You’ve got to be kidding!

An audacious water extraction project by a private entrepreneur named Aaron Million who wants build a 560 mile long, 10 feet diameter pipeline from the Green River in Wyoming over the continental divide to the east slope of Colorado.

This pipe would export 250,000 acre-feet per year out of the Colorado River basin into the Mississippi River drainage. Let’s keep the water in the river!

I urge you to send your own comments to the Army Corps of Engineers at MCRG.EIS@usace.army.mil by July 27, 2009.

2009 National Extension Tourism Conference

2009 National Extension Tourism Conference

“The Tourism Connection: Sustaining People, Places, and Communities”

The Yarrow Resort Hotel and Conference Center, Park City, Utah

June 14-17, 2009

Greetings! We’re up and running with the Draft Program Agenda for the 2009 National Extension Tourism (NET) Conference. To review this, please visit the conference website at http://extensiontourism.net
and click on “Agenda.”

We’re going to have a great conference with around 100 people attending from all over the country and several other countries, and we have a great program agenda with three excellent keynote speakers, a dozen poster presenters, over 50 oral presentations, nine separate workshop presentations, addressing a number of topical areas including Agricultural Tourism; Rural Tourism Development; Heritage and Cultural Tourism; Ecotourism and Nature-Based Tourism; Tourism Education and Training; Tourism Marketing and Promotion; Tourism Research and Evaluation; Community and Regional Tourism Planning and Development; and Economic, Environmental, and Social Impacts of Tourism and Recreation… plus five interesting and exciting field trips, and quite a few exhibitors, all in beautiful Park City, Utah!

Also scheduled is a Pre-Conference Workshop titled “Applications of GPS to Support Tourism Planning” by John McGee, Ph.D., Virginia Geospatial Extension Specialist.

If you haven’t already, please join us and register for the 2009 NET Conference!

Help us spread the word to recruit more conference attendees! The more the merrier!

Earlybird Conference Registration Extended to Friday, May 22, 2009

Group Room Rate at The Yarrow Resort Hotel and Conference Center Extended to Sunday, May 24, 2009

On behalf of the 2009 NET Conference Planning Committee, we’re looking forward to welcoming you to Park City, Utah, for a great conference!

Thanks. SWB

Steven W. Burr, Ph.D.

Chair, 2009 NET Conference

Associate Professor of Recreation Resources Management

Director, Institute for Outdoor Recreation and Tourism

Extension Specialist in Outdoor Recreation and Tourism

Department of Environment and Society

College of Natural Resources

Utah State University

5220 Old Main Hill

Logan, Utah 84322-5220

(435) 797-7094 Office

(435) 797-4048 Fax

E-mail: steve.burr@usu.edu

Website: extension.usu.edu/cooperative/iort

Join us for the 2009 National Extension Tourism Conference, June 14-17, 2009, in Park City, Utah.

Visit http://extensiontourism.net for more information.

Sea to Summit eVent® Compression Dry Sacks

When things don’t just go right, means perfect product testing time; In this case a march Grand Canyon raft trip. (See Thank Heaven for SD last week) March, high in the 80’s low in 50’s from obviously a broken thermometer. In 18 days we never saw 80’s and some days we barely saw the 50’s. It rained and it snowed on my sandaled toes. But that is great weather for testing product.

I took three Sea to Summit
eVent® Compression Dry Sacks with me. These stuff sacks are extremely light weight, 5.9 oz for a large one and they work. I took a large Sierra Designs® Wild Bill 20⁰ Extra Long sleeping bag (Which is another story!) and put it in a large Dry Sack. The sack worked. It compressed the bag down to a small size (8″ x 9″ round), easily and kept the bag from getting wet.

But that is not the real test. I also put a wet tent into a medium stuff sack. Five days later I used the tent again and I pulled it out of the stuff sack dry. No mildew no water a dry tent. The eVent® compression sack had compressed the tent to a small bag, and allowed the water vapor to escape.

Stuff sack looks like any other stuff sack till you look at the opening. Instead of a drawstring there is a roll down closure to seal water out. The eVent bottom allows air to escape as the bag is compressed.

Features of the eVent® Stuff Sack from the website are:

• Unique compression idea – allows air to be pushed out to compress, but water can’t get in because of the waterproof, air permeable eVent® fabric base
• Rugged 100 D nylon body & lid
• Waterproof seams – double stitched and tape sealed
• Roll top Hypalon™ closure with lid and 4 straps evenly compresses and maintains compressed size
• Reinforced stitching on all stress points
• Pull handle on the bottom
• Super compact and very light

Thanks Sea to Summit

Position available as Risk Manger at East Coast Resorts

Come join the Peak Resorts Family as our Eastern Resorts Risk Manager.

