Friends of Tuckerman to hold Seacoast event Saturday

 Local conservation organization to hold social outreach forum at Portsmouth Kayak Adventures

OCTOBER 2008 

PORTSMOUTH, NH — The locally-based, non-profit Friends of Tuckerman Ravine (www.friendsoftuckerman.org) organization has scheduled an outreach social event along New Hampshire's Seacoast Saturday, Nov. 8, to promote greater awareness of membership benefits and the group's efforts to preserve and protect the back-country experiences of Mount Washington's Tuckerman Ravine.

The Seacoast “get to know Friends of Tuckerman” event is slated from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Portsmouth Kayak Adventures, 185 Wentworth Road, Portsmouth (phone 559-1000).

“We're inviting athletes, adventure seekers, families and ecologists to share in a fun, free, educational evening on behalf of the legendary Mount Washington Tuckerman Ravine — on the Seacoast!” said executive director Al Risch of Madison, who is spearheading the event with Friends of Tuckerman Seacoast board members Bill Downey and Jean Eastman Ryan.

Founded in 2000, Friends of Tuckerman Ravine helps to raise funds to assist the U.S. Forest Service in its efforts to patrol and protect the ravine, a glacial cirque located on Mount Washington's eastern flank. Popular at all times of the year among hikers and outdoor lovers, the ravine is especially well visited in spring when skiing diehards flock to the snow bowl to enjoy some of the steepest non-lift serviced terrain in the East.

At the Nov. 8 event, attendees will learn about the benefits of Friends of Tuckerman Ravine's membership. They will hear presentations by:

• Executive director Al Risch, who will speak about the organization, upcoming trail-work weekend events, and this April's Tuckerman Inferno Pentathlon as well as the all-new Friends of Tuckerman Wildcat Wildfire event.

• U.S. Forest Service representative Dave Neely 

• Writer, ski historian and Friends of Tuckerman Ravine board member Tom Eastman of The Conway Daily Sun, who is a past winner of Ski NH's Media Person of the Year award.

• New England Ski Museum executive director, Friends of Tuckerman Ravine secretary, and ski-history author Jeffrey R. Leich. 

• Friends of Tuckerman Ravine Seacoast chapter co-chairs and board members, Bill Downey and Jeanie Eastman Ryan.

Participants will be able to enjoy pizza and beverages, vintage Tuckerman Ravine film footage, and prizes, including sporting equipment and mountain getaway packages.

Refreshments will be provided by The Flatbread Company and Smuttynose Brewing Company. Prizes will be provided by many, including Portsmouth Kayak Adventures, Jay Peak, Wildcat Inn and Tavern, Charles Schwab and Co., and the Mount Washington Observatory.

Friends of Tuckerman Ravine 's mission is “to preserve and protect the unique alpine and eastern slopes of Mount Washington and sustain the traditional uses of this distinctive area.”

In addition to the Nov. 8 Seacoast event, Friends of Tuckerman will feature a booth at this year's Boston Globe Ski and Snowboard Expo at the Bayside Expo Center, Nov. 20-23.

For more information, contact Risch at 367-4417 or visit www.friendsoftuckerman.org.