Worried about leading a walk?
Recruitment of walks leaders seems to be a major headache for Groups. Hopefully a new initiative from Central Office will ease the problem. They have put on a series of nationwide training days on walk leadership. James Austin (see photo) came to Newark on Friday February 14th to facilitate one of these days.
The course was well-subscribed (with an overflow waiting list of 30). Newark and Vale of Belvoir Groups were well represented and joined by walkers from Nottingham, Sheffield and Grantham.
The afternoon featured a walk from Holy Trinity church along Sconce Hills and then to the River Trent, hazards including a lot of mud and a crossing over the busy A46.
We spent the morning discussing the mechanics of leading a walk and the various problems that can arise. Learning points included:
- try and make the pre-publicity informative and inviting
- do at least one “recce”
- think about “escape routes” and short cuts
- make sure the distance described is accurate
- always have a back marker (and even a middle marker)
- keep a register and include emergency contact phone numbers
- be welcoming and inclusive. Be prepared to (discreetly) exclude people you don’t think will cope with the walk
- the walk needs prior open publicity as a Ramblers walk to validate Ramblers insurance . A round-robin email to Group members is insufficient
And then the most interesting and enjoyable part of the day!
We all had turns being the walk leader but anybody could suddenly be given a card asking them to play a role. My card asked me to feign a reason why I absolutely could not continue the walk. My acting out of sudden severe central chest pain was so convincing that one of the participants was genuinely concerned!
TIP Summon help by phoning 999. Find out if there are medically-qualified people in the party. You may need to delegate someone to take the others back to the starting point. If possible, try and do things in 3’s – for example, three people to stay with the casualty and three people to seek help if there is no mobile phone coverage.
My scenario as leader was very difficult. The back marker alerted me to a problem – a lady refused to go on, saying she was “bored” and that she had “just had enough”. Cajoling, blandishments, veiled threats of “there is no alternative” and promises of trying to find a short cut eventually won through.
TIP: This can sometimes be a serious problem and may need police involvement. James gave us the scenario of someone freezing with fear during the descent of a Lakeland fell. You can’t force the person to carry on and you can’t expect the rest of the group to stay where they are. The police will alert the most appropriate emergency service.
So, all in all a most enjoyable and instructive day - and completely free of charge. Many thanks to James.
It sounds as if the next nationwide course will be route-setting and navigation. Why don’t ALL walkers join Ramblers?!
James McGill