The Geek Riders Bike club; celebrating the fun of IT professionals and geek wanna-be’s riding together on motorcycles, in particular those of geeks and their various job positions. GeekRiders.com is a not-for-profit club formed for the express purpose of bringing together motorcycle enthusiasts and giving them an identity within which to operate. The clubs aims are to celebrate the enjoyment of riding together through the groups, most importantly to contribute to the local community through charity and volunteer work. We the members of GeekRiders.com recognize it is a privilege to ride. We also acknowledge that while in riding we represent GeekRiders.com and as such accept the responsibility to behave professionally and civilly while in public.

Article II - Membership

GeekRiders.com is an inclusive, equal-opportunity bike club and will not tolerate discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, or religion. The only requirement for membership is "ownership" of a legal, road-safe, complete and professional quality motorcycle, or ability to have access to one with the requirements, when attending events.

Upon admission, members are assigned a unique 5-digit identification number following in the Preceding this number is a two-character prefix code denoting the home state of the member. The prefix codes and what they identify are listed below. Identification numbers will be maintained by the Club Membership Officer and are permanently assigned. If members convert to inactive status, their numbers will be retired until such time as the member returns to active status.

Persons under the age of 18 are not allowed as listed members of GeekRiders.com Bike Club. GeekRiders.com Bike Club claims no responsibility for minors at events that are hosted or attended by its members.

Active vs. Inactive Membership Definitions:
An Active Member of GeekRiders.com Bike Club is defined as a person who meets the following requirements:

1. Meets all GeekRiders.com Membership Requirements as stated above
2. Has an approved membership record in the GeekRiders.com Membership Database
3. Maintains their personal and contact information in the Membership Database (through either their local Chapter or other designated membership representative).
4. Meets or exceeds the minimum activity level requirements for an “Active Member”

An “Inactive Member” in GeekRiders.com is defined as a person who either:

1. Does not meet or exceed the activity level for an “Active Member”
   Or
2. Does not have current contact information in the database
   Or
3. Is a person who has requested to be placed on “Inactive Status”
   Or
4. Is placed on “Inactive” status as the result of a disciplinary “judgment” of either their Chapter President or the Charter President.  Please note that Chapter level “judgments” may be appealed to the Charter Counsel.

An Active member is eligible to:

1. Vote in all matters that come up for a vote/poll of the “Active Membership”
2. Vote in their local elections for Chapter President, Chapter Vice Presidents, Chapter Secretary and Chapter Treasurer.
3. Coordinate/Host “Official” GeekRiders.com Activities
4. Purchase “Official GeekRiders.com/Member Only” merchandise (i.e. T-shirts, patches, badges, etc) that are offered only to “GeekRiders.com Members”
5. Have their picture posted on GeekRiders.com in the membership section.
6. Participate in “Official” GeekRiders.com activities (i.e. Charity Benefits, Event Rides, etc).

An Inactive GeekRiders.com member:

1. May NOT vote in any GeekRiders.com election or poll
2. May NOT hold Elected or Appointed Office
3. May not coordinate “Official GeekRiders.com Activities
4. May not purchase “Official/Member Only” merchandise
5. Will not have their picture posted in the GeekRiders.com membership section.
6. WILL have their membership information and ID number “saved/maintained” in the GeekRiders.com database. Once you are a member, your 5 digit ID number follows you from “cradle to grave” it will not be reassigned. To repeat, your membership number is yours FOREVER unless you do something so terrible that you are “drummed out, stripped of membership, etc.”. So don’t worry about this too much, when you come back, your 5 digits will still be here waiting for you.

Minimum Activity Level Requirements

1. Maintain active contact with his/her Chapter or designated Representative. Active contact will be confirmed during the annual “GeekRiders.com Census” held each year during the month of May.
2. Maintain their contact information/membership record in the GeekRiders.com Database (either through their Chapter President or their designated representative.
3. Participate in ONE (or more) Charter or Chapter “activity” per year. Examples of an “activity” are (but are not limited to) the following:

a.       Participation in a GeekRiders.com activities at any convention
Or

b.      Participation in any GeekRiders.com charity event, either in person or through support such as donating toys, printing, time, publicity, transportation etc.
Or

c.       Participation as either an elected or appointed Chapter or Charter Position.
Or

d.      Participation in any Charter or Chapter support activity, such as hosting ride, hosting/Web mastering their Chapter site, actively participating as a member of the local or national web team, etc.
Or

e.       Hosting or participating in a GeekRiders.com Social Activity such as a weekend ride, weekly ride, picnic, etc.
Or

f.        Any other event/activity that is considered as an “activity” by their local administrative unit by Charter, or Chapter.

