Johnny said:
I would also like to answer two points made during the debate
Firstly the inference that the Eldon Pothole Club is a dinosaur heading for extinction.
One evening this week Eldon lead a trip with eight cavers and four objectives; taking a novice and prospective member on his second trip, exploration by a CDG member of a sump, dive training and pushing a draughting aven discovered last year. This trip was not a one off, it is the norm. I would say that this trip shows the Eldon to be multiskilled, very active and growing in membership.
Secondly the inference that prospective Eldon members are mistreated by their trip leaders.
Prospective members are given very intensive, often one to one, training and mentoring and if they come through this wanting to continue caving, either with the Eldon or another club they will have had an excellent grounding in most aspects of caving.
My comments were not really directed specifically at the Eldon. I think a lot of clubs are gradually becoming aware of looming problems.
I am a member of a major Mendip club, one of the largest in the UK, with a membership of over 200. This sounds healthy but when you examine things more closely you find the active membership are mostly in their 30s or 40s. They represent perhaps 20% of the membership, the remainder being more or less retired and often in their 50s or older. Almost entirely missing from the club are the young cavers in their teens and 20s.
A generation is missing. The club in question, by its own admission, is not novice-friendly and is not an ideal environment for a beginner.
This situation applies to many clubs in the UK. So far it is the smallest clubs that have been most adversely affected and several have wound themselves up.
The world changes and unless we adapt to the new reality we will, at the least, fail to fulfil our potential, and at the worst cease to be.
I think we need to offer much more to potential cavers and to value them as a resource for the future. I think clubs need to treat them respectfully and sympathetically.
Our club in Cheddar has recently taken on several new members. They are mainly in their 30s/40s, half are women, and they are all intelligent people, good company, and a valuable asset to the club, even if they are not all cut out to be hard cavers. I abhor the idea that any club would reject these people on the basis that they show insufficient 'potential'.
Now most of you guys out there are members of clubs. You have a pretty good idea of your clubs average age, and whether or not numbers are declining. If you feel that these observations do not apply to you, or are just plain mistaken, that's fine. I'm not trying to tell you how to run your own clubs, just trying to provoke some thought and discussion.