Why? Because we do some pretty funny things sometimes! The CMA is an award that is sought after and “cherished” by all coordinators at CORE. It is given out annually to the coordinator who had something memorable happen before, during or after that person’s event.
The first year it was handed out, it went to a group that chose a hike, went to the trail head and ended up on a totally different trail, hiked it and didn’t realize it. The CMA was born!
If you feel a member is deserving of this special award, please contact us with the details. Have a read through the past award recipients and the story behind their award.
Past Recipients
Terry M.’s group won in 2001 for mistaking a brown muddy newfie dog for a bear and the back of the group scattered not wanting to wait around to see what it really was. Then all realized that bears don’t usually have collars and leashes. Look at the picture, and see what you think…
Uncle Harley is 2004’s proud owner of the CMA for his long distance highway travel to The Whaleback hike – way down south on Highway 22 past Longview. Very long view apparently, as some of the drivers kept on going to almost the Crowsnest Pass!
Isabelle A. and Edna H. both won the Chicken Mountain Award for 2005/2006. The date of the hike was September 10. The hike was originally planned to be a Picnic Hike to Rawson Lake, but the weather was terrible with “torrential rain” falling all day. The hike went ahead but the location was changed to the Ribbon Falls shelter. Only a half-dozen brave souls showed up. After enjoying a great potluck/cookout in the shelter with a warm fire burning, we ventured out in the rain to hike to Troll Falls. Edna and Isabelle started jumping in big puddles along the trail. They were having so much fun, running and jumping, that soon the rest of us joined in. We were just like a bunch of kids, playing in the puddles. We were all soaked to the skin but we had so much fun and laughed a lot.
So Edna and Isabelle won the award for demonstrating how you can have fun on a hike, despite terrible weather conditions! Don’t let rain dampen your fun. Get out there and make the best of it.
Pat R. won the Chicken Mountain Award for 2006/2007, for repeatedly attempting to encourage a new member to try hiking — but the attempts fizzled in a series of unfortunate events. A new member was somewhat reluctant to try hiking, so Pat called her to join in on a hike she was coordinating. Pat told her that it would be a beautiful day and an easy hike. But it turned out that there was a 100 km/hr wind, and a bit of a scramble. The new member’s knee had locked, so she could hardly get down the mountain. On the next hike, the new member brought the wrong hiking boots, and her camera broke. Then Pat encouraged her to try snowshoeing. Again, bad luck: the new member’s snowshoe broke. The next time Pat had invited the new member to a hike, she said that she was leaving the club. Talk about a harmonic convergence of bad luck!
The award for 2007/2008 goes to Jeanette N., who was the coordinator for the canoe trip down the Bow River from Fish Creek Park to Carseland. Two brothers on the trip had capsized their canoe — and they were the most experienced of the lot! Apparently the brothers didn’t stick around for receiving the coveted rubber chicken…