NEW YORK DINNER GREAT SUCCESS

Ask any old married couple: anniversaries are special and some are more special than others. Such was the case for the 20th Annual New York Section Dinner, held this year on October 30th at Manhattan's Union Club. As befits the occasion, a special program was months in preparation. The gala black tie event featured Brad and Barbara Washburn, one of the climbing world's most admired couples, and New York's own, irrepressible Gerry Bloch, fresh, at age 81, from breaking his own age record on El Cap's Aquarian Wall. Brad, of course, is legendary for his exploits as a pioneer Alaskan climber, aerial photographer, geographer, and museum founder and director. If this were not enough, Brad is also a storyteller without peer, and he and Barbara did not disappoint the packed house.

Over the years the Dinner has grown in size and national reputation, and it is attended by climbers from places as distant as Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Utah, and Texas. The Dinner has long boasted having the largest contingent of Everest summiters per capita of any similar event anywhere, and among those in attendance this year were Robert Anderson, Dick Bass, Wally Berg, and Ian Wade. Others enjoying themselves with friends included Doreen Spitzer, widow of Club benefactor Lyman Spitzer, former Club officials Jim Henriot and Sam Silverstein, and many more.

While the Dinner program focused on some senior accomplishments, youth was definitely served. A record 20 new members were introduced and presented their membership pins. Among these was the first father-son combination: Irving Oppenheim and his son Dan from Pittsburgh. Dan is only 17 years old but already has an El Capitan solo to his credit.

The Dinner, which was run as a fund raiser for the Alpine Journal and the Library, also featured an exhibit of prized Washburn photographs, just before traveling to Boston for an extended exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts.

Another very popular Section tradition is our winter outing in the Adirondacks, to be held this year on the weekend of January 29-30, 2000. For registration information and other details, please consult the Section website: http://nys.alpineclub.org.

Phil Erard
Section Chairman

4th Annual Mountain Trivia Quiz
Administered by Prof. Jack Reilly

Answers:1. b), 2. b), 3. c), 4. b), 5. a), 6. c), 7. c) 8. d), 9. b), 10. a)
11. Tom Hornbein and Willy Unsoeld, 12. c), 13. c). 14. d), 15. c)
16. d).

THE WASHBURNS AND GERRY BLOCH
Candid Shots from the 1999 Dinner

The guests of honor - Barbara and Brad Washburn.

Barbara and Brad Washburn

Jim Henriot, Gerry Bloch, Phil Erard, Barbara Washburn

Phil Erard, Earlyn Dean, and Brad Washburn on a small belay ledge.

Table 7: Clockwise from left foreground:
Brad Washburn, Inge Reuter-Benes, Deb Davidge, John Davidge,
Sandie Erard, Jim Henriot, Barbara Washburn, Earlyn Dean.

Phil Erard, with John Bouchard, Nancy Pritchard, and Table 9.

Table 5.



Duncan Burke, Nancy Burke, and Table 11.

Anne de Vona, Chris Galligan, Mim Galligan, at Table 15.

At the party: Garrett Bowden & guest.

L to R: Mei-Jen Huang, Irving Oppenheim, and Will Cross.

Dave Gelman piping the start of dinner; Jack Reppy at R.

Maria & Joe de Saverio

Kwan Choe, the de Saverios, and Table 3.

Ian Wade

John Tiernan, Jack Reilly, and Earlyn Dean

Phil Erard visits at Table 9 with the Bouchards, Bill Mosconi and guests.
Bebe Stetson and Jerry Fuchs are in L foreground.

Ted Church answers some questions from Susan Schwartz Schaller