ISE VALLEY VAGABONDS
CLUB HISTORY
When the idea of setting up a group of people to support the English
I.M.L.Waendel Walk was first considered in
1988, the aim was simply to list those individuals who would undertake to be
present in order to help
with whatever work was necessary to ensure the smooth running of the event.
The suggestion that we form a "proper " club followed very soon. However, it was
agreed that
membership would only be granted to those individuals who were prepared to help
with marshalling
the Waendel Walk, and this qualification for membership was adhered to quite
strictly for the first year
or so. No membership fee was required at that time.
The club name resulted from another coincidence. For a number of years I had
been taking part in an
annual hockey festival in Belgium, and taking groups of players from Kettering
and Corby clubs.
We wanted a name which reflected our origins and because the Ise River flows
between the two towns,
we became the Ise Valley Vagrants. The initials "IVV" means rather more to
walkers than to hockey players
and a simple adjustment to the name gave us the "Ise Valley Vagabonds".
Before adopting the name I contacted Horst Volkmer (president of the IVV) to
find out if there was any
reason why a club should not have the same initials as the parent organisation.
His reply was that it would be a good advertisement for the Internationaler
Volkssport Verband.
It was not long before members asked for more flexibility as a good many people
wanted to support us
but could not guarantee their assistance at Waendel. The "help" rule was
relaxed.
At the same time we began to produce a rather more comprehensive club news
medium,
The Vagabond Times. The cost of producing and distributing this missive made it
necessary to make
some form of charge so a membership fee was introduced for that purpose.
One of our members, Mac McGowan, produced the Vagabond logo which we adopted,
and our
committee members came up with some excellent ideas for events and for saleable
articles to
boost our finances.
Items of clothing were designed and made in Wellingborough and sold to members
at a small profit.
Our treasurer Roy Sheriff made an interest-free loan to the club to enable
the purchase of these items
in the first place and while growth was not spectacular the club began to gain
support.
Most clubs derive the bulk of their income from the proceeds of a major annual
event .
Our "major" event was to assist with the Waendel Walk which produced no income
at all,
instead we established a number of minor walks which kept us solvent -just!
We initiated a " Life Fund". Individuals who opted to become life members by
paying a lump sum
of £35 financed this fund, it was kept separate from other money and used for
major purchases.
Once the items had been sold the money was replaced (any profit going into the
club current account)
and made available for the next major need.
Our programme became quite extensive with Winter and Summer series walks, Cambridge Canter (organised by Mac McGowan) a 4- evening event (Vagabond Foursome) and a walking weekend in Daventry, the Danetre Doddle and Dawdle. To these were added an event to support Ronald McDonald House and the Nene ValleyVenture where we assisted the Scouts in organising their event.
It was owing to the initiative of some of our members that the Waendel Walk was admitted to membership of the International Marching League. In recognition of this we are entitled to add the IML logo to our stationery. Not content with these activities,as at 1st. January 2005, we will have established 16 Permanent Trails in :- Wellingborough (The Hind Hotel), Kettering (The George) London (The Hogarth Hotel) Hampstead (La Gaffe Heath Street) Stratford-upon ,Avon (Stratford Leisure Centre), Oxford, Stamford (The Golden Fleece), King,s Lynn (GlobeHotel), Chester, The Queen Walk (The Queen Hotel, City Road, Chester),Warwick (The Wheatsheaf Hotel), The Queen of Hearts, Daventry, The Lawrence Sheriff Trail, Rugby, Marston Vale Millenium Country Park Trail, Beds, Marston Vale Timberland Trail, and The King William IV Trail, Beds, The Bedford River Walk, Bedford. These anytime walks, most of about 10km prove to be quite popular among foreign visitors especially as no advance registration is necessary and IVV stamps and awards can be claimed via the internet or by post. All route descriptions and claim forms can be downloaded from our website. (See home page Permanent Trails).
Relations with clubs on the European mainland are blossoming thanks to Wandertours, a self-financing group of members and friends who visit events in Belgium (mainly), Holland, Luxembourg and Germany for weekends of walking and social pleasures. At the same time they distribute publicity materials about British events particularly The Waendel Walk and are largely responsible for its increasing numbers of foreign participants. Members also participate regularly in other IML events; especially those that are more easily accessible like Blankenberge, Diekirch and Nijmegen. In fact, Vagabonds have participated in most of the IML events.
This also accounts for the wide spread of Vagabond members! They live in Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, Holland, Belgium, Germany, USA, Denmark, Jersey and even Wellingborough! It also makes meeting with all club members impossible. On the other hand every walk, every Wandertour is a meeting of sort and with the large number of events held each year and the information in Vagabonds Times, few members do not know what is going on.
As practitioners of the IVV ethos, �fun fitness and friendship, there can be few more dedicated clubs than Ise Valley Vagabonds!
Bill Greenwood