Peak Resorts is known as an innovator and a technological leader in the ski resort industry. Help us continue to promote a culture of safety for our staff and guests at our four eastern resorts, Mount Snow, Attitash, Crotched Mountain and Jack Frost Big Boulder. You will manage and coordinate the workers’ compensation program including managing claims and identifying loss control measures that could prevent or reduce frequency/severity of claims. You will minimize risk exposures for guests and employees through communication, education and training.  You will chair the safety committee and develop or improve policies and procedures. Qualifications include a minimum five years of safety/risk management experience, general liability knowledge, incident investigation experience, knowledge of OSHA regulations, workers’ compensation and excellent ski/snowboard ability. A degree in a related field, significant professional training and experience is preferred. Excellent communication and consensus-building skills are necessary.  Requires significant travel, excellent time-management skills and detail focus. Requires an ability and willingness to perform various jobs indoors and outdoors requiring various levels of physical ability, including strenuous work on-mountain in harsh conditions. Proficiency in Word, Excel and PowerPoint necessary. EMT/CPR/First Aid certification desirable. Apply online at www.Mountsnow.com (Employment Section). Peak Resorts values a diverse workforce and is an equal opportunity employer.

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

2009 AORE RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM – 5^th Anniversary

At the 23^rd Annual

Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education Conference

Minneapolis, MN, November 5-7, 2009

ABSTRACTS DUE: Monday, May 4, 2009 to Raymond Poff at raymond.poff@wku.edu

Abstracts are now being accepted for the 2009 AORE Research Symposium, the 5^th anniversary of the event. The symposium provides an international forum for scholarly exchange relevant to outdoor recreation, education, and leadership. Abstracts should present quantitative and/or qualitative research findings -or- conceptual/theoretical discussions pertaining to outdoor recreation, education, or leadership techniques and methods; outdoor recreation behavior; or advances in research methods. Applied and theoretical submissions are encouraged. Research studies to be completed by September 1, 2009 or scholarly discussions may be submitted. Only data that have not been previously published or presented at another professional conference should be submitted. Papers are presented either as formal paper presentations or as posters. All abstracts receive the same blind review without consideration of presentation format. Abstracts for both types of presentations are included in the “Conference Proceedings and Research Symposium Abstracts.” Questions regarding the Research Symposium should be addressed to Raymond Poff at raymond.poff@wku.edu or (270) 745-2498. Student attendance and submissions are strongly encouraged.

ABSTRACTS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED VIA E-MAIL AS A MICROSOFT WORD FILE (.DOC) IN THE FOLLOWING FORMAT:

Cover Sheet: This page precedes the 1-2 page abstract and should include:

1. Title of the abstract.

2. Principal author’s name, degree, institutional or organizational affiliation, mailing address, phone number, e-mail address, and summer contact information (June 1^st to Aug. 31), if different from above. It is assumed that, unless otherwise specified, this person will make the presentation if the abstract is accepted.

3. Full name, degree, and institutional or organizational affiliation of all co-authors.

4. The author’s preference for presentation format. Indicate one of the following: (a) poster only; (b) prefer poster but would do formal presentation; (c) prefer formal presentation, but would do poster; (d) formal presentation only. Note: Reviewers are not aware of the stated presentation preference. This information, in conjunction with time and space limitations, is used by the symposium chair when establishing the final schedule.

Abstract:

1. Two pages maximum including all discussion, tables, and figures. Abstracts exceeding this page limit may not be reviewed. A reference list is required if citing sources and may extend onto a third page if necessary. References should follow APA 5th edition guidelines.

2. Use 12-point font and one-inch margins on sides, top and bottom of 8 1/2″ by 11″ page with single spaced lines.

3. Abstracts should have a clear title above the first line of text, with no information about the author(s).

4. Use appropriate subheadings. Abstracts reporting empirical studies should contain subheadings identifying an introduction, methods, results, and discussion with a component addressing implications pertinent to the profession. Abstracts reporting conceptual and theoretical discussions should also have an effective set of subheadings.

INFORMATION FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE ABSTRACTS ACCEPTED:

1. Following the blind peer review, the symposium chair will make final decisions about acceptance, but typically adhere to the recommendations of the reviewers. Abstracts may also be rejected due to time and space limitations, ineffective development of the 2-page abstract, or weaknesses in the study itself.

2. All individuals who submit an abstract will be notified via e-mail of acceptance/rejection by June 30th. Authors whose presentations are accepted must submit a revised abstract (pending reviewer comments) via e-mail by Aug 3rd.

3. Presenters must register for the Conference of the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education; registration information will be posted on the AORE website, www.aore.org. Please note: all expenses associated with attending and presenting are the responsibility of the presenter(s). AORE does not provide funding to presenters.