These Minimum Activity Level Requirements should be administered as justly and with as much “common sense” as possible. If someone is “Inactive” their appearance at any of the before mentioned activities should instantly be considered as “Proof/Fulfillment” of the “Active Membership Requirement”. They should be allowed to participate in/at the event immediately, in all “Official/Un-Official” activities unless their “Inactive” status is the result of a Charter or Chapter level “Judgment”.

As a member, one of the most IMPORTANT things you need to do is to STAY IN CONTACT with your local Chapter. If your local Chapter doesn’t really know WHO you are or WHERE you are or HOW to get in touch with you, it is hard to determine if you are actually taking part in any activities. You may attend a dozen events a year, but if you don’t “Keep in touch” you may find yourself wondering why your picture just vanished off GeekRiders.com. So please do yourself and us a favor, keep your e-mail and phone number up to date in the membership database. Your Chapter Membership Liaison can help you and their contact information can be found at www.GeekRiders.com under the “Chapters” section.

A Chapter may determine that a member is “Active” even if they DO NOT meet the normally established “Activity Level Requirements”. However the reverse is not true, if an “Active” member meets all membership and activity level requirements” they MAY NOT be classified as “Inactive” except by a Charter level “Judgment” or by their own request.

In the case of a disagreement over your activity status at the local level, you may appeal to the Charter Council after you have exhausted all local means of appeal (i.e. your Chapter). However the fact that you obviously cared enough about your status to:

1. Contact your local Chapter to object
   And
2. That you cared enough to appeal to the Chapter should be fairly good evidence that you at least “want to be active” with GeekRiders.com. 

Article III - Organization

The Geek Riders Bike Club is a worldwide club but it recognizes that most activities will be on the local level. For this reason, the Charter is divided into subdivisions to foster local identity and to encourage teamwork and fraternity. The current list of Chapters, as well as information on the boundaries between these units, is maintained by the Charter.

Chapters
The subdivisions of the Charter are the Chapters, which ideally cover distinctive regions that host unique geography, borders or other distinguishing characteristics. A Chapter requires at least three (3) members and is headed by a Chapter President, who is recommended by the Chapter, then appointed by the Charter.  A Chapter President holds office until he/she resigns, or is replaced either by retirement or recommendation from the Chapter or Charter, from which this will be reviewed and voted on for a majority vote from the Charter Council. The formation of a new Chapter may take place when a Chapter reaches sufficient membership or when a region within an existing Chapter finds pressing needs to break off and form a new Chapter.

Applicants whom wish to form a new Chapter must complete a Chapter Application Form in which they list their new Chapter name, roster of members from the GeekRiders.com main membership roster, territorial boundaries, Chapter logo, working website and email forum, and a brief statement of purpose outlining the reasons for their Chapter to be formed. The form will also list the administrative staff of the Chapter, including a President (requested to be appointed), Vice President (elect), Secretary (elect), Treasurer (elect), Chapter Webmaster, and Chapter Membership Officer who will work with the main Charter Membership Officer in helping to make sure their Chapter members are properly listed and updated on the main GeekRiders.com website.  Appointed or (elect) members may hold no more than two (2) roles, and cannot be in the same category as elect or appointed.  i.e.  Vice President - Webmaster can be the same.... President - Treasurer cannot be the same.

The application form must be submitted to the Secretary of Charter for GeekRiders.com. Upon their approval, the form is then submitted to the Charter Council and voted on by the Charter Council in a majority vote. If approved by the Charter Council, the applicant group undergoes a three month trial period, during which it must demonstrate that it can operate as an independent body. After the Three month period the Council will vote again to approve the Chapter officially. It is highly recommended when a new Chapter forms within an existing Chapter that approval first be sought from the existing Chapter President. Chapter Presidents are free to assemble whatever rules and administrative staff (non-appointed) they need in their area.

A Chapter President has the following responsibilities:

• Organize all GeekRiders.com events taking place within the geographical territory of his/her Chapter proper, or delegate Chapter members to organize/coordinate specific events.
• Represent his/her Chapter members in the Charter where club policy is discussed and voted on
• Organize his/her Chapter by appointing an administrative staff to handle the Chapter website, logo creation, public relations, communication, and enforcement of club and Chapter rules
• Resolve disputes internal to the Chapter and make all potential problems known to Charter
• Keep in touch with all members of his/her Chapter, either personally or through an intermediary, and build good relations and good morale among the members.
• Help in deciding if new Chapters should be allowed to form within his/her Chapter territory
• Perform his/her duties in a professional and level-headed manner befitting an officer

Article IV - Offices

Two forms of offices exist within the Charter/Chapter: command and administrative. Command offices exist to oversee the organization and deployment of members and include Chapter Leaders. Administrative offices exist to perform the administrative duties required by the club and are appointed by the Charter within an Administrative Staff. Administrative Officers also sit on the Charter and are allowed to vote. The administrative offices are listed below.

