After much discussion the idea of a meet with a difference is taking shape.
The idea is to try and sort out a meet with something for everyone, from walking to scrambling and climbing, and some extra attractions for the evening.
It'd be great if we could make this the biggest meet in the history of OM, and a great way for newbies to come along to a meet and not feel so nervous at being amongst old hands.
The big difference between this meet and normal meets would be the Saturday evening. The plan is to hold an auction in aid of mountain rescue teams, where people can sell their excess/unwanted kit and raise money for a good cause at the same time. Put simply you bring your unwanted gear along and decide what the minimum amount you want for it is. Then in the evening all the gear is auctioned off. 10% of the final auction price would go to mountain rescue with the balance going to the seller.
It's amazing how much excess kit we all have hiding unused in cupboards/garages etc. Selling the kit this way would raise the seller a bit of extra cash, give a boost to the MRTs and also give newbies to the outdoors the chance to pick up good gear at bargain prices. In addition to the second hand gear for sale Outdoors magic would also be putting up items that have been sent in for testing and review - meaning new gear at bargain prices with 100% of the money from these items going to the MRT.
Also on the Saturday evening there could be a slide show/lecture on a walking/mountaineering theme.
At the moment the best weekend seems to be July 8-10th. The venue would have to be somewhere with enough space to accomodate 40+ people camping and have a bunkhouse alternative available. From initial research Sykeside at Brotherswater seems ideal with a large site, a bunkhouse (somewhere to keep auction gear under lock and ke during the day) and even B&B available. The location is also ideal with walks like Fairfield, High Street and Helvellyn all easily accessible as well as scrambling classics like Pinnacle Ridge on St Sunday Crag.
To make the Supermeet a reality we need to know if the idea, location and dates are suit people so if you're interested please give your opinion. We also need an idea of any people willing and able to help organise the weekend.
Posted: 21/04/2005 at 14:43
