An open letter to Climb Nova Scotia; bouldering pads!

[the kydd]

An open letter to Climb Nova Scotia;

Tonight was the first night of the Monday Night Bouldering Series. There was a great turn out, the weather was beautiful, and many new people were introduced to a spectacular bouldering location.

Through out this past year I have had the great opportunity to share my love of climbing with countless people through my job at Ground Zero. Tonight there were many people in attendance that have never climbed outside before, and from people’s responses, it was a great start to what hopefully will be a very successful summer series. The climbing community here is friendly, open, and very welcoming to those new to the sport, or new to the Halifax area. The Monday night series is a wonderful opportunity to build upon the great community that already exists.

I am suggesting that CNS should have some sort of representation or support towards this event. It should be in the mandate of CNS to actively endorse events that have a positive net benefit for the climbing community at large. I am not suggesting that CNS should organize, promote, or run, the Monday night series. To my knowledge, in years past, Sean Therian has organized this event. This year Steve Rahey has taken on the job of promoting and sparking an interest in keeping this annual series together.

One way in which CNS could become involved in the Monday night series, and promote climbing in Nova Scotia, is by providing some bouldering pads.

I have had several discussions on the subject of pads with various people involved in the local community. I have heard that there are some obstacles in getting CNS to support such an event, or in providing such gear, because of various reasons. The reasons which I have heard are all viable; however, I believe that they can be easily overcome. The main issues seem to be based around legal/liability issues, storage of pads, and lastly money.

CNS is not running the bouldering series, so I don’t feel like legalities should be an issue. The series is a very informal gathering, where-by people meet other climbers, are introduced to different areas, and have fun. This is beneficial to the development of a larger climbing community. CNS could simply loan the pads out to the organizer of the event for use on these particular evenings, or anytime a pad is needed for that matter. If new climbers have a positive experience they are more likely to continue pursuing climbing as an activity. The community grows, and CNS will undoubtedly also reap the benefit of this growth through membership sales and greater exposure.

The second issue I’ve heard relates to the storage of pads when they’re not being used. Since CNS is a volunteer run organization I doubt that the board members want a bunch of pads taking up space in their personal homes. (Likely, all the board members have their own pads at home!) However, I know that CNS does have some gear. Where is the ice climbing gear CNS own kept during the summer months? I bet that one of the local climbing gyms would be more than willing to store several pads. An arrangement could be made where if you present a CNS membership you could even sign the pads out for a day, or weekend. If an out of town climber comes to visit, they could purchase a CNS membership and sign out a pad, or CNS could even rent them to non-members. I’m sure something could be arranged with the local gyms to help with this. This would also provide an opportunity for CNS to expand on its membership base.

The third issue seems to be money. CNS must receive some sort of annual funding from one of the different branches of government? I do not know the amount that is received, but I am curious, where is this money is being spent? I do know that CNS supported several group initiatives by getting them into the local climbing gyms; these were special interest groups from the I.W.K hospital. I know this because I worked with these groups, and got to see the results of several very successful and personally rewarding climbing sessions. This was money well spent by CNS. I have also heard that CNS is supporting one of the climbing community’s strongest climbers by helping him compete in several prestigious competitions in Europe. This is also money well spent, as Ghislain will be representing us, the NS climbing community. Does the annual Boulderfest add money to the coffers of CNS? If CNS is making money from Boulderfest, they should defiantly be putting this money back into the climbing community in a manner that benefits this user group. In my opinion, by providing pads for events that introduce new people to the obsession that is bouldering, then CNS is doing their job successfully.

It would seem to me that CNS should provide pads to help promote what is undoubtedly the crown jewel of climbing in NS; bouldering.

This is just my $20 worth. Ironically, it happens to be the same amount I paid for my CNS membership, which I purchased before I knew a single member of the local climbing community. I felt it was important to support a local organization that promotes and develops the sport I obsess about, and a community which I have enjoyed being a part of during my short time back home in NS.

Word!

Sincerely,

Jeff Kydd

[pulldown]

Great work Jeff, well said! I'm glad you beat me to this post and took the high road. There was a lot of hearsay and conjecture around the boards decisions to not purchase bouldering pads in support of CNS members and the general climbing community.I would like to have a few things cleared up before i misstate anything. Can someone from CNS answer this question for us.

Has there been a proposal from anyone on the board/executive or members of CNS to purchase bouldering pads in support of the large bouldering community here in Nova Scotia?

Todd

[mick]

Well put Jeff. To answer your and Todd's questions:

As people may or may not know, at the annual general meeting of CNS at the end of April I was elected President of Climb Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, I am living in Ottawa for the summer for a co-op term so my involvement in CNS activities is limited at the moment to email correspondence until I return to Halifax in September.

Last week I proposed to the executive of CNS that we purchase some bouldering pads. Specifically, I recommended that we buy at least two large pads for use at the Monday night boulder series and Boulderfest. These pads, I feel, ought to also be available for any CNS member to borrow provided they are not being used for a specific CNS event.

There has been discussion among the executive regarding these purchases and I have not heard back from everyone just yet. As President, I don't have a vote on the executive, so the support and feedback of the rest of the board is critical.

