The President’s Report
as presented to the 104 th AGM
1996 has perhaps been a quieter year for the Club after the excitements of 1995.
This has not proved detrimental to the meet attendance which has increased by over two to an average of twenty four per meet. Despite not being able to please all the people all the time it is satisfying to record that well over a quarter of our active members attend our monthly meets. It is significant that when a new venue is placed on the meets list it evokes considerable interest, witness the recent Ennerdale meet suggested and organised by Andrew Duxbury and attended by twenty-six members and guests. This site based on a Scout hut is excellent and has been booked for our Christmas meet next year.
Mention must also be made of our Long Walk week-end held over the Brecon Fans organised by Haivey Lomas which introduced myself and quite a few members to an area not often visited by the Club. This weekend as in 1995 was again blessed with good weather.
The Alps meet for those attending was again highly successful, not apparently favoured with consistently good weather as some previous ones but certainly sufficiently fair to give an Alpine novice like myself two of the best weeks walking and climbing of my life.
At the Joint Meet with the Wayfarers at R.L.H. in Langdale the Y.R.C. outnumbered the Wayfarers by nearly five to one. We have in the past suggested to the Wayfarers that we give this meet a rest for a year or two only for them to insist veiy positively that they wish to continue. It is flattering to have this positive and friendly relationship with a Kindred Club.
Finally as always we must record our thanks to all the leaders who make our meets such enjoyable events. Our meets whether at home or abroad are the bedrock of the Club. We should not forget it.
The Club now has six Munroists. Iain Gilmour and Rory Newman joined the ranks this year and I am sure there are one or two more lurking in the wings who are keeping their ambitions and intentions quiet. I know many of us have mixed feelings about Munro bagging but we cannot decry the commitment, dedication and downright tenacity which is required to achieve their objectives. Our man doing the Corbetts which appear even harder than the Munros is also not very far off completion. These members demand our respect especially as many of the hills are climbed in winter conditions requiring a high degree of mountaineering and navigational skills.
Our huts continue to be well maintained thanks to the hard work of our two wardens David Smith and Mike Godden. The installation of storage heaters, a de-humidifier and extractor fans at Lowstern have helped elirninate the humidity problem. The two wardens will report in greater detail later in the meeting.
The Bulletin continues to thrive. It has become a focal point not only of members recording their experiences but also of members propounding theh views on the way the Club should go forward. We may not always agree with the sentiments expressed but healthy and open debate within any organisation can only be of benefit. Our thanks once more must be made to our Editor, Michael Smith for making it all come together.
Last year I expressed to the AGM quite considerable concern and anxiety about the difficulty of recruiting Officers of the Club. I am pleased to say that the key positions have now been filled and will be in place when my successor Tim Josephy takes over. The Secretary will outline the new structure of the Club later in the meeting but may I without preempting what John has to say give a heartfelt vote of thanks to all the members taking up these offices. I might also add that our Treasurer, Alan Kay is staying on for one more year and for that we must be extremely grateful.
Recruitment remains a continuing subject for discussion at our Committee Meetings. It has been said that the only people who can bring young people into the Club are young people themselves. Acting on this theory I then spoke to every young and not so young member and asked them to make every effort to recruit one young member per year. I would not like to say how successful this plea has been but certainly in the potholing/caving area there are currently three potential members plus at least another three other sources which hopefully will be translated into six new members next year. This if fulfilled is well above the recruitment level of the last few years.
Membership stands at 184: one down on last year. There were three deaths in the year, Honorary Member Clifford Downham who gave outstanding service to the Club as Secretary and President. Cliff was also a founder member in 1935 of the C.RO. and it’s Secretary and also a founder member of Ambleside and Langdale Mountain Rescue Team and and then Secretary. A truly remarkable record of service to the Caving and Climbing world. We must also remember Alton Hartley, a much loved member and also our Honorary Member Sir Charles Evans, of Everest and Kangchenjunga fame. There was one resignation Simon Goodwin.
| 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | |
| Honorary Members | 4 | 6 | 6 |
| Life Members | 62 | 64 | 65 |
| Ordinary Members | 117 | 114 | 116 |
| Junior Members | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 184 | 185 | 188 |
Finally I return to the subject of Lowstern. The Committee have started preliminary discussions about a Lowstern extension. This is deemed necessary because of several factors:
- Lack of washing down/sluicing facilities for the potholers.
- Insufficient space where members can relax if the main room is being used as a dining area. i.e. there is no Common Room.
- No private facilities if members especially potholers wish to use it on non Club week-ends when other Clubs are using the cottage.
I must emphasise that these discussions are in the very early stages and no detailed plans have been finalised and until these are presented to the appropriate authorities we cannot obtain detailed cost and estimates. When this information is available we shall get back to the Club immediately with proposals on how we are going to fund the operation. It goes without saying that we shall be asking for some contribution from the membership.
C.D. Bush
9th November, 1996