4. AORE reserves the right to reproduce and distribute abstracts of all presentations in a conference proceedings publication. AORE does not preclude subsequent publication of the presentation (same version or an extended version) by the author(s) in a journal or other publication.

1. You will be notified of the date and time of your presentation after the full conference schedule has been established. Typically, formal presentations are allotted 15 minutes, followed by 5 minutes for discussion. The poster session will be scheduled for about two hours. Poster preparation guidelines will be distributed to authors.
   

Associate Professor, Recreation Administration
Executive Director, WKU American Humanics (Nonprofit Administration)

Managing Editor, Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership (www.ejorel.com)

Dept. of Physical Education and Recreation
Western Kentucky University
1906 College Heights Blvd #21090
Bowling Green, KY 42101-1090
Phone (270) 745-2498 Fax (270) 745-3592

Thank Heaven for SD

I own two Sierra Designs Tents and three Sierra Designs Sleeping bags. One of the tents and two of the bags are over fifteen years old. The tent was just used in April, 2009 and the older sleeping bags in June of 08. But that is not the story. The story is a new bag I got to review. Sierra Designs
Wild Bill 20⁰ Extra Long sleeping bag. Thank heaven for my Sierra Designs
Wild Bill 20⁰ Extra Long sleeping bag!

I was on a March-April Grand Canyon River trip. That time of year historically in the canyon the highs are in the 80’s and lows in the 50’s. On this trip the 80’s were never seen and the fifties were a rare sunny day. During the day you are rowing an 18′ boat so keeping warm is not hard. At night things were different.

Three of the nights fronts came through, three mornings we had snow less than a thousand feet above us. It was also windy. So windy that some tents had several inches of sand in them in the morning even after being buttoned up tightly all night. I slept in the open all except one rainy night, when I used my 15 year old Sierra Designs Tiros Pro. (A fifteen year old tent that has done more than ten Grand Canyon River trips, 2 trips to South America, and lots of stuff in between.) All other nights as usually I throw down my Jack’s Plastic Welding Pack Pad (Silverback, I am decadent) and throw down a sleeping bag. As I said earlier, thank heaven for Sierra Designs
Wild Bill 20⁰ Extra Long sleeping bag. One night I finally put on a bivy sack because it was so windy. But light rain, sleet, snow and wind did not keep me from staying comfortable and warm. And no sand came through the bag or the zipper.

And it fit. I’m big and the extra long bag had plenty of room. I could pull me knees up (if the boat was rocking to keep me from rolling off) with plenty of room. The hood covered me up as much or as little as I wanted and on many nights included my full size pillow. (I told you I was decadent.) At the same time I was able to fit it easily into a large stuff sack which squashed it down to an 8″ by 9″ sack.

What a great sleeping bag. I got to looking forward to going to bed at night. As the evenings grew chilly I knew I could be nice and warm in a few minutes. The Snag Free Zipper Tracks worked great. I tried several times to zip up the inner liner of the bag in the zipper with no success. The bag was a left hand zip and I’ve never used one before. For a few nights getting out of the bag was an exercise in route finding and zipper control (or mind control). But not matter what I did the zipper worked easily.

Not sure what the liner was but it did not make you shiver when your skin touched it and it did not crinkle and wake you up when the boat moved. Some nights I was in and out of the bag 3-4 times as I checked on boats and each time the bag was wonderful to crawl back into as well as easy.

Thanks Sierra Designs.

Off Topic – But you need to know about it.

This is a video which shows a recording of the TSA violating a US citizen’s rights. Pretty sad. Worse is I have heard plenty of stories similar to this, one here in Denver.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMB6L487LHM&feature=player_embedded

The end get’s pretty right wing, but still it is interesting.

Fundamental Problem between Attorneys and Clients

A fundamental problem always exists between attorneys and their clients. When I ask a client what my job is, their answer is to “keep them out of trouble.” However the answer is always given after the problem has all ready occurred. The client is in front of you, subpoena or summons in hand (or behind a glass partition on a phone) looking for help. Whether the client admits it or not, they are all ready in trouble.

First let’s look at the answer. Rarely if ever can one human being influence another to the point that they change their way of acting. You staying out of trouble, even in this intensely legal world is your job. I cannot do that. That requires you, to make a decision contrary to the one you are inclined or trained to make. To deal with the person properly or to not do something that creates a problem.

Frequency of course is always another issue. If you are frequently in trouble then the changes you need to make in your life or your business (which for most small businesses is one and the same) are drastic. It can be as simple as repairing or replacing a problem, however more likely than not it is changing the way your deal with customers in the outdoor recreation & fitness industries. See It’s Not Money.

Subsequently, if staying out of trouble is your job, it is my job to answer your questions to assist you in making the right decisions to “stay out of trouble.” Those questions, to be answered must be asked and must be asked prior to “trouble.”

