I have not registered for ICS and I may only be able to attend for a day or 2.
But I would like to share some thoughts based on attending 8 NSS Conventions. Attendees flying to the convention will find it difficult to pack everything they need. Big items like tarps and poles, large tent stakes, kayaks, canoes, bicycles, cook-stoves, pots & pans, lawn-chairs, inner tubes, tents, tables, cots, wet-suits, flippers, etc. don't pack well on a plane. Not all attendees are coming to go caving, and most will not be accustomed to camping in the Texas summer heat, especially in an open field. It would be helpful for them to know that Texas cavers are willing to share such items. [ At the Maine convention, a caver let me ship my large duffel bag by ground to his address and he delivered it to me at the campground. That was a huge help. ] There will be cavers who might need a ride to the pharmacy or grocery store. If you are going to the store ask around to see if other cavers need anything while you are there. If you are going to go eat at a restaurant, don't be shy. Ask around to see if anybody wants to go. I have had dinner several times with cavers I did not know at conventions. At the cafeteria, don't eat by yourself. Look for someone to sit with and join them. After all, they came to the convention to meet cavers. I have had cavers go "way out of the way" to help me on numerous occasions. All of these efforts, made my experience at the conventions more pleasant and more memoriable. Some cavers might want to rent a car, but getting to and from the rental car agency can be a real pain in the neck. Some might have accidentally chosen a hotel farther from the campus than they expected. Also, I have shared hotel rooms by sleeping on the floor or a cot with cavers I had never met in my life. And I have split the cost of a rental car with caver's I have never met in my life. Looking back it all seemed like great fun ( they probably have a different version of the story ). I guess what I am trying to say is to go the extra mile in reaching out to be hospitable and friendly to cavers you don't know. Conventions are not good places to be clickish. There a great place to meet people who have interest similar to your own. Also, if there is a caver who for some reason or another is not someone you want to be sociable with, ignore that during the convention, and make at effort to be courteous, professional and friendly. Also, don't be shy of the hot tub. Just take off your clothes and get in. Having a naked conversation with someone you don't know is an experience you just have to try. On a somewhat related topic, I was wondering how much this event will be different from the 1994 NSS Convention. My memories of that have faded and are fuzzy. It seems the emphasis on caving then was having everybody bop Devil's Sinkhole. I do recall that 6 of us became very sick with Histo from visiting Emerald Sink. I remember the Alamo Howdy Party was a blast. I remember the swimming hole was great. I remember a pre-convention meeting installing water-cooled fans in an attempt to cool the un-air-conditioned rooms where the sessions were being held. I remember someone selling titanium rappel-racks. And Charles Haskett was making some convention souvenirs on wood with his scroll saw. That was my first convention, and was so much fun that I decided to attend a few more of them. I would like to add that some of the fun is something you won't be able to tell your mom about, and maybe something you won't ever be able to tell anyone about. I should be able to leave Houston on Monday, attend the Howdy Party, camp out, and come home on Tuesday without missing anything work related here in Houston. But my hope is to attend as much of ICS as possible. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
