Audax Australia Cycling Club

Process for Nominating and Granting Life Membership

1. Clause 6.2(f) of the Constitution provides that Life Membership may be granted by the National Committee in recognition of services rendered to the Club.


2. Nominations for Life Membership may be lodged with the Audax Australia Secretary. The nominator is to provide a written submission addressing how the nominee measures up against the Life Membership criteria


3. The Secretary must promptly pass the nomination to the current President who is the Chair of the Life Membership subcommittee which comprises the President, Vice-President and immediate Past President. Should a member of the subcommittee not be available for a substantial part of the period allocated for consideration, the remaining members may coopt another subcommittee member with suitable background.


4. The subcommittee must consider the nomination against the Life Membership criteria in light of the general principles. Each nomination must be considered on its merits. In considering the nomination, members of the subcommittee are not to be influenced by any personal relationship with the nominee and are not to make direct comparisons with other Life Members, nominees or persons not nominated. The subcommittee may request additional information from the nominator if that would assist its deliberations.


5. The subcommittee must decide whether or not to grant the nominee Life Membership and provide its decision to the National Committee within three months of receipt of the nomination by the President. The subcommittee must provide a statement of reasons for the decision. The decision may address any other relevant aspects of the proposed Life Membership (eg method and timing of its granting and announcement).


6. The National Committee will ratify the decision at its next meeting. It may, on motion of one, seconded by another and passed by a vote of 80% of those voting, veto the decision of the subcommittee on reasonable grounds. It may only do so at its first meeting after receipt of the decision. In such an event, the National Committee will discuss and determine a course of action.


7. If the nominee is a member of the parties considering the nomination (ie on either the subcommittee or the National Committee), the nominee is to stand aside from deliberations and decision-making. If the nominee is on the subcommittee, the remaining subcommittee members must co-opt another suitable member.


8. The granting of a Life Membership and the recipient's services to the Club should be publicised in Checkpoint and any other Club communication tool considered appropriate.


9. The Life Membership must be recorded in the Club's official records.

General principles to consider in granting Life Membership

1. The granting of Life Membership is a great honour and should not be treated lightly. On average, one or less Life Memberships are likely to be able to be awarded each year.


2. Life Membership should not be considered as a competitive matter and nominees must be considered individually and on their personal attributes and achievements and not in comparison with others. While it is inevitable that comparisons will be made for example against the types of achievements of past recipients, direct comparisons should not be made.


3. Granting Life Membership is a balancing exercise. Criteria are provided for guidance, but it is the overall contribution of the nominee that must be evaluated. There is necessarily some subjectivity in the granting of Life Membership. Nominees' strengths against the various criteria will vary. Some nominees will be extremely strong in some criteria but weaker against others, others will be more rounded.


4. Life Membership is reserved for those whose contribution goes beyond the ordinary or even the excellent for an extended period of time, not just a few years.

Criteria to be considered in granting Life Membership

1. Length of active membership
   To have contributed to the Club to the degree necessary for Life Membership, a nominee will almost necessarily have been a Member and involved for a significant time. While there is no 'minimum' period of membership, a period of 10 years' active membership is an indicator of a long term commitment.


2. Positions held and length of time
   The nominee should be able to demonstrate a significant contribution to the running of Club over a majority of those years of membership. This may include:
   1. significant contributions while holding positions on the National Committee and/or a Regional Committee (bearing in mind that mere membership of such committees does not of its own mean a person has made significant contributions),
   
   
   2. making significant contributions in national roles such as ride calendar co-ordination, membership secretary, editor of Club publications, Chair of a delegated committee etc
   
   
   3. participating to a much greater extent than the average Member as a regular, consistent and reliable Ride Volunteer in a national and/or Regional capacity.
   
   
   Multiple active roles benefitting a large number of people in Audax Australia over a long period of time are the most obvious indicators of outstanding service to the Club, deserving of Life Membership.


3. History of organising rides
   The nominee should be able to demonstrate active contribution to the core activity of the Club – distance riding – by being a regular and consistent ride organiser. It would be expected that a Life Member would normally have contributed significantly to the development and running of randonees in their Region.


4. History of active riding
   Life Members should be or have been active Audax riders, participating regularly in long distance (200 km +) brevet events. Nominees should be able to demonstrate significant long distance riding accomplishments. Ideally nominees not only have a long history of riding with the Club but continue to do so at the time of nomination (ie it would be appropriate to acknowledge their efforts while they are able to enjoy the honour).