Mary Webster

Mountain safety and skills acquisition complement each other. Our mountain safety aim is to help mountaineers to remain self-reliant and adopt safe practices as they seek wider adventure on the hills.

Courses, Seminars, Events and Resources
As a first step the four navigation courses (with 12 participants per course) in the autumn were appreciated. Three fully subscribed weekend winter skills courses and five avalanche awareness courses introduced a more serious progression. The university students' autumn weekend seminar attracted 64 students and, together with the safety talks to over 70% of university clubs, covers an enthusiasm for adventure with practical reminders of the skills and techniques required. In early March an additional winter seminar for students took place to enhance awareness of winter conditions and associated skills. We are indebted to the Catherine Smith Memorial Trust for funding to subsidise this seminar.

The public Tiso winter experience lectures and Clachaig Inn lectures continue to be well received. These provide an overview of the joys of mountaineering with serious comments on the skills and equipment required. In the aftermath of unfortunate incidents over the winter, a series of radio, television and press releases highlighted the need for a progressive approach to adventure and an awareness of conditions.

An Alpine Essentials DVD was produced jointly with the BMC and this, together with the Winter Essentials DVD and Water Hazards (now in DVD form), provides a valuable resource. The avalanche aide memoire card continues to be promoted and distributed. The Emergency Procedure card has been completed and is being distributed.

Our sincere thanks are due to our Mountain Safety Adviser (MSA), Roger Wild, for his hard work in organising our very successful events. I also appreciate the time and expertise given by all the members of the Mountain Safety Committee and together we enable the MCofS to promote safe practices on the Scottish mountains.

Scottish Mountain Safety Forum
The Scottish Mountain Safety Forum with its broad membership continues to contribute valuable input to mountain safety issues on which it advises the Scottish Executive. The sub-group set up to investigate the comprehensive weather forecast for outdoor users in Scotland sent its proposals to the Scottish Executive last year. There have been some discussions and at the time of writing we await a further response.

Representation on Other Mountaineering Organisations
We continue to maintain close links with Mountain Leader Training Scotland. Committee members and the MSA liase with and represent MCofS on other organisations including: Mountain Leader Training UK, the Mountain Rescue Committee of Scotland, the Snow and Avalanche Foundation of Scotland, the British Association of Mountain Guides, the Association of Mountaineering Instructors and the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority

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