But let’s get back to the answer to the question. The answer is plain wrong. Both for the reasoning behind why it was given and in the belief about what I, an attorney can do.

As I stated above, you are in charge of your life. Any client who comes in and denies any, if not most of the responsibility for litigation after working with me for a while is looking for a new attorney most times. This is not to say that you are at fault, this is just stating that no one is blameless. Every accident and consequently every lawsuit is the culmination of a series of events. Statistically speaking, in that series of events, you did something wrong. Reality says you might have done a lot of stuff wrong. The legal issue is: did you do something that rises to the level of a legal wrong?” Maybe though you should ask the question “did you do something that is morally or ethically wrong?” Granted you may think it is a stretch for an attorney to talk ethics and morals, but the law is just a culmination of the ethics and morals of society.

Contrary to popular belief and our joke culture, anytime the issue of breaking a moral or ethical rule has arisen in a conversation with me it has always been brought up by a client. I suspect most attorneys would agree with this. Those of you who disagree probably did not like the answer you were given.

However, I am not a judge, I am an advocate. My job is not to judge you, but to help you understand the problem and then assist you in solving the problem. Rarely, in fact never am I working alone to solve a problem. We are a team. You have the issues and the ability to implement change and I have legal knowledge and reasoning. Together we come up with a plan to solve the problem.

Now we are back to timing. When? If after you are in jail (I don’t do criminal work) or have been sued by someone then the team was probably formed a little too late. The team works best with no stress and looking at all aspects of the issues and possible problems. A good client/attorney team starts working together to fulfill the answer to the question way before it needs to be asked; “to keep you out of trouble.” That of course means we are working before the summons or subpoena arrives.

The reality is the answer is always given after the client is in a lot of trouble. This in turn creates another problem. I cannot turn back time or change history (other than my own version of my skiing and mountaineering accomplishments from long ago.)

Update on Ohio University Lawsuit

We reported earlier in a post Lawsuit against university outdoor program about a student in a university outdoor recreation degree program was badly burned in an outdoor program.

The college paper, the Ohio University Post is reporting in Burn victim asks $3.2 million in lawsuit against OU that the suit is continuing and the victim is asking for a lot of money.

The pictures associated with the article are pretty grotesque. So might be blaming the University for your Injuries in this case. This is a very sad situation, but it is not one where the control was in anyone’s hands except the individual who was injured.

Annual Cortland Recreation Conference

Once again, it is time to start thinking about the Annual Cortland Recreation Conference, the longest student-run conference in the country. On November 5th and 6th, 2009 this student-organized conference will be celebrating its 59th year with the theme: “Destination ReGREENation”. This theme is intended to focus on, but is not limited to: promoting local recreation; environmental stewardship; outdoor recreation; inclusive recreation services, and sustainable practices. We are soliciting presenters for 60 and 90 minute sessions focused on the theme of this year’s conference.

An element new to the conference this year is a Research Symposium. The Symposium is a component of the Annual Conference and features formal, peer-reviewed research presentations, followed by questions and comments from the audience. The Cortland Recreation Conference committee wants to provide presenters with an opportunity to take advantage of the generality of our theme, and to present topics which the presenters feel are important to the needs of both participants and providers within the profession. We encourage you to consider sharing a presentation at the 59th Cortland Recreation Conference. Graduate research is strongly encouraged.

The link to the Cortland Recreation Conference website can be found at the Department of Recreation, Parks and Leisure Studies homepage: http://www.cortland.edu/rec. There you will find all the necessary information pertaining to this year’s conference as well as the Proposal Form the committee would like you complete and submit. Thank you for considering our request to be an important part of the legacy of the Cortland Recreation Conference.

Sincerely,

59th Annual Conference Planning Committee
SUNY Cortland
Cortland, NY 13045
Phone: (607) 753-4939
Fax: (607)753-5982
recconf@cortland.edu
www.cortland.edu/rec

2009 Symposium on Experiential Education

The deadline for abstracts for the 2009 Symposium on Experiential Education Research (SEER), held in November at the Association for Experiential Education conference in Montreal, is approaching. Proposed abstracts are due March 27. 12 final abstracts will be selected for presentation through a blind peer-review process, and can be submitted for publication in the Journal of Experiential Education in 2010.

Please consider submitting an abstract for a presentation on original conceptual or empirical research at SEER. The call for abstracts is available at the following link:

http://www.shhs.unh.edu/kin_oe/2009_seer.html

Thank you!

With regards,

Jayson Seaman, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator

Department of Kinesiology, Outdoor Education Option

UNH NH Hall 202

124 Main St.

Durham, NH 03824

603-862-1162

On the web: http://www.shhs.unh.edu/kin_oe/

Response to Comments on the New BSA Medical Form

I wrote an article about the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) New Medical Form. (New BSA Medical Form is a Disaster) That post has been gathering a lot of comments. I am responding or updating those posts with this update.

