SAFETY & TRAINING NEWS This issue included the Navigators High Fives article: Compass Bearings Navigation Courses - Autumn 2004 Brush up on your navigation skills Book a Place NOW These highly popular one-day courses are designed for folk with limited navigation experience and are open to MCofS members and the general public. So, if you want to increase your confidence in finding your way on the hill and learn the skills of map reading and compass bearings, these courses are for you. The day begins with an introduction to the theory followed by a practical hill session. The course costs £25 per person and the dates are as follows:- Glasgow Saturday 16th October Inverness Saturday 23rd October Edinburgh Saturday 6th November   WINTER SKILLS TRAINING COURSES Glenmore Lodge Over 100 course places £50 discount off the normal price for all members of the MCofS Sponsored by Sportscotland and Glenmore Lodge. Course Dates: Friday 7th – Sunday 9th Jan 2005 Friday 14th – Sunday 16th Jan 2005 Friday 28th – Sunday 30th Jan 2005 The courses are two days long, the dates show the evening of arrival (Friday after 1800hrs), departure is tea time on Sunday. There are two levels of course, they will run concurrently on the same dates. Introduction to Winter Hill Skills: Cost £110 Covers basic skills of navigation, winter safety, avalanche avoidance, walking with axe and crampons, ice axe self arrest, and much more (conditions permitting); it will not involve any use of ropes. The staffing ratio is 1:6 Introduction to Winter Mountaineering Skills: Cost £155 Training in winter skills at a more advanced level involving basic rope work and looking at winter belays (conditions permitting). You should already have some basic winter walking skills; experience of rope handling is useful but not essential. It is not a winter climbing course but is aimed at developing the skills of winter walkers looking to take on some of the classic lower grade mountaineering routes and ridges in winter. The staffing ratio is 1:4. We cannot guarantee sufficient snow to cover all aspects that we would like to but we will offer relevant training and you are guaranteed some individual tuition. COURSE ADMINISTRATION Cost includes accommodation on Friday and Saturday nights on a twin room sharing basis, all meals from breakfast on Saturday to tea and cake at 1700 on Sunday, instruction, hire of equipment and transport during the course to the hill and back. There is no evening meal provided on Friday, bar meals are available from the Glenmore Lodge bar from 1700 to 2100 hours. The course however will start with an evening brief on Friday at 2000 hrs followed by equipment issue and crampon fitting. Ideally you should therefore aim to be at the Lodge and fed by 2000 hours on Friday. The courses are only open to those 18 years of age and older. Equipment An important note about boots. As you will not be following paths and may be on steep and hard snow to provide some realism to the training, it is essential to be properly shod. If you have your own good quality rigid soled 3 – 4 season boots and a well-fitting pair of crampons which definitely will not come off, you will be able to use them. Otherwise, you will be supplied with plastic rigid soled winter boots and crampons. Secure footwork is the cornerstone of safe winter travel and it is one of the skills that will be covered on the course. Rigid boots with soles in good condition are essential for secure footwork. This is a major safety issue. You will need to bring an OS 1:50,000 map sheet 36 of the Cairngorms. (A 1:25,000 is not appropriate for navigating in this area under winter conditions), a map case or waterproof map, a compass of the Silva type 4 or similar quality, a head torch and batteries and lastly, several pairs of winter mitts and waterproof outer mittens. You should have your own basic warm winter clothing fleeces etc. We can supply waterproofs, ice axe, boots, crampons and any other technical equipment. Bookings and Conditions These courses are only advertised in this magazine and are only available to MCofS members. Please complete the application form and return it to Glenmore Lodge with the full payment. Any cancellation before six weeks of the start date of the course will result in the loss of a £35.00 administration charge, the remaining course fee being returned. This fee will also be charged should you decide to change your booking to a different person, date or course level. Cancellation within six weeks of the course will result in the loss of the full course fee unless the place can be sold to another MCofS member, in which case the fee less the £35 administration charge will be refunded. If the Course is cancelled for any reason Glenmore Lodge will refund the course fee in full. Applications will only be accepted on the attached application form (or photocopy) with a membership number or club details. Applications must be sent to Glenmore Lodge not the MCofS. Cheques made payable to “Glenmore Lodge” please. Should you wish to stay overnight on Sunday this can be arranged subject to availability on a B&B basis, there is no evening meal on Sunday but bar meals will again be available in the Lodge bar. Please tick the box on the application form and add £20 to the