2006 Western Conference

The Main Event: Features

The Design and Engineering track, with an Engineer’s Round Table and presentations by Jim Destefano, Ben Brungraber (keyed beams), Jesse Kendall and Joe Miller. Joern Wingender will lead a participatory exploration of how the design process evolves during the course of a project. Andrea Warchaizer will give her fascinating presentation on photogrammetry, which use computer software to translate photographs into your CAD program.

The Natural Building track with Robert Laporte, Paula Baker Laporte, Craig Hillman and Elke Cole. This track has been growing in popularity and is coordinated by Chris Dancey. Mike Flowers of the College of the Rockies will moderate the Natural Building Forum on Saturday.

The Business track will include two presentations on marketing by Jerry Rouleau, Ross Grier on the creation of the Bellingham Bay Builders worker's cooperative, and a round table discussion by a number of business owners on the perils and rewards of running your own enterprise. Bruce Lindsay will show us how to handle complaints, gripes and claims (and avoiding them in the first place) when dealing with timber suppliers.

In the Shop Practices track, which will consist of outdoor hands-on demonstrations, Rudy Christian will show various methods for repairing timbers, James Mitchell will demo his EPS/Acrylic modular infill wall system (an alternative to SIPS that exposes the frame on the inside and out), John Boys (International Log Builders' Association Board member and author of A Big Boy’s Book of Jigs) will lead a session called Tech Talk and demonstrate his favorite jigs for utilizing round timber; John asks that others bring their favorite jigs and templates for timber framing.

Our featured speakers at the Conference will include our own Rudy Christian, who will open with “A Place for Trades: Cultural Change in the 21st Century.” The Conference will conclude with Ross Laird, author of Grain of Truth: The Ancient Lessons of Craft; he will lead us through an exploration of the creative and philosophical aspects of timber framing.

Pre-Conference Workshops: April 20

On Thursday, we will host five pre-Conference workshops:

• Gordon Macdonald and Steve Lawrence will run a crane and rigging training workshop.
• Patti Southard and Kinley Deller will lead Design for Deconstruction: Cradle to Cradle Design Principles for Buildings.
• Mike Laine and James Wiester will teach a Japanese carpentry workshop, including sharpening with waterstones and plane tuning
• The newly formed Timber Frame Engineering Council (TFEC) will host a workshop for engineers featuring joinery and SIPS research and performance, computer analysis, and the roles and responsibilities of timber structural engineers
• The Timber Frame Business Council (TFBC) will reprise their Speaker's Bureau training to help people learn how to spread the word about our craft.

Thursday & Sunday Tours

Besides these workshops, Thursday and Sunday will offer opportunities for tours in the area, including trips to Cathedral Grove (old growth), OurEcoVillage (featuring natural building techniques), the TF Sawmill, and the University of British Columbia's Center for Advanced Wood Processing along with Forintek's research facility in Vancouver. Some of you may remember the remarkable presentations of Les Josza on wood at previous conferences; Forintek is his home base. Wait ’til you see his office!

There is much more to see in the area, and some of you may be able to do these tours on Sunday before you head home. Just be sure to leave plenty of time.

Special Events

Some new and special events are being initiated at this conference, including a “Year in Review” session where the principal coordinators of the TFG’s major projects in 2005 will discuss the lessons learned and the high points of this very successful slate of events. We will also have a screening of the just released Kicking Horse Bridge film, which chronicles the TFG's construction of the Burr truss covered bridge in Golden, BC in 2004.

Steve Lawrence will coordinate the axe throwing contest, an event he coordinated so brilliantly at recent UK Carpenters Fellowship meetings. We are also looking for musicians in the membership who would like to join a pick-up band for some evening entertainment. Or if you have any talents suitable for family viewing or listening, please call or email Will Beemer. (photo credti: Will Beemer)

SPECIAL EVENT: Discovery: Shelter & Timber Framing: An Exploratory Hands-On Workshop for Youth

The Children’s Discovery Workshop will make its first appearance at the Western Conference, and we need volunteers to help with this wonderful event. We encourage you to bring the kids to participate.

With remarkable skill and ingenuity people used materials “at hand” to build shelters to survive their environments. These skills were handed down by hands-on experience. Children learned as they worked alongside the older folk. Let’s share and pass on our skills.

Come play, share your enthusiasm, and pass on your knowledge.

Workshops will run Friday and Saturday, morning and afternoon, during the Main Conference breakout sessions. To get an accurate estimate of how many children will be attending, please circle on the Registration Form the name(s) of your children who will participate. You can also sign your children up at the Conference (space permitting) when you arrive. If you are registering online, indicate your interest in this program in the Comments section of the online registration form or put an "x" before the child's name. Timber framers interested in assisting should also indicate this when registering for the Conference.