“so if you have people notarize their release forms, it doesn’t matter in a lawsuit. is there any benefit to having those forms notarized?”

Notarizing a signature does nothing. If you signature is notarized all it means is the person who notarized your signature knows that you are you. The notary either has known you for a long period of time or you provided proof to them that you are you. That is all. So notarizing a form provides not greater legal protection.

The issue then is, do people try and say that was not their signature. Sure in 25 years I’ve seen it happen twice from hundreds of thousands of releases signed. However a simple hand writing comparison shot that down quickly.

Don’t get signatures notarized. IT doubles the time needed to complete a form. Besides, each form will have to be taken to a notary and signed there.

And you can’t notarize a minor’s signature.

“The BSA has an activity consent form and release. Is this document any better than the release in the new medical record form?”

The BSA Activity Consent Form and Approval by Parents or Legal Guardian is no different from the BSA Medical Form. It has no legal value. It is not a release and parental indemnification is not supported in any state. All that form does is prove that you have the legal right to be in control of the child. It won’t stop a lawsuit if the child is injured in your care.

“I would also like to hear your view of the older class 1, 2 and 3 medical forms. Is the new form an improvement from a legal perspective?”

NO the new form is not an improvement! Read the post before you ask questions. The old forms were fantastic.

“As a Scoutmaster, I am not sure of the best approach. Where can I find a better release and should we use it in our troop?”

Yes you need a release or more appropriately in most states an assumption of risk form. Only five states allow a parent to sign away a child’s right to sue. However a release signed by the parents and the youth may stop the lawsuit by the parent and if written properly prove the child assumed the risk of the injury he received. Assumption of the risk is a good defense to a lawsuit by a minor.

Survey about Drugs in Sport

Hi. You are invited to participate in a short 10 question survey about drugs in sport.

It has been the winter of despair for sport with the news plagued with headlines ranging from steroids in baseball to sprinters using The Clear to a swimmer smoking marijuana. This study explores peoples’ attitudes regarding performance enhancing substances.

It is being pursued by an academic without the financial means to offer incentives for everyone to participate. The deep pockets of my university’s research fund will budget, however, for five lucky participants to win either a coveted Thompson Rivers University hoodie or a prized TRU stainless steel coffee mug. In order to be eligible to win, you must send me an e-mail by May 4, 2009 indicating you’ve completed the survey. Please note that I have no way to verify if you did or didn’t do the questionnaire so we’re operating on the honor system.

Please forward the survey to others who you believe may be interested in completing it as well. Thank you.

Open the following link to complete the survey – http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=Vi_2bUiPmPkBbjKaRLvcCO6g_3d_3d

Kind Regards,

Jon Heshka

Assistant Professor

Thompson Rivers University

Old Main Bldg, PO Box 3010

Kamloops, British Columbia V2C 5N3 Canada

phone: (250) 371-5839 fax: (250) 371-5845

e-mail: jheshka@tru.ca

Therapeutic Recreation Education Conference

Therapeutic Recreation Education Conference

June 19-20, Oklahoma State University

Practitioners and Educators are invited to participate in TREC-II sponsored by the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA), the National Therapeutic Recreation Society (NTRS), supported by the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC), and hosted by the Therapeutic Recreation Association of Oklahoma (TRAO) on the campus of Oklahoma State University.

Please, make plans to attend this historic conference which is a joint effort between ATRA and NTRS to unite the profession and advance the discussion of accreditation and education programs. All scheduled sessions include work groups with the specific intent of coming to an agreement on the direction the profession should consider including whether or not to pursue specific accreditation for the profession.

Conference Goals:

• Recommendations regarding the profession’s pursuit of higher

  education accreditation

• Process and structure to manage higher education accreditation
• Procedures to develop learner outcomes to use as accreditation

criteria

• Relationship of personal credentials (registration, licensure, and

certification; and academic accreditation) to eligibility to sit for the

NCTRC examination

This is a pivotal time in the development of our profession all interested parties’ (Practitioners & Educators) are strongly encouraged to be present to express their opinion and participate in decision-making which will influence the future direction of our profession.

Registration is $50.00 plus $10.00 for CEUs if registration is completed before May 1, 2009; after May 1, 2009 registration is $100.Transportation from the Tulsa, OK airport will be provided by TRAO at no cost to the registrants.

