Minutes of the Huntington Bicycle Club Meeting 8/10/2026
Sal Levy called the meeting to order at 7:30pm
Sal began the meeting by presented the minutes from the July meeting. Minutes were approved.
Sal encouraged everyone to carry HBCLI business cards and pointed out they come in handy when people you meet at rest stops ask questions. Cards are always available on the table upfront.
September 2nd will be the Next Club Meeting date.
Sal also mentioned that Steve Labiner, our Gold Coast Chairman was supposed to present donations and give a recap of the event, but he was unable to attend because he lost his mother a few days ago. Anthony Oliveri would fill in for Steve. Sal also offered Services & Shiva details for anyone interested. Information was available upfront after the meeting.
Membership Report
Allan Pearlman gave the Membership Report. As of 8-10-26 we have 214 Memberships (that includes family memberships which cover more than one person.) 8 New members since last month: Adam Wessinger, Diana Weiner, Jeb Shivers, Anil Malhotra, Stephani Goldin, Howard Johnson, Kieran Gibbons, Bill Finsilver
Ride Chairman’s Report
John Greene updated the status of rides, mentioning that the largest consistent group is the Crankin Old Men group. Encouraged leaders to get rides on the calendar sooner, if possible.
The Club Party will be held at the Boat Club in Huntington (same place it has been for the past few years) on November 7th. Price this year is $50.
Treasurer’s Report
Anthony Oliveri presented financials. Numbers did not include all the donations the club is yet to give to charities, as only some have been distributed to date.
Total Income exceeds expenses at this point. Some money will be transferred from Savings to our Checking Account as additional expenses are paid and donations are made. Club is in good shape financially.
Donations and sponsorships were both down this year vs last year and many participants registered for the Gold Coast late. (weather likely had a lot to do with that) So our budgets were not as robust as last year. Still the event was a success.
Huntington Bicycle Club’s total donations to all charities will be over $10K
Anthony introduced Nicole Kalman from Long Island Cares
A total of 292 lbs of food were collected at this year’s Gold Coast!
Nicole provided a bit of background about Long Island Cares, the Regional Food Bank with a mission to feed Long Islanders facing food insecurity and stop hunger. Harry Chapin founded Long Island Cares a year before his tragic death in an LIE car crash. Today the mission to serve Long Island communities in need continues and Long Island Cares distributes more than 16million lbs. of food annually, which translates to about 13million meals for Long Islanders in need.
Long Island Cares is headquartered in Hauppauge where it maintains its warehouse. They operate 6 Food pantries across Nassau & Suffolk plus 1 Pet Pantry, Baxter’s Paws, in Lindenhurst for a total of 7 pantries.
A 5K Run & Paws Walk will be held on Columbus Day Weekend Sunday Oct 11th at Belmont Lake State Park to benefit the charity. HBC members were encouraged to participate.
Between the food drive at the Gold Coast and the $1,000 donation the club made, Huntington Bicycle Club was able to provide 872 meals to our neighbors in need. ($1K donation provides 630 meals, 292 lbs. of food collected translates to an additional 242 meals)
GOLD COAST 2026 – RECAP of EVENT SURVEY
Malachy O’Connor presented pictures and analytics from the Gold Coast Post Ride Survey. Overall results/comments were positive and pictures were great. Couple of highlights:
Some Riders have been riding this event since 1982 (one member mentioned it might have even been called the Highpoint originally, but not sure). Bill and his friend have done this ride for years, as well as Paul (who rode it on a fixie). That sparked the idea of creating a “Legendary Gold Coast Riders” page, which the club will consider.
Additional summary points/learning from the Post Ride Questionnaire Answer Summary
- Only 2 people said it was more difficult than expected.
- 16 people said they liked riding with a Ride Leader
- Most people used navigation (some who may have used their phone only found the route confusing and went off course)
- Most people found the number of rest stops sufficient
- Most people liked the T-Shirt
- Email Blast, Google search & website were how most riders heard about the event
- Overwhelming participants thought it was a great event
- Many people just thought the food was just OK
- Price was deemed reasonable
- 118 of the 195 riders were non-members
- Riders suggested more confirmation markings before/on/after the turn and then again a bit further away from the turn so riders would have confirmation that they are on the correct course, especially on long straight sections
- Some people would have liked more food at the end, including soda, drinks etc. and to stay longer to listen to the band.
- Some riders were disappointed at the lack of a special congratulations Flag, Banner, Cheering Squad at the end. (something the club could consider for next year)
Malachy encouraged everyone to check out the website and the pictures
New Business
No new business to discuss at this time
Kevin from Cycle Fast set up a table in the back of the room with a display of tires, tubes
and various bike related items.
Next Club Meeting September 2nd Harborfields Library
50/50 RAFFLE
Peter Hay won the $39 collected for the 50/50. David Hirsch won the tire tube.
Wrap Up
8:20 Sal adjourned the meeting. Hugh Parkhurst & Allan Pearlman seconded.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Farren
HBC Secretary |