| NOVEMBER 1993 | **Our 53rd Season** | 228 |
Last weekend I stood on the summit of Tucki Mountain and Porter Peak over looking Death Valley to the east. The Sierra rose as the farthest range to the west. I even spotted Baldy and Baden-Powell to the far south. Clearly the words of Mary Austin as she viewed this panorama as "the Country of Lost Borders" were felt as much by me last weekend as she did long ago. This quote is from The Land of Little Rain.
The best news I have heard in years is that we have our climbing insurance back. Hello DPS climbs of Baboquivari Peak, Weavers Needle and Little Picacho, not to mention those great Sierra peaks! Zion National Park is being avoided as Sierra Club outings. We are considered as a concessionaire and they want to collect fees from us for any outing conducted there. This makes North and South Guardian Angels off limits until this problem is solved. Ron & Bill Oliver have more information on this issue.
Ron Jones has done a fantastic job on The Desert Sage starting with his first issue in June/July 1990, issue #208. This is his next-to-last issue. I know he put a lot of work into this. It really shows, and I enjoyed reading every issue from cover to cover. The January '94 issue will be his last. After 3 1/2 years Ron feels it is time to give the job to someone else. John McCully will put out his first issue in March 1994. John was our Chair last year as most of you know.
| Awesome news! The Sierra Club is about to acquire
insurance that will restore traditional four-season mountaineering activities
to its rich and diverse spectrum of outings opportunities. The use of ice axes
and ropes/climbing gear was banned late in 1988 when insurance premiums for
such outings skyrocketed following costly accident settlements. The prohibition
put the Rock Climbing Section (RCS) into deep hibernation and seriously
impacted the Sierra Peaks Section and many other mountaineering-oriented
sections. Credit for the mountaineering restoration, which includes 5th class rock, will belong particularly to John Edginton, chair of the Club's Insurance Committee, and to Vicki Thorpe, Insurance Risk Manager. Working quietly but aggressively for over a year, their determined efforts have finally paid off. The additional coverage will cost the Club about $45,000 |
a year plus an additional annual expense of about
$15,000 to provide medical insurance for ice axe/rope trip participants
(details not yet known). These costs will be shared by the Club and the
chapters in the same manner as our general insurance expenses. The current
plan, then, is not to partially pass these extra costs directly on to the
mountaineers. Additional requirements on just trips using ice axes/ropes will be the use of liability waivers and the need for Sierra Club membership. Club membership has always been required for membership in any Section, Group or Committee. One cannot hold Section office, vote in elections, lead or assist on outings, earn emblems, etc. unless one is a dues-paying member of the Sierra Club. Club membership is not required, of course, to subscribe to newsletters nor to participate on outings - until now. Non-Club |
