they were thinking of boosting membership was by publishing a joint ride schedule for all Midwest clubs. That way traveling teams would know what rides are going on where, and it might make for easier contacts and potentially recruitment.
Other MTR options discussed were two or more clubs working together to jointly host… across state lines. With so much of the pre-ale logistics being electronic that might work.
Also, it was noted that MTR is not in fact any organization at all. The impact of that is that, from the website to logistics, to site venue contact, everything, is re-invented every year. If the clubs could possibly band together to form one MTR organization, some of that effort could be saved from year to year…They are exploring that. For those who do not know Midwest Tandem Rally is held over Labor Day weekend every year, this next year in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
2023 Ride Schedule and Other Discussion
The TCTC Club calendar is coming together… it is published on the website: https://twincitiestandembike.com/index.php/rides/club-rides.
If you have a ride to add to the calendar, send the details to
Several of our more seasoned hosts are also willing to hold a ride host training workshop, for those thinking of hosting a ride but nervous. There is not much work involved in hosting, and we are willing to help out with information about what is needed for a good ride. If you are interested, let us know or watch the calendar to see what pops up! Also, if you want to adopt one of John Mattsen’s rides, he is willing to share or hand off ride ownership to anyone who is willing!!! In fact, John has a ride on the calendar that will include tandems, singles and even E-bikes… he does not discriminate when it comes to bikes.
We are trying something new this year – rider to rider direct contact email list… If you want to be part of this list, send us your email to opt in and we will add you to the group list we send out, and then, if there is a last-minute ride, spur of the moment impulse to pedal, anyone in the group can contact other people directly, without going through the club. These rides would be strictly on your own, not club sanctioned or club insured.
We have been contacted by a blind couple looking to bike, but needing captains. If anyone is interested in riding with a blind stoker, contact Matt or Deb at
I do know this can sometimes be a hard sell, as we get very comfortable biking with our preferred stokers. But, if you are looking for a change of pace, you might want to consider it.
Lastly, watch the calendar for a Tandem Demo Ride in August… Steve Veenstra, owner of twincitiestandems.com will be hosting demo ride again this year. Last year this was a wonderful opportunity to try out a variety of styles, sizes, and cost levels, of tandem to whet your appetite for a new bike – you know you want one!!!
Meeting was closed at 6:40 pm and cookies and socializing commenced in actual face to face fashion.