SPC - Volunteerism and the SPC

SEMA Member News - March/April 2010

Opportunities to Make a Difference Abound


	SPC Select Committee members volunteer for at least 20 hours throughout the year. Some share their experience and vision, others provide creative solutions to the challenges our member companies face and others get their hands dirty and get it done.

Have you ever wondered how to get involved in the Street Performance Council (SPC)? Select Committee members are elected by the council to serve two-year terms. They participate in monthly conference calls and meetings that are held at various trade events throughout the year. Each Select Committee member volunteers for at least 20 hours throughout the year, and some volunteer even more. Some share their experience and vision; others provide creative solutions to the challenges our member companies face; others get their hands dirty and get it done. All Select Committee members are supported by their companies in their SPC efforts, and for that we say “thank you” to those companies!

The leaders of the SPC gathered on January 18 at SEMA headquarters in Diamond Bar, California, for the council’s annual Long-Range Planning meeting. The meeting was focused on bringing value to SPC member companies. The last 18 months have been extremely challenging for all of our companies, and the council is dedicated to utilizing SEMA’s resources to further benefit each SPC member.

The council’s mission statement guided the group’s efforts: to provide market information, education and support to members concerning new and emerging trends. A handful of exciting objectives are being developed for the council for 2010. If you are passionate and have an interest in being involved, there are plenty of opportunities to volunteer for a task force with a limited investment of time. Volunteering provides a great way to network and share your ideas. Please reach out to the task force chair of your choosing if you want to participate or have comments.

Membership Task Force: Ed “Blake” Burgy from Mr. Gasket chairs this task force and can be reached at eburgy@mrgasket.com. Knowing our members and what industry challenges each member faces is very important. The council exists to serve the members, so expect to hear from a Select Committee leader over the next few months. They will also be awarding an SPC scholarship later this year.

Communications Task Force: Bottle Deliwala from Titan Motorsports chairs this group and can be reached at bottle@titanmotorsports.com. With the changing business climate, it is more important than ever to communicate frequently with SPC’s members in a wide variety of mediums. The SPC web page will be undergoing some changes to provide more frequent activity updates. The quarterly SPC newsletter will contain relevant street-performance market information written or researched by the SPC council membership. If you want to contribute your ideas, drop an e-mail to one of the Select Committee members. (A complete Select Committee roster is posted on the SPC webpage.)

Research Task Force: Albert Reda from Vibrant Performance chairs this group and can be reached at areda@vibrantpower.com. This task force is dedicated to identifying trends among street-performance consumers to
help our members sell more products. Several key factors are changing significantly due to the economy, including consumer buying habits, distribution channels and vehicles. The council has hosted several focus panels in the past in which jobbers and consumers answer questions about current trends. That data is compiled and distributed to members, illustrating the differences between what is perceived as current buying trends and what is actually happening.


	RASR is a nonprofit organization, and the SPC will provide leadership and support to further promote the anti-street-racing message. We will definitely need all of the industry’s support and passion to reignite this message to our local communities.

Racer’s Against Street Racing (RASR) Task Force: Oliver Rathlein at Eibach chairs the groups and can be reached at orathlein@eibach.com. RASR is a nonprofit organization, and the SPC will provide leadership and support to further promote the anti-street-racing message. We will definitely need all of the industry’s support and passion to reignite this message to our local communities.

Technology Task Force: Gigi Ho at Digital Performance chairs this group and can be reached at gigiho@digitalperformance.com. The Internet Symposium has been successfully developed and hosted by the SPC for the last three years. The 2010 SPC Technology Conference will be held on July 21 in Pasadena, California, with some very exciting Internet education sessions. The group will also define and develop relevant educational webinars and articles to help our members take advantage of new opportunities.

There are many other things the council leadership does throughout the year: hosting the annual SPC mixer at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas; presenting industry awards to our street-performance colleagues; and electing council leadership.

Paying your association dues is a waste if you do not participate and get a return on that investment. You are the expert at what your business needs, and this council wants to deliver. Give us a call, write an e-mail or come to one of our SPC events. My hope is that if you haven’t been a part of SPC yet, you will be in 2010.