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John Parke Nomination Statement for PS Region



Per Bob Morris' suggestion for all nominees for regional directors for the 
AERC board, I am posting the nomination statement I sent to the AERC office.  
It states:

    "I have been sitting on the Board of Directors as a Regional Director 
from the Pacific Southwest Region for the past year.  When the prior Regional 
Director, Mike Tomlinson, resigned his position, I was nominated by the other 
Regional Director, Terry Woolley Howe, to fill his position and was 
subsequently approved by the Board at its mid-year meeting.  I am interested 
in serving as a Regional Director for the Pacific Southwest Region for 
another term.

    I have been active as a Board member.  I am the Chairman of the Protest 
and Grievance Committee.  Of the more than ten protests the Committee has 
considered during my term, none have resulted in an appeal to the Board.  I 
am also the Chairman of the Legal Committee.  In that capacity, I have 
rendered legal advice to the AERC President and Board on several topics, 
often in emergency situations, and generally keep an eye out for liability 
concerns for the Board and ride managers.  I have also worked on the ad hoc 
Bylaws Revision and Executive Search Committees.  Although I am not afraid to 
speak out at Board meetings, I believe I have the respect of other Board 
members for my willingness to get to the heart of a matter and find a 
creative solution.  

    I like to directly participate in our sport.  I have ridden in excess of 
6,000 miles in the last 5 years.  I believe the magic of our sport lies in 
its diversity.  Any given ride can find world champions, rank beginners and 
high mileage people riding just to complete, all riding down the same trail.  
One reason why I have presented the Regional Awards at the last two AERC 
Conventions is that I enjoy learning who people are from all of the nine 
regions.

I still remember my days as a beginner and feel that the AERC should provide 
educational programs for new riders if we are going to continue to 
characterize limited distance rides as training rides.  Education and not 
just more rules is the best way to ensure the welfare of our horses.  
Although I tend to ride in the back of the pack myself, I think that the 
competition between riders who choose to go faster or participate in 
international rides is exciting and enhances my experience.  I strongly 
believe, however, that members of the Board of the Directors have to be 
vigilant in maintaining the delicate balance between promoting competition 
and preserving the informal nature of our sport.

I am particularly interested in seeing passage by the Board of the Bylaws 
amendment I drafted requiring Board members to disclose their potential 
conflicts of interest.  Most of us believe that while there are unique 
qualities of our sport in this country, there is always room for improvement. 
 We can only have an honest discussion about this if we are open about our 
motivations.  I owe it to my fellow Directors and to the people who vote for 
me to disclose my potential conflicts of interest so that people can have the 
opportunity to judge for themselves why I take the positions I take.  If I am 
elected to serve again as a Regional Director, I look forward to 
participating in a healthy discussion about how to allow our sport to grow 
without losing those things that make it so special and enjoyable to all of 
us.  

I welcome inquiries about these and other issues before the election and the 
Board's mid-year meeting."

John Parke
Solvang CA
 



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