[Drew]

Think I first joined about 15 years ago to qualify for the (at the time) competitively priced insurance. Stayed a member for a couple of years utilising the discount in shops. It lapsed for a couple more years, but living in North Wales and seeing the work the BMC were doing in the local area (Bwlch y Moch for example), persuaded me to rejoin. I've been a member for 7 or 8 years on DD. I've also realised what the personal liability stuff is since rejoining, which also appeals just in case I kick a rock on someone's head at Millstone.

Whilst I don't see the BMC as being whiter than white, and could probably be far more efficient/cost-effective, I think they do a better job than anyone else out there so I'm happy to throw a small amount of money at them. I'm also keen to get more involved with the area meetings in the future, but living out in Doncaster with a wee bairn makes getting to the meetings more awkward of an evening.

[csl]

I just joined (again) because of this thread (Cheddar, access stuff)

Was affiliate member through a university club years ago but never signed up fully before.

[Offwidth]

You mean actually join an organization that is prepared to employ Grimer?

An easy joke.   In fact Grimer is a kèy reason  I have done way more fòr the BMC more than just join. He sorted the guidebooks in a way that moved me from a slightly anti BMC stance to very pro BMC one. He recruited and 'perverted' me (and Moff). Because of what he does we have the current BMC guides guidebooks that do the job and sometimes approach art. A conventional  office worker appointment never could have acheived this.

He is not the only one, I already mentioned John and Dave. Martin Koscis and Henry Folkard  also had a massive influence as did several denizens of UKB, as access and guidebook volunteers and various BMC employees and national and local volunteer officers.

Shit... I'm past aqueducts and halfway through hot baths.

[nai]

I just joined (again) because of this thread

Me too.

The arguments put forward make me realise how blinkered I have been.

Good to be able to select UKB as the source 

[andy popp]

You mean actually join an organization that is prepared to employ Grimer?

An easy joke. 

Indeed, but just a joke for all that.

In fact, I'd meant to come back and post more seriously but didn't round to it. Grimer has undoubtedly done an incredible job revitalising BMC guidebook publication and having worked with him on the Cheshire guide I've had a little bit of insight into what that means in terms of the work he does.

But otherwise, I'm guilty as sin. I don't think I've ever been a member in the nearly 40 years I've been climbing ... and I don't have a good explanation as to why. I think it was a much lower profile organisation back then, I was barely aware of it. But the reality is I've never joined any climbing club in the way previous generations had done almost automatically as part of their apprenticeship. Somehow that was fading as part of climbing culture around the time I was getting started. I suppose I simply never got into the habit of joining. A pretty crappy excuse, I know.

[Will Hunt]

Shark has earned 1/6000th of his salary so far. Keep it up!

[Oldmanmatt]

I just joined (again) because of this thread

Me too.

The arguments put forward make me realise how blinkered I have been.

Good to be able to select UKB as the source 

Ha! Black cat everyone!
I not only re-joined, I went to the area meeting last night.

Where do I claim my prize?

(This may or may not be Simon's doing, other options exist).
🤡


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[webbo]

Due to the recent influx of new members of doubtful character. I may have to resign.

[Offwidth]

=27760.msg542310#msg542310 date=1484414743]
You mean actually join an è that is prepared to employ Grimer?

But otherwise, I'm guilty as sin. I don't think I've ever been a member in the nearly 40 years I've been climbing ... and I don't have a good explanation as to why. I think it was a much lower profile organisation back then, I was barely aware of it. But the reality is I've never joined any climbing club in the way previous generations had done almost automatically as part of their apprenticeship. Somehow that was fading as part of climbing culture around the time I was getting started. I suppose I simply never got into the habit of joining. A pretty crappy excuse, I know.

In the end what matters is what you do overall for climbing. The BMC is just part of that even though I think it's easily worth it, especially at a time when they are buying crags to preserve access.

[Iesu]

Been a member consistently for a long time (since my early twenties I guess); originally for trip insurance, but came to realise the benefits of the liability insurance when buggering about in scrappy south wales quarries and challenged by landowners:"have you got inchewerance young man?".

I share some of the reservations about the BMC promoting comps and I feel it's still quite an old fuddy duddy sort of org. I have no exposure to their social media presence so my impression of them could well be caught in the past.

