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Gator Footprints
by Carl Cordes
Welcome to my first article as President of the Florida Volkssport Association. Communication has been a mainstay in my life, personally and professionally. And I have an opinion about everything. I invite your suggestions and questions, too! FVAPresident@aol.com Florida clubs are geographically challenged. But since my return to Florida I am disappointed to find walkers don’t travel to other clubs’ events like we did in the 80's. You might be forgiven not traveling eight hours one way every weekend. But it seems distance is an insurmountable barrier just to visit your neighboring club in the next county or two. There are many excuses why you might not. Instead I’ll take the higher path and give you three reasons why you should go the distance. Feel free to add your own reasons, too. Morale Support. We know how difficult it can be to plan, organize and execute an event. If you make the effort to attend the walk of another club, it will lift their spirits. Admit it. You get a little ego boost when someone outside your circle of members (aka the usual suspects) picks your event to walk out of all the events in the world. 2) Methods and Procedures. An opportunity to see how other people plan, organize and execute an event. You just might learn something or find a different solution to the way your club has always done things. If it works better than your current procedure, use it. 3) Exploration. The best thing about this sport is what you find along the trail. No, not that tasty road kill but the history, a unique site or “I didn’t know that” experience. Talk about priceless! And this is a two-way street. The host club needs to be mindful of what they can offer their walkers besides 5 or 10 kilometers in the book. I challenge each of you to visit the “other” clubs in Florida and experience the Spirit of Walking in someone else’s backyard. |
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American Volkssport Association, Universal City, Texas |
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Internationaler Volkssportverb and International Federation of Popular Sports |
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Email the President |
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Pets are welcome on most walks, if leashed and if they have good doggie manners, like no aggressive behavior and cleaned up after. Please check with route planners for rules and special instructions regarding your pets. |