Proponents of buying the pads, myself included, have cited that CNS has ice gear, rock hardware, and ropes, but no bouldering equipment - a prime activity in Nova Scotia. I feel that CNS should be more visible in the community and that people ought to be more aware of what we do. I think a great way to do that would be to have two big monster pads with "CNS" painted on 'em in big letters sitting at the bottom of V0- problems every Monday for the rookies to instill confidence, and the same pads waiting to catch the toughguys(girls) when they bail off their highball testpiece later in the week.

Opponents of buying the pads have cited that CNS already owns a pad (but we actually don't - if we do, no one knows where it is or who has it), that there are legal concerns (I have drafted a waiver and release form which I being reviewed by an expert at the moment and will be rolled out in the near future when I know more), that pads are available to rent from MEC (I called them and they have two pads, one is a decent BD dropzone and the other is an old MEC one. Each is available for $8/day), and that storage is an issue (I would be willing to take one of the pads, and I really don't think it would be that hard to store the other one. SeanT, could we store one at GZ if worst came to worst?).

Anyway, the jury is still out. I will be drafting a letter to potentially send to pad manufacturers with the goal of getting some kind of deal on them, since CNS is a non-profit. To answer your question about funds, yes, CNS does get some money from Sport Nova Scotia annually, and as a member you are entitled to see our balance sheets and budget. The treasurer this year is Ben Quek, last year it was Conan Baker. I don't know how much cash we have on hand right now, I'm waiting to hear back from Ben. I can tell you, however, that CNS does not usually make money on Boulderfest. Proceeds from ticket sales go to buy the prizes and the food and pay Norm to ferry people out there. I believe we lost money on the event last year, but that's totally fine cause that's what the money is for.

CNS is a volunteer organization with an elected board. We don't meet as often as we would like to because we are all busy people. As such, it can take time to get things done but hopefully, at the end, something actually DOES get done. I couldn't agree more that CNS' primary mandate is to promote climbing in Nova Scotia, and that a great way to do that and be seen is to make our resources available to climbers.

A big thanks to Steve for stepping up to the plate and making Monday night bouldering happen this year. I really want CNS to have a more active role in the series, and I'm hoping that we can get the legal stuff sorted out so CNS can really take on the organization and planning in the future.

If anyone ever has any questions about CNS and what we are up to, feel free to contact me. If you have opinions on why we should/shouldn't buy pads, what kind of pads we should get, new events you want to see or courses you want to have available, why CNS is awesome or sucks, post up or email.

Cheers,
Mick Levin
President - Climb Nova Scotia
micklevin@gmail.com

[Scooter]

CNS makes no money on Boulderfest.
CNS has a responsibility to spend all money from funding or CNS runs the risk of losing the funding the following year.
CNS allocates its funding to host events, support individuals/ events / comps, route development, access fund, gear/ equipment, prizes, etc.,

[chameleon]

Good response Mick.
Of historical note, the weekly bouldering series (weakling bouldering series? ) was started by CNS about the same time as Boulderfest and the ever popular weekly Ice Daze winter outings.

I gather that official sanctioning of the weekly bouldering event has waned over the years.
Sean T was good enough to spearhead it for a few years (maybe or maybe not under the GZ banner, I'm not sure) and
kudos (gawd, I hate that word) to Steve for stepping up this year.

I don't think Jeff's open letter was necessarily aimed at bashing CNS (despite the fact that bashing the organization is an easy and popular sport - not to mention fun)...but I would caution you peeps (that word's even worse) that CNS is no more, and no less, than a collection of individuals who are as passionate about climbing as you are. The only difference is that they have stepped up in an effort to do something positive....in much the same way that Steve and Sean do....and Todd does with his videos. I don't know if the fact that some are part of CNS and some aren't really makes much difference. How about less "us and them" and more "us"?

Anyways, for what it's worth, an investment in pads sounds like a good idea to me. I also seem to remember that CNS bought a pad or two at some point over the last few years?? - could be wrong.

S

[Zamboni]

CNS gave away a used pad last year at boulder fest, and we have a new one to give away at this years boulder fest.

If I can make a side post here, there are some sweet prizes up for grabs this year at boulder fest. A Bouldering pad, two sets of Rock rings, four slings, a 60m rope, loads of calk, brushes, beaners, guide books ( casinator when can you get some to us? ) a bin of old shirts. And we hope to have our new CNS / Sickle Organic shirts in for sale at boulder fest. Get your tickets while they last!

Conan.

[pulldown]

Just a though for those who cite legal issues for not moving forward on this. I can't see the difference in loaning out ice tools or loaning out crash pads. I also find it hard to believe that loaning a member of CNS a foam pad could pose more liability than loaning a power tool for the purpose of installing safety anchors.

I've been a member of the board. During that time we began events like Boulderfest, replaced old equipment, bought a drill, and held climbing coarses, so i understand the concerns that the board members have regarding liability. I just don't see the liability being any more serious with a crash pad than the many other things CNS is responsible for.

Am i missing something here?

Todd

PS. I'm not a lawyer but i play one on TV.

