Committee Elections

[Admin]

This thread has been opened for the candidates to post a little about themselves prior to the elections starting.

Some candidates have emailed theirs to us whilst other will post themselves.

The thread will be locked at about 9:00 this evening (Monday 8th) after we have posted those sent to us.

Please note, this thread is for the candidates to post their CV/Manifesto (call it what you will) and not for any other purpose. Any other posts will be deleted.

There will be 5 polls, each electing one position, the winner being removed from the list in the next poll. Each poll will last for 2 weeks starting on Wednesday 10th September. Hopefully the mid week start/end will avoid the vast majority of holiday issues.

Each candidate has a lot to offer, it's going to be a tough battle.
Good luck to you all.

[Lost in Space]

Name: Lost in Space
Age: 54
Occupation: Retired senior executive of Xerox, (ex Rank Xerox), Ltd
Started geocaching: October 2001
Caches found to date: 202
Caches hidden to date: 14
Hobbies: Drinking, Motor cycling, writing stupid letters to Terry Wogan (aka "Neil of Stevenage"), Annoying "Dad" (Hornet)

Manifesto: Having obtained a first class honours degree in Electrical/Electronic Engineering from the University of Bristol back in 1970 and then spending three years with Hawker Siddeley Dynamics testing air/air and air/ground guided weapon systems I went to work in the R&D department of Rank Xerox. I then spent the next 27 years with Xerox, spending 8 of those years as Resident Engineering Manager in Dallas, Texas, finally ending up as manager of the retail, (SOHO), business. I took early retirement in 2000 and since then have spent my time between geocaching, gardening, drinking, and acting as chairman for the local branch of a National Charity.

I have spent many years at the "University of Life" and as such am standing for election on the grounds of good old Common Sense.

I believe that, whilst out geocaching, people should be responsible for their children and their pets.

I believe in Risk Management/Risk Assessment and acting accordingly.

I believe in guideline/recommendation rather than regulation. (To regulate you have to be able to enforce and "punish" offenders)

I also believe there is a life outside of geocaching and posting on these forums.

If you are one of those people that look at something and then spend the next couple of hours/days looking for every possible hazard and conceiving every possible negative outcome, then I am not the person for you.
B) B) B)

[Pharisee]

OK.... to follow in a similar vein as LiS.... (well... sort of, anyway)

Geocaching handle: Pharisee (but you can call me John)
Age: Do I really have to tell you? Just put down 'old'
Occupation: Senior Process Engineer with a large multi-national outfit based in Germay. (them, not me)
Started geocaching: October 2002
Caches found to date: 330 (ish)
Caches hidden to date: 11 and counting

Hobbies: Many and varied....
I've done rock climbing (but I stopped doing that when I fell off one)
I've spent some considerable time down pot holes (until it slowly dawned on me that I didn't like being cold, wet and blind all at the same time)
I enjoy being on my own in 'lonely places' but they are few and far between, now. The nearest I get is clambering up some obscure mountain looking for a 4ft high lump of concrete with a number on it.
I fish for pike in the big Irish and Scottish loughs (lochs). My biggest to date weighed 24lb. I'm still hunting for that elusive 30lber
I've been a 'biker' since the age of 12 when I started driving my dad's sidcar outfits. (I was a 'Rocker' in the early 60's and helped chuck scooters into the sea at Clacton). Now I ride an old 1000cc V4 Honda for fun.
I have an amateur radio licence (G7SNW) but still think it was more fun on the 'illegal' 27MHz sidebanders.
Something completely out of character... I enjoy listening to classical music (Well I think Black Sabbath are classic)
Oh yeah... I'm not averse to the odd pint or three of good old English Ale


None of which qualifies me in any way what so ever for a place on the GAGB committee :D

I've spent most of my working life avoiding like the plague any sort or committee, team or in fact anything that even vaguely smacked of 'group responsibility'. I usually get left to 'do my own thing'. If anyone is foolish enough to elect me, I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do. (I s'pose I could make the tea at committee meetings).

To sum it all up... there are people out ther much better qualifed than me to represent you.
I wouldn't vote for someone like me.

