USPSA Dues Increase 85% / what’s going on with USPSA

[M1911]

so, the "President Yee-Min Lin" turns out to be someone who does not care to understand general principles of democratic processes, it seems?
what a quite a surprise it should be...

same level of surprise when indian and mid-eastern execs take the core positions in the company and then flood it with relatives and their own people pushing everyone else aside no matter the seniority or relevance. a huge surprise for all else, always.

Yee-Min is not the problem.

There is a cabal running the board that makes decisions for their benefit, at the expense of the organization and their members. Some of the things they have done include:

1. They scheduled a national meet in CO, which bans standard capacity magazines. When this was pointed out, the board said that police in CO won’t enforce the law, so competitors should just break the law and it won’t be a problem. When members pointed out that this wasn’t an appropriate action on the part of USPSA, the board and employees went after the messengers instead of admitting their mistake.
2. The BOD changed the bylaws to require that the president and board members be USPSA range officers. The head of NROI used trumped up reasons to revoke President Yee-Min’s RO certificate. The board then voted to remove Yee-Min as president because he was no longer an RO. One of the board members who voted to remove Yee-Min has never been an RO, and yet he was allowed to remain on the board, in contravention of the bylaws. That board member is part of the ruling cabal. You should start to see a pattern here.
3. The board voted to ban several members who have been critical of the board. People like Ben Stoeger have been critical of the board and have been exposing their malfeasance on social media. The board’s response to these messengers? Instead of changing their behavior, the board banned Ben Stoeger and several other members. Yes, they banned a world champion shooter because he pointed out their malfeasance.
4. One member of the board who is not part of the ruling cabal forwarded a rather innocuous email from other board members to someone who is not on the board. The board voted to remove him from the board for “violating confidentiality” while board members who are part of the ruling cabal have done the same and have not been removed.
5. The rules require that someone be a member of USPSA continually for 3 years before running for election to the board. Our area 7 director, who is not one of the cabal running USPSA, had a gap of 5 days while renewing his annual membership. The cabal running USPSA kicked him off the board last week. Last night, the board reversed itself and Frank is now back on the board. The ruling cabal still has Frank in their sights so I won’t be surprised if they manufacture another reason to remove him from the board.

USPSA is hemorrhaging money due to bad management by the board and the paid employees. Our A7 director has been trying to get a handle on the finances, but the employees and the cabal running the board have not been giving him full information.

Yee-Min is not the problem. It’s the cabal running USPSA. As a result of this mess, many clubs have decided that the solution is to stop feeding the beast. Many clubs have dropped their affiliation and are no longer running USPSA matches. If you run USPSA matches with classifier stages, then fees have to be paid to USPSA. These clubs are instead running hit factor or PSL matches, which don’t require sending a fee to anyone. I hope that our local clubs will do the same. Stop sending money to USPSA.

 

[kalash]

Gotta say, I just want to shoot and not have to deal w/ all the NRA/IDPA/USPSA DRAMA BULLSHIT

Then you should keep attending matches that are no longer affiliated with those orgs. E.g. Hopkinton will still host matches, they just won't be called USPSA. If all you care about is shooting, there you go.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Yee-Min is not the problem.

All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing - (Burke, misattributed, actual source unknown)

President Yee-Min Lin had a chance to stand up for what was right, but chose to go along to get along instead.

 

[M1911]

All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing - (Burke, misattributed, actual source unknown)

President Yee-Min Lin had a chance to stand up for what was right, but chose to go along to get along instead.

Yeah, he’s weak. Certainly not someone to lead us out of this mess.

 

[allen-1]

USPSA Dues Increase 85% / what’s going on with USPSA

Massive increase in dues. Was $40 per year with a three year membership at $105 saving a few bucks. Now the three year offers no discount so effectively a 85.71% increase. 1 year for $65 = $65 per year 3 years for $195 = $65 per year 5 years for $325 = $65 per year Why are people signing up for...

www.northeastshooters.com

Start around post 7 or so; jump to 37 for current activity.