For information on volunteering to help at this workshop, please click here.

Other Attractions

Throughout the conference will be our other regular events:

• Trade Fair: Featuring suppliers for the timber frame industry who will display their products and services and explain in detail how they are used. Meet those who support our craft in the field, including panel suppliers, tool vendors and wood brokers. Don't miss the Mixer Friday at 5:00 PM in the Trade Fair area. The Timber Frame Business Council (TFBC) organizes the Trade Fair. If you wish to exhibit, contact TFBC Executive Director Chad Delong at 888-560-9251, or chad@timberframe.org.
• Bookstore: Charlotte Cooper will once again bring her Summer Beam Books for one-stop shopping and browsing for all those hard-to-find titles on woodworking and timber framing. Open all weekend.

Be a Friend!

As you look over the registration information, please consider becoming a Friend of the Conference. This is a new opportunity to add your name to the list of Conference sponsors by contributing an extra $100 to your registration fee that will go directly into the scholarship fund for that conference. Friends will be acknowledged by name in the Conference registration packet and in Scantlings.

If you have been thinking of donating to the Scholarship Fund, now is your chance to really make a difference for those who otherwise could not afford to attend. Even if you cannot come yourself, we would gladly accept your tax-deductible donation. Just indicate your contribution on the Conference registration form.

Scholarships to attend the Conference are available for Guild members.

Registration Information (All fees are in US dollars)

Pre-Conference Tours: No fee.

Pre-Conference Workshops: Thursday, April 20th

The fee for each Pre-Conference workshop is $125/TFG members, $150/non-members, which includes lunch and breaks. Workshops begin at 8:30 AM.

Main Conference: Friday, April 21st - Sunday, April 23rd

The Full Conference fee includes meals and breaks from breakfast on Friday through breakfast on Sunday and attendance at all activities during the Conference, including admission to the Trade Fair. Commuter rates include meals of the day attending. Rates include a 15% gratuity and 7% sales tax. Rooms are not included (see "Accommodations" below).

Post-Conference Tours: Sunday, April 23rd

Wildwood: $20
O.U.R. EcoVillage: $15

Full Conference Fees

Early registration (postmarked or received by March 11th): Guild Member: $345; Non-member: $395; Spouses and children 13-18: $255; Children 4-12: $100.

Late registration (postmarked or received after March 11th): Guild Member: $395; Non-member: $445; Spouses and children 13-18: $305; Children 4-12: $100.

Commuter Rate (one day)

Guild Member: $175; Non-member: $200; Spouses and children 13-18: $150; Children 4-12: $50. No early registration discount.

Accommodations: Tigh-Na-Mara Resort & Camping

The Tigh-Na-Mara Resort is a collection of log buildings nestled among Arbutus and Douglas Firs along the largest and warmest swimming beach in British Columbia.

Various room types are available at the Resort, ranging from Bachelor (single room) units at $99 CAN/night to suites with separate bedrooms for $155 CAN/night (groups of 3-4 people could share a suite). Descriptions are available here, and you may also check out the Resort’s website at www.tigh-na-mara.com.

Conference attendees must make their own reservations at the Tigh-Na-Mara resort (800-663-7373); rooms are not included in the Conference fee paid to the Guild. Be sure to mention Timber Framers Guild to get the special Conference rate. We recommend you make your reservation early to be sure of getting a room.

Camping is also available at Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park, within walking distance of the Resort. Details can be found at www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/rathtrev.html. Reservations are not accepted prior to April 1, but if you call immediately on that date you should be able to get a site, which costs $22 CAN/night. If you do not stay at the Resort, you must still register for the full conference or as a commuter. There is no option to attend the conference without meals.

Travel

Parksville is on the east Coast of Vancouver Island, and requires a ferry or plane ride from the mainland to get there. It is one of the more complicated venues we've had to get to. For travel information and options, click here.

A map and other information will be sent with other conference materials upon receipt of your registration. Driving directions are at www.tigh-na-mara.com/location_transportation.htm and will be included with your registration confirmation.

Please note that U.S. citizens must now show proof of citizenship as well as a photo ID at the border with Canada, and special documentation should accompany children traveling with only one parent. To avoid problems, please review the requirements at www.amcits.com/entry_ca.asp and www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/vacation/documentary_requirements.xml.

Other Information

Continuing Education Credits for architects and engineers are available for many of the seminars. Contact our office for a specific listing, or you may pick it up at the Conference.

We will send you a confirmation packet with additional information upon receipt of your registration.

Questions? Call Sue Warden at 413-623-9926.