To Register for the Conference please, go to http://www.okstate.edu/education/trect/

Download the form and email to tim.passmore@okstate.edu

TREC – II is offering 1.25 CEUs

Please, forward any questions regarding TREC – II to

Dr. Tim Passmore, CTRS at:

tim.passmore@okstate.edu

SRLA 2009 Presentations

Minors & Releases

http://docs.google.com/Presentation?id=dg2k3n4r_8ggz57nfh

Common Law and Releases

http://docs.google.com/Presentation?docid=dg2k3n4r_47hs552sss

OR email me at: recreation.law@gmail.com

Let me know if you want a PPT or a PPTX version

Very Sad, Handled well and Very Appropriate

The Colorado Daily reported in August about the death of a woman in Nepal. She was part of a study-abroad program called Passage Project. The article CU student’s death in Nepal was first fatality for program describes what happened and how the program responded to the death. It is a very good response for what is a very sad situation.

As in most cases, a government needs to be notified (whether local or county here in the states or a consulate when abroad) and the government will normally notify the family. In this case the young woman was swimming in Nepal, attempting to rescue a friend when she drowned.

The program then dealt with the family when they arrived in Nepal. They helped arrange meetings with people who knew the young woman in Nepal. Remember an issue here, closure is critical in the US and family members want to know what happened and most times see where it happened.

Too often when someone dies the natural response is to run and hide. Dealing with family members who have lost a loved one is perceived as bad, stressful and awful. It is, but it can also be very helpful for you and the program. You can gain personal value from the experience and you can put behind you some of the problems.

More importantly you have helping the family of a client and possibly a friend. You have stepped up to the responsibilities that we as humans for centuries have had to each other. It has only been the last 40 years, litigation, lawyers and insurance companies that have attempted to train us to ignore those responsibilities in an attempt to save someone money.

Not a long article but from how it reads a great way to deal with a fatality.

Request for Proposals: 2011 SPRE Teaching Institute

Request for Proposals

2011 SPRE Teaching Institute

Members of the Society of Park and Recreation Educators and affiliated Universities are invited to submit proposals to host the 2011 SPRE Teaching Institute. Proposals must address all elements of the Sponsorship Selection Criteria listed below and must be received by October 1, 2009 for fullest consideration. Please prepare the proposal as a Word file, although additional common format files may be appropriate, and forward it as an email attachment to Lowell Caneday, SPRE President at Lowell.Caneday@okstate.edu

Introduction

The purpose of the SPRE Teaching Institute is to share insight among recreation, parks, and leisure educators concerning traditional and new issues/trends related to education, education administration, teaching, and research so educators can remain current in the techniques, content, and skills needed in higher education. The goals of the Institute are to foster a sense of collegiality among recreation educators through renewing old acquaintances and making new ones, to develop networks and strategies for sharing course materials, and to stimulate new ideas that will challenge educators to think and expand their academic horizons. The primary focus will be on teaching but an emphasis on research is encouraged as it pertains to teaching. The Institute is held every odd numbered year in late winter or early spring and is scheduled so as to not conflict with Regional NRPA meetings or the National AAHPERD Conference. The Institute is placed on a regular rotation across the three geographic NRPA regions consisting of Southeast/Northeast, Great Lakes/West, and Pacific. The 2005 institute was held in the Pacific region, the 2007 institute in the Southeast/Northeast region (South Carolina), and the 2009 institute in Utah. In geographic equity, priority will be given to proposals from a region of the country that has not been represented recently; however, proposals from all regions are invited. The exact location within any region will be selected from proposals made by sponsors in the geographic area and will be announced at least one year prior to the Institute.

Sponsorship Selection Criteria:

A proposal for sponsoring the Institute should include the following:

1. Sponsoring University and partners (if applicable)
   
2. Proposed dates
   
3. A description of the proposed facility, its proximity to a major airport, reasonable costs for room and board, appropriateness of facilities for a conference, access to local transportation, and conduciveness of the facility to meet the goals of the Institute.
   
4. A program addressing the purpose of the Institute and a plan designed to market the program to the potential audience. The following elements may be included: theme of the proposed institute, the organizational format, potential keynote speaker(s) and a proposed schedule of events
   
5. A budget addressing considerations given to financial viability should be attached as an Appendix. It is the goal of the Institute to “break even”.
   
6. An individual(s) from the sponsoring unit will be appointed SPRE Teaching Institute chair(s). The chair(s) will work with other individuals to plan and conduct the Institute.
   
7. Regular reports will be given to the SPRE Board of Directors concerning progress toward planning for the Institute.
   

If you have questions regarding this call, please contact Lowell Caneday at the email address or telephone below. If you have questions related to recent SPRE Teaching Institutes, we will direct you to those who have hosted recent events.

Lowell Caneday, Ph.D.

