The President’s Report from the 105th AGM
1997 has been a year both of achievement and forward planning for the Club. Members were involved in a major caving expedition, two very successful Himalayan treks have been completed and planning has been going ahead for two future expeditions. On the home front, much work has gone into the proposed Lowstern extension.
The Oman caving expedition took place hi the spring and its’ success was largely due to the efforts of the YRC contingent who spearheaded most of the exploration. Members will, I know, be gratified to see Cliff Downham remembered in the naming of new parts of the system. I hear rumours that a repeat visit to the area is planned for the not too distant future. Looking ahead, plans are just about finalised for the Iceland Expedition next summer, which will involve a crossing of the Vatnajokull icecap and an ascent of the highest mountain in Iceland en route. An expedition to Chile is being proposed for two or three year’s time; it is envisaged that it will involve a climbing and a trekking party, along the lines of the Jugal Himal trip, although the trekking party may not be as well portered as the Himalayan ones have been.
Excluding the Dinner weekend, 16 meets were organised. Sadly, one, the Costa Blanca climbing meet had to be cancelled due to lack of support, but on the other hand the Spring Bank holiday meet in the Outer Hebrides was well attended, providing a memorable week for those lucky enough to be there. Other meets as usual ranged the length and breadth of the country. Of particular note is the increase in rock climbing activity – on checking my log book I see I have done 26 routes with other members on meets alone. This is a very welcome trend and I urge our climbers actively to continue it by attending the climbing meets whenever they can. Average attendance on meets this year was 24. Thanks are due as always to the Meet Leaders for their organisation and excellent standards of catering.
Turning now to the Club huts, the news is mixed. The National Trust is intent upon raising the rent for Low Hall Garth by a considerable amount, forcing an increase in fees charged to non members. Receipts this year are down, although it remains to be seen if this trend will continue. Inevitably the time will soon come when we will seriously have to consider the future of our tenancy at Low Hall Garth. Lowstern, however is thriving, with plans for the extension coming to fruition and building work expected to start in the very near future. When completed, we shall have a facility second to none in Yorkshire and comparable with the best in the whole country. I would like to take this opportunity to thank those people who have been involved so far, particularly Albert Chapman for the idea and John Whalley for producing the plans, and to thank in advance all the people who are going to be inveigled into giving their time and effort in the future.
The Bulletin, one of the best innovations the Club has made in recent years, continues to thrive. It is a never ending source of amazement to me how so many of our members manage to reach far flung comers of the earth. This, combined with the historical articles and the meet reports, makes for highly entertaining reading. The Editor, Michael Smith, now has updated equipment to improve the quality of photographic reproduction and we owe him a debt of gratitude for all his hard work and dedication. Nevertheless, the Bulletin is nothing without it’s contributors; our thanks are due to all those who have put pen to paper in the past, and please keep the articles coming in the future.
On the membership front, I am pleased to report a positive improvement in recruitment. Eight people have been elected to member ship this year and several more are in the pipeline. I would ask all members to put then minds to maintaining this trend and to introduce suitable prospective members on meets throughout the corning year. Membership now stands at 189, five up on last year. Regretfully I have to announce the deaths of three
members; Mark Haslam and past presidents Harry Stembridge and Peter Swindells. There were no resignations.
Membership figures are now
| 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | |
| Honorary Members | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Life Members | 72 | 62 | 64 |
| Ordinary Members | 113 | 117 | 114 |
| Junior Members | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 189 | 184 | 185 |