John

[Team Tate]

As Bob is unable to stand as an individual for the committee due to work commitments, then as part of the 'Team' , here is my CV/Manifesto.

Geocaching name: Team Tate
First Name : Sarah
Age: mid 30's!
Occupation: Registered Nurse.

Started caching: January 02.
Caches found: 81 (still chasing that elusive century!)
Caches hidden: 7 plus have organised 2 event caches.

Hobbies:
Geocaching (of course!), Hospital radio, camping (and now caravanning due to a recent purchase!)

Background:

Having spent my childhood travelling worldwide, I eventually settled on the South coast and commenced my Nurse training in 1987. Having worked in various areas of Nursing over the years, I am currently a Cardio-Thoracic nurse at the Southampton's BUPA hospital.
I have been married to Bob for just over 2 years. We have two children (George and Beckie) two budgies (Dave and Brian) and Maggie, our boxer pup who joined the family earlier this year.

Whenever I have joined an club or organisation, I have taken an active role in it's promotion and representation. I held a committee position for Southampton's Hospital Radios service for 2 years, which was challenging due to the versatility of some of the members! Currently, I am a Parent Governor of Fawley Infant school which recently passed a particularly difficult OFSTED inspection with flying colours.

Since starting Geocaching on a regular basis in January last year, I have thoroughly enjoyed taking part in such a new and dynamic sport where I have met many new friends.

I am always ready to promote Geocaching and its benefits to others, and am particularly interested in seeing it become more widespread as an activity the whole family can participate in. I was proud to have represented the Geocaching community during a recent broadcast on BBC Radio 4, which promoted our hobby as something that can be done by anyone from the ages of six to sixty (and beyond!). I believe very strongly that Geocaching has something for all ages & abilities.

I regularly read and provide feedback on the Geocaching forums, but tend to steer away from the ongoing disagreements that tend to get heated towards individuals or associations. I believe that every person has a right to their own opinion, whether I agree or not, but will stand up if I believe that someone is being treated unfairly or being abused. Nevertheless, I am open-minded and will listen to anyone and add in my own input where necessary.

I don't believe that rules should be enforced for what is, at the end of the day, a hobby and pastime. Guidelines are important, as is common sense. I want people to enjoy the challenges and values of Geocaching. Respect of the land and wildlife is very important to me, and ensuring that people can enjoy a hobby that is safe, fun & challenging.

In this respect, I feel that I can offer a variety of opinions & experience to the committee, with a fair and organised approach to issues.

Oh yes, and a female representative amongst all the men!! ;)

[Admin]

Posted by Admin on behalf of Kouros

There are a lot of these to read, and so I'll keep this brief. If elected to
be part of the GAGB committee, I will consider myself to have only one goal:
to encourage environmentally responsible caching, and to promote our
(already responsible) attitude to non-cachers, and land-owners.

I will fulfill this role through three main targets,

1. To create, as part of the GAGB website (and freely available to any other
Geocaching resource), a foundation of information, with proven and easy ways
in which we can help keep the countryside clean as we cache.

2. To freely provide material to those who wish to liase with landowners
about the positive impact that Geocaching has had upon the environment,
including (but not limited to) the International CITO Day, and individual
success stories.

3. To promote new and existing environmental awareness campaigns within the
game, so that we can all enjoy the countryside for many years to come.

[Admin]

Posted by Admin on behalf of Paul Blitz

I'm Paul Blitz, of Team Blitz. I'm 47 years young, and am married to Debbie
(sorry, no age there!!! I value my life!), and we have 2 sons, Michael (aged
14) and Callum (aged 8).

I've been caching since spring 2002. Much of the time, I cache with Michael,
and sometimes Callum, Debbie, or others come along too... occasionally I go
alone, and sometimes have been known to meet up with other cachers to go
hunting!

I was never one for "going for a boring country walk", but have found
caching usually changes that "boring walk" into a "fun outing".

My job takes me around the contry, so I sometimes manage to get to seek out
some non-local caches: in the winter, that may mean going out in the dark,
with a torch! Holidays now ALWAYS include some caching!!!

I'm a great believer of "caching should be fun".

Since starting caching, I have seen the sport grow greatly, and I believe
that we are now at a point where an organisation to represent cachers is
ESSENTIAL. The GAGB is our one opportunity to create such an organisation.