Professor

Leisure Studies

180 Colvin Center

Oklahoma State University

Stillwater, OK 74078

(405) 744-5503

Lowell.Caneday@okstate.edu

e-Review of Tourism Research (eRTR)

e-Review of Tourism Research (eRTR)

http://list.rpts.tamu.edu/eRTR/eRTR.html

Applied Research Notes

 Government, Local State and Private Sector Groups’ interaction in the Context of Producing Sport Tourism Policy in Greece: A strategic perspective

by
Ourania Vrondou, Athanasios Kriemadis (University of Peloponnese), & Nikos Kartakoullis
(University of Nicosia)

 Innovation in Tourism: The Case of Destination Marketing Organization

by
Florian Zach & Daniel R. Fesenmaier (Temple University)

Conference Abstracts

 International Tourism and Media Conference

Other Useful Resources Available on the eRTR Website

 48 updated conference news

 14 new calls for papers

 785 useful research links

 80 new links to tourism case studies

Special Announcement from the Editors

It is my pleasure to inform you that I have taken on the task of serving as the Editor-in-Chief of eRTR starting with this new issue. First, I would like to thank Sanjay Nepal for heading the editorial team over the last years and making important changes to the journal. Second, I would like to announce some new changes that have already been implemented, with more improvements on the way:

 While we continue to work on our new content management system, we have created a temporary eRTR Website so that you can at least access the current contents online at http://list.rpts.tamu.edu/eRTR/eRTR.html

 eRTR is now a peer-reviewed journal. Please help me in welcoming the new reviewers who have agreed to volunteer their expertise and time to the cause of this journal. You can find their names and affiliations listed at http://list.rpts.tamu.edu/eRTR/eRTR.html

 . Please contact the editorial assistant Jerry Lee at kangjae@tamu.edu if you would like to serve as a reviewer for eRTR.

 eRTR has signed an agreement with EBSCO Publishing and will soon be included in their Hospitality & Tourism Complete database.

 We have created a new category of links to tourism case studies. Please contact the editorial assistant Jerry Lee at kangjae@tamu.edu if you would like your tourism case study to be added to the list currently available on eRTR.

 We are working on an index of tourism-related master theses and professional papers, as these remain largely unpublished and, thus, inaccessible. If you would like a master thesis or professional paper to be indexed in our database, please send the thesis abstract (including keywords), the name of the department and university at which the degree was completed, and your contact information to Jerry Lee at kangjae@tamu.edu.

I am excited about this new opportunity and will do my best to help advance the goals of eRTR. Most importantly, I would like to ask you to continue your support of eRTR by sending your research notes, conference information, conference abstracts, ideas, etc. to the editorial assistant Jerry Lee via kangjae@tamu.edu.

Ulrike Gretzel

Editor-in-Chief of eRTR

Texas A&M University

Sanjay Nepal

Associate Editor, Regional Editor-Europe and Africa

Texas A&M University

Ercan Sirakaya Turk

Associate Editor, Regional Editor-North America

University of South Carolina

Young A Park

Associate Editor, Regional Editor-Asia Pacific

KangJae “Jerry” Lee

Editorial Assistant

Texas A&M University

Hanyoung Go

Technical Assistant

Texas A&M University

DEADLINE Extended to MARCH 6: NRPA Congress, October 13-17, Salt Lake City, UT

DEADLINE Extended to MARCH 6

CALL FOR PRESENTERS

NTRS POSTER SESSION 2009

NRPA Congress, October 13-17, Salt Lake City, UT

NTRS invites therapeutic recreation professionals, educators, and students to submit abstracts for the NTRS Poster Session 2009. We are particularly interested in poster presentations that offer new and innovative methods and techniques for the implementation and delivery of services, programs, and/or courses. This is an excellent opportunity to share recent successes and challenges with fellow Therapeutic Recreation professionals.

Submit an abstract summarizing your poster by March 6, 2009. Abstracts must be submitted electronically via the NRPA website and follow all criteria presented there.

Visit the NTRS page for guidelines, submission format and photos from the 2008 session.

For questions or clarifications, please contact the NTRS Poster Session Chair:

Jo Ann Coco-Ripp

Winston-Salem State University

Therapeutic Recreation Program

Phone: 336.750.3459

jcoco.ripp@yahoo.com

Montana attempts to limit lawsuits against recreation programs – but really a waste of time.

It is being reported that the Montana Legislature is attempting to pass law that would limit the liability of Montana’s recreational business. The bill states the outfitters would not be liable for the inherent risks of the activity.

An inherent risk is one that you assume in any activity. It is the other risks that are the problem the ones that start litigation. Those risks that have been changed or altered by man are the ones that create lawsuits. As an example the risk of moving water are drowning. However the risk is no longer inherent when you pay an outfitter to take you out in the water in a raft. Now the act of man has altered the risk and it is no longer inherent.

