Inception and the Seventies

 

 

The Eighties

1980

 Bruce Archibald, an expert sailor, adds sailing trips as a new dimension to the club. First annual Christmas Party with "Santa" and gift-exchange is held at Linda Priestley's parents place. The Forbidden Plateau 'round-house' becomes a base camp for ski trips to Forbidden Plateau.

1981

Matthew leaves Victoria to travel in Africa. Dave Cotter designs and produces a silk-screened CHA T-shirt which is sold to members. The Rossalan trail is built by the Outdoors Club of Victoria and they invite the CHA chapter to use it. The number of social events is expanded and includes evenings at Harpo's.

1982

 

Friday night "Sports Night" is established after a summer of softball. Organizers include Bruce Archibald, Jeff Hawker, Dennis Haller, and Norm Tandberg. All are welcome at the Oaklands School gym for drop-in activities including volleyball, basketball, indoor soccer, and floor hockey. First ski trip to Mt. Washington organized by Bruce Archibald and Norm Tandberg. A condo is shared by 12 members. Jeff Hawker and Dennis Haller produce the first newsletter. It contains the event schedule, club news, book reviews, camping recipes, etc.

1983

 

Each quarterly schedule contains about 10 events and is printed on one side of standard size paper. Approximately 80 percent of the events are outdoor activities. Members include: Linda Priestley, Gary Norris, Norm and Gill Tandberg, Russ and Marjorie Raine, Rick Roberts, Sue Wilson, Bruce Archibald, Marilyn Simes, Dave Cotter, Nick Evans, Dennis Haller, Ron Armstrong, Bill Nicholson, Sarah Ebell, Felicity Page, Bill Bradley, Ray Hall. An effort was made to schedule a wider variety of activities and to make a commitment to completing events as planned. Car-pooling costs were set at the cost of gas plus 10%.

 

 1984

The quarterly activities schedule is expanded to include club news and is printed on both sides of legal size paper. Each schedule contains information about the new Victoria Hostel, the B.C. Federation of Mountain Clubs, outdoor recipes, and a book review. The number and title of positions in the executive changes throughout the year. The schedules contains between 13 and 18 events. Norm Tandberg and Dennis Haller represent the Club at the B.C. Federation of Mountain Clubs. The Federation is designed to liaise with government and private industry to establish a provincial policy on land use with special attention focused on Strathcona Park and Mt. Washington. Other participants include the Sierra Club and the Alpine Club. Discussions become heated as the government proposes mining and logging contracts for these areas. The Friends of Strathcona Park, a political advocacy group, is established. The Victoria Hostel is established.

 

 

1985

 

A new executive structure is established. The schedules contain around 20 events. Newsletter-oriented "trip reports" begin to appear on the schedules. The recommendation to form an outdoors club, independent of the CHA, is met with an even split in votes.

 

 

1986

 

Concerned about liability, the Canadian Hostel Association decide to sever relationships with the Victoria Outdoor Section in December. A group of VOS members decide to carry on in the following year as an independent group.

 

 

1987

 

The new club is formed. Ron Armstrong coins the name "Club Tread" and Betty Walsh designs the boot-print logo for the newly founded club. Dues are charged for the first time - $8 per year. Buddy Bhandar offers his house in the hills of Shawnigan Lake as the site for the annual Halloween Party.

 

 Year end membership: 44

 

1988

 

The new Club Tread experiences significant growth. Dues are increased to $12 per year and the quarterly schedules contain between 26 and 43 events. The composition of the executive is expanded early in the year. The location of the departure point is changed from Mayfair or Tillicum malls to the Saanich Municipal Hall. "Official" Club Tread T-shirts are created and sold. Annual Christmas party is moved to the Norway House and a D.J. is hired. This continues to be a potluck event. Rob Denny takes over as a leader in sailing events with his 30' sail boat Waxwing.

 

 Year end membership: 60

 

1989

 

Founding members begin to leave the Club for a number of reasons including new-found family responsibilities and a feeling that the group has grown too big. Some begin to feel that the Club is evolving into a "singles" group and are discomforted by this. A small faction opposed to the proliferation of social events emerges. Two different schedules of activities are produced - one available to Club members and the general public containing only outdoor events, and the other for Club members only containing just social events. Dues are increased to $15 per year and the quarterly schedules contain between 25 and 41 events. New memberships are actively pursued.

 

 

Year end membership: 99