course fee. If we are unable to fit you in due to our other course bookings we will refund you this charge. Insurance for cancellation, curtailment and personal accident is available from Glenmore Lodge at a cost of £11. If you would like that please indicate on the application form by ticking the box and adding £11 onto your cheque. Affiliated club members and group bookings Clubs are advised that we can only accept individual bookings (with payment). Group bookings have caused problems in the past and we can no longer deal with these issues. Club secretaries should ensure that all the information on this page is passed to their members and not simply the booking form. It is essential that members understand what the course will cover. Application Form - not reproduced here   Rock Climbing - Essential Skills and Techniques By Libby Peter - price £16.99 including p&p Packed with essential information and techniques, this book is the official handbook for the Mountaineering Instructor (MIA) and Single Pitch Award (SPA) Schemes. The book is split into six sections including: Getting Moving (indoors and outdoors); The Basics of Ropework; The Climbing Environment, its History and Development; Single and Multi-pitch Climbing; Descending from Climbs and Solving Problems; Mountain Scrambling and Related Activities. Alongside advice to climbers are specific ideas for anyone wanting to help coach and instruct others. There are also sections on Risk Management and Working with Young People. The book is an invaluable reference tool for rock climbers and those who wish instruct, coach and lead others. Written by a mountain guide its functional design with easy-reference colour-coded pages; full colour images that complement the text and accurate relief and line maps make it an indispensable guide to the skills required for rock climbing. The author, Libby Peter, is an internationally qualified Mountain Guide and a Mountaineering Instructor who teaches all aspects of the sport. She is a former employee at the national centres of Plas y Brenin and Glenmore Lodge and is also the author of numerous technical articles in the mountaineering press. Contributions have been sought from colleagues across the breadth of the mountaineering community and the book has been edited by a team of Guides and Mountaineering Instructors from Mountain Leader Training. Rock Climbing follows up the best selling textbook 'Hill Walking' by Steve Long and is a technical textbook is for those interested in all aspects of the sport of rock climbing. High quality designs with clear, line illustrations and colour photos to further understanding of the textual information. Billed by Mountain Leader Training as a worthy companion to Hill Walking. To order your copy of Rock Climbing, please follow this link   Avalanche Education Programme 2005 This coming winter, the MCofS will be running a series of one-day “Avalanche Awareness” courses based in the Cairngorms. Aimed at the general winter hill goer, the courses are non-certificated and will be suitable for anyone wishing to increase their knowledge of snow and avalanches, learn which areas to avoid and improve their understanding of reports and forecasts. Each course will consist of an indoor introduction to avalanche theory followed by a practical session on the hill. The courses will be delivered by qualified and experienced personnel at a ratio of 1 tutor to 4 participants. Basic winter skills will NOT be covered. The course costs £35 per person and the dates are as follows:- Saturday 8th January 2005 Saturday 9th January 2005 Saturday 15th January 2005   MCofS Safety & Good Practice Seminar for Scottish University Mountaineering, Climbing and Hillwalking Clubs 27th & 28th November 2004, Glenmore Lodge, Aviemore The seminar is aimed at University Club members who might expect to be in a position of responsibility by virtue of their experience, organisational remit or committee membership. The weekend will NOT focus on introducing new or inexperienced members to climbing or hill walking, or provide much in the way of purely personal skills training. Union or University employees are also invited if they have an overview of club organisation or safety issues. Kevin Howett, the MCofS National Officer, will give a presentation on Scottish Island Climbs. The programme will cover a wide range of issues including:- Liability and Duty of Care Choice, care and maintenance of pooled equipment Basic First Aid Incident Management Winter Mountain Safety Minimising risk and doing practical risk assessments Qualifications, Training Opportunities and Experience Scrambling and Hazard Awareness Holding a Fall PRACTICAL SESSIONS Hillwalking Moving on Steep Ground Rock Climbing For further details please contact the MCofS Mountain Safety Adviser, Roger Wild. roger@mountaineering-scotland.org.uk Back to Newsletter index     next article This page is part of the old website of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland. To visit the new website, click on www.mcofs.org.uk [ Home ] [ News ] [ Safety and Training ] [ Access and Conservation ] [ Sports Development ] [ Council Matters ] [ Search ] [ Info Service ] [ Membership ] [ Publications ] [ Links ] © The Mountaineering Council of Scotland 2004