I think that the GAGB must not be simply *reactive*, but it must be
*proactive*, making contacts in the "land-management" world... in other
words, making contact with local autorities and other large landowners, and
persuading them to formally permit caching on their land.

GAGB should aim to become "the UK's representative body for caching", in the
way that "The Ramblers Association" represents ramblers in the UK. (OK, the
picky amongst you may wish to argue that any organisation may only represent
its own members.... personally, I think the remit of the GAGB needs to be
wider)

GAGB should *aim* to provide a "service" for caching.... a place where
anyone interesting in caching can turn for guidance. A "phone number" that a
landowner can call to find out more about a cache left on their land. A
place a newspaper / radio station / tv station can contact for information
about caching. Just like they would contact The Ramblers Association.

I furthermore believe that GAGB should become Geocaching.Com's UK
representative (but that should not preclude them also chosing to represent
OTHER international caching web sites as well), in the same way that other
countries & many states within the USA have geocaching organisations that
are Geocaching.Com's local representative. I believe, perhaps in the longer
term, that GAGB should take on the task of approving UK caches for
Geocaching.Com (and possibly other sites too....) - again, in the same way
that other local caching associations already do.

In practical terms, many of the tasks may well be delegated to other willing
people (it makes more sense that a local person interacts with a local
county council, but that person may need / want the "backup" from other,
more experienced people), but any actions initiated / "taken on" by GAGB
will still need to be "managed" by the GAGB committee.

The committee of GAGB need a wide variety of people on it: not only will
that help it to be innovate where needed, it will give a representative set
of "points of view".

Finally, I think we must all be very realistic in what GAGB can hope to
achieve in its first year: most, if not all, committee hopefuls have a
full-time job, and many have a life outside of geocaching too!!! This WILL
restrict what we can all offer to do, but I'm sure many others (ie not on
the committee) will assist to ensure that GAGB can achieve its aims.


So there you go: you now know a bit about me, and what I think GAGB should
be trying to do. If you like it all, then vote for me. If not, then I'm sure
you can find another candidate who represents your feelings better..... In
any case, they are ALL good people!


Paul

[Admin]

Posted by Admin on behalf of Teasel

Teasel's CV/manifesto

OK, first thing to say is that if you want all of your committee members to
be able to write concise, witty, well structured prose, then don't vote for
me! I have a tendency to ramble, as you're probably about to discover...

Some of you already know me, but for those who don't, let me introduce
myself. I'm Ian Harris and I live in Buxton with my wife Jayne and our son
David (who's 1 on Wednesday). We've been in geocaching for just over a
year and have so far found just over 150 caches (http://stats.guk2.com/cachers/view_cacherstats.php?c=43129)(though I'm not actually into the "numbers game" as much as
you might imagine!)

My main contribution to geocaching so far has been my work for GeocacheUK,
in particular the stats pages which I have taken beyond just statistics and
have tried to make useful for planning caching trips too. More recently, I
have integrated my trigpoint logging system with the G:UK cache pages (a
feature GC.com currently provides only to US cachers).

Outside of family, work and Geocaching, my main commitment is being a
member of the Buxton Mountain Rescue Team. Unsurprisingly, I quite like
hill walking! I also dabble in hang gliding, though I've not done any
flying since David was born.

So why do I want to be on the GAGB committee? Well, mainly because I'm
already doing the sorts of things I believe committee members should be
doing. I have approached Peak District National Park rangers about getting
permission to place a night cache on their land; I am trying to foster a
more positive relationship between us and the Modern Antiquarians; and I am
on the organizing committee for a major geocaching event next year (can't
say more until it's been given the OK by the council!). I have also
contacted English Heritage, who have agreed to send me a database of all
the Scheduled Ancient Monuments in England (no point in GAGB having rules
unless we can be confident that they're being followed!).

Those of you who frequent the forums will be aware that "Admin" do not like
me one bit, and another of the founder members has suggested that some GAGB
members might leave if any G:UK developers are voted onto the committee. I
can only say that I thought long and hard before deciding to stand. I do
not believe that there is any conflict of interest as G:UK aims are wholly
separate to GAGB. I feel I can add balance to the committee and am
confident that, once we start working together, we will quickly come to
realise that everyone is working towards the same goals.

