Sept. 6-7 Tan-Yr-Wyddfa
Sept. 18 (W) Black Rocks Cancelled
No entries this month
Annual Dinner- Repeat Notice
The Annual Dinner will beSaturday November 9th 2002 at 'The Green Man'. Shirley Wainwright.
I've booked the Barrow M&SC hut in the Coppermines valley for this meet, GR SD289986 (next to the Youth Hostel). The track up to the hut is rough, but driveable-parking is on the higher level between the hut & the YHA, cost is £5 pppn.
The obvious climbing venues are well known; Dow Crag, Wallowbarrow, Langdale etc, but there are also numerous, less frequented crags in the vicinity, all of which offer good routes at all grades - Coniston real ale, brewed on the premises at the Black Bull is an added attraction!
The Royal Oak in Ockbrook has been booked for each of the first Tuesdays of the winter months: October to March. I had hoped that someone would by now have stepped forward to take on the post of organiser which I am keen to relinquish. No-one has done. As a result no speakers have been booked yet, [beyond those cited below - Ed.]. Watch this space. Rob Tresidder
Rob Tresidder is currently in California with a camera. He will, I hope, show pictures of his journey southwards from Tuolumne Meadows, on the John Muir trail into the Yosemite Valley and then further south to Mount Whitney. There may even be shots of the surf at Big Sur or the cast of Baywatch.
Paul Ramsden will speak about his recent ascent (with Mick Fowler) of The Ice Dyke on Suniang in Szechuan province in China. Early reports suggest the climbing (and bivouacking) were groundbreaking (or icebreaking perhaps).
This list is only correct at time of going to press. Members are advised to check availability with the hut booking secretary Colin Hobday before going to either hut. Note that hut booking dates refer to nights (e.g. Fri/Sat for a weekend) meet dates refer to the days e.g. Sat/Sun).
Most of you will already be aware that John Shreeve passed away most unexpectedly on August 4th. This sad news has come as a real blow to the club, particularly following the loss of Harry only a month earlier. They will both be sadly missed by us all. It is very fitting that the following tribute to John, has been prepared by Chuck, who has known and worked closely with John for many years.
My association with John, who died unexpectedly on August 4th after a hip operation, began back in the 1940's with the Youth Hostels and the Black Rocks climbing scene. He had a decidedly youthful face and was popularly known as Babe Shreeve. John became an Oread member in 1976 and appeared prominent, to me at least, when the Hut Management Committee was revived during Pete Scott's term as President, and work on updating both our huts became necessary. I don't think that there are many Oreads who haven't come into contact with John; the odd job here and there, plane and saw at the ready; he was always quick to offer help on the home front, he had a penchant for the ladies, famous people and the camera. He also had a portfolio of jokes that he forced upon us at regular intervals; most were hot off the press. During his time on the hut's management committee, (a position that will be extremely hard to fill), he skilfully organised professional voluntary labour for major refurbishment of kitchen, bedrooms and showers at the huts; facilities which you now all enjoy in this modern age. For this input to the club over 26 years John was made an Honorary Member in 1995.Fellow club members may only have fleeting knowledge of some of John's other interests. He was actively involved with the East Midlands Airport aircraft museum and the history of aircraft crash sites in Derbyshire and Snowdonia. He entered the Royal Air Force in 1948 until 1950 and spent time on the Berlin Airlift as a Loadmaster; one can well understand his interest in early aircraft.John was also a member of the Allied Aircrew's Association He worked tirelessly for the memories of airmen killed in action and organised each year a memorial service in Mugginton Church after tracing the relatives of airmen killed at a nearby crash site in 1944. He was supported by his wife Cynthia who he married in 1959; they have one son Perran.
[As my final note, I have taken the liberty of including here, and I'm sure that he won't mind; an email sent to me by Richard Linney who was quite young when, with his father he first met John. " I can clearly remember John from work parties in Wales. His sense of humour in all situations seemed to bring every one together and ensure that the work got done professionally, but in good fun also. He was a very clever and highly talented man- a unique individual. He had an impact on me, even at an early age. I am sure that he has had an influence on many people, and I know that the spirit of John will live on in many people and in the Oread for a long time to come". I assisted John on a number of his memorial activities, and I believe that I was closer to him than most. I shall miss him.]
Chuck Hooley
Molly, Laura, and Simon would like to thank all those who visited Harry whilst he was in hospital and also for the kind messages of sympathy after Harry died. They meant a great deal to us.
Molly Pretty
The Oread is still seeking someone to take on the task of organising the winter evening meets. It is not a huge amount of work. It is worthwhile and fun. This is far from my first attempt to find someone to replace me. If the situation is unchanged on the 12th November, I shall be proposing to the committee that we cancel our bookings with The Royal Oak for the following winter 2003/2004. Rob Tresidder
Rob has been doing this job for several years now, and the Committee is very grateful to him for his efforts. We cannot expect him to do it forever - particularly as he is also Meets Secretary. The monthly lectures are very popular, and it would be a pity to see them disappear. However, the Committee recognises that we might have to discontinue them if no-one can be found to relieve Rob of the duty. So please, if there is anyone out there who feels that he could do this job, please contact Rob, or any committee member. To those of you who regularly attend the Tuesday lectures: could any of you take it on? The Committee.
Digger and Mike Moore wish to thank all those who came to celebrate their 80th at what proved to be a very enjoyable gathering.