[The Mitt]

I think its an outstanding idea. There shouldn't be any liability if someone else is running it.

S

[tracstarr]

My 2 cents right now is the beef with all those out there who don't support CNS. There are a hell of a lot of climbers and yet less then 70 actually have valid memberships. Only about 10 showed for the AGM. Without support from the community it becomes hard to support THE community. Not money wise, $20 for 2 years is nothing, and doesn't do much to help out in the bank. I was an executive for a few years, resigning this year. One thing I always found difficult was the urge to want to do anything for the climbing community that exists now( go figure right ). There is just such a lack of care or concern from most out there. Seems most expect some sort of monetary gain for being a member....not all, but a lot. I think most executive at the time have/had the same feeling. We took on many different approaches to "meet the mandate" as people keep trying to harp on. Buying pads is a weak way to meet that. CNS is going to end up in the $hitter in the next year or two if people don't step up. I now see why so many previous board members have some of the feelings they do, and why so many remain departed from it all... I'm almost at that point myself. Anyway, I'm sure there will be a lot of BS flying on this post, but whatever, that's the way it is. CNS getting pads is a 50/50 idea for me. Sounds simple on the outside, but it's far from it in my opinion.

[Zamboni]

The main objection wasn't with legal issues but where the pads would be kept. CNS has rope gear to run clinics, HRM rec. runs one every year and we maintain and donate the use of the gear. CNS has Ice gear for CNS ice days, so newbies can have a crack at it ( ice tools cost over $400, and cramp ons are over 100 ). They are always paired with Current / Past Board members, and or certified instructors, and do not get lent out to just anybody.

CNS was presented with the option to by pads 2 years ago, but x'ed the idea as pads are one of the most common type of gear out there ( next to shoe's and chalk ). If somebody needed the use of a pad, they wouldn't have to go far to find one. Unlike Ice tools and crampons.

I voted not to buy any because I'm the only person that will store any of the current gear in my small 2 bedroom apartment. I don't want to be stuck with keeping more gear. If somebody else is willing to take on the responsibility, its ok with me.

Conan.

[mick]

In lieu of the correspondences today, it seems as though the wheels are turning on buying pads and a majority of the CNS executive supports the purchase. We are leaning towards two BD Dropzones, although I personally would prefer one larger pad and one Dropzone, but we will go with a consensus decision. I have offered to keep at least one of those pads at my apartment, as seen in the post above, but I'm afraid I won't be back in Halifax until autumn.

I realize that I am new to the CNS executive, and that my starry-eyed optimism about climbers isn't always accurate, but I am not willing to throw my hands up in the air and say that it's not worth trying to do something positive for CNS members. You can't please everyone, but I'd rather have CNS do some things and have some people say "That was lame" than have CNS do nothing and have all the people say "Why didn't you do anything?"

From what I have seen, CNS has been up to some things and has put on some events and made some gear available. As a member, I tried to be part of as much of that stuff as possible, and I had a good time and was happy to have the opportunity. As I said before, we are a volunteer, non-profit organization run by normal people who have other things to do at times. I think we can all respect that, but I for one am willing to give up some of my spare time to try and make some good things happen for Nova Scotia climbing (even if I'm in another dang province at the moment).

Thanks to Keith for looking after CNS' electronic data and website for the last few years and setting the current executive up with the records we had on file. I hope to make some of that information transparent and accessible to members and get the waivers and membership in order, and if Zig is feeling generous then there might be some useful updates to the CNS webpage forthcoming as well.

Let's try to keep the dialogue constructive and positive.

Cheers,
Mick
CNS Prez
mick@climbnovascotia.ca

[martha]

Just to add to the debate, as a past board member and a current CNS Member (though I think our family membership ran out this winter? can someone confirm that so I can pony up the quid?)... my thoughts on crash pads are that they are a very common piece of gear. Lots of people have them, many have more than one.. or two, so finding enough for people probably isn't much of an issue. That paired with MEC renting them for 8$ per day, it seems like a strange investment for CNS. However, even in saying all that, I don't see a problem with CNS getting at least one pad (especially if they write and call manufacturers to get sponsored) to lend/rent out to MEMBERS ONLY.

On a side note, a very large chunk of CNS funding goes to insurance.

[pulldown]

It's important to serve the members but it is also important to grow the membership. That is accomplished by introducing beginners to climbing. I was at the Monday night session and had the opportunity to talk with a few people. There was a climber visiting from Vancouver who was here for a few months and had no pad. Another climber had recently gotten into it but had not purchased her own pad. This provided a great opportunity to show climbers that CNS supports them and just maybe those people would get involved and help CNS and the general climbing community grow.

Pads are a small cost for potentially large gain.

I have a climbing wall in my basement it goes unused for most of the summer, i live close to the rotary and highway. Storing a pad would not be a problem for me and it would be relatively easily accessible.

So storage is not a problem.
Liability not the issue.
I assume the money is there?
The President of CNS thinks it's a good idea.
Lets get this moving.

Todd

[chossmonkey]

Maybe if a few of you pool some money together you could buy this pad and donate it to CNS.

http://www.climbeasterncanada.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=4603