The FRA has come a long way in reinventing itself from the original intentions where a group of like minded folk came together to share information and knowledge. I was there at the the meeting in April 1970 after the Pendle fell race in the Scout hut where the idea of forming the Fra came to fruition, the overriding concensus from those present was to keep it simple, no rules or regulations, everyone responsible for themselves and their own actions.
I was on the Fra committee in the 1980 as as far as I can remember those values still applied. Gradually though in the past couple of decades things have drastically changed for reasons best known to those who felt that the Fra should be more than its original incarnation, to the point where we now have a 14 page document to mull over. Admittedly its certainly not the sport it was and things have happened along the way for fresh thought, my hope is that everyone is listened to carefully before implementing any of the new rules, and especially in my opinion the Race Organisers some of whom like Alan Greenwood for example have organised literally hundreds of fell races and have a wealth of knowledge to pass on.
Take me back to the old days please, where life, and Fell racing were so much simpler !