Part of the group walked from the Dog & Partridge near Thorpe, in quite wet weather, via Milldale and arrived damp and steaming at The George, to join the rest (about 60 in all).
Great to see so many friends and share the George's excellent buffet in such a happy mood. The rafters rang and Mike's hearing aid glowed red hot!
It was an occasion we shall enjoy remembering for many years. Thanks for your good wishes, presents, cards and especially your company! Absent friends were very much in our thoughts.
Digger Williams and Mike Moore.
Over the year there have been some changes to the Meets List, and revisions have been notified here. The following is a complete list of the meets remaining for this year, as requested at the last Committee meeting.
Sept. 6-7 Tan-Yr-Wyddfa: D Pike
From mid-June this year, and for 20 weeks, Jones Bros of Ruthin will be working on three sections of the track:
· Earthworks between Bryn Gloch and Castell Cidwm.
· Refurbishment of Glan yr Afon viaduct
· Excavation and layout of Rhyd Ddu Station.
If you have any concerns, please contact Chuck.
Applications for full membership of the club have been received by the Committee from Simon Pape, John Dobson, Chiz Barker and Rueben Dakin. Anyone who has any views on any of their applications should express these in writing to the Secretary, Derek Pike, before the next Committee Meeting on 8th October.
Willersley has been subject to climbing restrictions this year. Richard Hopkinson is concerned that if Willersley is to remain a viable local crag, we the Oread, as one of the main local clubs, need to be doing our bit. On an associated point he says we don't as a club do any crag clean ups - he occasionally takes a bin liner down to Willersley although the majority of rubbish is not left by climbers there. Perhaps we should do Wildcat & High Tor - a few people could do them all in a wet autumn Saturday morning. [Paraphrased from Richard's messages: Ed]. If you want to get involved, please contact Richard.
One enthusiastic member recently sent me (& I assume other members) an email that was about 1000 times the size of the average club newsletter ie it would have taken 1000 times as long to download if it hadn't completely blocked my internet link & cost me a lot of time & as well as some money to sort out
Could you request members to think carefully about the size of email files they send (photos (any size) & maps) can take up an enormous amount of file space). Using high powered works computers they may not realise the problems they cause at the other end to barely computer literate old phogies like me with small steam driven computers
Richard Hopkinson
On the day of the Oread's 50th Dinner, Jim Kershaw, Wally Richardson, & I got up to the snow-line on the Llechog ridge, and then my legs ran out of steam, so we turned back.
This being my 80th year it seemed a good idea to try again. With my wife Meg, our son Mark, his wife Angie, Meg's sister Philippa and her husband Paul, and bolstered by the combined mountain experience of John Fisher and Charlie Cullum, I tried again on August 24th.
Despite grey clouds, drizzle and rain, we reached the misty summit and squeezed into the 'Hotel' which was jammed wall-to-wall with damply clad people.
After restorative cups of hot chocolate, we moved to the terrace where, magically, bottles of champagne, fluted glasses and birthday cake were produced. So the occasion was marked in true Oread style.
Coming down (if that's the correct expression) the clouds evaporated (naturally) and great views were seen.
A delightful trip, delightful company, and a delightful way to celebrate my 80th. Many thanks to all who made it such a pleasure.
Incidentally, John reminded me that the last time he and I stood together on the Snowdon summit, was 49 years ago, almost to the day, when we became the first Oreads to our knowledge, to do the 14 peaks.
Mike Moore September 2002.
Well done Mike! There are many of us who would be very pleased to do the same (even in our fifties!!) [Ed.]
The following is the answer to a Brainteaser posed by Ernie some months back. This has been my first chance to issue it, due mainly to space constraints.
In days of yore money came in the form of gold. A pound was a gold sovereign. As things got worse pounds degenerated into bits of paper, but small change was still in silver. As a result of the machinations of Socialist Political Levellers such as Harold -pound in your pocket- Wilson, (it turned out that he had Alzheimers), and Capitalistic Vandals such as Nelson Bunker Hunt, (he took on the Treasury of the U.S.of A. - and, of course, lost.) the value of silver in the coinage exceeded the face value of the money.
So, the Engineering Research Dept. of what eventually became B.T. was invited to produce a plug-in for bank coin counting machines to separate the silver from the cupro-nickel dross which replaced it.
According to an eye witness known personally to me, the silver coinage was placed into steel skips, 20 tons at a time, and shipped to the mines in South Africa for refining, as no facilities were available in the U.K. capable of dealing with that quantity.
It appears that history is repeating itself, as a study of the dates shown on the coins suggests that no genuine copper coin has been minted since about 1990, being at present made from steel, which is then copper plated. Strangely, although the plating is very thin, and considering the hammering that coins get in general circulation, I have never seen one worn to the state in which the steel showed through. The Mandarins of Power triumph once again, and this time using a natural phenomenon known long before the time of Michael Faraday
Ernie Phillips
Articles for the October edition should be sent to me at BOTH my email addresses please.
Please do NOT send me floppy discs by post, unless they are properly protected from physical damage. The last one I received in this way would not eject from my floppy drive!
Please ensure that material for the next newsletter reaches me before Sat 28th September. I would like to hear from Shirley Wainwright ('Goldies' & Annual Dinner) Keith Gregson (Heathy Lea) and Rob (The Dash). If possible, I would also like to receive descriptions of past meets, for example; Mike Hayes (Alps), Keith Gregson (GR20 & Pembroke)