Administrative Staff

Membership Officer - The Membership Officer is responsible for receiving and processing applications for membership, tracking identification numbers of members to guarantee their uniqueness, and conducting a semi-annual census to assess the current number of active members.

Webmaster - The Webmaster will be in charge of the club's and/or chapter web site, maintaining its content and appearance and incorporating information from the other administrative officers.

Merchandise Accountant - The Merchandise Accountant will monitor all merchandising and fund-raising done for the GeekRiders.com Bike Club for the sole purpose of record-keeping. The Merchandise Accountant will be responsible for making sure copyrights are not flagrantly violated or that funds are not misused. The Merchandise Accountant may be responsible for recording all transactions and making these records available to the public. While we are not an officially sanctioned, we strive to operate within tolerable limits of control of any copyright. For this reason it is the hope of this club to keep merchandise bearing the Geek Riders name or emblems to a minimum that serves to identify the club and no more.

Public Relations Officer - This position will be responsible for accepting all news of events and activities from the club members and chronicling them. This will include field reports and pictures and will distilling this information into a form that the Webmaster can use to update a gallery on the GeekRiders.com main web site. The PR Officer is also in charge of making contacts with convention organizers, web and print publications, and other clubs for the purpose of promoting the club and coordinating cooperative relationships.

Charter Council

Policy and administrative decisions for the Geek Riders Bike Club are handled by an Executive Council, made up of three representatives from Charter Administrative Staff. The Council is moderated by the Club President and Vice President.

Article V - Elections

The Chapter Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer must be voted into office. All other positions are recommended by their respective local Chapter, and appointed by the charter for lifetime positions (unless said party leaves the club, resigns, or is recommended to be removed). Elections for these positions are held once every two years. Nominations for command offices may be made by any member within that office's region during the month of April. If no nominations are made for a particular office by midnight April 30, the officers holding these positions will maintain their posts. Voting begins on May 1. Votes are cast via email or online poll or whatever mechanism the Secretary deems appropriate. The voting will be open for exactly two weeks (fourteen days) after which no more votes will be accepted. Every member in "active status" or in "good standing" of the GeekRiders.com Chapter may vote. Members that are placed on "inactive status" may not vote until their status has been changed back to "active" by their Chapter President and the Chapter Membership Officer. Notice of upcoming elections will be posted on the main mailing list one week prior to the election. Notification of any elections to individual members is ultimately the job of Chapter President for members in their region.

The Chapter votes are elected by popular vote of the entire Chapter. The offices of Chapter Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer are all voted on by members of each respective Chapter according to rules that unit has adopted. Administrative Officers are appointed by the Charter or Chapter President, with the exception of the Merchandise Accountant, who is also voted on by Charter. This is to avoid any conflict-of-interest between a Chapter and Charter and his/her choice of appointments in this office.

Issues of contention concerning the club may be voted upon by the Charter Council. A call to vote will require any three Council officers to request the vote. Following this, the Council members will have one week to cast their votes via email to the club's central mailing list or to an online poll overseen by the club's Elections Officer. Each member of the Council holds one vote. Calls to vote can be on any topic, including the topic of removing or replacing office-holders. In this instance, however, the cause must be great enough to call for a vote. Thus, a call to replace or remove any officer must be made by at least 33% of the current membership, rounded up. This Charter may be amended at any time by a popular vote.

Article VI - Code of Conduct

The Geek Riders Bike Club recognizes that it will carry the responsibility professionally and tastefully while in public. For these reasons, all members are prohibited from using foul language or behaving lewdly or obscenely while in public.

GeekRiders.com is dedicated to creating an environment of friendship and good will. To this end, the Charter will not tolerate the practice of sexual misconduct or sexual harassment by its members.

Members who engage in such conduct will be subject to disciplinary action, including termination from the Geek Riders Bike Club. This policy applies to all GeekRiders.com members. It applies not only to unwelcome conduct that violates state and federal laws concerning sexual harassment but also to inappropriate conduct of a sexual nature.

