> - No advertising except on TAC or SJAA.
That is also being considered. Currently we publish the star party in Sky
and Telescope which should force a selection to only amateur astronomers.
We also do publish through the local CCAS club since they are a co-sponsor
as we have done since the start. I will consider that suggestion if we have
problems again.
> - No "casual" area. It's a serious party.
There is no evidence that the casual area impacted the dark site.
One of the advantages of the CalStar site is that we can segregate people.
You need a place for families and beginners. I was a beginner in 2002 and
would have not successfully operated in the dark area. After attending a
CalStar and becoming familiar with the requirements I moved into the dark
area in 2003.
> - If you want to stay at a cabin, park way the hell up by the
> road and walk in and out.
... or sleep in your car and leave after twilight.
That was what was required in 2005. I changed the rules in 2006 since
things went smoothly in 2005. I take the responsibility for my mistake.
> - If you arrive late, tough. Walk in with your binoculars,
> camp by the road, and set up the next morning. You won't make
> the same mistake twice.
That is the message for 2007. I am going to be advising people to arrive
before sunset.
> - If we can arrange a gate made of parked cars or something,
> even better.
We will at least use orange cones and possibly light sticks to mark the
entrance. Whatever we do will convey the notion that we are serious about
the road being closed beyond the barrier.
> - No public welcome. No school groups. No cars of
> non-astronomer
As I said in my post the public has not been invited since 2002 and will not
be on my watch.
The school groups are something I need to discuss with the board. We began
an experiment with green lasers in 2005. There was not a problem then.
This year the groups were shining light sabers in the middle of the dark
area. That will not happen again.
The biggest concern for school groups moving forward is liability. That may
ultimately prove to be their undoing.
Guests have not been an issue in the past. We will be discouraging guests
next year.
Rob Hawley
-- What TAC's Mailing List Is About http://www.observers.org/Join.shtml Interested in WebCam, DSLR or CCD Imaging? http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TAC-imaging/ To Sub-scribe or Unsub-scribe from TAC http://seds.org/mailman/listinfo/sf-bay-tacReceived on Mon Sep 25 11:29:18 2006