During the time I ran TCR and when I helped Gil while he was running it I do not remember a single instance of anyone being "thrown out" of the TCR, ever. There were a number of cooks and cooks helpers who got comped in because they were workers on the event. They spent their time doing those things that make TCR run and not "hanging out" There were other prominent individuals who contributed in vast and underappreciated ways. We showed our gratitude to them in other ways. TCR always broke even so it was never about money. If we had folks who for what ever reason didnt "register" it wasnt really a big issue. We had plenty to do without worrying about that. We tried to have as few rules as possible.
William Russell once remarked that one of the beautiful things about TCR was that it is the closest thing to a real working anarchy you can have. It more or less runs itself. People know what needs to be done and do it. Cavers are good about seeing something that needs doing and they do it with very little compunction. Just a little guidance is all. Gil was better at that than I was. His advice was "keep you hand lightly on the wheel" let it run itself. This generally works fairly well. We tried very hard to keep the event light hearted and fun. I have nothing but great compliments for the folks who have organized the event for the last few years because they have continued to come up with new things like the parade that embellish that tradition. I dont think that I can ever fully explain what TCR means to me. I get to see friends I have known more than 45 years. Some I see that once or twice a year. some I havent seen in decades. I get to see caver kids I watched grow up raising their own kids. Couple years ago one of those "kids" said "I bet you remember me when I was that little" I did. Caving is a team based adventure sport that thrives on camaraderie. TCR is a celebration of those friendships and the richness of the many years of memories. The cavers I grew up with were also very "non-status" oriented. That is hard to explain and I dont see it as strong these days but nobody tried to set up rules and make others follow them. Of course there was basic safety and competence. You had to get voted in by the grotto member to be a "regular" member. but then you could, check out ropes, lead trips ect Last year at TCR there was someone who was stalking around the cam being a "wristband nazi" who appointed them to that I dont know. They werent having a good time, unless hassling folks was their fun. I also know that Registration wasnt open a large part of the time. I know folks who had a difficult time finding somebody to give their money to. If people are willing to work at registration I say let them decide if they want to be there late Friday night /Sat morning, ect. If this is a issue then the organizers ( god rest their souls) should recruit a larger group to do this. It is one of the most onerous tasks of the event and anyone willing to spend their time on it deserves some slack. TCR doesnt really run itself, there are hundreds of tasks that have to be done. A lot of it happens before the event, the hidden part of the iceberg. Everyone has ways the help out, some visible, some hidden. We have created a unique cavers event word of which has spread all over the country. Let us continue to strive to make it the most enjoyable fall weekend you can ever have Andy G Grubbs i From: "Nancy Weaver" <nan...@prismnet.com> To: "texascavers" <texascavers@texascavers.com> Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2018 9:03:24 AM Subject: Re: [Texascavers] TCR Registration volunteers! boy how times change. I loved the really old days of lets throw a party, pitch in where you can with money or help. thanks to the thoughtful previous registrars who quietly made decisions based on something other than cash. Nancy On Aug 29, 2018, at 8:28 AM, Michael Cicherski < [ mailto:coastalca...@me.com | coastalca...@me.com ] > wrote: Well written! Having run Registration, by myself for a number of years, I can quietly report that I have allowed more than a few to attend TCR who could not afford it. Most of the time it was a quiet conversation with someone who had fallen on hard times and just needed a little bit of a break. I never made a big deal of it and never reported it on the books. Oh, there were the normal goofballs who complained about having to pay full amount, but I ignored them and after they ran out of hot air they paid the proper fees. Hope all is well, Michael On Aug 29, 2018, at 7:59 AM, Allan Cobb < [ mailto:a...@oztotl.com | a...