Article VII - Merchandising and Promotional Standards

It is recognized that any organization requires promotion on some level to help it grow. It is also recognized that the Geek Riders Bike Club is a club and it is agreed that whatever merchandise or promotional materials are created to advertise the Geek Riders Bike Club will be sold to members within the Charter. Material may be sold to the general public for a profit, with proceeds will be donated to a charity of Charter Choice. All promotional materials will meet the following guidelines before being approved by the club. All materials not abiding by these guidelines will be considered unauthorized and forbidden to all members of the Geek Riders Bike Club. Any member producing and/or distributing unauthorized Geek Riders Bike Club material will be eligible for disciplinary action by the Charter President and or Vice President and could face expulsion, as decided by the Charter Council. Members wearing unauthorized Charter materials at official events shall be directed to remove these items, and if members fail to comply, said members will be eligible for disciplinary action by the Chapter President and or Vice President and could face expulsion.

Geek Riders Bike Club Promotional Items Set of Standards
This set of standards includes any item, print, or paraphernalia that bears the Geek Riders Bike Club and/or Chapter name or logo.

1. Any items bearing the words "GeekRiders.com", "GeekRiders", “Geek Riders” "GeekRiders.com Bike Club" “Geek Riders Bike Club”, or the “GeekRiders.com” Logo are considered representative of the Geek Riders Bike Club.  Such proposed items are to be submitted to the Chapter President and administrative staff before being produced. The Charter President, Vice President, and administrative staff have final word on approval.
2. Geek Riders items must be free of vulgarity
3. Geek Riders items must be as free of copyrighted material as possible
4. Geek Riders items must not be advertised openly on ebay or other forums unless authorized through the Charter.
5. Geek Riders items must not be tied to any outside commercial entity or venture
6. Geek Riders items must not misrepresent or misidentify its user/wearer in any role other than as a member or supporter of the Geek Riders Bike Club.
7. No shirt will bear the label 'Security' or 'Staff' unless created with the full permission of an event organizer and labeled specifically for that event only.
8. Geek Riders items specifying a sub-unit of the club are allowed and encouraged. Such examples would be items promoting GeekRiders.com Chapters.

Article VIII - Disciplinary Action

A member breaking the Charter/Chapter code of conduct or behaving in an unacceptable manner or violating the tenets of this charter may face disciplinary action. This begins at the Chapter level. Any member in good standing may bring a charge against another member from their Chapter. The charge is brought to the attention of their Chapter President, who must then call a hearing. During the hearing both sides of the conflict are related and witnesses and evidence submitted and recorded. This process must run for at least one week after the hearing is called, after which time the Chapter President has the right to close the proceedings at any time at his or her discretion. Once the hearing is closed the Chapter President renders judgment and outlines the requirements for both parties to follow. The Chapter President has the option to assemble a panel of Chapter non-elected personnel to vote on a course of action or to decide for him- or herself.

If the losing party feels wronged, he or she may then appeal to the Charter Council. A hearing is called and both parties invited to speak and submit evidence to the Council. This process must run for at least one week after the hearing is called, after which time the Charter President has the right to close the proceedings at any time at his or her discretion. The Charter Council then decides if the charge is a minor offense, a major offense, or one without resolution. A majority vote rules and a course of action is laid down. A minor offense brings formal censure, to which the charged member must respond with a public apology and restitution of goods or services if these are involved as well. Failing this, the member is placed on one-month probation, during which time he or she is not allowed to participate in club activities. If after probation the accused refuses to comply with the Council's directive then the Council votes on the expulsion of the member by majority vote. In cases of a major offense, the Council may move directly to a vote for expulsion. An expelled member may have his or her ID number removed and released for use by another member.

Any member of the Charter, may redress problems in leadership by calling for a vote of no confidence. A call for no confidence requires only one person at the Charter level and two to make it.  It requires three people at the Chapter level. And it requires five people at the Chapter level to make the call. If a call for vote is made, The Charter Elections Officer is called in to oversee the process. A poll is opened for one week and a vote taken of the members of that Charter. If at least one-third of the unit membership votes in favor of removing the unit leader, then a one-week period begins where nominations are taken. At the end of the week, a poll is opened for one week to vote on the nominees to replace the leader. In the case of a tie, the vote opens for another week and is repeated. In the case of no nominees, Legion Command will appoint a new leader.

Council Resolutions

As the Geek Riders Bike Club evolves, there is occasionally the need to address issues and clarify policy for situations and circumstances not defined in the Geek Riders Bike Club Charter. In order to facilitate solutions within a reasonable timeframe, the guiding body of the Charter Council will resolve all issues.

Charter Offices: