Lynda - have you seen http://www.trigpointinguk.com/

Every trig is listed and if you so wish you can print the list off - not advisable unless you have plenty of paper and ink! Have a look at the website and if you have any queries, please get in touch and I will do all I can to help: caroleengel@yahoo.co.uk

Wouldn't mind but don't know whether it would be of interest to anyone else? Could start with my autobiography if you like :-)

Triangulation Points

Does anyone know of the existence of a list of "Trig Points" as shown on OS maps, I have tried their site to no avail.

Rebecca wrote:What I would like to see in strider is articles about regular members so they aren't just names and a number - a sort of 'getting to know you' feature - its such a shame that the only time we tend to hear about peoples lives outside walking is in the obituary section - which is often very interesting and you learn so much about the person.

Nice idea! How about you take charge of 'getting-to-know-ees?'

I'm easy about the list in the back, but I must agree with Janet, I skip through the peak baggers register etc as it doesn't interest me personally although if your name appears you probably feel different. What I would like to see in strider is articles about regular members so they aren't just names and a number - a sort of 'getting to know you' feature - its such a shame that the only time we tend to hear about peoples lives outside walking is in the obituary section - which is often very interesting and you learn so much about the person.

Articles on remedies for blisters / fatigue, and some suggested walks with a sketch map would be a nice inclusion.

But......apart from adding a few pearls of wisdom on the forum (as Neil puts it :-)) I have never contributed to strider - not that I don't to, but I feel too junior in the ranks to have anything useful to add.....

As a past Chairman of the Fell Runners Association I am delighted that Matthew and Jane Hand have reported on the excellence of the FRA Fixtures Calendar & Handbook which for 2013 runs to 134 pages.

However I should add that the FRA also produces three annual issues of the A4 size The Fellrunner which averages over 160 pages per issue and includes updates of event data. The Fellrunner also produces occasional A4 supplements on single themes of around 50 pages.

And, of course, the FRA has a very vibrant website.

And all for £12 pa.

Some people do not use the wwwinternet at all. Ironically, they will probably not be aware of this debate.

I think we need to consider the non techies, as they rely entirely on the written form, and may not be aware of on line amendments and additions. Not sure how many there are... but we must consider them.

Having never organised an event, I'm not sure how easy it is to plan a whole years events up front? Some do it, but trying to meet a once a year deadline may prove cumbersome?

I thoroughly enjoy scanning the events in written form and whilst it is also on line, I prefer the Strider version.

I am rather struck by the research argument, with copies of the Strider being available at the British Library for future reference. I assume that the webpages could be stored for on line research also...? or does it have to be a paper edition?

Janet who started this thread said "I am a bit of a bagger myself." Don't be so hard on yourself Janet. You raise a good point... ;)

I think this would be making things more complicated and difficult to administer. At present we receive information about challenge events and social walks in Strider or members can view details on the website. With this proposal we’ll get a thinner Strider with a few articles plus a separate booklet on challenge events/social walks or a Strider without information on walks which we’d have to look up on line. Currently it’s all in one book

We’re trying to attract new members to the Association and a way we can do that with prospective new members is by lending them the latest (or old) copy) of Strider and showing what we offer as a complete package. All for £13.50! A lot of members are not interested in either social or challenge event but only long distance paths. Which booklet would that appear in? I think it should be left as it is with gradual improvements (colour in Local Group programmes) as brought about by Julie or Ken

The more I think about it, the more usefull I think a seperate annual "Fixtures Calendar" would be - printing a single booklet would save duplicating event details in several striders through the year.

Having all the years challenge events in a single booklet means you don't have to search about for old Striders, plus it is very handy to take up the pub (or anywhere else) to show/discuss future events with others, lend to others (I'm thinking non-members here, who may be starting walking) or have in the car 'just in case'.

The current FRA calendar is over 100 pages and includes adverts (income?), welfare policy, safety requirements, copy of liability insurance, environmental guidelines, parental consent form for juniors, entry forms + all race rules etc. Commitee details and phone numbers.

Basically, the LDWA could have a similar annual booklet of events and include all the necessary legal info for putting one on - such as "Guidelines for dogs on walks"!!! Handy to show landowners when negotiating a route?

I think the whole format is worth discussion and looking at, though so far it seems to be: Don't change anything.
Matt.

I think you'd find that, because Striders are bulk-mailed at a very competitive rate, there wouldn't be an enormous saving on postage. Moreover, I suspect the extra administration involved would pile more work on the Membership Secretary and the printer, who deals with mailings and would charge for his time. Meanwhile, the Hillwalkers Register... yes, not everyone's cup of tea but for some it's a highlight.
Not quite a once-a-year fixture list, but I've been toying with the idea of an Events supplement, possibly to go with August Strider, Any thoughts?

A very relevant point worth thinking about. I suppose along the lines of the Fell Runners Assoc. who send out a seperate "Fixtures" booklet for the year (begining of January), all challenge walks would then be in one booklet for the next 12 months. I certainly like this format with the FRA.

The booklet could go out with a Strider and only to those that request it, others who take the info from online could decline on the additional fixtures booklet. Social walks could go in here or not depending on how organised the groups are.

Only down side is that groups would have to submit their challenge walk dates up to 12 months in advance for printing - not sure if walkers could manage that, though runners do, but then running is quicker than walking!!

Cancellations, date changes, late additions are printed in Strider a well as the website.

If the Strider is then too thin because there is not enough suitable material submited for publication, I think the fault is with walkers who have nothing to say, filling the space up with a calendar of walks is hardly inspiring the next generation of walkers.

In my opinion, plenty worth thinking about, change is always worth considering.
Matt.

I am not suggesting abolishing altogether the paper version of the walks calendar – just publishing as a separate leaflet which members can opt to receive or not – thus preserving the memento / document of record/ individual charm of a paper to be browsed while cutting costs/ postage and leaving more space for the numerous obituaries which sadly seem to fill Strider nowadays.
At the risk of provoking even more protestations of “leave things alone” I could do without the peak baggers Register. No problems with bagging peaks – I am a bit of a bagger myself but the lists of people completing their 15th round of the sub Nuttall tops doesn’t really engage ones interest. (Yes, I know some people will say they wait all year for this very list.)

We like Strider they way it is. Thanks Julie for another good read during these Arctic conditions.

I like Strider just the way it is

During my last stint as editor, I would have wholeheartedly concurred, but this time round I've changed my mind. 1) Often I don't get enough in in terms of usable copy/photos to fill the magazine without the wholesome fibre of the listings pages. 2) Especially now that colour photos can be used, the listings are more attractive and interesting to browse. 3) People who go to the trouble of creating and leading group walks sometimes like to keep a printed record of them as a memento 3)Strider is a paper of record, and should a social historian of the 22nd history want to find out what people did for leisure and exercise in the 21st century all s/he needs to do is research the Group walks programmes in the Striders lodged at the British Library. 4) Purely personally, I find the walks programme of each group have great individual charm. I love reading them. (I can't say I enjoy subbing them so much because sometimes I have to get out the meat cleaver to make sure they fit.) And - once again a personal preference - I wouldn't like a thin Strider half so much.
Anyway, that's my tuppence-worth.

An idea.
51 pages of the current Strider are taken up with challenge and group walk details – information that most people nowadays will take from the website (where it can be kept up to date and does not need a lengthy lead in period to meet publication deadlines)
Many people currently seem to like to keep a paper Strider as well as or in preference to the online version – but I query whether they actually want 50 odd pages of information they could access elsewhere.
How about Strider with more articles and news – and still leaner than the current version – plus a separate walks programme and give members the option of having everything on line, just Srider, or Strider plus the walks programme in print. I suspect many will opt out of the paper version of the walks programme and thus save money, paper, the planet and give the editor of Srider more space for articles and photos.