How Registration Works

It's really winter now. When it snows, it doesn't go away. But I'm beginning to get used to temperatures in the 20s and the days are getting longer.

You have until January 1 to email PALM or email me and get on the mailing list for PALM applications. But you can still get an application mailed to you after January 1. If you email PALM, ie Ellie, after January 1, she will take your name and address an application for you by hand. It's work for her, but she'll do it. It will be mailed a couple of days after the mailing list applications are sented out because she won't have any applications until then so you'll be behind everyone. So it's better for you and her if you email us your mailing address before January 1.

Here's the registration process. First Ellie picks up the mail at the PALM post office box in Ann Arbor. She opens all the envelopes and counts all the riders. (This is one of the many other things she does for PALM besides her staff position. She's the Mail Granny: the one who answers the PALM phone and all the PALM emails.) The day we get the application for the 700th rider is the cutoff date. Every application we receive that day is on the ride. This means that we will actually register more than 700 riders, typically 50 more. We count on cancellations to bring us back down to 700. Since we register 50 riders more than our cutoff, we don't keep a waiting list.

Then Ellie sends the applications to Vickie to process. Before January 31 this is easy: the post office, Ellie, and Vickie are all in Ann Arbor. After January 31 it gets a little harder because Vickie is in Florida, poor girl. Vickie first checks all the applications. Have the releases been signed? Are parental consents necessary and have they been signed? If there are any riders under 18, do they have adult rider sponsors and have the sponsors signed? Is there an emergency contact on the application? Have the t shirt sizes been marked? Do the dollars add up correctly? Is the check/money order for the correct amount? If you forget to include a self addressed, stamped envelope, she has to make one out for you or you won't get a confirmation letter from us. If there are mistakes, she will have to get in touch with you, either by phone, email, or snail mail. She might have to mail you back your check so that you can send the correct amount this time. She's not done. Now she assigns the rider number, fills out the paperwork for our accountant, and sends the applications to me. This is a lot of work, esp if there are errors in the application. It's not like it's winter where she is and she's snowed in. There is a beach right outside her door. And yet she still does work for PALM.

Then I get the applications. I have the easiest job. The applications have already been checked and I get them in batches of 50 to 80 at a time, perfect for efficient processing. Everything I do is automated. I enter the application into a program I've written. I use Mail Merge to generate the confirmation letters. I produce t shirt counts, bus and meal lists using the data saved on the computer. It is winter where I am. Every application I do brings summer that much closer. I'm motivated.

The applications go thru several sets of hands. There really is too much work for just one person to do it all. There are 3 locations involved: Ann Arbor, Florida, and Detroit. Generally things run pretty smoothly but last year was a disaster. We mailed out applications on January 25 and we were filled by Febuary 5, a new record. Vickie went to Florida two weeks early and then broke the wrist of the her writing hand. (Remember she fills out a lot of paperwork and self addressed stamped envelopes by hand.) And the applications had an incredible amount of errors and for every error Vickie had to at least contact the rider by phone or email. About 100 applications were missing self addressed stamped envelopes. Remember this means that Vickie must stop and address an envelope. And she's in Florida and the sun is shining right outside her window. In the middle of the rush, I went on vacation and everything stopped on my end. What a mess. We didn't get done until May just in time to start handling the riders who wanted to cancel or transfer their application to someone else.

This year we are mailing out the applications earlier. We hope to mail them out around January 15. Given how quickly we filled last year, there is a good chance that we will hit our 700 rider limit before Vickie leaves for Florida so that she can take all the applications with her. She promises not to break her wrist this year. This year I'm taking time off around January 10 and I'll be back when the applications start coming in. And you, gentle reader, will do a much better job of filling out the applications correctly and sending in self addressed stamped envelopes. Things should go much smoother.

Suppose you do make a mistake on the application/check. What happens? If you read the application, it says that your application will be returned and your spot on PALM will be jeopardized. That's not the way Vickie does things. Vickie tries to get in touch with you by phone or email. She returns your check only if it is wrong. She holds your spot if you need to send a new check or a new application (in the case of missing signatures). She may even assign you a rider number. You do not lose your spot on PALM. One other thing: she doesn't deposit your check until she processes your application. If you are waiting to see if your check clears to see if you are on PALM, that won't work. You'll get the confirmation letter before the check clears.