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From our president: And the Survey Says! Have you ever tried something only to find that you got yourself into more work than you anticipated? Well, our CHC member survey sure lived up to and exceeded my expectations for input! Overall, 65 people participated in the February 4 General Meeting that produced 92 comments. Then, 52 members provided their ideas via the survey itself, which produced another 332 comments plus specific responses to the questions asked in the survey. With this input, the Board, our Committees, and I will be identifying which items translate into action items and what priorities to set in addressing the ones that point toward areas for improvement. The full, detailed results of the survey are available here. In many cases, the input provides overall opinions related to the 6 areas surveyed (Camp and Trails, Communication, Hiking, Membership, Outreach, and Social). At this point, the input has been captured and sorted by topic and assigned to either the Board or a Committee for further review and prioritization. I expect we will have a consolidated list of areas for action ready by the May General Meeting. A complete set of the responses and comments can be found on our website, should you wish to look through the detail of what people had to say. Overall, here are my top 10 insights that I gained from looking over your responses: 1. Approximately 65% of respondents indicated they visit Camp Onwego 3 or more times a year. 2. 85% indicated that the Camp met their expectations. 3. 78% said they had never attended a trail work session. 4. 90% indicated our communications met their expectations, while 72% noted communications as timely. 5. 54% indicated they visit our website at least monthly. 6. A split decision of about 50/50 regarding willingness to go to all electronic delivery of Newsteps. 7. 83% said that the number, 87% the location and 91% the timing of hikes were sufficient, with 57% preferring “moderate” hikes over other types of hikes. 8. 61% said we should not promote membership in the CHC. 9. No clear direction regarding involvement in other organizations or park systems. 10. Over 97% said our social events met their needs, as did the quality of those events. Each of the areas surveyed included comments that offer much food for thought, for example, areas to improve Camp, ways to promote safety, outreach can collections, improve communications, and ways to improve participation. Overall, the work is just beginning now that we have your inputs. My expectations are that we will come away with several key initiatives that we will track over the months and years ahead. In some cases, comments indicated potential confusion over what is being done and why certain practices are followed. I hope in the months to come to isolate those items and speak to them in my monthly column in Newsteps. Again, thank you for stepping out of the comfort zone of complacency and speaking out about what you think about our Club and how it can be improved. When you read all the comments, you will see a general belief that we have a premier hiking organization that far exceeds member expectations and does so with a great set of volunteers. Be safe out there! !

 

Safety and Health Notes from Cleo Current

Updated December 2011 with advice for winter hiking safety.

 

Club News

5/16/12
We found about about another website with nice safety information. Check it out here, it is worth a look. Thanks to Brittany from Ms. Reed's after school program for finding this.


4/22/12
The revised map for the 40 mile hike has been posted to the web site. The hike now starts at South Mastick.

4/17/12
Final schedules for May and June have been posted to the website.  Also, the May issue of Newsteps is now posted in the Members-Only section of the website.

4/10/12
Unformatted schedules for May and June have been posted to the website.  Also The March Mileage Awards, March Mile-A-Day list and the Statistical Monthly Miles have been posted and are available from the MembersOnly/HikeData menu.

3/21/12
The map for the 40 mile hike has been posted to the web site. 

3/20/12
The full, detailed results of the club survey undertake last month are available here

3/16/12
The April Newsteps has been posted under the MembersOnly section. This Newsteps has information on the spring Merchandise offered by the CHC. Other Merchandise info is available on our website's Merchandise page, where you can also see what the colors look like.

3/10/12
A copy of the 26 Mile Hike has been posted to the Schedules section and to the Events section in MembersOnly. Also the Events page has been updated with new social activities.

3/3/12
A copy of the 20 Mile Hike (on April 1, no fooling) has been posted to the Schedules section and to the Events section in MembersOnly. Also the February mileage awards, Mile-A-Day, and Statistical Monthly Miles are available from the HikeData page.

2/23/12
New excursions and events have been posted to the Members Only section.