 

[paul73]

The BOD changed the bylaws to require that the president and board members be USPSA range officers. The head of NROI used trumped up reasons to revoke President Yee-Min’s RO certificate. The board then voted to remove Yee-Min as president because he was no longer an RO.

that`s a netflix class drama material right there. wow.
who would think. people really find ways to make life interesting, even over such things as a hobby.

 

[M1911]

USPSA Dues Increase 85% / what’s going on with USPSA

Massive increase in dues. Was $40 per year with a three year membership at $105 saving a few bucks. Now the three year offers no discount so effectively a 85.71% increase. 1 year for $65 = $65 per year 3 years for $195 = $65 per year 5 years for $325 = $65 per year Why are people signing up for...

www.northeastshooters.com

Start around post 7 or so; jump to 37 for current activity.

Good point. Merged and edited thread title.

 

[M1911]

that`s a netflix class drama material right there. wow.
who would think. people really find ways to make life interesting, even over such things as a hobby.

I think there is money involved. There is also sex involved as apparently one previous employee in the office had been sex with other folks affiliated with USPSA (I can’t remember whether it was employees, board members or both). And, finally, it is about the power.

 

[M1911]

Kim Williams was an employee for a long time and was promoted to Executive Director. According to some, she was not qualified to be ED and did not perform well.

Reportedly, there was a $200,000 American Express balance, of which $20k didn't have any documentation and the remainder didn't have enough documentation. In 2021 USPSA had $260,000 of travel expenses.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZCXAcYUgvA

 

[DW357]

Gotta say, I just want to shoot and not have to deal w/ all the NRA/IDPA/USPSA DRAMA BULLSHIT

What does the NRA or IDPA have to do with this??

 

[M1911]

What does the NRA or IDPA have to do with this??

IDPA has had its share of nonsense. I think he is alluding to some other f that nonsense.

 

[spt_1955]

Much of it is summed up nicely in the letter I sent to then president-elect Yen-Min in October, 2022. His response was consistent with USPSA policy regarding communications from dissidents --- he did not even acknowledge receipt of the letter.

There is more .... much more. The BOD of a formerly great org making bad decisions, working to stifle dissent, and acting as if their role is to rule, not lead and serve.

The final straw was the board removing the Area 7 director (this area - there are 8), after previously removing the A3 director - both were the only voices of dissent on the board. They reinstated the A7D two days later (last night). The BOD will no doubt have self serving spin, but this appears to be a result of massive pushback Two clubs have already announced an and to USPSA affiliated matches.

RTFL - it highlights some of the issues, and could even serve as a blueprint for recovery.

One other thing happened that I found particularly interesting. The BOD meeting was split over 2 days. On the first night they removed the A7 director and voted to fill the open A3 director slot with the crony who was defeated in the last election. On the second night they reinstated the A7 director and after that broke off into an executive session. The executive session was recommended by the staff lawyer who interrupted the Managing Director after she said that they needed to delay the appointment of an A3 replacement director because "Our lawyer has told us that there is a credible argument being made that the bylaws used to remove the A3 director are in violation of Delaware laws. We are waiting for an opinion from a Delaware lawyer which could take weeks." She then asked something to the effect of "I need to know what budget is paying for al these lawyers we are using". After they then came out of executive session they said they were delaying the replacement of the A3 director until they heard back from the Delaware lawyer that they had contracted with.

This lawsuit is uncovering a lot.

 

[allen-1]

At a match Saturday in Georgia, i was present for a conversation where respected members of the community were discussing leaving uspsa. Going to PCSL or simply hitfactor matches.

My local club is hosting ga state uspsa in October.

That was discussed also.

This is at least an east coast if nit national conversation- it’s certainly not limited to new england.

 

[kalash]

I think Area 3 took the first big step before Area 7 did. Their AD got hit first and lots of clubs in the middle of the country dropped affiliation.

 

[M1911]

I think Area 3 took the first big step before Area 7 did. Their AD got hit first and lots of clubs in the middle of the country dropped affiliation.

