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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 4, 1992)
OUTDOORS Continued from Page 1 University in 1979 to start a college program in beginning and advanced wilderness out ings skills. Within 10 years, the program had grown into the largest of its kind in the country and u m<xi el for other universities. For loss than $50 a term, students could learn the basics of rockclimbing or the subtleties of windsurfing. "Compared to Fugene Parks and Recreation and other com petitors. the cost of our classes are wny under market," Blan chard said. Today, students have many of those same opportunities, but they come at an increased cost and decreased availability. Wilderness Survival, the pre requisite class for most outdoor classes, costs $34 this term, compared to $30 a year ago Blanchard said he expects class costs to rise another $5 to $9 next year, and all wator classes were canceled this year duo to lock of money for instructors As the program receives no money from the Mote, student* must pay the entire cost of the classes, Blanchard said. That includes Blanchard's salary. And as part of a deal with the administration. Blanchard agreed to to work full time for half-pay this year, in order to keep the program alive. The program's other instructor. Mi chael Strong, had the same op tion hut left this year to teach several courses at the private National Outdoor Leadership School. "I'm living on savings this year.” Blanchard said "I've in vested too much in this pro gram to just drop it. I’ve lived hero all my life, and this is where I've chosen to settle." Despite the program's dimin ished si/.e and increased cost, students continue to fill the classes and waiting lists are of ten as long as the class roster, Blanchard said Junior geography student Travis Reeder said the program provides hands-on learning for his field "It gives me the skills 1 need to get into the places I like to study, such us national forests," Rotider said. "Being in the classroom so much. I lose track of what I'm studying it just becomes work on paper Senior psychology student Seth Koch said he appreciates the solitude he finds in the wil derness. "I get to know myself better when there's not so many ex traneous variables around me Personally. I'm more aware of who I am as an individual." he said. Blanchard said he is cau tiously optimistic about the program's future "In the long run the future is bright, because the demand is growing," he said. And he is quick to point out that, while the state has aban doned the program, the Univer sity has not. "The administration has been extremely supportive of our ef forts to keep going.” hi; said "They give us facilities to work In and pay for our heating and electric bills. "Even in our reduced state, we are still the largest outdoor based program iti the country." he said DIRECTOR Continued from Page 1 trekked solo through Russia and kayaked some of the world's most dangerous rivers. Blanchard's career is one marked by a close tie to the outdoors After graduating with a general science degree from the University in 1907, he landed a job us a U S. Forest Service wilderness ranger. For the next 10 years he patrolled the Willam ette National F'orest, also working lor the ski pa trol at Mount Bachelor. His work eventually led him into the dangerous and technical field of mountain rescue In the 1970s. Blanchard and two others found ed what is today the Pacific Urest Outward Bound School, which teaches outdoor skills with an awareness of the environment Nine years later, Blanchard brought his experi ence to the University and founded the Outdoor Pursuits program. Blanchard says he has no regrets about choos ing a career that he jokingly says "avoids mean ingful employment ". 'Most of my college friends are now doctors, lawyers and Indian chiefs," he said " Ihey made a lot of money. I had fun instead In ull his years of mountaineering and adven turing. his most dangerous moment came about 10 years ago on a relatively idyllic solo hike through Yugoslavia "It was a rather odd case, involving dogs in Macedonia." Blanchard said "They have these giant. 150-pound dogs to guard their sheep They're very effective — they kill anything that comes near the sheep. "I got tangled up with almost a dozen of the dogs," ho said. "I killed several of them with stones, then they gathered around me I managed to keep them at bey by picking up a dead dog a 7 managed to keep them at bay by picking up a dead dog — a small one — by its hind legs and swinging it around as a club Jim Blanchard. Outdoor Pursuits program director small one by its Kind legs and -.winging il around us a club "I don't know how long that lusted, but mv ololhos wore in shreds, and I had lost a lot of blood I was saved by some Albanian border guards, who machine-gunned the rest of them saved my little hiney. “I ended up being holed up In a small village for quite a while until my wounds started to heal.'' In the summers, Blanchard leads American cli ents on treks through the European and Japanese Alps He said these mountain trips give him the peace of mind to deal with the stresses he en counters in Eugene "You get a special perspective when you're on u mountain peak that's impossible to achieve in Eugene," he said "We live in a pretty esoteric realm that's dis tantly related to reality When you're constantly dealing in math or psychology or physics, the connections art; hard to make,” he said. Blanchard said his plans for the future are con fined to the University. 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