Document type : vocene
Date : 2011-01-05
Description : VOCene #33
Content :
VOCene #33 – January 5th, 2011
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In this VOCene:

I. Special announcements:
 1) Journal articles
 2) VOC T-Shirts on sale!
 3) VOC Voile straps on sale!

II. Upcoming Events and Trips
 1) Winter Longhike, Jan 8-9 (Sat-Sun)
 2) Semi-Weekly Kayak Polo, Jan 11 (Tue)
 3) Tele School, Jan 15 (Sat)
 4) Needle Peak Ski, Jan 15-16 (Sat-Sun)

III. Miscellaneous
 1) Avalanche course signup
 2) Rewards and incentives for trip organizers
 3) Looking for slideshow presenters
 4) Public consultation: Upper Lillooet run of river (last reminder)

III. Ms. Manners
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I. Special announcements:

1) Journal articles

The journal will be published at the end of February. Everyone interested in writing an article should do so in the next few weeks. If you could submit something before Christmas, that would be awesome. If you would like to add illustrations to your article or you are good at illustrating, let me know.

Please check the wiki (http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/VOCJ53) for guidelines, ideas, and "deadlines". If you have any questions don't hesitate to contact me at journal@ubc-voc.com.  I'm looking forward to hearing from you. Good luck with the exams, Happy Holidays and a great new year!

Cheers,
Kathrin

2) VOC T-Shirts on sale!

The VOC t-shirts have arrived and are now on sale! The t-shirts are 100% cotton and were printed by American Apparel, so they are high quality. This is a great present for your friends and family, or a way of showing your pride in being a member of the coolest club at UBC. The price is $17 for a shirt (exact change only) or $20 for a shirt + Voile strap (see below). The t-shirts are on sale by exec members - lunch time is a good time to drop by. 

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=1&i=51097&t=51097

3) VOC Voile straps on sale!

Yes, Voile has made us a special, limited edition, of their popular "Voile Straps", with the VOC logo printed on them! These straps are invaluable in many situations. Just this weekend our beloved Public Relations guy, Ignacio, broke a binding while out backcountry skiing. The fix? Two long Voile straps to lash his boot to the ski, and he managed to ski out. They have been used in the past for to tie skis together, tie skis to roof racks, hold broken skis together, make a sled, and much more! They are one hell of a useful item. We have three sizes, and prices are lower than MEC! The VOC straps will be on sale during normal gear hours, get them while they last!

II. Upcoming Events and Trips

1) Winter Longhike, Jan 8-9 (Sat-Sun)

Everything is different when you go into the backcountry in the winter; that's why there is Winter Longhike, an introductory trip for winter camping. This is usually a big trip with lots of keen people aboard who want to get out, learn some new skills, and sleep in their very own snow shelter while still managing to have fun too. It's an easy, beginner friendly trip, so if you've never even seen snow before you can still have a good time.  Currently there are over 80 people signed up on the wiki - so it looks like it will be a big one! Winter Longhike this year will be held at Mount Seymour provincial park (past the lifts, near First Pump).

Although beginner friendly and relatively easy, do not under estimate Winter Longhike - it is still a trip to a backcountry location where your survival depends on your actions and equipment.  Although there will be many experienced people around to help out, fundamentally you are responsible for your own safety.  The Winter Longhike pre-trip meeting is optional if you know what you're doing and can sort out rides, food groups, snowcave groups, and activities for Sunday on your own - but please make sure the wiki signup is accurate so the club purchases an appropriate quantity of poo-bags.  At the pre-trip meeting we will go over what you need to know to survive, provide the opportunity for passengers and drivers to hook up with each other, as well as the opportunity to form food, snow-shelter, and Sunday-play groups.  If you can't come, send a trustworthy representative.

The pre-trip meeting will be in BUCH A202, starting at 06:00 PM.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=3&i=16143&t=16143
http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Winter_Longhike_2011

2) Semi-Weekly Kayak Polo, Jan 11 (Tue)

Yes, kayak polo is back! For a while now, VOCers have been holding semi-weekly kayak-polo sessions at the UBC pool or the beach. Typically, half the time is spent practicing rolls, as there's always people that want to learn, and the rest of the time we play kayak-polo. Please check the message board thread for updated information (which will be available soon). 