Yup. A bunch of Area 3 clubs dropped affiliation.

 

[alx]

As a result from the fallout between USPSA and SIG Academy Sig's couple most recent matches were "practical shooting" matches as opposed to USPSA- they dropped for the time being the USPSA affiliation for the ongoing matches. Appears to not be permanent, but a clear shot across the USPSA bow.

I have talked briefly with the Sig Academy folks and the situation is very fluid, but the common thinking is that things will sort out in the (near) future. Here is Phil Strader's thinking on the subject.

Like many of you, I've watched USPSA's development with much interest since 2016. From 2010-2016, I was a BOD member as the Area 4 Director and President. It was a great experience and I developed a much deeper appreciation and love for the organization, the people behind the scenes, and especially the active membership. Granted, there were challenges with opinions and personalities both on and off the board, but that never became an obstacle to our duties to best represent the ACTUAL owners of the org...the members.

After my term was up in 2016, many changes happened that concerned me, but I still kept faith that the entire BOD and org leadership would always put the future and health of USPSA first. I'm saddened to say that is no longer the case. Either through arrogance, incompetence, pride, or power, there have been public decisions made over the last several years that have been detrimental to our sport. I'm proud of our membership who have recently recognized these actions and voiced their concerns loud and clear.

This is a message to the representatives that run MY/OUR organization: You are on notice. Put your personal agendas and motivations aside and listen to your members...NOT just in your Area, but all of them. With the power of social media exploding, you now have more resources than ever to promote your ideas that will make USPSA better while getting feedback from your membership. I know that you will never make everyone happy, but putting personal or deceptive agendas first will make plenty of members angry enough to take drastic actions.
With all of that said, I will continue to support my USPSA Area Director, Frank Rizzi and the organization as a whole. I agreed to host the Area 7 Championship here at the Sig Sauer Academy, and I will make good on my word, provided that the nonsense stops. I understand the motivations by some to not attend, but I have faith that many share my hopeful optimism for the sport. This is our first major USPSA match here in a decade, and it will be a great one. Registration opens up THIS Sunday Jan 28th at 6:00pm EST.

The man certainly has his way with words.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Phil Strader is one of only the big name shooters (the others being Ben Stoeger and Mason Lane) who have had the strength and integrity to speak up about the current clusterphuck. The vast majority of big names sponsored or industry employed shooters have been totally silent - probably out of fear of retribution from the board.

I really wanted to signup for the Area 7, but being able to look friends who have made a bigger sacrifice that mine by not attending in the eye was more important to me than the match.

 

[alx]

I talk a bit to Phil at every match he is presented at Sig (which is very often). He is an upstanding honest human being and what you see is precisely what you get with him. I hope his thinking about the USPSA problems and overall direction comes on top at the end.

See you guys at the range

 

[M1911]

According to Ben Stoeger, the BOD cabal is talking about punishing clubs that leave USPSA. Apparently, it is their opinion that clubs that run hitfactor matches are "stealing" from USPSA. These guys seem to think if they keep doubling down they will finally win the social media war.

 

[alx]

According to Ben Stoeger, the BOD cabal is talking about punishing clubs that leave USPSA. Apparently, it is their opinion that clubs that run hitfactor matches are "stealing" from USPSA. These guys seem to think if they keep doubling down they will finally win the social media war.

A joke from my part of the world:

A little migrating birdie was flying south, but fell behind the rest and soon froze and fell to the ground.
A cow was grazing nearby and eventually pooped on the little birdie.
The birdie felt better, warmer and started singing.
A passing cat heard the noise, came closer and ate the little bird.

The morals of the story:
1. Not everybody who dumps shit on you is your enemy
2. Not everybody who pulls you out the shit is your friend
3. When you are in deep shit, dont make too much noise.

Bolded morals are applicable here methinks.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

According to Ben Stoeger, the BOD cabal is talking about punishing clubs that leave USPSA. Apparently, it is their opinion that clubs that run hitfactor matches are "stealing" from USPSA. These guys seem to think if they keep doubling down they will finally win the social media war.