@oztotl.com ] > wrote: BQ_BEGIN I'm with Mr. Loving on this. When I read that line about people without wristbands being thrown out, it raised my hackles. I ran TCR for a few years. I know the problem of people not registering. However, I never would have thrown people out for not registering. Is this what the community has devolved into? There are a few cavers who always attend TCR, TSA Convention, etc. who pride themselves on not paying. I know who they are. When I would see them, at TCR, I would sometime make a comment to them, sometimes not. These are the same people who would pride themselves out of paying a $1 fee on TSA projects. There are also cavers who paying the TCR registration would be a huge financial burden due to hard times. I usually had a pretty good idea of who those were. All they had to do was ask and I would comp them registration. I get it, I've had hard times too. Some of them were too proud to ask. I knew that too. I would have NEVER thrown those people out of TCR. They are part of the community. I always heard people complain that they should not have to pay because they don't want to eat the meal. That's is a good point but the cost of the meal is only a small part of the registration fee. I've had people ask me to have a fee that doesn't include the meal. To them, I answered that the more complicated registration becomes that harder it is to get people to do it and the easier to make mistakes. That said, here's why you SHOULD register for TCR, TSA Conventions, etc. These events require money. We have to pay for the site, we pay for portapotties, we pay for many incidentals. If you are one of those people who think you are too good to pay or it is a game not to pay, you are basically stealing from other cavers. You are directly responsible for raising the price for all of the cavers who pay. They costs are fixed for many of these events. The cost is divided among those who attend and pay. If you don't pay, your portion of the cost, your portion of the cost is passed on to other cavers. If you choose not to pay, at least thank all the people who did pay for paying your share as well. "Throw people out" for not registering, bad idea. Shame them a bit, I'm fine with that. I am no longer running TCR so I don't really have any say in how it works. In the past, TCR has always been about bringing cavers together, the new cavers and us old cavers. TCR has been about friends getting together and hanging out. TCR has always been about seeing old friends and making new ones. However, if "throw them out" is the spirit of the "new" TCR, perhaps it is time to end this long running tradition. Allan Cobb Retired TCR Big Cheese and Caver Wrangler On 8/29/2018 6:23 AM, Charles Loving wrote: BQ_BEGIN I wrote a nasty comment on the getting thown out for not having the proper identity band but didn't post it. Old Man Wisdom On Tue, Aug 28, 2018 at 7:11 PM TSA Membership Chair < [ mailto:trog...@cavechat.org | trog...@cavechat.org ] > wrote: BQ_BEGIN Hi all! We're still a little over a month out, but I figured I'd start the waters churning for volunteers to help in shifts for registration. I've got a number of shifts ranging from 2 to 4 hours that need to be filled. I'll be there all shifts, but I need one other person to help me out with paperwork and such for each shift. I also need an outgoing personality to spend some time on Saturday wandering to each camp area to make sure everyone has their wristband. I have been informed that if you don't have a wristband this year, you will be kicked out... so... y'all should all register as soon as you get to camp (cash or check only this year!)! I'll send out a separate email closer to the date with registration info for those who won't be volunteering, so you know when registration will be open- dependent on how many volunteers I can get! If you are interested in volunteering, let me know in a separate email and I'll let you know the shifts I've got still available! My email is [ mailto:trog...@cavechat.org | trog...@cavechat.org ] Also... we'll have cookies. You know, if you need some incentive to help.. ;) Happy caving and even happier volunteering! -Heather Tucek -- Go find out! -Heather Tuček TSA Membership Chair NSS 59660 (512) 773-1348 [ mailto:members...@cavetexas.org | members...@cavetexas.org ] _______________________________________________ Texascavers mailing list | [ http://texascavers.com/ | http://texascavers.com ] [ mailto:Texascavers@texascavers.com | Texascavers@texascavers.com ] | Archives: [ http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ | http://www.mail-archive.com/texascavers@texascavers.com/ ] [ http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers | http://lists.texascavers.com/listinfo/texascavers ] -- Charlie Loving [ http://www.avg.com/email-signature?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campaign=sig-email&utm_content=emailclient ] Virus-free. 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