[Admin]

Posted by Admin on behalf of The Wombles

Candidate: Dave of The Wombles
I started caching in 2001 with my wife Nicky, and we were the first UK
cachers to hit 100 found (simultaneously with Slytherin). Our caching
rate slowed down when we started the adoption process in 2002, and we
were adopted by three young children later in the year. We have now hit
245 caches of all difficulty levels and all types.

We have placed 58 caches, some in beautiful locations, some in
interesting and unexpected containers, and some which are puzzles and
challenges. St Etheldreda’s (London) is the UK’s most visited cache
(133 finds), and we were delighted to find several of our caches on the
favourites lists of other cachers. We started Geocaching as a couple
but now also understand what our children appreciate in a good cache.

I became one of the founder members of the GAGB because I believed the
growth of Geocaching to be inevitable. This brings a different set of
problems including visibility by major landowners, the press and the
need for UK specific considerations. I was the principal GAGB point of
communication with other regional caching organisations around the world
which has convinced me of the need for GAGB in the UK. I would like to
see wide agreement of guidelines to allow negotiations with the UK major
landowners and am keen to play a major role in this negotiation.

I believe in variation within caching, encouraging new ideas and
allowing everyone an opportunity to pursue their own interests
(providing this causes no problems for others). For example, I enjoy
locationless as well as all other types, but my children prefer
traditional (physical) caches. Caching is an ideal family sport and our
children love it - we must deal with the problems that the inevitable
growth of caching brings; I have several skills which can help make this
happen.



Other supporting experience
I am a trained contracts negotiator (biggest ownership to date was worth
£250 million), have 5 years experience working with public organisations
and have had overall responsibility for the implementation of a £1.1
billion contract. I am a senior manager in a large telecoms company and
a Chartered Engineer.

My current voluntary experience includes being a advanced driving
instructor for the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and RoSPA, and
area coordinator for Neighbourhood Watch (West Chippenham, watch out
when visiting Vincient’s Wood cache!). Past experience includes
Chairman & Chief Instructor for High Wycombe IAM, and Hall Manager of
the Supreme Cat Show (Cat "Crufts" at the NEC).



All the best,

Dave

[Admin]

Posted on behalf of MCL

To be asked to produce a manifesto/CV came as a bit of a surprise, since
one normally associates a manifesto with someone who is actively seeking
some kind of office (eg political), but in this case it's not so, since
each of us was nominated pretty much out of the blue, and our only
involvement so far has been to either accept or reject the nomination. It
may be possible to argue that it should be the nominators who ought to give
their reasons for placing so much faith in whoever it is they have
nominated.

In my case, Teasel has already given his reasons, and I notice several
other nominators have also been quite eloquent and persuasive in their
postings, about their chosen victims (sorry I mean nominees). What else is
there left for me to say?

Well first I can say that I already serve on three other comittees, so the
mechanics of running an organisation are fairly well known to me. Two of
those are national bodies, and the other one is local to Milton Keynes. All
three of them are to do with sound recording, in that I am one of the
trustees of the national Talking Newspaper Association of the United
Kingdom (TNAUK), I am the Technical Officer of the local Talking Newspaper
for the blind in MK, and I am the secretary of the British Sound Recording
Association (BSRA). I'm also a DJ, and a voiceover artist.

But this has nothing to do with Geocaching. And why should it? Caching is
pretty much my escape from computers and audio. People who have met me are
often given to wonder quite how it was I got the way I am. Well I can tell
you it was all due to not having a decent hobby! I came into caching
because one of my close friends had a GPS gizmo and I wanted one to play
with myself. And of course, once you've got one, you have to find some
excuse to actually use it.