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=3&i=15763&t=15763
http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Kayak_Polo_%40_the_Aquatic_Centre

3) Tele School, Jan 15 (Sat)

It's hard to learn how to ski in the backcountry, and that's why there's Tele School. Tele school is an instructional lift skiing trip to one of the local mountains near vancouver. Instructors are volunteer VOC members, not professional certified ski instructors. Students will be split into groups of 4 or 5 based on their ability level and matched with an instructor for the day. Typically everyone meets up for lunch.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Tele_School_2011

4) Needle Peak Ski, Jan 15-16 (Sat-Sun)

While Fun Types 3b, 1 and probably 2 are being enjoyed at Tele School, Vicky is organizing a ski trip (winter camping) around Needle Peak that will keep the AT kids occupied. This will be a beginner friendly ski trip, with some excellent alpine skiing and tree skiing involved, and a beautiful location for winter camping to boot.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=3&i=16971&t=16971
http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Jan_2011_Needle_Peak

III. Miscellaneous

1) Avalanche course signup

Don't want to get hit by an avalanche this winter? Well, the easiest thing would be to stay in the city... but if you want to keep going on out into the mountains then taking an avalanche course would be a good start. Soon there will me meters of snow covering our favorite playground, and these courses give you the basic knowledge you need to start becoming aware of the special hazards so much snow poses - that way you can actually make decisions. Information on specific dates/prices is posted on the wiki, so find a date which works for you and pay as soon as possible - payment is the only way to secure your spot, and these courses fill up quickly.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/2010_2011_Avalanche_Courses
http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=3&i=15889&t=15889
2) Rewards and incentives for trip organizers

In an effort to reward our dedicated members who spend time teaching and leading our beginner members on some of the most fun trips to some of the most beautiful places in BC, we have developed a partnership with ProMotive.com to offer discounts on backcountry brands. These discounts are open to members who we call VOC Trip Organizers. You may be thinking to yourself, "I have led trips for the VOC! Am I a VOC Trip Organizer?" Or "how do I lead trips for the VOC to become a VOC Trip Organizer?" Well, in order to answer these questions, the exec has come up with a handy check list to determine if trips you have already led qualify you as a VOC Trip Organizer, or how help you lead your first trips to qualify you as a VOC Trip Organizer. See more info in the links below.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=1&i=49623&t=49623
http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Discounts_for_VOC_Trip_Organizers
 
3) Looking for slideshow presenters

Every year we hold weekly slideshows at the clubroom (and sometimes in bigger rooms if it gets crowded). We're looking for people to talk about cool trips and adventures they've been involved in, basically show us your cool pictures and tell us about all the cool/hardcore stuff involved. After the slideshows we usually go for a beer at the Gallery upstairs.

Email Ignacio at rozada@math.ubc.ca if you want to give a slideshow. The format is very flexible and we've had a few instructional seminars too (how to build a harness, how to pack super light). We might even show some of the movies in our library, especially since we now have a new fancy projector, and a freshly painted wall (coming very soon).

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=1&i=49186&t=49186
 
4) Public consultation: Upper Lillooet run of river (last reminder)

Creek Power a combination of one of the few private companies working on run of river hydro in this province has started the Environmental Assessment Process with the Environmental Assessment Office (EAO). Details on the project can be found here. There is an open house in Pemberton on November 30. Public comments can be submitted until Jan 9 and details can be found in the open house ad. This area is frequented by many members and as such folks may have comments. Note that this assessment is meant to address the environmental, recreational and other commercial impacts and not the bigger elephant in the room (selling public resources for private profit). See also Vancouver Sun story.

http://www.ubc-voc.com/phorum2/read.php?f=1&i=50663&t=50663

III. Ms. Manners

Do you have a question for Ms. Manners? If so, email it to to your friendly neighbourhood VOCene editor and he'll forward it to Ms. Manners for review. Remember, there's no such thing as a stupid question, so ask away.

Ms. Manners was unavailable for comments this week. In fact, she hasn't shown up for work yet after the holidays. Rumor has it that she has been stuck in an airport for days now, unable to leave due to a blizzard which closed off traffic to the city too. It's just a rumor though.

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