I have always found the term "Outlaw match" offensive, as it implies that clubs running matches without paying a royalty to some national org are somehow stealing or doing something wrong.

USPSA is currently facing an existential crisis - and there is not a single mention of it in their magazine (Front Sight). They even ran an article using stats that do not reflect the dissident club exodus talking about how great the org is doing.

 

[allen-1]

I have always found the term "Outlaw match" offensive, as it implies that clubs running matches without paying a royalty to some national org are somehow stealing or doing something wrong.

USPSA is currently facing an existential crisis - and there is not a single mention of it in their magazine (Front Sight). They even ran an article using stats that do not reflect the dissident club exodus talking about how great the org is doing.

Got my copy in the mail today. Everything’s fine.

 

[M1911]

I have always found the term "Outlaw match" offensive, as it implies that clubs running matches without paying a royalty to some national org are somehow stealing or doing something wrong.

USPSA is currently facing an existential crisis - and there is not a single mention of it in their magazine (Front Sight). They even ran an article using stats that do not reflect the dissident club exodus talking about how great the org is doing.

They just need to ban a few more "howler monkeys" and everything will be fine.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

A new move from the USPSA board (and I use the term loosley, since the Area 7 board member knew nothing about it) :

Trademark Status & Document Retrieval

Yup, USPSA is trying to trademark "HIt Factor" to strike a blow against independent hit factor matches. The window for filing an opposition ends Feb 16 (I think). An interesting USPTO page even gives instructions on what arguments are accepted:

Letter of protest practice tip

You can use the letter of protest to give the USPTO evidence about the registrability of a trademark in a pending application that belongs to another trademark owner.

www.uspto.gov

I believe that "merely descriptive" and "widely used or a commonplace message" would fit the bill.

If successful, IPSC could not use the term in the US if it moved affiliation to another org as the US regional affiliate.

 

[soloman02]

A new move from the USPSA board (and I use the term loosley, since the Area 7 board member knew nothing about it) :

Trademark Status & Document Retrieval

Yup, USPSA is trying to trademark "HIt Factor" to strike a blow against independent hit factor matches. The window for filing an opposition ends Feb 16 (I think). An interesting USPTO page even gives instructions on what arguments are accepted:

Letter of protest practice tip

You can use the letter of protest to give the USPTO evidence about the registrability of a trademark in a pending application that belongs to another trademark owner.

www.uspto.gov

I believe that "merely descriptive" and "widely used or a commonplace message" would fit the bill.

If successful, IPSC could not use the term in the US if it moved affiliation to another org as the US regional affiliate.

Someone over on the Brian Enos forum posted a purported scan of the 1981 IPSC rules book that contains the term "hit factor."

USPSA was created from IPSC after this date. So there is "prior art" regarding the use of the term from before USPSA even existed.

 

[soloman02]

The USPTO is even further behind than the ATF. It will probably be close to the end of 2024 before they even look at the application.

 

[Knob Creek]

I see Nationals is $400 this year. Another big increase. Like 95% of most members I will not be attending but we still end up subsidizing the match. How much of our money goes to bring this cost down to a still exorbitant $400 fee?

 

[Cuz]

I see Nationals is $400 this year. Another big increase. Like 95% of most members I will not be attending but we still end up subsidizing the match. How much of our money goes to bring this cost down to a still exorbitant $400 fee?

Once my current membership runs out, none of my money will. I won’t be renewing, I no longer shoot in any events that requires USPSA membership.

 

[Knob Creek]

Once my current membership runs out, none of my money will. I won’t be renewing, I no longer shoot in any events that requires USPSA membership.

If Steel Challenge broke away USPSA wouldn't see any more of my money.

 

[M1911]

If Steel Challenge broke away USPSA wouldn't see any more of my money.

I'm hoping that the Steel Challenge folks at Harvard will start running outlaw matches instead of Steel Challenge matches. i don't care about my classification.