Montana has a substantial problem because the Montana Constitution prohibits the use of a release. MCA § 27-1-701 See SNEWS® Law Review 2006 Summary: States Where Releases Are Void or Restricted

Grand Canyon River Guide Jobs

HUALAPAI PREFERENCE

POSITION:        Hualapai River Guide

DEPARTMENT:     Hualapai River Runners

CLASSIFICATION:    Hourly/Non-Exempt

SALARY:        $9.00 – $16.00 Hourly Depends on Experience

            Guide Trainee $115, and or First Year River Guide $120 Trip Pay        

SUPERVISOR:        Operations Manager/Assistant Operations Manager

Summary:

A River Guide must operate a motorized 23ft. snout rig with a carrying capacity of eight customers and two crewmen. Responsible for the safety, comfort and enjoyment of customers, conducts informative, entertaining and professional tours of the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Greets, orientates, informs and entertains customers by providing information on history and culture of Hualapai, the geology of Grand Canyon and other points of interest along the Colorado River.
   
2. Shall be responsible for loading all supplies, equipment, rig pontoons, frames, and motors. In addition must derig and load all gear and equipment at South Cove
   
3. Must observe sound sanitation practices and insures all meals are properly stored, packed and/or prepared.
   
4. Routinely inspects all equipment prior, during and upon conclusion of raft trips for defects, damage and general safety precautions.
   
5. May be required to provide one on one training to other new guides.
   
6. Other duties as assigned.
   

QUALIFICATIONS:

A high school diploma or equivalent is required. Must be at least 18 years of age and possess a valid food handlers’ card and CPR/First Aid Certificate. A valid drivers license is preferred. Incumbent must provide a physical examination demonstrating ability to perform the strenuous activities of the job. Must attend HRR River Guide Training.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

1. At least 18 years old

2. Valid Driver License

3. High School Diploma or GED

4. Attend the HRR River Guide Training

Applicant must pass a pre-employment drug screen and an extensive background check may be required.

All applicants are considered without regard to age, sex, race, national origin, religion, material status, or physical disability. However, preference may be extended to persons of Indian descent in accordance with Public law 88-353, Section 703 (7-2-71) and Public Law 93-638, Section 7B.

Keywords

Adventure law

Adventure recreation

Adventure recreation law

Adventure recreation risk management

Adventure risk management

Adventure sports lawyers Group

American Alpine Club Law

Amusement law

Boy Scout risk management

BSA law

Boy Scout Law

Scout Law

Challenge course law

Challenge course risk management

Church camp law

Church camp risk management

Climbing gym law

Climbing gym risk management

College recreation law

College recreation risk management

Commercial guiding

Concessionaire

Concessionaire risk management

Copes course law

Copes course risk management

Exciting activity

Fitness insurance defense

Fitness law

Fitness law review

Fitness risk management

Human powered recreation

Human powered recreation law

Human powered recreation risk management

Leisure law

Mountaineering law

Mountaineering risk management

Outdoor law

Outdoor law insurance defense

Outdoor program law

Outdoor program risk management

Outdoor recreation

Outdoor recreation insurance

Outdoor recreation law

Outdoor recreation law review

Outdoor recreation risk management

Outdoor risk management

Out-of-doors law

Out-of-doors risk management

Outside law

Outside risk management

Paddlesports law

Paddlesports risk management

Rafting law

Rec law

Recreation insurance

Recreation insurance defense

Recreation law

Recreation program law

Recreation program risk management

Recreation risk management

Risk management

River rafting recreation

Ropes course law

Ropes course risk management

Ski area insurance

Ski area operations

Ski area risk management

Ski law

Skiing law

Skiing risk management

Snowboarding law

Snowboarding risk management

Special use permits

Special use permits risk management

Sport law

Sport risk management

Summer camp law

Summer camp risk management

Telemark ski law

Telemark ski risk management

University recreation law

University recreation risk management

Venture law

Wilderness firs aid insurance

Wilderness first aid law

Wilderness first aid risk management

Wilderness recreation law

Wilderness recreation risk management

Rock climbing risk management

Rock climbing law

Rock climbing insurance

UIAA

Union Internationale Des Associations D’Alpinisme

The International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation

Why do people sue

Appropriate

It is always sad when an employee of a government agency has to sacrifice their job to wake up the agency to an environmental issue. In this case an employee of the US Army Corps of Engineers went kayaking in the Los Angeles River to protest weaker clean water protections for the river.

The response of the corps was to suspend the employee. The Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility stepped up to assist the employee. A settlement was reached where the employee is going to resign……to go to law school to become an environmental attorney.

Don’t you hope she gets to nail the corps to the wall a couple of times in her career!

See Settlement reached in LA kayak trip dispute.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas. May this Holiday Season last throughout the year in your heart and your deeds.