I do read the mag that comes through my letterbox but don't find it particularly relevant to anything i do. I agree that the recent leadership changes have improved things. The 'Climb Britain' thing totally passed me by (guess I missed that mag/announcement?).

I have often questioned the need for the recurring DD but at the end of the day it's a small annual fee for quite a lot of benefit as previously mentioned.

Interesting thread and I hope it encourages more folk to sign up to support the access work if nothing else.

[Paul B]

I originally joined when I was 18 for the insurance for my first foreign trips. I stayed partly for the insurance and partly to help fund the access stuff. Then I stopped using the insurance because
- it seemed to get more expensive
- I realised how many other (cheaper) providers would cover what I wanted to do
- they changed their trip limits so it's now crap for big trips

This is a bit of an issue IMO; it's now hard to get long climbing trip insurance which I'd hoped the BMC would try to offer in the future.

I joined because of the insurance but have stayed a member due to their access work, bolt-fund work etc. As per Dave, I'm not overly comfortable with the direction of the comp stuff but I trust the BMC to act in Climbings' best interest with this.

I visited the 'Climb Britain' Yorkshire BMC meet and it left me feeling like the orgnisation as a whole needed representation from the younger generation and as such I'll try my best to contribute.

[James Malloch]

I've generally been a member since starting climbing in 2010/11 but the times I haven't been are generally due to my membership running out and then being a bit tight so only renewing when my next trip came around and I wanted to get insurance again.

Since I've been out of uni I've just been on the DD and will continue to renew annually. Though I believe the mountaineering club I have just joined provides me with membership so I may cancel the DD once I properly understand what I'm signed up for.

I've never really followed the work of the BMC and to be honest I've never really looked into it. However when threads such as this pop up I get a glimpse of the work regarding access etc etc which makes me want to continue my membership. Seems like a small amount to give for a large amount of benefit.

[tommytwotone]

Another signup from me - never been a member in 20 years of climbing for many reasons, mainly ignorance and inertia. Good thread.

[galpinos]

Like many, joined for the insurance, stayed for the good works. Both my wife and I are members.

Always intended to get more involved but have managed to find excuses up until now. Currently using the two kinds under 4 excuse.......

[galpinos]

Isn't the insurance story something along the lines of the premiums rocketed a few years back when professional chancer Bear Grylls demanded an arguably unnecessary helicopter rescue from Antarctica, and hence fucked it up for everyone else?

The rumour mill.......

http://lifeinthevertical.co.uk/blogs/blog/2009/07/12/bear-grylls-the-bmc-and-us/

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=442426

Dave Turnbull:

Large claims
Secondly, we’ve had several particularly large claims: a £210,000 bill for a rescue from Antarctica, a number of high-cost snowboarding claims from the USA and some big hits from accidents on cruise ships. These claims weren’t from our core members going climbing, hill walking or mountaineering, so we’ve addressed the issue by introducing a detailed questionnaire for polar region cover and increasing the policy loading on snowboarding from 35% to 50%. 

[Muenchener]

Well, I'm not because I don't live in Britain. I am in the DAV though, and fairly active in the Munich section which is currently engaged in a major campaign to prevent the building of new ski lifts in a supposedly protected area of the Bavarian Alps so Go Us.

When I lived in Britain I was always a member of one BMC-affiliated club or another. I approved of access campaigning, Peak District guidebooks and the like in an abstract sense but tbh it was largely because I found cheap access to huts convenient. (Which come to think of it is also why I'm in the DAV now. Plus insurance plus reduced admission to some climbing walls)

[duncan]

I've been a member of the BMC since god-knows-when. As above, joined for insurance and stayed for the access work. I’m currently considering my membership (see below).

The BMC do excellent work keeping cliffs open and communicating effectively with some much more powerful interest groups. I applaud the efforts to broaden the church, if not making climbing generally more popular. The guidebooks are great, the social media activity is often well-done, Summit sometimes has good bits. In the latter two the relationship with the industry seems rather cosy (though I was amused to see the boss favours Decathlon). The breadth of work seems large for an organisation of it’s size, I might expand later but that’s not the focus of this post.

