Dear CAWA members,
It has been a long while since I last communicated with you. In the past year I was travelling for work more than originally anticipated. Other Committee members were out of town too, which slowed down our activities somewhat late last year.
Now we are all back and active. We had a fun Quarry Crash at Mountain Quarry, a highly successful (and at times scary) film night at Rosie O’Grady’s, and a well-attended trip to Mount Frankland, which was less wet than previous years. Ten of our members enjoyed the free tickets we received to the Telluride Mountainfilm in Fremantle and others claimed reduced entry for CAWA members. We have another Quarry Crash upcoming, as well as the Peak Charles Trip in April and a Clean-Up Day at Copper Rocks in May. And then, there will be the AGM in June – we are currently working on speakers and event details and will let you know as soon as we can when, where, and what.
The Committee also has been climbing, although some of us more than others. The greatest offenders in defaulting on the duty to send at least one climb between committee meetings are, cough, the President and Vice President. I have managed to get outdoors a few times since returning from travels in Europe, and sent enough climbs to be readmitted to the “Subcommittee on Sending”. Purists on the Committee questioned my ethics on the onsight of the controversial “Harry Humpkin and the Exploding Pumpkin (West Cape Howe, 19): I did clip the newly placed bolts in the lower part of the climb. The rest of the Committee have been busy climbing anywhere from Tasmania to Margaret River and the local quarries, doubtlessly ignoring shiny bolts if there was a trad placement nearby.
Speaking of bolting: One of the chief results of the survey we conducted last year was that there is overwhelming support for the establishment of a bolting fund. We have thus resolved to establish such a fund (see separate blog post) to help make our local crags safer.
Another big non-climbing task which has kept us busy is the reform of our Constitution, mandated under the new association law, but also long overdue in order to modernise some of our more archaic rules (the location of the Perth Central Post Office plays an incredibly large role in the current rules governing the way we operate, for example – most of us don’t even know where it is located). It has turned out to be quite a big job to adjust the old rules to the new regulations and to modernise all references to snail mail, the signing of checks, and the like, but we will get it done well ahead of the AGM, where members will be able to vote on the new set of rules.
Speaking of the AGM: one of the changes the new law suggests is to align the membership year with the financial year. Currently, our financial year is from AGM to AGM, while the membership year is the normal financial year. The easiest way to fix this anomaly is to push back the AGM this year from April to June. We are still working on the exact date and venue, but will let you know as soon as we can.
One of the main tasks of the AGM is to elect a new Committee. We have had a fairly stable Committee this past year, with only two resignations for family reasons. We have just recently co-opted a new member, Anthony Brandis, who has been part of a previous CAWA Committee and has come back for more. This means that we have one vacancy at present. A core group of the current Committee will re-nominate, including key office holders. If elected, these core members of the Committee will ensure continuity of work between the 2016-17 and the 2017-18 Committees.
Regrettably, I will not be among the re-nominees. I have accepted a position in Melbourne, and will move in early July, just after the AGM.
If you have been toying with the idea of coming on board of the Committee, if you would like the Committee to organize things that have not happened this year (such as training courses, which have fallen by the wayside at present, but should be resurrected), or if you have entirely new ideas for what CAWA could and should do – now is a good time to put up your hand to join. If you are thinking about it but need more information, do not hesitate to contact me on marke@climberswa.asn.au or chat to me when you see me at one of the gyms or local crags.
Meanwhile, we hope to see many of you at the upcoming events. Enjoy climbing, stay safe, and check your knot before you leave the ground.
Mark Edele
CAWA President