The Regional Coordinator Summit was conceived as a significant advance in the Access Fund's work on climber education, conservation, and grassroots activism. Held over the weekend of November 10-12 at the Holiday Inn in Boulder, Colorado, the event was intended to help make local climber activists more effective by building political awareness, communications skills, and knowledge of environmental, recreational, and policy issues.
"By investing in local activism, and by training our field representatives in federal policy, the legal implications of climbing and grassroots organizing, the Access Fund will better support its mission of preserving access and the environment," explained Rick Thompson, Access Fund Access & Acquisitions Director, who organized the conference.
The Access Fund Regional Coordinator Network is a force of committed volunteer-climbers who serve as Access Fund representatives for key climbing areas and geographic regions.
Many Regional Coordinators are leading climbers who are involved with the climbing industry as guides or retailers, or have authored climbing guidebooks. Some are attorneys. Others have served on the Access Fund board of directors, and a few, such as Al Rubin from Massachusetts and Randy Vogel from Southern California, were instrumental in establishing the Access Fund five years ago.
According to Thompson, the Regional Coordinator Network is "The heart and soul of the Access Fund. We've always depended heavily on volunteers to help carry out our work, and our Regional Coordinators are the finest example of local climber volunteerism."
The 1995 Regional Coordinator Summit is the first event ever to bring climbers from around the country together to help them become better advocates for their own interests and for broader environmental causes.
Over 60 climbers attended, representing more than seventeen states including Iowa, Missouri, Virginia and Georgia in addition to California, Colorado, Washington and West Virginia. Said Ward Black, Regional Coordinator for Iowa, "To get this many climbers to come together for more than just climbing is remarkable. The Summit was incredibly motivational."
The Summit featured more than a dozen instructional workshops, round-table discussions, guest speakers, and a field trip to Eldorado Canyon State Park to review conservation measures climbers have helped implement there. The workshops focused on federal policy, resource management, public outreach, media relations, and other skills required to preserve both climbing opportunities and natural resources.
Guest speakers included land managers, outdoor educators, legal experts, representatives of other recreational interest groups, and businesspeople.
Jim Schlinkmann, Chief Ranger for Devils Tower National Monument, spoke about the new Climbing Management Plan for the Tower and how successfully climbers (and the Access Fund) had worked to compromise with Native Americans there and support the voluntary climbing closure each June. Schlinkmann praised the Access Fund for its "commitment to creative management solutions."
Steve Muehlhauser from Eldorado Canyon State Park and Casey Newman, manager of the Boulder Rock Club, talked about the importance and positive effects of climber activism in the Boulder area. Tim Blumenthal, Executive Director of the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA), discussed common challenges facing outdoor recreationists, and the parallels between IMBA and the Access Fund. Jim Angell, a founder of the Access Fund and president of Corplan, Inc., a company specializing in design and construction of low-cost, low-impact trails, discussed considerations for trail building and led the Saturday afternoon field trip to Eldorado Canyon. Phil Powers, Chief Mountaineering Instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), talked about the national Leave No Trace outdoor education program and how climbing fits into this ethic.
Saturday night's dinner was the occasion for honoring people who have made extraordinary contributions to the Access Fund. Jim Angell collected a "Cutting Edge Fossil" award for his years of dedicated volunteer service. Paul Minault, former Access Fund Policy Analyst, received the "Ground Up" award for his exemplary work on policy, management planning, and building the Regional Coordinator Network. Randy Vogel garnered the "Yo Hammer" award for his many years of "pounding away at stubborn climbing access issues." And Rick Thompson was presented with the "Dicey Pro" award for his hard work and impeccable organization of the Summit.
The 1995 Summit was so successful that staff and board members immediately began planning a similar event for 1996. Although he planned to take a well-deserved vacation after the event, Thompson cracked, "I better get to work on the next one if I want to have any sort of a life in 1996."
The 1995 Summit was that rare confluence of information and personalities that at once affirms the importance of the Access Fund's work and creates new challenges to be answered. The Regional Coordinator Summit was made possible by a generous grant from Recreational Equipment, Inc., matched by funding from Reebok, Yates, benefit events and individual contributions.