The recent media work has generally been very good, it’s resulted in some excellent films that might not otherwise have appeared. I note Jen Randall’s upcoming film about Andy Kirkpatrick “received generous support from BMC TV”. At first sight, a great idea. Jen has produced some good and original work. Andy has an interesting persona and Psycho Vertical is considered a classic in the small world of climbing literature. To understand how bizarre the BMC’s choice is it helps to be one of Andy’s 10k Twitter followers (nearly as many as The Independent - credit bridbeast - so he’s reaching a good chunk of the climbing world). Andy has interesting and often well-thought-out ideas where he has direct personal experience: engineering his way up big cliffs, relationship difficulties. His ideas where has no direct experience are, erm, less well-thought-out. The most outlandish retweets - breitbart news - tend to get deleted in the morning. This still leaves recent gems implying the post-brexit rise in racist abuse is due to non-White people inventing stories and how it’s wrong to publicise the abuse women get out running because this will put women off exercising. He seems to think he’s just being contrarian, a role I’m sure he relishes, when challenged a common response is along the lines of  ‘I’m just putting it out there to see what people think’. Fucking bollocks he is, much of it is vile stuff sourced from some highly unreliable and nasty pieces of work.

Kirkpatrick's views are antithetical to what the BMC does. The BMC shouldn’t imply support by having anything to do with him. Over to you BMC.

[dave]

Fuck me, I stopped following AP on Twitter a couple of years back cos of some of the shite he was tweeting, seems like it's gone downhill from then even.

[shark]

Kirkpatrick's views are antithetical to what the BMC does. The BMC shouldn’t imply support by having anything to do with him. Over to you BMC.

[BMC hat is off]Tarka the Otter was written by a fascist. Would you refuse to read it on those grounds or judge within the context of the book on its own literary merits? Don Whillans was a wife beater - perhaps his name should be redacted from BMC guidebooks?[/BMC hat is off]

Not my dept guv 

[seankenny]

Kirkpatrick's views are antithetical to what the BMC does. The BMC shouldn’t imply support by having anything to do with him. Over to you BMC.

[BMC hat is off]Tarka the Otter was written by a fascist. Would you refuse to read it on those grounds or judge within the context of the book on its own literary merits? Don Whillans was a wife beater - perhaps his name should be redacted from BMC guidebooks?[/BMC hat is off]

Not my dept guv 

The worst example, for me, of AKP's tweets was a link to a Canadian shock jock's YouTube channel where he railed against the new Star Wars movie (it shouldn't have a young woman in the lead role) and also about the new series of Black Mirror. Basically, too many black and Asian people in it. Perhaps a valid criticism of it was set in Orkney, but the three episodes I've seen were set in London and California. The show looked pretty representative of every time I step on the tube.

So yeah, the guy is basically saying "the problem with modern TV - too many blacks". And AKP decided that was something he wanted to promote to his followers.

This isn't about the past, this is about the present and the future. This is about what kind of public environment we want - and should our sporting body support someone who seems okay to say there are just too many brown people on TV?

[Duma]

What have your examples got to do with anything shark? No one's suggesting psycho vertical isn't a good book, or that we shouldn't recognise AKs routes.

[galpinos]

Wow, bit surprised to read all this about AKP. I don't 'follow' him on social media so my only exposure to him has been through his books and I've seen him speak, I even joined the kickstarter for the film, and what he's said/written didn't cross the line implied in the previous posts. I might have to do a bit of digging....

[slackline]

I might have to do a bit of digging....

Start here... https://twitter.com/psychovertical

[Oldmanmatt]

Actually, I'm pretty pissed at the BG thing...
I used to organise and lead expeditions. The 1992 Antarctic exped I was 2i/c for had a budget of less than his rescue cost. Even allowing for the Joint Service nature of that one (transport to/from the ice was covered) a quick check shows a ~30% increase to cover the difference.
I mean, ffs, a major dive exped, including exotic gas supplies, chartering dive support vessels etc and into Iranian waters, in 2004; our budget (completed) was £300k (U533 exped).
I took William Hauge and Ffion to Greenland on their honeymoon, in Lord Ashcroft's yacht, in 2000. Cost $400k to charter the "Lady M" for two weeks. Total cost, including Helo trips, local guides, Jet ski hire, Dive guides etc etc etc, $800k. It doesn't get more luxurious than that bloody trip either!
(Imagine a ~100k voyage down the fjords just to get better satcom reception for a ten minute phone call).
BG= Wanker.


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[Johnny Brown]

Christ! Had no idea Hague was so rich he'd be blowing 800k on a holiday. I had that down as Saudi prince stuff.