So the caching bug grew. Fast wind forward about a year, to the present,
and I can see that, without some sort of organisation to turn to, some big
heavy guns (landlords and goverments) could be brought to bear on our
little hobby and cause us a lot of trouble. That is not to say that GAGB
must inevitably end up as a pressure group. I hope it doesn't. I like to
think that given the right information and guidance, pressure is less often
required, so I see GAGB as storehouse of expertise, and wisdom which people
in land management and government can grow to respect, in the same way that
other associations have gained the respect of the big decision makers. I'm
thinking of people like the Patients' Association, the Ramblers'
Association, the Automobile Association, and yes maybe even the Talking
Newspaper Association. We need to work towards a situation where, when
someone in Whitehall wants to know what effect a new law might have on
countryside pursuits, the GAGB would be on the list of consulted
organisations.

That part of GAGB is the "reactive" side. But I bellieve that there should
be a "proactive" side too, but not a huge one though. GAGB should be
quietly approaching large land managers and getting them on our side. The
parallel here is that of parents of teenage kids. It is often said: "*You*
should be teaching your kids about sex and drugs (at appropriate ages of
course) because if you don't, SOMEBODY ELSE IS GOING TO!" Do you want to
entrust the imparting of that knowledge upon your children, to some
stranger you've never met? Do you wait until the kids find out about drugs
from the pusher in the playground? No. You get in there first and hope to
teach them right. Now apply the same reasoning to the teaching of
landowners. Do we wait until someone else does it for us and screws it up?
Wouldn't it be much better if we screwed it up ourselves? (just kidding!!).
We cannot afford, as a community, to allow our name to be impugned by
people from outside who say things about us not knowing the whole story. I
think many of you will you know who I am talking about, as one example, but
be very sure that they are not the only examples that we are going to meet
in the future. The next lot might not be so nice as the last lot were!
to be continued.

[Admin]

on behalf of MCL cont.

What I do NOT want to see GAGB doing is getting involved in big media
promotions (TV/Radio/Papers), because I don't think caching needs any help
in growing. It is doing that quite nicely as it is, and should continue to
do so. What about things like the HCC event? Yes very good, and I'd enjoy
more of them, but I think that GAGB does not always need to be the
organiser of these things. These events are much better than media splurges because visitors to the events get to learn from other cachers, just what the dos and don'ts are. They get taught hands-on, the best kind of teaching in the world. GAGB should always have a stand/tent at such things, but that the organising should be left to individual caching teams. This may sound a bit odd, but in the end if GAGB can earn a reputation as a
"participatory" organisation, rather than as a "driving" organisation, it
will be seen as more approachable by people seeking help and guidance.

In the end, if GAGB is called into being, then someone has got to run it.
Whoever ends up doing that needs a thick skin, and a bit of time to give. I
can't promise I have all the time in the world because I don't. I'm a busy
guy, but if what time I do have can be used to the benefit of cachers in
general, then I am happy to donate it.

-MCL

[Admin]

Posted by Admin on behalf of Team Paradise

OK. Let's start with the Vital Statistics...

Name: Steve
Geocaching: Team Paradise
Age: 41
Location: Basingstoke, Hampshire.
Occupation: Managing Director
Caches found to date: 95
Caches hidden to date: 7
Geocaching since: Feb 2003

That's the easy bit out the way!...

I guess this should be one of those "why you should vote for me" speeches.
To be honest I can't think of any outstandingly good reason. Like many of
you, I'm just a normal (ish) family man who likes going out for a walk
because I enjoy the countryside and need the exercise to help quell the
middle-age spread. For me personally, Geocaching is a fantastic way to
provide a sense of "purpose" to my walks. Often the family tag along and
then it's all about the find as opposed to the walk... 6 year old daughters
do love finding lunchboxes !

Some of you may have met me at the HCC event earlier this summer. I was the
chap on the stand demonstrating the PDA/Mapping stuff. I'd guess you could
say that technology is another interest, so I combine the two in my
Geocaching.

I have no political agenda or interest... I just enjoy the countryside and
everything that goes with it... the views, changing seasons, flora and
fauna, local history, etc ,etc.

I'd say I'm a reasonably articulate, level-headed kind of guy who's just
happy to help give something back to a hobby that has given me so much
enjoyment and a slightly diminishing waistline. I accepted the nomination
mainly for two reasons. (1) I probably have more free time on my hands than
most and (2) because I feel that some of the Geocaching/GAGB issues need a
very large dose of good old fashioned common sense applying to them!

So, why should you vote for me ?... beats me !