2/15/12
We have posted the March Newsteps as well as the formatted schedules for March and April.

2/3/12
President Dave Richards wants to know what you think about our club.  Here is what he says:

CHC MEMBERS SPEAK OUT: During the month of February we are conducting a membership survey to provide our Board and Committees input on topics of interest to our members. You can download the survey form as a document you can edit in Microsoft Word or as a document you can print out. Please take a few minutes to complete the form and send it back so we can know what your opinions and suggestions are. You can download the survey and complete it electronically and then e-mail it to me at drichards0901@gmail.com or you can download the survey, print it, provide your responses, and mail it to me at the address printed at the end of the survey. Be sure you complete this process before the end of February. Results of the survey will be provided to the Board at their March 6 meeting and a summary will be provided to members as part of my monthly column in our April Newsteps. We look forward to your input.


1/27/12
New photos have been added, showing the winners from the 2011 CHC Photo Contest. Thanks to Matt Collings for sending these in. Take a look on the Photos page.


1/21/12
Bob Shroy has assembled photos and memories of Lee Shainker that were sent in by club members. Take a look here.


1/19/12
The February issue of Newsteps has been posted on the Newsteps page.

Peter Carlsson has put together a wonderful assortment of photos in memory of Lee Shainker on the Photos page.

12/20/11
The January and February formatted schedules have been posted on the Schedules page. 

12/16/11
The January Newsteps has been posted here. It includes details on a newly-approved excursion to the Arctic Circle and other goodies. 

11/18/11
The December Newsteps has been posted here. 

11/8/11
As announced at the November general meeting, the club election results are in. Check them out here. 
Many thanks are due to those who were willing to help our club by running for office.

10/22/11
Barb Siegel reports from the 2011 Chili Cook-Off (including pictures) here. 

10/18/11
Four new excursions have been posted to the excursions page.  Note that the excursions to the Grand Canyon and to Northern California have sign-up dates that are approaching quickly (this month), so don't delay if you are interested in one of them.

10/17/11
The November Newsteps has been posted here.  Also we have posted November and December unformatted schedules.

10/03/11
Denise Tobiasz has provided information on ordering CHC Fall 2011 Merchandise. Details on the new Merchandise page - linked to on the page Committes under About Us - Committees.

9/26/11
Matt Collings has given us information about the upcoming CHC photo contest. The deadline for submissions is Nov 7. Check out the details on the events web page.

8/29/11

Lee Schiemann tells us that there are errors in the published directions to get to his Swine Creek hike on Sept 28.

Correct directions to the hike are:
Take SR 87 east through Middlefield. Two and one half miles east of the junction of SRs 87 and 528, turn RIGHT onto Hayes Rd. Proceed south on Hayes to the first entrance for Swine Creek Reservation which you encounter. Meet at the Lodge Parking area. The hike will include trails which are a part of the Geauga Park District’s 50th Anniversary, 50 mile challenge.

8/21/11
The final schedules for September and October are now on the website.

8/17/11
Unformatted schedules for September and October are now on the website.
The September Newsteps is now on the website in the Members Only section.
Look on Page 11 of Newsteps to see more information on the Chili-Cookoff coming in October.  This includes the entry form.
Check out the Photo section for the latest additions.

8/12/11
It sounds like there was a lively meeting of the Cleveland Metroparks Board last night, when use of mountain bikes in the parks was discussed. Our VP, Matt Collings was there to express views from a hiker perspective. Thanks to Matt for making the effort to attend the meeting. Check out the Plain Dealer article.



8/7/11
The Cleveland MetroParks Board is considering a proposal regarding mountain bike trails in the parks at a meeting this week. Several CHC board members have expressed the idea that it would be good to have hikers, like you, attend this meeting. Our board members are not opposed to mountain biking in the parks, but feel that all users should be represented if decisions are to be made. If you can, please attend this meeting and let your opinions be known. The meeting is at 4101 Fulton Parkway, in the MetroParks offices beside the zoo, at 9:00 AM on Thursday, August 11.