The Beta Club Confidence Building Weekend - Central Scotland

This event is open to (cis and trans) women and non-binary folk, we operate active inclusion and all those who align with our values. You need to be comfortable staying in accommodation with a mix of genders to attend our weekends. If you are uncomfortable sharing a room or this does not suit you for any reason, we recommend that you book one of our double rooms to have your own space.

This weekend is focused on confidence building your existing sport climbing skills and is evidence based. This is suitable for people who have done a bit of sport climbing, whether that be with an instructor or friends, if you are a novice with some level of sport climbing experience - this is for you. Our instructor will be Katie Mackay, a vastly experienced instructor who has worked in women's and gender diverse spaces. By including a mix of climbing and social activities, we aim to build confidence, trust and relationships on and off the wall.

There are 6 places for this event.

We recommend that if you are not already, you become a member of the British Mountaineering Council. This gives you access to lots of fantastic resources, including Summit magazine, as well as climbing insurance. You are also supporting access rights and crag upkeep by becoming a member.

We can't wait to see you!

This weekend is supported by Tenzing.

(night one)

6pm - arrival

7.30pm - welcome vegan/vegetarian nibbles and drinks (herbal tea, soft drink or wine), plus weekend intention setting session

10pm - bedtime

(morning)

7am - wakey wakey and breakfast (continental vegan/vegetarian breakfast and porridge)

8.30am - wagons roll, off to the crag (or indoor wall if it's raining) we must go...

9am - meet our instructor Katie Mackay at the crag and over to Katie

9am - 4pm - climbing! Katie will lead our climbing day, tailored to your confidence building needs in sport climbing (please bring a packed lunch, any snacks or drinks you may want to the crag)

4pm - debrief and depart from the crag, back to the house.

(evening)

4.30pm - 6pm - chilling

6pm - 7.30pm - vegan/vegetarian dinner

8pm - 10pm - creative social activity

10pm - onwards - bedtime

(morning)

7.30am - wakey wakey and breakfast (continental and porridge)

10am - goodbyes and wagons roll

*** this will be the official weekend end but please feel free to keep the activities going, climbing, visiting Crieff, whatever your heart desires.

Climbing Information:

This weekend event is aimed at sport climbing novices, it is not suitable for total beginners. If you're unsure about your level of experience, please do reach out because we're more than happy to chat with you about this. We are aiming to climb at Benny Beg crag, if the weather is bad, we will work on our skills indoors. There will be an additional fee for wall entry in this case.

This weekend is a neutral space and everyone should arrive with an open mind. We recognise that some people may already know each other but for the most part this will be the first time you meet! Hopefully by the end of the weekend you will have made some new friends. We understand that walking into a weekend not knowing anyone can be intimidating and therefore, if you consent, we would love to add you to a group Whatsapp chat where you can "meet" fellow attendees ahead of the weekend, arrange lift shares or joint travel.

This weekend is hosted by the Director of the Beta Club, Emily Ankers (she/her). Emily has been climbing for 9 years. She started her climbing journey with her ex-partner and followed what is now a typical progression. Indoor bouldering to indoor roped climbing, outdoor bouldering, outdoor bottom roping, indoor lead, outdoor sport and trad climbing. Emily considers herself to be an incredibly average climber, especially when it comes to grades. Though she does often have to remind herself that she has a fair amount of experience, particularly with gear.

In her professional life, Emily is in the final year of completing a PhD on women and gender diverse people's experiences of climbing. Emily's research forms the evidence that this weekend model is based upon. Emily is also a consultant, freelance researcher, writer and presenter on equity, diversity and inclusion in the outdoors.

In her personal life, Emily lives between the Wirral and Stuttgart (Germany). On the Wirral she lives with her sister Annabel, brother in law James and Bailey the German Shepherd. When in Germany, she lives with and cares for her husband Rob who has MND. This background means that Emily is quite stretched and so may not be replying to questions immediately but she will be on the look out for your messages and emails. Running the Beta Club is Emily's happy place, and she needs this to be the best carer, wife, sister and all round human being.

If you are driving, there is parking available at the cottage. We encourage you to lift share where possible to reduce our environmental impact, this will also reduce costs for you! We will lift share to the crag.

If you are coming by train, the nearest train station is Stirling. We ask that you arrive at the station by 5pm, so that Emily can pick everyone up at the same time to drive to our accommodation in Comrie, to be on time for arrival.

We will be staying a big cottage in Comrie. The cottage has 4 bedrooms.

1 x double with en-suite (1 person), 1 x double (1 person), 2 x twin rooms (2 in each room). This means that the price of the weekend is weighted accordingly.

We will share specific details of the cottage with you once you are a ticket holder but let me tell you, it is super cosy and lovely.

Bedding and towels will be provided.

Though this is a hosted weekend, it would be incredibly lovely if you could wash up after yourselves and leave things as you would like them to be found.

Not all of us are night owls, so please be considerate of others wanting to go to sleep earlier, especially if you are sharing a room. We can also have a discussion to figure out who are the earlier sleepers and room them together.

We will be providing evening nibbles on the first night, breakfast on both mornings and dinner on the second night. Please bring your packed lunch, snacks and drinks for the crag. All meals will be vegan/vegetarian/halal crowd pleasers! We are unable to cater for serious allergies so please make your own arrangements for food if this applies. Please alert us to any minor allergies or food sensitivities.

This event is supported by Tenzing, bringing the good energy to the weekend!

Please bring:

• Water bottle
• Packed lunch for the crag, plus any snacks or drinks that you might want
• Hat and gloves if it's cold
• Cap and suncream if it's sunny
• Warm layers
• Your cosiest leisure wear for our evenings together
• Overnight bag

Things that would be useful (but you will be able to borrow them if you don't have them):

• Harness
• Climbing shoes
• Belay device
• Climbing helmet
• Walking boots/approach shoes
• Waterproofs

Katie will send an information sheet for our climbing day, including a list of the gear you need or could bring. If there are any items that you do not have, just let us know and you will be able to borrow anything you need (I've seen the back of Katie's van and she has a lot of stuff).

Climbing is inherently a risky activity, Katie will ask you to sign a waiver ensuring that you are aware of the risks. Please make us aware of any injuries or additional needs for the weekend.

Emily is a qualified First Aider, having attended a 16 hour Outdoor First Aid Course, which includes Emergency First Aid at Work. Emily will be the designated First Aider outside of the climbing. During the climbing, Katie will be the designated First Aider and Emily will support in the instance of an accident or illness.

Emily has a Level 1 Food Hygiene Certificate.

In the interest of transparency, we want to share how we have worked out the costing with you. The cost of the weekend tickets vary according to room type.

The price includes: accommodation, food and drinks, event insurance, host's travel fuel and some of their time, activity materials, Katie's instructor fee.

Due to the small scale nature of our events, we are unable able to offer refunds if you are unable to attend. We will have a waiting list and attempt to fill your place if you are no longer able to come, if we can fill your place, we can give you a refund, if we are unable to fill your place, we will be unable to offer you a refund.

In the instance of the weekend needing to be cancelled, you will receive a full refund or you can opt for us to hold the payment and transfer it to another future Beta Club weekend.

We operate a policy of active inclusion, anyone who is displaying discriminatory behaviour during the run up to the weekend in the group chat or during the weekend will be asked to leave. We reserve the right not to issue a refund in the instance of this happening.

If we need to climb indoors due to bad weather, there will be an additional fee for wall entry.

***

If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to reach out to [email protected] or drop Emily a message on Instagram @thebetaclubclimbing

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Group Cottage (Full Details to be sent in event information), Comrie, Dunblane, United Kingdom

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